1/20/2010

The Challenge


     I've decided to climb a mountain of literature, hopefully within a year. I might have to squeeze two or three years into this, but we'll see how it goes. Lukeprog at Common Sense Atheism has written a post called the Ultimate Truth Seeker Challenge. Go read the post so you get the general idea, I'll wait.
     Now I know this might seem a little silly or pointless, depending on your view of the world and the nature of truth. Some people would probably add, or take away, different books. It's a challenge though, and I want to give it a shot. I don't expect to be any sort of expert when I'm done. I do expect to be able to at least have a better idea of my beliefs, and maybe be a little more eloquent in describing them.
     The tricky part is I can't read the books in order. It all depends on the library, ordering, and when things arrive. I don't have the time to blog through each book, but I might at least write an entry after I finish each one. I'll keep a notebook handy as I'm reading too, just so I don't forget everything.
     I've made up a list of the books and the status of each. If you're in the Edmonton area and you want to read these too, I have an online library list. You can see which ones they have in stock. If anyone feels like donating any of the books, I would not say no. As well, if anyone wants to read them too, let me know, maybe we could discuss the books together as we go.
Cheers,
Scott
PS - If someone had strong objections to a book, thinking there was a much better one to be put in it's place, I am open to discussion.



Library Has in Stock /On Order:
Guy P. Harrison (354 pages, beginner, skeptical)
Peter Kreeft / Ronald K Tracelli (406 pages, beginner, apologetic)
William Lane Craig (416 pages, intermediate, apologetic)
Robert Price (279 pages, intermediate, skeptical)
Greg Boyd & Paul Eddy (480 pages, intermediate, apologetic)
Richard Carrier (444 pages, intermediate, skeptical)
Michael Martin (256 pages, advanced, skeptical)
Richard Swinburne (376 pages, advanced, apologetic)
 
Library Is Not Ordering; Trying Through Inter-Library Loans Department:
J.P. Moreland & William Lane Craig
J.P. Moreland (288 pages, advanced, apologetic)
Robin Le Poidevin (184, pages, advanced, skeptical)
Gregory Dawes (222 pages, advanced, skeptical)
Nicholas Everitt (352 pages, advanced, skeptical)
Paul Copan & others
Graham Oppy (472 pages, advanced, skeptical)
William Lane Craig & others (704 pages, advanced, apologetic)
Jordan Howard Sobel (676 pages, advanced, skeptical)


Library Is Trying to Order:
12 - In Defense of Natural Theology: A Post-humean Assessment :
James F. Sennett & others (336 pages, advanced, apologetic)
Michael Martin (541 pages, advanced, skeptical)
 
Have Asked Library to Order:
J.L. Mackie (278 pages, advanced, skeptical)
Michael J. Murray & others (429 pages, advanced, apologetic)
Paul Copan & others (304 pages, advanced, apologetic)
 
Can try to order at later date:
John W. Loftus (385 pages, intermediate, skeptical)
Published in April 27, 2010


Already Own:
Alvin Plantiga (528 pages, advanced, apologetic)

3 comments:

  1. Interesting, although it seems a little, um, two-sided. A couple of suggestions to replace what you can't get a hold of would be Alain Badiou's "Saint Paul: The Foundation of Universalism" and Slavoj Zizek's "The Puppet and the Dwarf" both relatively short books (although extremely advanced) as atheists who interact with 'religion' (specifically Christianity). I would also suggest some Derrida, to counterbalance a little, but he is also notoriously difficult to read.
    Looks like an ambitious project though, hope it is worth it.
    Ryan

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks Ryan, I was hoping you would comment. I figured you would have some issues with the list.
    I also hope it's worth it.
    Thanks for the input. I'll see about those books.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I would suggest that you have a look at some of the works here:

    http://www.historicalapologetics.com

    Consider this a donation.

    ReplyDelete