Historical Apologist: William Paley

William Paley (1743-1805) was an English theologian and philosopher whose version of the argument from design was a prominent aspect of nineteenth-century natural theology.

Paley’s version includes an extended analogy in which a person who has never before seen a watch finds one and concludes that the mechanism must have been designed by an intelligent being.1

1. C.Stephen Evans, Pocket Dictionary of Apologetics & Philosophy of Religion (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2002), p. 87.

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Brian Auten is the founder emeritus of Apologetics315. He is also director of Reasonable Faith Belfast. Brian holds a Masters degree in Christian Apologetics and has interviewed over 150 Christian apologists. His background is in missions, media direction, graphic design, and administration. Brian started Apologetics315 in 2007 to be an apologetics hub to equip Christians to defend the faith.

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