Ebook
Among all the arguments for the existence of God there may be none more personal and intimate than C. S. Lewis’s Argument from Desire. This book attempts to explain what the Argument from Desire is and why we believe that the argument is an inductively strong one. In the spirit of C. S. Lewis, Augustine, and Pascal, this book invites both the head and the heart of the reader to consider the case for God’s existence. While many arguments look out to the external world for evidence of God’s existence, this book calls the reader to look inward to the human heart. While learning from classical thinkers (particularly C. S. Lewis) the Argument from Desire will bring both intuition and experience together to demonstrate the truth of divine presence in the world. The reader will walk away with either a newfound faith or a reinforced conviction that has a strong intellectual and experiential dimension.
”This is a unique piece of scholarship, the only book I know of
that is wholly devoted to the most interesting argument in the
world. It’s clear and persuasive, and I strongly recommend
it."
--Peter Kreeft, author of Heaven: The Heart’s Deepest
Longing
“Puckett’s book is a rich, multifaceted exploration of the argument
from desire. . . . It calls us to a recovery of joy, awe, mystery,
and miracle, which ultimately directs us toward God--the true
object of our deepest human longings."
--Paul Copan, author of Is God a Moral Monster?
"C. S. Lewis . . . argues that the best explanation for the human
experience of joy and the accompanying longing for the transcendent
and permanent is found in the Judeo-Christian creation narrative. .
. . Until now, Lewis’s interesting argument has largely been
neglected by apologists making a case for Christian theism. But I
believe the argument from desire has a rightful place within a
comprehensive, cumulative-case argument for theism, and I am
delighted that Joe Puckett’s The Apologetics of Joy fills
this gap by developing the argument and defending it against its
detractors. The Apologetics of Joy is, to my knowledge, the
first book-length treatment on Lewis’s argument, and I am happy to
commend it to its readers."
--Mark Linville, contributor to The Blackwell Companion to
Natural Theology and coauthor and coeditor of Philosophy and
the Christian Worldview
"I am delighted to see this work published. . . . You will learn
much from and enjoy this book. Read it slowly and think along with
Puckett on the trail of God."
--Daniel T. Primozic, author of On Merleau-Ponty
"Among the various arguments for the existence of God through the
centuries, perhaps the most neglected and unknown is the argument
from human desire. . . . Puckett presents the salient elements of
the argument and engages the key contributors and critics. He does
so with a fervency and deftness that serves to re-present this
important argument for the existence of God to our age."
--Michael R. Young, co-editor of The Journal of Faith and the
Academy
Joe Puckett Jr. (MLitt, Faulkner University) is pulpit minister for the 16th Avenue Church of Christ in Sterling, Illinois. He is currently working toward his PhD in Humanities from Salve Regina University in the area of the philosophy of mind.
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