Thinking Christianly

In this episode, we drill down further into how the Realist/Nominalist debate shapes our understanding of God with special guest and expert, Dr. Paul Gould. In this podcast, we discuss: What is “Divine Conceptualism” and how does it relate to Moderate Realism? What are some of the intellectual resources we gain when we hold Platonist ideas about abstract objects and traditional theist understandings about God’s nature? How does distinguishing the two types of creation help us understand God’s creative activity? Where do distinctions about Platonic and Aristotelian thought help us sort through what we can know about reality? How does “Divine Exemplarism” help us make sense of difficult passages in Scripture? How can we make sense of the concept of “Divine Simplicity” without falling into incoherence? What is the concept of “Divine Aseity” and what requirements does it actually place on our ideas about God’s nature? Resources mentioned during our conversation: The first episode in this series: #45 – What Makes Things What They Are? The Realist/Nominalist Debate, Part 1 The second episode in the series: #46 – Good Reasons to Believe in Things We Can’t See: The Realism/Nominalism Debate, Part 2 The third episode in this series: #47: The Beliefs, Distinctions, and Cultural Impact of Nominalism: The Realism/Nominalism Debate, Part 3 Recommended resources: To find out more about Paul Gould and his work, please visit his website – Paul Gould J. P. Moreland and William Lane Craig, Philosophical Foundations for a Christian Worldview, chapter on Properties Garrett J. DeWeese and J. P. Moreland, Philosophy Made Slightly Less Difficult: A Beginner’s Guide to Life’s Big Questions, chapter on Properties J. P. Moreland, Love Your God with All Your Mind: The Role of Reason in the Life of the Soul

In this episode, we continue exploring realism and nominalism by taking a deeper look into Nominalist beliefs. In this podcast, we discuss: What does a person mean when they say they are a nominalist? How is nominalism a contributing factor to current cultural beliefs? What are the major distinctions within nominalism? How do moderate and extreme nominalists understand properties? What are the challenges inherent in these ideas? Why would a person be inclined to hold nominalist views? How do we engage in this discussion with fellow Christians? Resources mentioned during our conversation: Stan Wallace, “Three Reasons to Believe in Things You Can’t See,” (four-part series) The first episode in this series: #45 – What Makes Things What They Are? The Realist/Nominalist Debate, Part 1 The second episode in the series: #46 – Good Reasons to Believe in Things We Can’t See: The Realism/Nominalism Debate, Part 2 Recommended resources: P. Moreland and William Lane Craig, Philosophical Foundations for a Christian Worldview, chapter on Properties Garrett J. DeWeese and J. P. Moreland, Philosophy Made Slightly Less Difficult: A Beginner’s Guide to Life’s Big Questions, chapter on Properties JP Moreland, Love Your God with All Your Mind: The Role of Reason in the Life of the Soul 

In this episode, we continue exploring the differences between Realism and Nominalism by discussing good reasons to hold a Realist perspective. In this podcast, we discuss: What good reasons do we have to believe in abstract objects that we cannot see? How is it that we are intuitively aware of things we cannot see? Why do we naturally group things together? Is this “seeing” the universal they all share? What are relations? Are they real? Can we see them? What were some of the ideas that early modern empiricists got right? What kinds of theological problems do we bump into when we reject realism? Resources mentioned during our conversation: Stan Wallace, “Three Reasons to Believe in Things You Can’t See,” (four-part series) The first episode in this series: #45 – What Makes Things What They Are? The Realist/Nominalist Debate Recommended resources: J.P. Moreland and William Lane Craig, Philosophical Foundations for a Christian Worldview, chapter on Properties Garrett J. DeWeese and J. P. Moreland, Philosophy Made Slightly Less Difficult: A Beginner’s Guide to Life’s Big Questions, chapter on Properties Scott Smith, The The Dangers of Nominalism, on The Kirkwood Center Podcast

