We continue our discussion with Abdu Murray about his new book Grand Central Question: Answering the Critical Concerns of the Major Worldviews (IVP, 2014). (Part 1 of discussion.) Murray is an attorney, a former Muslim, and an experienced apologist, and his book examines the critical questions of human existence in light of some of today’s major worldviews. CAA: There are a … [Read more...]
Jonathan Maberry's Rot and Ruin: Honor, Idealism, and the Monsters Within
“When writers tell a story about monsters, we’re usually using them as a vehicle in order to tell a story about our own world.” - Jonathan Maberry The horror genre is becoming increasingly cerebral, at least in terms of how zombies are being used (World War Z, Warm Bodies, and The Walking Dead). Jonathan Maberry's Rot and Ruin series is a welcome addition to the list. He uses … [Read more...]
The New-er Atheists: Two movements battle for heart and mind
The term ‘New Atheist’ is beginning to get a bit old already. It is still relatively new, chronologically, at least in relation to centuries of classical atheists. The movement seems to have arisen, or at least gained popularity, after the events of 9/11 (2001) in the USA. It was characterized by a shift towards the use of rhetoric, emotion, fear, and embodied very ‘religious’ … [Read more...]
Black 'Heart' Friday Shopping!
Thanksgiving is a wonderful tradition where we are able to give thanks (to God) for all that we have been blessed with, especially family and friends. The following day, Black Friday, is an over-excessive nationwide shopping spree in the US, paying homage to the gods of materialism and ourselves, stuffing our lives full of typically unnecessary merchandise with money that we … [Read more...]
Are We Ready to Deny Objective Morality? 3 Implications of Doing So…
The idea that we’re living in a culture of relativism seems to be uncontested and accepted without question. Post-modernists and relativists assume that we've progressed past the rigid constraints of ‘truth’, ‘falsity’, ‘reason’, and other oppressive concepts that actually undergird the fabric of rationality in the universe. However, I’m not convinced that we are truly living … [Read more...]
Is Jesus the ‘Exclusive’ Way/Truth?
[This post is a work in progress as part of the CAA Catechism.] [Add the title only in the title field, not in the body of the post.] Summary in 400 words or less: In John 14, Jesus spoke about many rooms in his Father’s house, and that [Jesus] would be preparing a place for his disciples and that they know the way to where he is going. Then Thomas asked, “...How can we know … [Read more...]
Why Can't We All Be Right?
Most of you are probably familiar with CS Lewis and his famous dichotomy. “Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance. The only thing it cannot be is moderately important.” Of course, we all understand the implications of such a statement. If Christianity is false, then the way that it describes the universe is essentially invalid and … [Read more...]
"I'm OK you're not OK" – Understanding religious exclusivism
Christians claim that Jesus spoke the truth about God. Jesus, in turn, claimed “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:7 NIV). This certainly comes across as very exclusive. Jesus, however, founded just one of many world religions. Can we take his exclusive claims seriously? Doesn’t the great plurality of world religions … [Read more...]
Are You Committed To Truth?
In so many of my interactions with people, I have found that they have already made a commitment one way or the other to certain worldviews and are looking for intellectual reasons to either maintain that commitment or escape another commitment. I know people who are ready to accept any worldview except for X and others who are committed to accepting any form of worldview Y. … [Read more...]
Solving the Problem of Privatization
In this part of my ongoing series on Incarnational Apologetics, I want to explore the four key problems: Secularization Pluralization Privatization Polarization Today’s video post picks up with a discussion of Privatization. So what is Privatization? David Wells in his book, “No Place for Truth”: It is axiomatic that secularism strips life of the divine, but it is … [Read more...]