Blaise Pascal, the seventeenth-century French philosopher and scientist, is perhaps best known for his "wager," an argument about the existence of God. But there was much more to Pascal and his brilliance, according to today's guest, Douglas Groothuis, a leading Christian thinker and longtime student of Pascal. In his latest book, Beyond the Wager, Doug introduces readers to Pascal's life and the breadth of his intellectual pursuits, including his contributions to mathematics, science, ethics, and theology.
"You really want to read Pascal, and if you write about him, you want to quote him and do justice to what he said because it really was so insightful and profoundly put. Especially his comments about what it means to be a human being and his reflections on the nature of knowing Christ. They're really not just philosophically insightful and compelling, but also devotionally compelling." – Doug Groothuis
Three of our listeners received copies of Beyond the Wager: The Christian Brilliance of Blaise Pascal, thanks to the generosity of our friends at Intervarsity Press. Congratulations to Zane L. from Washington, DC, Sam B. from Deerfield, WI, and Joshua M. from Jonesborough, TN!
Show Notes:
Douglas Groothuis’ original book about Blaise Pascal written 20 years ago:
On Pascal
Pensées by Blaise Pascal: https://archive.org/details/pascalspenseesor00pasc
Christian Apologetics by Douglas Groothuis