objective moral truths

Today, we’re joined by Ken Ham, founder and CEO of Answers in Genesis, for part two of our discussion on creation, evolution, and dinosaurs. We start off with the question of why people get so emotional about their belief in the age of the Earth and what evolutionists really believe about evolving species. We also explain how life is meaningless from an atheist's perspective and that things atheists claim matter, such as climate change, don't actually mean much from their perspective. We also talk about how non-Christians can never be consistent when talking about morality and how everyone believes in objective truth in some capacity, even if they claim they don't. Then, Ken calls for a reformation, which he says needs to go back to Genesis 1-11. --- Timecodes: (01:01) Age of the earth / “evolution” of species (08:00) Meaningless of life according to atheists (16:18) Hardened hearts (23:57) Calling for a reformation / Genesis 1-11 (30:56) Why do we take Genesis literally? --- Today's Sponsors: Good Ranchers — get $30 OFF your box today at GoodRanchers.com – make sure to use code 'ALLIE' when you subscribe. You'll also lock in your price for two full years with a subscription to Good Ranchers! Seven Weeks Coffee — get your organically farmed and pesticide-free coffee at sevenweekscoffee.com and let your coffee serve a greater purpose. Use the promo code 'ALLIE' to save 10% off your order. Jase Medical — get up to a year’s worth of many of your prescription medications delivered in advance. Go to JaseMedical.com today and use promo code “ALLIE”. CrowdHealth — get your first 6 months for just $99/month. Use promo code 'ALLIE' when you sign up at JoinCrowdHealth.com. --- Relevant Episodes: Ep 861 | Did Dinosaurs Exist? | Guest: Ken Ham (Part One) https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ep-861-did-dinosaurs-exist-guest-ken-ham-part-one/id1359249098?i=1000625452083 Ep 670 | The Dinosaur Myth, Airport Rules, & Mom Moments https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ep-670-the-dinosaur-conspiracy-airport-rules-mom-moments/id1359249098?i=1000577955241 --- Buy Allie's book, You're Not Enough (& That's Okay): Escaping the Toxic Culture of Self-Love: https://alliebethstuckey.com/book Relatable merchandise – use promo code 'ALLIE10' for a discount: https://shop.blazemedia.com/collections/allie-stuckey Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, we try to trace morality to its elusive foundations. Throughout the compilation we take a look at Sam’s “Moral Landscape” and his effort to defend an objective path towards moral evaluation.

We begin with the moral philosopher Peter Singer who outlines his famous “shallow pond” analogy and the framework of utilitarianism. We then hear from the moral psychologist Paul Bloom who makes the case against empathy and points out how it is more often a “bug” in our moral software than a “feature.” Later, William MacAskill describes the way a utilitarian philosophy informs his engagement with the Effective Altruism movement.

The moral psychologist Jonathan Haidt then puts pressure on Sam’s emphasis on rationality and objective pathways towards morality by injecting a healthy dose of psychological skepticism into the conversation.

After, we hear a fascinating exchange with the historian Dan Carlin where he and Sam tangle on the fraught issues of cultural relativism.

We end by exploring the intersection of technological innovation and moral progress with the entrepreneur Uma Valeti, whom Sam seeks out when he encounters his own collision with a personal moral failure.

 

About the Series

Filmmaker Jay Shapiro has produced The Essential Sam Harris, a new series of audio documentaries exploring the major topics that Sam has focused on over the course of his career.

Each episode weaves together original analysis, critical perspective, and novel thought experiments with some of the most compelling exchanges from the Making Sense archive. Whether you are new to a particular topic, or think you have your mind made up about it, we think you’ll find this series fascinating.