Recommended reading: “There Is A God” (Antony Flew)
There Is A God : How The World’s Most Notorious Atheist Changed His Mind Flew (Antony G. Flew)
In There Is a God one of the world’s pre-eminent atheists discloses how his Socratic commitment to “follow the argument wherever it leads” led him to a belief in God as Creator. This is a compelling and refreshingly open-minded argument that will forever change the atheism debate.
A wave of modern atheists have taken center stage and brought the long-standing debate about the existence of God back into the headlines. Spearheaded by Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris, and Christopher Hitchens, this “new atheism” has found a powerful place in today’s culture. Although this movement has been billed as “new,” the foundation of its argument is indebted to philosopher Antony Flew and his groundbreaking paper Theology and Falsification (1950), the most widely reprinted philosophical publication of the last five decades.
Flew built his highly acclaimed academic career publicly debunking the existence of God. But before his death the renowned philosopher arrived at the opposite conclusion and officially joined the other side. With refreshing openness to argument and an absence of the anger and hostility that have been hallmarks of the “new atheism,” Flew shows how his Socratic commitment to following the argument wherever it leads resulted, to his own astonishment, in his conversion to belief in a creator God. Certain to be read and discussed for years to come, There Is a God will forever change the debate about the existence of God.
About the Author
Anthony G. Flew (1923-2010) was a hilosopher and former atheist. He set the agenda for modern atheism with his 1950 essay Theology and Falsification, which became the most widely reprinted philosophical publication of the last half century. Flew published over thirty books, including God and Philosophy, The Presumption of Atheism, How to Think Straight and most recently There is a God. He spent twenty years as professor of philosophy at the University of Keele and has also held positions at Oxford, the University of Aberdeen, and the University of Reading.
Roger’s comment:
I really enjoyed this book. It was engaging and interesting, and actually quite a relaxing read considering it’s subject matter. Well into his eighties when he published this book in 2007, Flew gives clear, cogent and well thought-out arguments for his eventual rejection of atheism in favour of, at least, a form of general deism, and at best a tentative and embryonic monotheism of the Judeo-Christian persuasion. For arrogant haters like Richard Dawkins to insult Flew with ageist ad hominem attacks regarding his change of mind does nothing but show the prejudice and intolerance of the New Atheism for dissenters, no matter how previously influential they were for the cause of atheism. This is a must-read for thinking Christians and authentic skeptics alike.