Doubting Naturalism – Dr. Michael Egnor’s story

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Sep 26, 2025

Dr. Michael R. Egnor, a distinguished neurosurgeon and professor, recounts his journey from materialism to belief. He shares startling experiences that challenged his scientific views, including children thriving with missing brain structures. Egnor discusses the importance of philosophical frameworks, citing influences from Aristotle and Aquinas. A pivotal moment during a prayer led him to a transformative faith, where he sees God's existence as a hypothesis worth exploring. His insights bridge science and belief, demonstrating how curiosity can lead to profound convictions.

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ANECDOTE

Unexpected Normal Development With Missing Brain

Dr. Michael Egnor followed a woman born missing two-thirds of her brain who developed normally into adulthood.
He expected severe deficits but found a bright young woman excelling in school.

ANECDOTE

Consciousness Without Cerebral Hemispheres

Egnor describes a child with hydranencephaly who lacked cerebral hemispheres yet showed clear consciousness and emotions.
The child smiled, laughed, and reacted despite having only a brainstem.

INSIGHT

Brain Necessary But Not Sufficient For Mind

Studying Penfield and awake brain surgery convinced Egnor that the brain does not fully explain the mind.
He concluded the brain is necessary for expression but not the full source of mental faculties.

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Dr. Michael Egnor spent decades trusting science to answer life’s deepest questions. As a neurosurgeon and professor, he believed the brain held the key to understanding everything — including who we are. But over time, he encountered things science couldn’t explain: children thriving with missing brain structures, moral truths that couldn’t be reduced to biology, and a growing sense that materialism had serious gaps.

Dr. Egnor shares how philosophical honesty, scientific curiosity, and a surprising moment of divine encounter opened him to a new possibility that God not only exists, but that the Christian story offers the best explanation for the human mind, moral law, and the universe itself.

Guest Bio:

Michael R. Egnor, MD, is a Professor of Neurosurgery and Pediatrics at State University of New York, Stony Brook, has served as the Director of Pediatric Neurosurgery. He received his medical education at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons and is an award-winning brain surgeon. His new book, The Immortal Mind: A Neurosurgeon’s Case for the Existence of the Soul, explores the scientific and philosophical evidence for the soul, arguing that the human mind possesses faculties such as consciousness, free will, rational thought, and self-awareness that cannot be reduced to physical brain activity alone.

Resources Mentioned:

Check out our Sponsor: America’s Christian Credit Union (ACCU): https://americaschristiancu.com/jana/

Blog: https://www.discovery.org/p/egnor/
Book: The Immortal Mind: A neurosurgeon’s case for the existence of the soul (2025)
“Mystery of the Mind” by Wilder Penfield
“Witness” by Whittaker Chambers
Works by Ed Feser on Thomistic philosophy
St. Thomas Aquinas’ Five Ways
Augustine’s argument from universal concepts
The Principle of Sufficient Reason (Leibniz)
Immanuel Kant’s argument from moral law

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