Peter S. Williams

Based in Southampton, England, Christian philosopher and apologist Peter S. Williams (MA, MPhil, PGCert) aims to serve God, his Church and his world through a ministry of writing and speaking on behalf of the truth, goodness and beauty of following Jesus. Over four decades, Peter has modelled a Christian approach to philosophy as “a discipline aimed at the wise pursuit of true answers to significant questions,” and has developed a vision of Christian apologetics as “a spiritual discipline of loving, humble service that tries to use virtue-oriented rhetoric to lead people to be persuaded that a God-centered way of life through faithfulness to Jesus as Lord is a rational, good and beautiful choice to make” (see this video to unpack this definition).

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Peter is:

An “Adjunct Professor in Communication and Worldviews” at NLA University College, in Norway

A trustee of the Christian Evidence Society

A lecturer for the Montgomery Trust: book Peter to talk on-line or in-person through them in the UK and they’ll give him an honorarium and cover “appropriate travelling expenses”!

Peter’s peer-reviewed work has appeared in journals including Philosophia Christi, Linguaculture, Scandinavian Journal for Leadership and Theology, Theofilos and Think.

His books include: Stepping Stones to Christianity: Reflections on Intelligent Design, Natural Theology, and the Historical Jesus (Wipf & Stock, 2025), Behold the Man: Essays on the Historical Jesus (Wipf & Stock, 2024), An Informed Cosmos: Essays on Intelligent Design Theory (Wipf & Stock, 2023), A Universe From Someone: Essays on Natural Theology (Wipf & Stock, 2022), Apologetics in 3D: Essays on Apologetics and Spirituality (Wipf & Stock, 2021), Outgrowing God? A Beginner’s Guide to Richard Dawkins and the God Debate (Cascade, 2020), Getting at Jesus: A Comprehensive Critique of Neo-Atheist Nonsense About the Jesus of History (Wipf & Stock, 2019), A Faithful Guide to Philosophy: A Christian Introduction to the Love of Wisdom (Wipf & Stock, 2019), and C.S. Lewis vs the New Atheists (Paternoster, 2013).

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Stepping Stones to Christianity: Reflections on Intelligent Design, Natural Theology, and the Historical Jesus (Wipf and Stock, 2025), introduces a rational case for Christianity in three steps, starting with scientific arguments for design in biology and cosmology, moving on to philosophical arguments for the existence of God, and closing with an overview of the evidence for a Christian understanding of the historical Jesus, in the context of competing contemporary worldviews. Stepping Stones to Christianity equips readers to consider the case for design in nature, to investigate philosophical arguments for God, and to wrestle with the identity of Jesus.

“Stepping Stones is exactly that, a look at the credibility of Christian claims about Jesus one step at a time in a world that does not know what to do with him . . . . the world portrays much uncertainty about who we are, where we came from, and why we are here. This book helps to point us in a solid direction for all those key questions. So read this book and take a step in a most useful direction.” – Dr Darrell L. Bock, Executive Director of Cultural Engagement and Senior Research Professor of New Testament Studies, Dallas Theological Seminary

“Weaving together substantial evidence and arguments from scientific, philosophical, and historical sources, Peter Williams presents a forceful case for Christian faith. His use of autobiography and humor makes the book personable, without loss of rigour. Highly recommended to anyone interested in the reasonability and truth of Christianity.” – Charles Taliaferro, Emeritas Overby Distinguished Professor, St. Olaf College

“This is a book for anyone who feels that embracing Christianity is like jumping into the deep end of a swimming pool! By providing a variety of scientific, philosophical, and historical ‘stepping stones,’ Peter Williams acts as a wise and helpful guide for those searching for a deeper faith.” – Justin Brierley, author of Why I’m Still a Christian

After a substantial new essay examining the nature of a properly skeptical historical inquiry into Jesus of Nazareth in the context of contemporary worldviews, from premodernism to metamodernism, Behold the Man presents revised essays on an eclectic range of issues: from how the Epistle of James treats Jesus as Divine within decades of the crucifixion, and an evaluation of recent arguments about the dating of the fourth gospel, to debunking claims about Jesus and “ancient aliens,” and furthering debate about the resurrection. With a foreword by eminent New Testament scholar Craig L. Blomberg, and extensive recommended resources, Behold the Man: Essays on the Historical Jesus represents a wide-ranging, interdisciplinary engagement with historical Jesus studies.

Praise for Behold the Man

‘Peter S. Williams here offers us some impressive arguments for the historical reliability of the New Testament account of Jesus. The treatments of the Epistle of James and the Fourth Gospel offered fresh and original points, and Williams summarizes a large swathe of evidence in a clear and responsible manner. Highly recommended.’ – C. Stephen Evans, Emeritus University Professor of Philosophy and Humanities, Baylor University.

‘Peter S. Williams is a quintessential researcher on the historical Jesus, and Behold the Man is the sort of high-quality, rigorous, and fascinating treatise we have come to expect from him…. a tour de force on the interplay between worldview assumptions and the task of explaining and interpreting historical facts in an objective way. Honestly, there is nothing like this book. Get it and buy copies for your friends!’ – J.P. Moreland, Distinguished Professor of Philosophy, Talbot School of Theology, Biola University and co-author (with Brandon Rickabaugh) of The Substance of Consciousness: A Comprehensive Defense of Contemporary Substance Dualism (Wiley Blackwell, 2023).

‘In this impressive and richly documented volume, Peter S. Williams… draws on archaeological and textual evidence, but also shows time and again how we need rigorous philosophical theorizing to assess the arguments in this debate. His lucid work provides an important contribution to a conversation that merits attention from all those interested in the philosophy of religion and the tenability of the Christian faith.’ – Rik Peels, Professor of Analytical and Interdisciplinary Philosophy of Religion in the University Research Chair at the Faculty of Religion & Theology and the Faculty of Humanities, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, and author of Life Without God: An Outsider’s View of Atheism (Cambridge University Press, 2023).

