What book provides a strong defense theism or compiles a collection of essays defending theism?

Question

I'm not asking what you believe, or why you believe it, I'm just looking for you to refer me to a professional philosopher who does. If you are a professional philosopher, feel free to direct me to your own book, although i doubt I'd find one on yahoo answers.

Edit: I know Aquinas provides a lot of defenses of theism, some of which continue to have supporters today, but I was looking for something more modern (that will respond to modern objections and so forth, using modern language).

Answer 1

Read St. Thomas Aquinas.

Answer 2

During 1800s, Anthropologists had a problem as to
how to classify human beings. One researcher
proposed the expression "intelligent animal".
After advanced studies on monkeys, it was dropped.
Another researcher proposed "tool using animal".
After observing some animals making wooden tools
and sharpening them with knife like stones, it was
dropped. Another researcher proposed "weapon using
animal". A decade ago, a rare film was shot by an
amateur in an African forest. One short monkey was
hit very badly by a big monkey. The short monkey
prepared a wooden knife using stones and hid it on
the top of a tree. After some days, when the big
monkey came to attack the short monkey, it ran up
to the tree for the weapon it has hid and killed
the big monkey. The one thing that the
anthropologists found with any group of human
beings, even if they did not have contacts with
the out side world for thousands of years, has
spirituality with some form of religion. So, man
is a "spiritual animal" if you want to call him
that way.

The Upanishads say that "Manush" (human) was so
named because he has "Manas" a mind higher than
that of the animals which realizes the divinity in
creation. It was present since the creation of
human beings. Religion is the characteristic
feature of most of the human beings. It was not
attained through reasoning using mind. Illiterate
tribes located in inaccessible forests also have
religion. It is as eternal and and as unchanging
as the Almighty. Disbelief by a few will not
affect it.

"The percentage of atheists in the world is less
than 5%"

http://www.positiveatheism.org/india/s1990c48a.htm

"Atheists are all scientists" ?

http://www.non-religious.com/statistics.html

Religion is not a blind following. It is a sub-consciously driven
group ritual. It calms the 'collective unconscious' mind. The
religious culture brings unity and belongedness among the followers.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collective_unconscious

" Are Atheists More Depressed than Religious People?

In recent years, the view that religious belief and
participation in religious acts of worship has a positive
effect upon the well-being of man..."

http://www.secularhumanism.org/index.php

"Is a Belief in God Beneficial? Or, What's an Atheist to Do?

1) Religious attendance is correlated with longevity.
2) Religious belief has been associated with lower levels of depressive symptoms.
3) Religious beliefs may help with addiction.
4) Religious attendance is correlated with lower blood pressure.

http://jewishatheist.blogspot.com/2006/01/is-belief-in-god-beneficial-or-whats.html

Although most religions and spiritual beliefs are
clearly distinct from science on both a
philosophical and methodological level, the two
are not generally considered to be mutually
exclusive. A majority of humans hold a mix of both
scientific and religious views. The distinction
between philosophy and religion, on the other
hand, is at times less clear.

Answer 3

Mortimer Adler wrote a very good introduction to the philosophical underpinnings of belief in God entitled "How to Think about God." Some other contemporary figures who wrote on the themes of belief in God would be John Polkinghorne and Peter Kreeft. Polkinghorne is a scientist and his ideas are derivative from his scientific worldview. Kreeft is a philosopher who updates many classical philosophical distinctions in regards to belief in God. Alastair McGrath might also be another author worth considering.