Welcome

With a background in pharmacy, medicine, and finance, Raphael Lataster is a hopeful PhD candidate (Studies in Religion), having recently passed his Master of Arts (Research), undertaken in the Department of Studies in Religion at the University of Sydney, with Distinction. His main research interests include philosophy of religion, Christian origins, logic, epistemology, justifications and social impacts of atheism, Taoism, overpopulation and sustainability concerns, pantheism, and pandeism. Other interests include indoor rock-climbing and volunteering with the State Emergency Service.

Raphael wrote his Master’s thesis on Jesus mythicism, concluding that historical and Bayesian reasoning justifies a sceptical attitude towards the ‘historical Jesus’. For his doctoral work, Raphael will analyse the major philosophical arguments for God’s existence (as argued by William Lane Craig, Richard Swinburne, Alvin Plantinga and Thomas Aquinas), attempt to demonstrate the logical implausibility of the monotheistic concept, explore the theological tendencies of Philosophy of Religion, and formulate conditional logical arguments for a pantheistic worldview.

Raphael is currently writing and attempting to publish numerous articles summarising his Master’s dissertation, and exploring the themes of his proposed doctoral project. Raphael is always open to – and encourages – feedback and advice, especially regarding the politics and processes of academia and publishing, and alternative worldviews. Being passionate about education, Raphael hopes to eventually teach in philosophy (critical thinking and philosophy of religion) and/or religious studies, and also to make every effort to engage with the public, through popular books, speaking engagements, public debates and websites.

Please enjoy the following resources.

Websites:

PantheismUnites.org - Online home for the philosophy of pantheism. Discussing skepticism, atheism, agnosticism, etc. Houses my books and scholarly articles, as well as articles written for the general public.

ProofThatGodExists.net - Humorous website that neatly summarises all the scientific evidence for God's existence.

AramaicPeshitta.com - Resources relating to the Bible and the theory of Aramaic primacy.

LamsaBible.com - Authorized and freely available online version of Dr Lamsa's English translation of the Aramaic Peshitta Bible.