William Lane Craig

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William Lane Craig (born August 23, 1949) is an American philosopher, theologian, New Testament historian, and Christian apologist. He is a prolific author and lecturer on a wide range of issues related to the philosophy of religion, the historical Jesus, the coherence of the Christian worldview, and natural theology. He is married and lives in Atlanta, Georgia, and is currently a Research Professor of Philosophy at Talbot School of Theology, Biola University in La Mirada, California.

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[edit] Education and career

Craig grew up in Keokuk, Iowa and was raised in a non-religious family. He became an evangelical Christian at the age of 16 and his vocation and academic studies have reflected his commitment to Christian beliefs within the Protestant Evangelical tradition. In theological commitments he holds to a Middle Knowledge/Molinist view of the role of human will in conversion. He has had friendly connections with para-church ministries such as Campus Crusade for Christ and Christian International Ministries (Europe).

In his early studies, Craig was influenced by the writings of Francis Schaeffer, Edward John Carnell, and Stuart Hackett, the latter of whom Craig studied under.

Craig's tertiary education commenced at Wheaton College, Illinois where he graduated in 1971 with a B.A. degree. He then proceeded to post-graduate studies at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, Deerfield, Illinois, where he graduated with two M.A. degrees in 1974 and 1975 respectively.

In 1977 Craig earned a doctorate in philosophy under John Hick at the University of Birmingham and then in 1984 was awarded a doctorate in theology under Wolfhart Pannenberg at the University of Munich. Following his doctoral studies, he was a Fellow of the Alexander von Humboldt Stiftung.

From 1980-86 he was a visiting professor of Philosophy at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. He also briefly held the position of associate professor of Religious Studies at Westmont College, Santa Barbara, California in 1986. Between 1987-1994 Craig pursued further research at the University of Louvain, Belgium.

As a philosopher, Craig has vigorously defended Christian theism, both at the popular level and in academic publications. He is often credited with reviving the Kalam cosmological argument for the existence of God, which argues for a first cause from the finitude of past events and the origin of the cosmos. In Theory of Relativity he argues for the existence of an absolute frame of reference in Neo-Lorentzian interpretation, for philosopical and theological reasons.

He is also a fellow of the Discovery Institute's Center for Science and Culture which is the hub of the intelligent design movement. It should be noted that Craig himself has not entered into debates relating to evolutionary biology, preferring instead to write on matters pertaining to philosophy, physics, and Big Bang cosmology. His work in philosophy has influenced other apologists, notably Francis Beckwith and J. P. Moreland, both of whom are also affiliated with the Discovery Institute.

As a New Testament scholar, Craig has published widely on the historicity of the resurrection accounts of Jesus. Like N.T. Wright and Gary Habermas, Craig has argued that the bodily resurrection of Jesus best explains what can be gleaned from the historical Jesus’ self-understanding, his death and burial, the posthumous apparitions of Jesus, and the origin of the early Christian movement.

Craig has edited, authored, or co-authored over thirty books and over a hundred articles in professional journals. [1] He is a frequent public speaker and debater on university campuses and he occasionally appears in the national news media. He has engaged many prominent academic atheists and liberal theologians in public dialogue. Some of these debates have been subsequently published as books; these include:

In March of 2006, Craig and New Testament scholar Bart D. Ehrman engaged in a debate entitled "Is There Historical Evidence for the Resurrection of Jesus?" on the campus of the College of the Holy Cross, with Craig arguing in the affirmative and Ehrman arguing in opposition to the affirmative. In one rebuttal, Craig used Bayes' Theorem to counter Ehrman's argument against miracles. Following the event, Ehrman's publisher, along with Craig, expressed interest in publishing the transcript in book form. However, Ehrman declined. [2] [3] [4] In June of 2006, a transcript of the debate was made available on the college's website. [5]

Craig has been critical of philosophical naturalism, logical positivism, moral relativism, liberal theology, and the Jesus Seminar. He has defended the middle knowledge view of divine providence and is also notable for his work in the philosophy of time. He is a founding member and has served as president of the Philosophy of Time Society.