#45 – What Makes Things What They Are? The Realist/Nominalist Debate In this episode, we kick off a series discussing the most fundamental issue underlying all other questions: what makes things what they are? How does a proper understanding help us live well and flourish in our world? In this podcast, we discuss: Defining the two options: realism (universals exist) and nominalism (universals don’t exist) What is God’s relationship to universals? Is this a threat to His uniqueness? How does thinking well about this issue help us grow in the knowledge and love of God? Resources mentioned during our conversation: Stan Wallace, Have We Lost Our Minds? Pitirim Sorokin, The Crisis of Our Age (archive edition) Paul Gould, Beyond the Control of God? Six Views on The Problem of God and Abstract Objects Recommended resources: J. P. Moreland and William Lane Craig, Philosophical Foundations for a Christian Worldview Garrett J. DeWeese and J. P. Moreland, Philosophy Made Slightly Less Difficult: A Beginner’s Guide to Life’s Big Questions Scott Smith, Dangers of Nominalism: An Interview

In this episode, we continue our series by discussing the final chapter of Stan’s new book, Have We Lost Our Minds?: Neuroscience, Neurotheology, the Soul, and Human Flourishing. In this podcast, we discuss:  How does understanding what people are help us in proclaiming the Good News? How can we avoid the two extremes of only caring for the body or only caring for the soul in missional contexts? What does it mean to have confidence or trust in a belief? How does faith relate to certainty? How does a commitment to holistic dualism help us avoid dehumanizing others? How can holistic dualism help us integrate our faith and our professions? Resources mentioned during our conversation: Find out more about Have We Lost Our Minds? Get the introduction to the book for free on the Global Scholars website. A printable group discussion guide to Stan’s book can be found here.

In this episode, we continue our series by discussing Chapter 9 of Stan’s new book, Have We Lost Our Minds?: Neuroscience, Neurotheology, the Soul, and Human Flourishing. In this episode, we discuss: What problems arise when we reduce spiritual formation to just the physical What problems arise when we reduce spiritual formation to just the immaterial How we should understand the unity of the body and soul as it relates to spiritual formation What it looks like to take a both/and approach to spiritual formation in our lives How this topic has impacted our churches How Dallas Willard’s model of growth in Christ differs from what neurotheologians offer God’s role and our role in spiritual formation Resources mentioned during our conversation: Find out more about Have We Lost Our Minds? Get the introduction to the book for free on the Global Scholars website. A printable group discussion guide to Stan’s book can be found here.  

In this episode, we continue our series by engaging Chapters 7 and 8 of Stan’s new book, Have We Lost Our Minds?: Neuroscience, Neurotheology, the Soul, and Human Flourishing.   In this episode, we discuss: What is the difference between valuing science and scientism? Was Dallas Willard a neurotheologian? Does neurotheology help people grow in Christlikeness? For the sake of simplicity, why not just understand persons as material beings? How can the body and soul interact if they are such different types of things? Wait, does this mean animals also have souls? Is that Biblical?   Resources mentioned during our conversation: Find out more about Have We Lost Our Minds? Get the introduction to the book for free on the Global Scholars website. A printable group discussion guide to Stan’s book can be found here. Thinking Christianly Episode #32: Having Better Conversations by Avoiding Logical Fallacies Thinking Christianly Episode #40: “The Unity of the Soul and Body”: Chapter 6 of Have We Lost Our Minds?

In this episode we continue our series discussing Stan’s recent book Have We Lost Our Minds?, exploring the book’s themes with neuroscientist and apologist Sharon Dirckx, Ph.D. In this episode, we discuss: In what ways do we talk about the brain doing what persons do? How did Sharon’s experience in brain imaging research help her conclude that we are more than just our brains? What is the role of honest and open dialogue in finding truth in this and all other important areas? How does acknowledging the first-person perspective as a way of knowing change the conversation about mind-brain relations? Are there studies in neuroscience that suggest a soul? What are the most compelling objections to holistic dualism from the neuroscientific perspective? How could thinking Christians respond to these objections? Resources mentioned during our conversation: Sharon Dirckx, Am I Just My Brain? Find out more about Dr. Sharon Dirckx’s work on her website and through the Oxford Centre for Christian Apologetics Find out more about Have We Lost Our Minds? Get the introduction to the book for free on the Global Scholars website. A printable group discussion guide can be found here. Thinking Christianly Episode #21: A Case Study in Thinking Christianly and Making a Difference: Edmund Husserl Thinking Christianly Episode #22: The Importance of Legacy: More Lessons from the Life of Edmund Husserl Premier Unbelievable?: Iain McGilchrist & Sharon Dirckx • Brain science, consciousness & God Michael Egnor and Denyse O’Leary, The Immortal Mind: A Neurosurgeon’s Case for the Existence of the Soul Additional Resources:  Sharon Dirckx, “Christ Renews our Minds, not Our Brains“, Christianity Today, August 18, 2025

