The holocaust, masterminded by Adolf Hitler and his Nazi regime, devoured 11 million lives, among them were 6 million Jews, and the other 5 million comprising of people with mental and physical disabilities, communists, resistance fighters, Slavic people, homosexuals, priests, Jehovah’s Witnesses, and anarchists etc. The antagonists of Historic Christianity argue that Adolf … [Read more...]
The Conflict Thesis-An Excerpt from The Dictionary of Christianity and Science
I am privileged to be one of the general editors of the upcoming Dictionary of Christianity and Science (Zondervan, April 2017). Paul Copan, Tremper Longman, Michael Strauss, and I--along with our excellent team at Zondervan--have endeavored to create a reference work that tackles the most important terms, concepts, people, and debates at the intersection of Christianity and … [Read more...]
Did Christianity Copy from Paganism? (Part 1 of 5)
By James M. Rochford Many skeptics claim that the resurrection of Jesus originated from pagan myths about “dying and rising” gods—commonly called the “copycat theory” of Christianity. James G. Frazer popularized this view in his book The Golden Bough (1914),[1] though more recently, others have followed in his footsteps.[2] … [Read more...]
Did Jesus Exist? (Part 4: Lucian and Thallus)
Did Jesus exist? While a robust case can be made by appealing to the NT documents (see Evidence Unseen “Part Four,” 2013), we have chosen instead to appeal to hostile non-Christian sources. In earlier articles in this series, we have considered the works of Tacitus, Pliny the Younger, Suetonius, and Josephus. In this edition, we will consider the works of Lucian and Thallus. … [Read more...]
Did Jesus Exist? (Part 3: Josephus)
Did Jesus exist? While a robust case can be made by appealing to the New Testament (NT) documents (see Evidence Unseen “Part Four,” 2013), in this series, we will only appeal to the hostile witnesses of history from outside of the NT. In previous articles, we considered the works of Cornelius Tacitus, as well as Pliny the Younger and Suetonius. In this article, we will consider … [Read more...]
What is a Scientific Consensus? Does it prove anything?
Source photo of the Putnam Gallery at Harvard The term "scientific consensus" is often tossed around in the media. Experts, pundits, and everyday people cite "scientific consensus" as evidence for global warming, macro-evolution, and even atheism. What is a scientific consensus? Well in theory a scientific consensus would indicate that the vast majority of … [Read more...]
Why Did God Kill the Midianite Boys in Numbers 31? Part Four.
Through literary apologetics, this four-part series examines one of the more difficult passages in which to reconcile the God of the Old Testament with the God of love, namely Numbers 31:13-18, which records the mass killing of Midianites including baby boys. As mentioned before, I find this particular passage abhorrent; however, after researching the cultural context, I do … [Read more...]
Why Did God Kill the Midianite Boys in Numbers 31? Part Three.
Through literary apologetics, this four-part series examines one of the more difficult passages in which to reconcile the God of the Old Testament with the God of love, namely Numbers 31:13-18, which records the mass killing of Midianites including baby boys. As mentioned before, I find this particular passage abhorrent; however, after researching the cultural context, I do … [Read more...]
Why Did God Kill the Midianite Boys in Numbers 31? Part Two.
Through literary apologetics, this four-part series examines one of the more difficult passages in which to reconcile the God of the Old Testament with the God of love, namely Numbers 31:13-18, which records the mass killing of Midianites including baby boys. As mentioned before, I find this particular passage abhorrent; however, after researching the cultural context, I do … [Read more...]
Why Did God Kill the Midianite Boys in Numbers 31? Part One.
“And Moses was angry with the officers of the army…[and] said to them, ‘Have you let all the women live? Behold, these, on Balaam's advice, caused the people of Israel to act treacherously against the Lord in the incident of Peor, and so the plague came among the congregation of the Lord. Now therefore, kill every male among the little ones, and kill every woman who has known … [Read more...]