[edit] Bibliography

  • Apologetics: An Introduction (Chicago: Moody Press, 1984).
  • Assessing the New Testament Evidence for the Historicity of the Resurrection of Jesus (Lewiston, New York/Queenston, Ontario: Edwin Mellen Press, 1989).
  • "The Bodily Resurrection of Jesus," in Gospel Perspectives: Studies of History and Tradition in the Four Gospels, Vol. 1, R.T.France and David Wenham, eds. (Sheffield: JSOT Press, 1980), pp. 47-74.
  • Cosmological Argument from Plato to Leibniz(London: MacMillan/New York: Barnes and Noble, 1980).
  • and Paul Copan, "Craftsman or Creator? An Examination of the Mormon Doctrine of Creation and a Defense of Creatio ex nihilo," in The New Mormon Challenge, Francis J. Beckwith, Carl Mosser and Paul Owen, eds. (Grand rapids: Zondervan, 2002), pp. 95-152.
  • and Paul Copan,Creation out of Nothing: Its Biblical, Philosophical, and Scientific Exploration (Leicester: Apollos/Grand Rapids: Baker, 2004).
  • with Gregory Boyd, et al), Divine Foreknowledge: 4 Views, James K. Beilby and Paul R. Eddy, eds. (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2001).
  • Divine Foreknowledge and Human Freedom (Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1991).
  • and Antony Flew, Does God Exist: The Craig-Flew Debate, Stan W. Wallace, ed. (Aldershot/Burlington: Ashgate, 2003).
  • "The Empty Tomb of Jesus," in Gospel Perspectives: Studies of History and Tradition in the Four Gospels, Vol. 2, R.T.France and David Wenham, eds. (Sheffield: JSOT Press, 1981), pp. 173-200.
  • The Existence of God and the Beginning of the Universe(San Bernadino: Here's Life, 1979).
  • "Classical Apologetics" in Five Views on Apologetics, Steven B. Cowan, ed. (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2000), pp. 26-55.
  • "Did Jesus Rise from the Dead?" in Jesus Under Fire, Michael J. Wilkins and J. P. Moreland, eds. (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1995), pp. 141-176.
  • and Walter Sinnott-Armstrong,God? A Debate Between a Christian and an Atheist (Oxford/New York: Oxford University Press, 2004).
  • God, Time and Eternity: The Coherence of Theism II (Dordrecht: Kluwer, 2001).
  • with Paul Helm, et al), God Under Fire, Douglas S. Huffman and Eric L. Johnson, eds. (Grand rapids: Zondervan, 2002).
  • Hard Questions, Real Answers(Wheaton: Crossway Books, 2003).
  • The Historical Argument for the Resurrection of Jesus During the Deist Controversy (Lewiston, New York/Queenston, Ontario: Edwin Mellen Press, 1985).
  • and Gerd Ludemann, Jesus' Resurrection: Fact or Figment? A Debate Between William Lane Craig and Gerd Ludemann, Paul Copan and Ronald K. Tacelli, eds. (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2000).
  • The Kalam Cosmological Argument(London: MacMillan/New York: Barnes and Noble, 1979).
  • Knowing the Truth About the Resurrection (Ann Arbor: Servant, 1988).
  • and Mark S. McLeod, eds. The Logic of Rational Theism: Exploratory Essays (Lewiston, New York/Queenston, Ontario: Edwin Mellen Press, 1990).
  • "Middle Knowledge, A Calvinist-Arminian Rapprochement?" in The Grace of God, The Will of Man, Clark H. Pinnock, ed. (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1989), pp. 141-164.
  • and J. P. Moreland, eds. Naturalism: A Critical Analysis (Routledge Studies in Twentieth Century Philosophy)(London/New York: Routledge, 2000).
  • No Easy Answers: Finding Hope in Doubt, Failure and Unanswered Prayer (Chicago: Moody Press, 1990).
  • The Only Wise God: The Compatibility of Divine Foreknowledge & Human Freedom(Grand Rapids: Baker, 1987).
  • and J. P. Moreland, Philosophical Foundations for a Christian Worldview (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2003).
  • ed., Philosophy of Religion: A Reader and Guide(Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2001/New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press, 2002).
  • The Problem of Divine Foreknowledge and Future Contingents from Aristotle to Suarez: The Coherence of Theism: Omniscience(Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1988).
  • "The Problem of Miracles: A Historical and Philosophical Perspective," in Gospel Perspectives: The Miracles of Jesus, Vol. 6, David Wenham and Craig L. Blomberg, eds. (Sheffield: JSOT Press, 1986), pp. 9-48.
  • Reasonable Faith: Christian Truth and Apologetics (Westchester: Crossway Books, 1994).
  • The Son Rises: Historical evidence for the resurrection of Jesus (Chicago: Moody Press, 1981).
  • The Tensed Theory of Time: A Critical Examination (Dordrecht: Kluwer, 2000).
  • The Tenseless Theory of Time - A Critical Examination(Dordrecht: Kluwer, 2000).
  • and Quentin Smith,Theism, Atheism, and Big Bang Cosmology (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1993).
  • Time and Eternity: Exploring God's Relationship to Time(Wheaton: Crossway Books, 2001).
  • ed., Time and The Metaphysics of Relativity (Dordrecht: Kluwer, 2001).
  • and Francis J. Beckwith and J. P. Moreland, eds., To Everyone an Answer: A Case for the Christian Worldview: Essays in Honor of Norman Geisler(Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2004).
  • and John Dominic Crossan, Will the Real Jesus Please Stand Up? A Debate Between William Lane Craig and John Dominic Crossan, Paul Copan, ed. (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1998).

[edit] External links

[edit] Critical Assessments

  • Kenneth D. Boa and Robert M. Bowman, Faith Has Its Reasons: An Integrative Approach to Defending Christianity (Colorado Springs: NAV Press, 2001), pp. 81-84.
  • William J. Wainwright, Book Review: The Kalam Cosmological Argument, Nous, 16 (1982), pp. 328-334.
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