In this episode, we continue our series by engaging Chapter 6 of Stan’s new book, Have We Lost Our Minds?: Neuroscience, Neurotheology, the Soul, and Human Flourishing. In this episode, we discuss: What is the nature of the relationship between the body and soul? Do ears hear? How can we understand the way souls and bodies interact? What are the key differences between the various kinds of dualism? What is traducianism, and how is it different from creationism? What are some of the implications of holistic dualism in how we understand health? How should we understand the context of the conversations about the relationship of the body and the soul? What can Christian thinkers do to engage this topic well? Why do theologically trained scholars tend to have a difficult time with substance dualism? Resources mentioned during our conversation: Find out more about Have We Lost Our Minds? Get the introduction to the book for free on the Global Scholars website. A printable group discussion guide can be found here. Thinking Christianly Episode #7: What is the Soul, and Why Should We Care? (Part 1) Thinking Christianly Episode #8: What is the Soul, and Why Should We Care? (Part 2) P. Moreland, Finding Quiet: My Struggle of Overcoming Anxiety and the Practices that Brought Peace Lesslie Newbigin, Foolishness to the Greeks: The Gospel in Western Culture

In this episode, we continue our series by engaging Chapter 5 of Stan’s new book, Have We Lost Our Minds?: Neuroscience, Neurotheology, the Soul, and Human Flourishing. We discuss: What is an “individuated human nature,” and why is each of these words important? Natures have capacities; the ability to manifest a capacity is a faculty. What kinds of faculties do humans have? What makes human consciousness unique? How can asking “What is it like?” questions help engage people in conversation about the soul? How do our human faculties interact? How do studies on near-death (or after-death!) experiences help us understand the nature of the soul? What does it mean to be a substance that has properties?   Resources and Citations: Find out more about Have We Lost Our Minds? Get the introduction to the book for free on the Global Scholars website. A printable group discussion guide can be found here. The Lausanne Movement’sThe Seoul Statement, Preamble to Section IV: “The Human Person: The Image of God Created and Restored” Thinking Christianly Episode #7: What is a Soul and Why Should We Care? (Part 1) Thinking Christianly Episode #8: What is a Soul and Why Should We Care? (Part 2) John Burke, Imagine Heaven: Near-Death Experiences, God’s Promises, and the Exhilarating Future That Awaits You Gary Habermas & J.P. Moreland, Beyond Death: Exploring the Evidence for Immortality Dallas Willard, The Divine Conspiracy

In this episode, we continue our series by engaging Chapter 4 of Stan’s new book, Have We Lost Our Minds?: Neuroscience, Neurotheology, the Soul, and Human Flourishing. We discuss: Why neurotheologians are mistaken about our true nature. Why it isn’t possible to reduce mental properties to physical events. How we should understand our unity through time. How the modal argument helps us understand identity. Why non-reductive physicalism or “emergence” is of no help to the physicalist position. What a “brute fact” is. What did Dallas Willard meant when he talked about the nature of the body. Thoughts on human flourishing and why it matters.   Resources and Citations: Find out more about Have We Lost Our Minds? Get the introduction to the book for free on the Global Scholars website. A printable group discussion guide can be found here. P. Moreland, “Substance Dualism and the Unity of Consciousness”: The Blackwell Companion to Substance Dualism Gary W. Moon, Becoming Dallas Willard: The Formation of a Philosopher, Teacher, and Christ Follower Thinking Christianly Episode #6: What is Human Flourishing and How Do We Achieve it?

