From Murphy’s Christian Physicalism to Lowe’s Dualism
TheoLogica July 21, 2021 Mostyn Jones, Eric LaRock
Nancey Murphy argues that God created humans as purely physical beings without immortal souls, claiming neuroscience explains the mind better through physical information processing than dualist theories can. The authors reply that Murphy overestimates neuroscience's ability to explain qualia, unity, privacy, and causality of the mind, and underestimates dualism. They argue that E. J. Lowe's version of dualism offers better explanations, often with experimental support and in testable ways. Thus, Murphy's physicalism actually highlights the value of Lowe's dualism today.