‘This is an insightful book that not only demands reading but also rewards re-reading. At points, I thought to myself, “This is obviously true, why have I never seen anyone make this point?” At other points, I thought, “That was very well argued.” …. I highly recommend this unique book.’ – Robert B. Stewart, Professor of Philosophy and Theology, Greer-Heard Chair of Faith and Culture, and Director, Christian Apologetics Program, New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary.

After a substantial author’s Preface woven around the author’s personal journey with the question of design in nature, An Informed Cosmos presents a series of essays that jointly defend the core arguments for a scientific theory of intelligent design. Together with a foreword by noted philosopher of science Stephen C. Meyer, and extensive recommended resources, An Informed Cosmos offers an informed overview of the contemporary case for intelligent design.

Praise from four continents for An Informed Cosmos:

‘Williams does a thorough job demonstrating the inconsistencies, circumlocutions, and question-begging of top materialist thinkers as they try to wriggle free of the overpowering evidence for the intelligent design of life.’ – Michael J. Behe, Professor of Biological Sciences at Lehigh University, and author of Darwin’s Black Box.

‘Williams provides a rich ‘lode’ of insights challenging the popular dogma that the living world is entirely the product of mindless, motiveless matter.’ – Neil Broom, Professor Emeritus, Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering, University of Auckland, and author of How Blind is the Watchmaker?

‘With clarity and erudition, Williams provides an evidential and philosophical defense of the empirical and conceptual merits of intelligent design.’ – Dr Stephen C. Meyer, director of Discovery Institute’s Center for Science and Culture in Seattle, and author of Signature in the Cell, Darwin’s Doubt and The Return of the God Hypothesis.

‘Beautifully illustrated, pervasively researched, and clearly written, Peter S. Williams’s An Informed Cosmos is a delightful read chock full of rich, sophisticated ideas.’ – J.P. Moreland, Distinguished Professor of Philosophy at Biola University, and author of Scientism and Secularism.

‘An Informed Cosmos is a delightful, intellectually stimulating appraisal of the pervasive design inference in the reasoning of proponents and opponents of Intelligent Design… I wholeheartedly recommend this work for its insightful analysis and rigorous exposé.’ – Frederik van Niekerk, Professor in the Unit for Energy and Technology Systems, Faculty of Engineering, North-West University, South Africa.

‘Peter S. Williams has crafted an impressive, well-informed case for intelligent design, exposing the shortcomings of contemporary naturalism and countering objections to ID with forceful counter-arguments.’ – Charles Taliaferro, Professor Emeritus of Philosophy, and Emeritus Oscar and Gertrude Boe Overby Distinguished Professor, St. Olaf College.

‘Williams has done tremendous work compressing the most recent and relevant research and literature on ID into one single volume… This is science promotion on a hot topic in a brilliant way, and I am happy to recommend it.’ – Steinar Thorvaldsen, Professor of Information Science, The Arctic University of Norway.

After a substantial author’s Preface recounting the author’s life-journey with the question of God’s existence, A Universe From Someone: Essays on Natural Theology (Wipf & Stock, 2022), pulls together Essays and Opening Speeches from debates (including the 2011 ‘God is not a delusion’ debate at the Cambridge Union) that jointly cover a wide variety of theistic arguments. Together with a foreword by noted philosopher J.P. Moreland, an annotated bibliography highlighting ‘Four Dozen Key Resources on Apologetics and Natural Theology in an Age of Science’, and other recommended resources, A Universe From Someone offers an informed overview of the contemporary case for God.

Praise for A Universe From Someone

‘A truly excellent primer on arguing for God’s existence.’ – W. David Beck, Emeritus Professor of Philosophy, Liberty University, and author of Does God Exist?: A History of Answers to the Question

‘In this crisp and lucid book, Peter Williams provides an accessible and informative account of the current case for God.’ – Rik Peels, Associate Professor in Philosophy and Religion & Theology, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam

‘an excellent introduction and guide to natural theology… and the author’s weaving together his personal story into the book to show the relevance of these natural theological arguments.’ – Paul Copan, Pledger Family Chair of Philosophy and Ethics, Palm Beach Atlantic University, and co-editor of The Naturalness of Belief: New Essays on Theism’s Rationality

‘In my opinion [A Universe From Someone] is the top work currently available that (1) provides an insightful overview of the re-emergence of (especially Christian) natural theology for the last seventy-five years or so; (2) offers a readable, but quite substantive presentation of updated versions of the key arguments that have constituted this re-emergence. Along the way, Williams offers new development of important, but less popular arguments in natural theology. As if that were not enough, the well-selected, large, annotated bibliography is alone worth the price of the book. Williams knows the literature well and he has well-developed skills in taking hard material and making it accessible to a wide audience in an engaging way.’ – J.P. Moreland, Distinguished Professor of Philosophy, Talbot School of Theology, Biola University, and co-editor of the Blackwell Companion to Natural Theology

This collection of papers and other materials from English philosopher Peter S. Williams, with a foreword from philosopher Paul Copan, develops a holistic vision for Christian apologetics centred around a biblical understanding of spirituality. Grounded in two decades of practical experience, this book offers a vision of apologetics that’s interested in communicating through beauty and goodness as well as logic and arguments.

Praise for Apologetics in 3D

‘This short book is packed with insight and will stimulate discussion for years to come.’ – Gregory E. Ganssle, Professor of Philosophy, Talbot School of Theology, Biola University