J.P. rejoins the podcast! In this episode, he shares good news about his health and reflects on why he was eager to write the Foreword to Have We Lost Our Minds?: Neuroscience, Neurotheology, the Soul, and Human Flourishing. We discuss: J.P.’s health journey over the last few months How Christians have contributed to the secularization of culture The importance of the conversation about what it means to be human Why the arguments in Stan’s book have personal meaning for J.P. The importance of responsible scholarship, especially as Christians The crucial difference between acknowledging a “soul” and acknowledging a “substantial soul”   Resources and Citations: Find out more about Have We Lost Our Minds? Get the introduction to the book for free on the Global Scholars website. A printable group discussion guide can be found here. Brandon Rickabaugh and J.P. Moreland, The Substance of Consciousness: A Comprehensive Defense of Contemporary Substance Dualism. Stan Wallace, “Continuing the Conversation: Clarifying the Central Ideas of Have We Lost Our Minds?” The Lausanne Movement’sThe Seoul Statement, Preamble to Section IV: “The Human Person: The Image of God Created and Restored”

In this episode, we continue our series by engaging Chapter 3 of Stan’s new book, Have We Lost Our Minds? Neuroscience, Neurotheology, the Soul, and Human Flourishing. In this episode, we discuss: What do neurotheologians get wrong about identity? How can understanding identity help us understand neural events and mental events? What properties belong to the mind that do not belong to the brain? What are the key differences between reductive and non-reductive physicalism? Does the physicalist anthropology make a difference in how we view human persons?    Resources and Citations: Find out more about Have We Lost Our Minds? Get the introduction to the book for free on the Global Scholars website. A printable group discussion guide can be found here.

In this episode, we continue our series by engaging Chapter 2 of Stan’s new book, Have We Lost Our Minds?: Neuroscience, Neurotheology, the Soul, and Human Flourishing. In this episode, we discuss: What are the key passages related to the topic of Biblical anthropology? What is the difference between an ontological unity and a functional unity of body and soul? What witness does church history give to this topic? Where did “neurotheology” go wrong in explaining the nature of the human person? What is our soul doing when it is no longer united with the body? Resources and Citations: John W. Cooper, Body, Soul, and Life Everlasting: Biblical Anthropology and the Monism-Dualism Debate John Burke, Imagine Heaven: Near-Death Experiences, God’s Promises, and the Exhilarating Future That Awaits You Find out more about Have We Lost Our Minds? Get the introduction to the book for free on the Global Scholars website. A printable group discussion guide can be found here.

In this episode, we continue our series by engaging Chapter 1 of Stan’s new book, Have We Lost Our Minds?: Neuroscience, Neurotheology, the Soul, and Human Flourishing. In this episode, we discuss: Why is it critical that Christians acknowledge well-done science? What are some implications of the assertion that the brain is fundamentally what we are? The difference between Dallas Willard’s “VIM” model and Jim Wilder’s version. Tips for listeners who want to be more aware of places where they have absorbed Physicalist assumptions. What can we know about what we are? Where does that information come from?   Resources and Citations: Find out more about Have We Lost Our Minds? Get the introduction to the book for free on the Global Scholars website. A printable group discussion guide can be found here.

In this episode, we kick off a new series by engaging the introduction of Stan’s new book, Have We Lost Our Minds?: Neuroscience, Neurotheology, the Soul, and Human Flourishing. In this episode, we discuss: Why did Stan write this book? What is “neurotheology”? Is it helpful for Christians? How can we think well about the central question, “What are we?” What motivated the departure from traditional Christian beliefs about the soul? What experiences and relationships shaped Stan’s perspective on this topic? How can listeners get involved in this conversation? Resources and Citations: Find out more about Have We Lost Our Minds? Get the introduction to the book for free on the Global Scholars website. A printable group discussion guide can be found here.

