Proof That Smart People Can Defend Dumb Ideas

William Lane Craig spoke at the annual conventions of the Evangelical Theological and Philosophical Societies. Here is part of what he defended, in his own words:

I presented a well-attended lecture on the question “Is Uncertainty a Sound Foundation for Religious Tolerance?” My target here was certain philosophers who claim that religious tolerance should be based on two factors: (1) our grasp of moral principles which state that persecution of other religions is wrong and (2) uncertainty that one’s own religion is true. Such philosophers want to foster as much uncertainty about religious beliefs as they can and as much certainty about moral beliefs as they can as a way of increasing tolerance. I pointed out that this strategy backfires in a number of ways. In the first place, with respect to a religion like Christianity, which commands us to love our neighbor and even our enemy, it’s not uncertainty but certainty of that religion’s truth that will increase religious toleration. Fostering uncertainty about such a religion will actually decrease people’s motivation to be tolerant. In fact, for any religion which sees morality as based in God, undermining people’s belief in God will undermine their confidence in the very moral principles which state that persecution is wrong!