Salvaging Pascal’s Wager

Philosophia Christi 21 (1):59-84 (2019)
  Copy   BIBTEX

Abstract

Many think that Pascal’s Wager is a hopeless failure. A primary reason for this is because a number of challenging objections have been raised to the wager, including the “many gods” objection and the “mixed strategy” objection. We argue that both objections are formal, but not substantive, problems for the wager, and that they both fail for the same reason. We then respond to additional objections to the wager. We show how a version of Pascalian reasoning succeeds, giving us a reason to pay special attention to the infinite consequences of our actions.

Similar books and articles

Pascal's wager.Michael Rota - 2017 - Philosophy Compass 12 (4):e12404.
Pascal’s wager and the origins of decision theory: decision-making by real decision-makers.James Franklin - 2018 - In Paul Bartha & Lawrence Pasternack (eds.), Pascal's Wager. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 27-44.
Pascal’s Wager.Paul F. A. Bartha & Lawrence Pasternack (eds.) - 2018 - New York: Cambridge University Press.
Pascal's Wager.Alan Hájek - 2008 - Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.
A Thoroughly Modern Wager.Michael J. Shaffer - 2017 - Logos and Episteme 8 (2):207-231.
Surreal Decisions.Eddy Keming Chen & Daniel Rubio - 2020 - Philosophy and Phenomenological Research 100 (1):54-74.
Pascal's Wager is a possible bet (but not a very good one): Reply to Harmon Holcomb III.Graham Oppy - 1996 - International Journal for Philosophy of Religion 40 (2):101 - 116.
Pascal’s and Tabarrok’s Wagers.Lars Peter Østerdal - 2004 - Theory and Decision 57 (1):1-4.
Wagering with and without Pascal.Daniel Collette & Joseph Anderson - 2018 - Res Philosophica 95 (1):95-110.

Analytics

Added to PP
2019-05-29

Downloads
4,804 (#839)

6 months
535 (#921)

Historical graph of downloads
How can I increase my downloads?

Author's Profile

Elizabeth Jackson
Toronto Metropolitan University

Citations of this work

Wagering Against Divine Hiddenness.Elizabeth Jackson - 2016 - European Journal for Philosophy of Religion 8 (4):85-108.
Pascal, Pascalberg, and friends.Samuel Lebens - 2020 - International Journal for Philosophy of Religion 87 (1):109-130.
After Pascal’s Wager: on religious belief, regulated and rationally held.Jack Warman & David Efird - 2021 - International Journal for Philosophy of Religion 90 (1):61-78.
Pascal’s Wager: a Reason to Hesitate.Amos Wollen - 2022 - Philosophia 50 (5):2743-2750.

View all 8 citations / Add more citations

References found in this work

Transformative Experience.Laurie Ann Paul - 2014 - Oxford, GB: Oxford University Press.
Belief, Credence, and Pragmatic Encroachment.Jacob Ross & Mark Schroeder - 2014 - Philosophy and Phenomenological Research 88 (2):259-288.
Deciding to believe.Bernard Williams - 1973 - In Problems of the Self. Cambridge University Press. pp. 136--51.
Surreal Decisions.Eddy Keming Chen & Daniel Rubio - 2020 - Philosophy and Phenomenological Research 100 (1):54-74.

View all 34 references / Add more references