J.P, Stan, and Jordan discuss how to have better conversations. They discuss how three informal fallacies (the Red Herring Fallacy, the Genetic Fallacy, and the Ad Hominem Fallacy) can shut down healthy dialogue and how to develop habits that help us avoid using them. In this episode, we discuss: What is an informal logical fallacy? What does the Red Herring Fallacy sound like in a conversation? Practical ways to get a conversation back on track What is the Genetic Fallacy? How can we avoid using it? How do we evaluate ideas fairly, even if we don’t like the person? What is the Ad Hominem Fallacy and how does it sabotage conversations? How is the Ad Hominem Fallacy related to the Tu Quoque Fallacy? Tips to encourage understanding in conversations and when to disengage Making the distinction between “nice” and “kind” in best loving our neighbor Resources and References: Koh Ewe, “The Ultimate Election Year: All the Elections Around the World in 2024,” Time Magazine A quick video explaining many informal fallacies Stan Wallace, “Three Ways to Shut Down Healthy Conversations” Wireless Philosophy, Lessons and quizzes on several informal fallacies via Khan Academy. The Winsom Conviction Project Podcase

Stan, JP, and Jordan delved deeper into the concepts of libertarian free will, compatibilism, and determinism, extending their discussion beyond theological topics to many other important issues.   In this episode, we discuss: Implications of our understanding of freedom related to law and politics The difference between freedom and determinism in the social sciences Understanding counseling in light of our free will How understanding the nature of free will helps us grow in Christ Free will as a reason to believe we have a soul The theme of hope and redemption in Scripture, and why this should inform our views on freedom   Resources and References: John Seale, The National Endowment for the Humanities Mass Shootings: The Role of the Media in Promoting Generalized Imitation Peggy Noonan, “We’re More Than Political Animals” – Wall Street Journal Thinking Christianly #19: Finding Quiet When Experiencing Anxiety and Depression Dallas Willard, The Spirit of the Disciplines

In a gracious spirit J.P., Stan, and Jordan discuss the points of agreement and disagreement between the Calvinist and Arminian views of salvation (summarized in Calvinist theology by the acronym TULIP). This good-faith conversation will help listeners consider the implications of these beliefs, especially as they relate to our understanding of God’s nature, our nature, and the gospel message.*  In this podcast, we discuss: The TULIP acronym: where did it come from and what it does it mean? Total Depravity: what is the difference between the extensive and intensive effects of depravity? Unconditional Election: what does it mean to say God loves us? Limited Atonement: what is the difference between a four or five-point Calvinist? Is the doctrine of Limited Atonement logically consistent with the whole of Calvinism? Irresistible Grace: Is there evidence to support this position in Scripture? Perseverance of the Saints: What is the difference between this and eternal security? Resources and references: The Canons of Dort Roger E. Olson, Arminian Theology: Myths and Realities Stan Wallace, “Predestination or Free Will?” John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion (1960 ed) *As always, the views expressed are those of the participants, and not necessarily those of the podcast’s sponsor Global Scholars. However, Global Scholars does encourage the study and discussion of important issues from the vantage points of theology, philosophy, and other related disciplines, as occurs in this podcast.

This is our first episode in a series about Free Will, Compatibilism, and Determinism. Stan, JP, and Jordan start by clearing up some of the major confusions that plague this conversation. They share how to have this discussion with clarity and keep the focus on the claims and avoid confusion. They also spot some ideas about Free Will, Compatibilism, and Determinism “in the wild.”    In this podcast, we discuss: What does it mean to be “free”? What are the major ideological camps in this conversation? Does the Compatibilist view of antinomy solve this logical problem? What are the most important distinctions in the Free Will and Determinism conversation? Where are the major pitfalls in this discussion? Where should we start the conversation if we want to gain understanding? What would evidence for Libertarian Free Will look like? A quiz and clues for JP and Stan on how to decipher what ideology an author or other content creator is communicating.   Resources and references: William Lane Craig discusses his work on Systematic Philosophical Theology P. Moreland, Finding Quiet: My Struggle of Overcoming Anxiety and the Practices that Brought Peace Wilder Graves Penfield – A Brief Biography John Steinbeck, East of Eden