I‘m a philosophy professor at San Francisco State University, where I’ve taught philosophy and religion since 2005.
Although specializing in western and eastern philosophy of religion, my interests range broadly over epistemology, philosophy of science, metaphysics, philosophy in literature and film, and the field of psychology.
Since January 2016 I’ve been exploring philosophical and psychological themes through fiction writing. I’m currently working on my second novel, A Person You May Know. The novel explores a future in which advanced artificial general intelligence and mind uploading converge to create an unconventional stalker and vision of life after death. Through fiction I explore topics that have interested me as a philosopher; for example, life after death, spiritual experience, personal identity, abnormal psychology, and the nature and role of evil in the world.
My Cup of Nirvana blog features analytical-style reflections on philosophical topics at the center of my current research and publications, contemplative explorations in eastern philosophy and spiritual practice, and discussions on film and fiction literature.
- The Augustine-Braude Bigelow Survival Debate: A Postmortem and Prospects for Future Directions (JSE paper, invited)
- Bruce Leininger’s ‘Definitive Proof’ of Reincarnation
- The James Leininger Case Re-examined (JSE Paper)
- Interview on Arguments for Life after Death
- You, Caroline Kepnes: A Review
- Behind Her Eyes, Sarah Pinborough: A Review
- A Head Full of Ghosts, Paul Tremblay: A Review
- Stephen King and the Path of Fiction
- Empirically Robust Survival Hypotheses
- In Defense of Sam Harris on Near-Death Experiences
- What’s Wrong with Survival Literature?
- Awakening Survivalists from Dogmatic Slumber
- Personal Reflections on Life after Death
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RECENT NEWS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS
October 14, 2024 “The Augustine-Braude Bigelow Survival Debate: A Postmortem and Future Directions” (Journal of Scientific Exploration, Spring 2024). A lengthy critical commentary on the 2021 BICS competition and the Keith Augustine – Stephen Braude et al. debate featured in the summer 2022 issue of the Journal of Scientific Exploration. See also Editor-in-Chief Jim Houran’s Reader Advisory to my paper (in the same issue of the JSE).
January 9, 2024: 1996 DPhil dissertation on the epistemology of religious belief added to website archives.
May 2022: The Journal of Scientific Exploration (36:1) has now published my “Response to Jim Tucker,” a critical reply to Tucker’s response to my “James Leininger Case Re-Examined” (JSE, 35:4).
January 18, 2022: “Bruce Leininger’s ‘Definitive Proof’ of Reincarnation” (Cup of Nirvana Blog). A critical response to Bruce Leininger’s prize-winning essay for the Bigelow Institute for Consciousness Studies.
January 17, 2022: I’ll be discussing the topic of life after death with author Anthony Peake on his program InConversation. Monday, January 17, 2022 at 4:00 pm UK time. Click on image to view recording of event.
January 15, 2022: “The James Leininger Case Re-examined” (the Journal of Scientific Exploration, 35:4). This paper is a 34,000 word critical report on the well-known America case of alleged reincarnation. After a two-year investigation, I disclose my findings and their implications for the favorable assessment of this case by researchers such as Jim Tucker at the University of Virginia.
March 2021: Published critical book review of Jim Matlock, Signs of Reincarnation in the Journal of Scientific Exploration (35:1).
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