I’m taking a one week hiatus from my usual rantings and ravings to feature some recent talks from friends from whom I’ve learned a great deal. I encourage readers of the blog to take some time and treat yourself to these: they can give you a taste of the kinds of lectures and conversations that led me to philosophy, and ultimately to philosophy of religion. Joseph Almog and Howie Wettstein, both long time friends and teachers of mine, whom I’ve found over the years to be exemplary cases of philosophers who tackle the most difficult questions of philosophy without hiding behind walls of jargon and erudite references.

The first is from the University of Turku’s Veritas Forum: a double header on religion, beauty, and suffering featuring talks by Hanne Appelqvist and Joseph Almog.

The second is a recent talk on naturalism in religion by Howie Wettstein (whom I mentioned in my recent post on the book of Job). If you found that post interesting, Howie discusses Stephen Mitchell’s translation of Job at some length. The video, unfortunately, can’t be imbedded. You can watch at Chico State University’s website by clicking on the link below:

Howie Wettstein – “Naturalism in Religion”