Materialism and the Resurrection: Are the Prospects Improving?

Abstract

In 1999 Dean Zimmerman proposed a “falling elevator model” for a bodily resurrection consistent with materialism. Recently he has defended the model against objections, and a slightly different version has been defended by Timothy O’Connor and Jonathan Jacobs. This article considers both sets of responses, and finds them at best partially successful; a new objection, not previously discussed, is also introduced. It is concluded that the prospects for the falling-elevator model, in either version, are not bright.