Download PDF Gangadeanian Gadfly A Critical Examination of the Religious Philosophy of Surrendra Gangadean Owen Anderson and Kelly Fitzimmons Burton Spencer Hawkins 9781796244649 Books

Product details Paperback 135 pages Publisher Independently published (March 17, 2019) Language English ISBN-10 1796244643

Gangadeanian Gadfly A Critical Examination of the Religious Philosophy of Surrendra Gangadean Owen Anderson and Kelly Fitzimmons Burton Spencer Hawkins 9781796244649 Books Reviews

• This book deserves one star. I was initially intrigued by it because I am familiar with the philosophy of Gangadean et al., I don't agree with it at its foundational level, and I have not seen a scholarly treatment of Gangadean et al.'s philosophy. So I picked it up, knowing nothing about the author. In fact, there is no biographical information about the author. Just a name. What's that about?? Anyways, this book is a very poor treatment of "Gangadeanianism." For one, the book has typographical and grammatical errors throughout. Even the cover of the page has a typo! Spencer Hawkins gets wrong the name of one of his objects of critique. He makes this error in the entire book. It's Kelly Fitzsimmons Burton, NOT Fitzimmons. That's unprofessional. The table of contents likewise has a typo. He has an "Epilouge," but it should be "Epilogue." It's this kind of error that pervades his small book. That's a turn-off for me when I am reading a critique of another.
  
  But on a more essential level, the book is wholly inadequate. Spencer Hawkins is attempting a refutation of Rational Presuppositionalism (RP). I personally do not affirm RP, though many of its attempts at highlighting the clarity of God's revelation are commendable. I personally know many who hold to RP. I myself could defend RP against Hawkins, and I'm not RP! The book is that weak. I know the arguments that RP is making, and Hawkins does not, although he thinks he does. His refutations are very short (like a paragraph or two in any given chapter). He shows that he's not carefully reading the people he wants to refute. For instance, in his chapter on "Step 6, Some is Eternal," he brings a possible objection to Owen Anderson's view by appealing to Graham Oppy. Hawkins entertains an idea of how Anderson might reply to Oppy. However, Anderson does address Oppy in another of his books. Why, then, is there a need to guess how Anderson might interact with Oppy?? I could say more, but I have a better use of my time. Hawkins was quick to reply and slow to listen to his objects of criticism. Save your coin and don't buy this book. Not worth it.