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Interview

William Rowe

William Rowe is a professor of philosophy at Purdue University. Though an atheist, he spends much of his working life thinking about God. Nick Trakakis recently chatted with him about God and evil and other such theological hot potatoes.

Professor Rowe, you are perhaps best known for defending atheism on the basis of the problem of evil. It may therefore come as a surprise to some people to learn that you were at one stage a Christian on the verge of entering the ministry. Would it be possible to tell us something about your time as a theist – for example, did you undergo a conversion experience, and how long did you remain a theist?

While growing up, my brother and I were required to attend Sunday school at the nearest Methodist, Baptist, or Presbyterian Church. At the age of sixteen I was converted in an evangelistic service in the Baptist church I occasionally attended. The next year, again in an evangelistic service, I decided to devote my life to some form of Christian service, and, upon graduating from high school, enrolled in a five-year program of study at the Detroit Bible Institute.

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