Paul Draper (philosopher)
Encyclopedia
Paul Draper is an American philosopher, most known for his work in the philosophy of religion
. He is currently a professor at Purdue University
.
He studied at the University of California
, graduating B.A. in 1979, M.A. in 1982 and Ph.D. in 1985. He taught philosophy at Florida International University
between 1987 and 2006, when he moved to Purdue University
.
Paul Draper is an editor of the academic journal
Philo
. His philosophical inquiry is focused on issues in the philosophy of religion
; he has written extensively on the problem of evil
, including the argument that the process of natural selection
is sufficiently brutal so as to pose a problem for those who believe in an omnipotent and morally good creator. He is currently editing a debate collection called God or Blind Nature? Philosophers Debate the Evidence, released as an e-book in 2007.
One of Draper's influential and widely-reprinted papers is "Pain and Pleasure: An Evidential Problem for Theists", published in the journal Noûs
in 1989. In it, Draper proposes a modification and extension of the "problem of evil" argument. Instead of claiming that the existence of evil logically contradicts theism
, he argues that the "hypothesis of indifference", which holds that should supernatural beings exist, they are indifferent to our suffering, better explains the existence of suffering. Since the hypothesis of indifference is logically incompatible with theism, he considers this an evidentiary problem for theism. The paper relies significantly on the use of epistemic probabilities, equivalent to those used in Bayesian reasoning
.
Philosophy of religion
Philosophy of religion is a branch of philosophy concerned with questions regarding religion, including the nature and existence of God, the examination of religious experience, analysis of religious language and texts, and the relationship of religion and science...
. He is currently a professor at Purdue University
Purdue University
Purdue University, located in West Lafayette, Indiana, U.S., is the flagship university of the six-campus Purdue University system. Purdue was founded on May 6, 1869, as a land-grant university when the Indiana General Assembly, taking advantage of the Morrill Act, accepted a donation of land and...
.
He studied at the University of California
University of California
The University of California is a public university system in the U.S. state of California. Under the California Master Plan for Higher Education, the University of California is a part of the state's three-tier public higher education system, which also includes the California State University...
, graduating B.A. in 1979, M.A. in 1982 and Ph.D. in 1985. He taught philosophy at Florida International University
Florida International University
Florida International University is an American public research university in metropolitan Miami, Florida, in the United States, with its main campus in University Park...
between 1987 and 2006, when he moved to Purdue University
Purdue University
Purdue University, located in West Lafayette, Indiana, U.S., is the flagship university of the six-campus Purdue University system. Purdue was founded on May 6, 1869, as a land-grant university when the Indiana General Assembly, taking advantage of the Morrill Act, accepted a donation of land and...
.
Paul Draper is an editor of the academic journal
Academic journal
An academic journal is a peer-reviewed periodical in which scholarship relating to a particular academic discipline is published. Academic journals serve as forums for the introduction and presentation for scrutiny of new research, and the critique of existing research...
Philo
Philo (journal)
Philo is a peer-reviewed academic journal with a focus on the discussion of philosophical issues from an explicitly naturalist perspective. The journal publishes articles, critical discussions, review essays, and book reviews in all fields of philosophy, and welcomes work on the philosophical...
. His philosophical inquiry is focused on issues in the philosophy of religion
Philosophy of religion
Philosophy of religion is a branch of philosophy concerned with questions regarding religion, including the nature and existence of God, the examination of religious experience, analysis of religious language and texts, and the relationship of religion and science...
; he has written extensively on the problem of evil
Problem of evil
In the philosophy of religion, the problem of evil is the question of how to explain evil if there exists a deity that is omnibenevolent, omnipotent, and omniscient . Some philosophers have claimed that the existences of such a god and of evil are logically incompatible or unlikely...
, including the argument that the process of natural selection
Natural selection
Natural selection is the nonrandom process by which biologic traits become either more or less common in a population as a function of differential reproduction of their bearers. It is a key mechanism of evolution....
is sufficiently brutal so as to pose a problem for those who believe in an omnipotent and morally good creator. He is currently editing a debate collection called God or Blind Nature? Philosophers Debate the Evidence, released as an e-book in 2007.
One of Draper's influential and widely-reprinted papers is "Pain and Pleasure: An Evidential Problem for Theists", published in the journal Noûs
Noûs
Noûs is a philosophy journal published four times per year by Blackwell Publishing. It was founded by Hector-Neri Castañeda and is currently edited by Ernest Sosa...
in 1989. In it, Draper proposes a modification and extension of the "problem of evil" argument. Instead of claiming that the existence of evil logically contradicts theism
Theism
Theism, in the broadest sense, is the belief that at least one deity exists.In a more specific sense, theism refers to a doctrine concerning the nature of a monotheistic God and God's relationship to the universe....
, he argues that the "hypothesis of indifference", which holds that should supernatural beings exist, they are indifferent to our suffering, better explains the existence of suffering. Since the hypothesis of indifference is logically incompatible with theism, he considers this an evidentiary problem for theism. The paper relies significantly on the use of epistemic probabilities, equivalent to those used in Bayesian reasoning
Bayesian probability
Bayesian probability is one of the different interpretations of the concept of probability and belongs to the category of evidential probabilities. The Bayesian interpretation of probability can be seen as an extension of logic that enables reasoning with propositions, whose truth or falsity is...
.