Podcast
Reasonable Doubts Podcast
Hosted by www.doubtcast.org · EN
Reasonable Doubts takes an informative and humorous look at religion from a freethinking perspective; offering news and commentary of interest to skeptics, atheists, agnostics, humanists, courageous religious believers looking for a challenge and freethinkers of all persuasions. In addition to interviewing the top minds in skepticism (former guests include Christopher Hitchens, Susan Jacoby, Paul Kurtz, Edward Tabash, DJ Grothe) RD offers regular segments on counter-apologetics, biblical criticism, creationism intelligent design and church state issues. RD also examines the psychology of religion, reviewing recent and exciting research you won't hear about anywhere else. Tune in for a hard-hitting critique of religion balanced by plenty of humor, a fair-minded attitude and a commitment to critical thinking. Check out our website at doubtcast.org for information, episode links or to email questions, comments and challenges. Reasonable Doubts...for those who won't just take things on faith.
11episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
139 What's Past is Prologue
Sep 21, 201502:01:00Tap to summarizeHere it is�the final episode of Reasonable Doubts, featuring new Counterapologetics, God Thinks Like You and Polyatheism segments mixed with goodbyes from our fans and outtakes from the past eight years of doubtcasting. Thank you to everyone who made this show what it was. Special thanks to Jonathan MS Pearce for the spoken word introduction to the show and to Hugh McDonald for allowing us to use his song "Schrodinger's Cat" for this episode.
Transcribe →rd138 Interview with Shelley Segal
Mar 29, 201500:42:16Tap to summarizeThis podcast features a previously unreleased interview with Australian Singer and Songwriter Shelley Segal. Shelly shares about her experience growing up in a conservative Jewish household and how her music naturally turned to turned to secular themes when she decided she was an atheist. She also performs two songs from "An Atheist Album."
Transcribe →rd137 Je Suis Charlie with guest Dan Fincke
Jan 25, 201501:17:35Tap to summarizeThis one is all about Charlie. Guest Dan Fincke defends free speach and the right to blaspheme. Dr. Galen examines the psychological root to religious extremism and the Enuma Elish is the subject of this episode's Polyatheism.
Transcribe →rd136 Freedom Isn't Free
Dec 15, 201401:23:08Tap to summarizeDale McGowan, executive director of the Foundation Beyond Belief talks about some of the exciting ways the organization plans to put humanist principles into action in 2015. Also, statistics on the public's attitudes towards the Christmas holiday, the John Templeton Foundation donates millions of dollars to philosophers who study free will and the Norse god Oden might just be the world's first Christmas ornament.
Transcribe →RD Extra: Brayton v Schmig - Was the U.S. Founded on Christianity?
Dec 2, 201401:09:22Tap to summarizeIs the US Government Founded on the Christian Religion? Ed Brayton is the founder and owner of the Freethought Blogs network and the voice behind the popular blog Dispatches from the Culture Wars. He is the co-founder and past president of Michigan Citizens for Science and the recipient of the Friend of Darwin Award from the National Center for Science Education and has appeared on The Rachel Maddow Show, The Thom Hartmann Show, and C-SPAN. Ed is also a current member of CFI Advisory Board. Ed brayton will be arguing “That the government of the United States is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion. Arguing against that resolution is Dr. Tim Schmig, the Executive Director for the Michigan Association of Christian Schools. Tim Schmig has taught High School History, Social Studies, Government and Economics for 5 years in two different Christian Schools. He holds a Doctorate of Literature in Ministry from Maranatha Baptist Bible College.Tim spends much time in Washington D.C. and Lansing meeting with elected officials and has earned respect and garnered influence on both sides of the political aisle. The debate took place November 12, 2014 at CFI Michigan in Grand Rapids. Thanks to Ed Brayton and CFI michigan for letting us share this debate, and special thanks to Mike Slomka for helping capture the audio. Reasonable Doubts will be back with another regular format episode on December 15th.
Transcribe →RD Extra: Lowder v Vandergriff - Metaphysical Naturalism or Christian Theism? Where Does the Evidence Point?
Nov 15, 201401:42:18Tap to summarizeThis RD Extra features a debate, hosted by the Reasonable Doubts Podcast, between Jeffery Jay Lowder and Kevin Vandergriff on "Metaphysical Naturalism or Christian Theism? Where Does the Evidence Point?"
Transcribe →rd135 Pain and Paradox
Oct 29, 201401:35:15Tap to summarizePhysical pain plays an important biological role, but should we expect it to in a world created by God? Also, a recent paper in the journal cognition posits distinct cognitive attitudes underlying religious belief and factual reasoning, but is the evidence from cognitive science and philosophy sufficient to support this claim?
Transcribe →rd134 Coming Out Atheist
Oct 7, 201401:15:11Tap to summarizeMany non-theists keep their doubts hidden for fear of losing friends and love ones. But remaining in the closet also has drawbacks: stress, hypocrisy, the oppression of silence and fear of being found out. Despite the risks, those who've made the decision to be open about their atheism almost never regret it. Luckily, doubters do not need to make this important decision on their own. Greta Christina (FTB blogger and author of Why Are You Atheists So Angry) conducted over 400 interviews with non-theists about their experiences of leaving the closet. Along the way she discovered that differing circumstances call for different coming-out strategies. Her latest book Coming Out Atheist: How to Do It, How to Help, and Why?--distills this wisdom into clear and compassionate strategies for preserving important relationships while being open about your doubts.
Transcribe →rd133 Your God Detector is Busted
Sep 23, 201401:16:29Tap to summarizeOur cognitive faculties evolved to help us detect agents in our environment and to predict the content of their minds but those same faculties also generate beliefs in supernatural minds and divine agents. While this seems to suggest that religious intuitions are untrustworthy by-products of ordinary cognitive processes, Cognitive psychologists like Justin Barrett argue the existence of these "god-faculties" in the brain should not make the atheist more comfortable with their skepticism. In fact, Barrett believes they actually provide a defeater for atheism.
Transcribe →rd132 Euthyphro's Revenge
Sep 9, 201401:24:37Tap to summarizeDoes God approve actions because they are good? Or is an action good because God approves it? Euthyphro's Dilemma is perhaps the oldest challenge to a theistic conception of morality, but many modern philosophers of religion believe the dilemma to be a false one. While the traditional formulation of the dilemma may have an answer, Socrates' challenge lives on in a new form.
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