http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ThxrHkO-Mk The God Question, a TV series bringing together world renowned contributors on both sides of the debate on God and science, explores the question of whether there is design evident in the universe. The series, a Scottish venture that promises to reach 170 million potential viewers internationally, features figures of note in the … [Read more...]
Do We Have a Soul (Part 3)
(Part 1, Part 2) (I continue the case for the soul and some objections to the view) The last philosophical argument for substance dualism concerns the nature of free will. Advocates of libertarian free will (as the model of human action) affirm that intentional action is the exercising of a first or originating mover to bring about some effect for a reason. This view … [Read more...]
Do We Have a Soul (Part 2)
(Part 1) (In this part, I continue the case for the soul using philosophical arguments) Not only is theology a valid realm for knowledge, but philosophy can provide insight into the nature of the soul. The first philosophical argument for substance dualism I will outline pertains to whether mental states are physical, i.e. whether our conscious properties (such as thinking … [Read more...]
Do We Have a Soul? (Part 1)
Up until the last two centuries, the vast majority of people (philosophers, theologians and laypersons) have believed in the existence of the soul. The legacy of this view stretches from philosophers such as Socrates and Plato (who both considered the soul as the essence of a person) to Aristotle (whose virtue ethics explained morality as the character development of the soul) … [Read more...]
Exon Shuffling: Evaluating the Evidence
Yesterday, I introduced the subject of exon shuffling and gave a few reasons why such a mechanism cannot explain the origins of the earliest, most ancient proteins. Now I want to offer an evaluation of the arguments, pro and con, for the role of exon shuffling in accounting for the subsequent origins of novel protein folds. … [Read more...]
Exon Shuffling, and the Origins of Protein Folds
A frequently made claim in the scientific literature is that protein domains can be readily recombined to form novel folds. In Darwin's Doubt, Stephen Meyer addresses this subject in detail (see Chapter 11). Over the course of this and a subsequent article, I want to briefly expand on what was said there. … [Read more...]
Is intelligent design science?
Why is it that Christian apologists have to deal with this topic so often? It seems that whenever I'm in discussion over just about ANY apologetics related topic, I'll typically be challenged by someone over the topic of I.D. as a kind of 'gotcha' move. You see, (insert sarcasm) I must not be rational... after all, I (as a Christian) must believe the whole Intelligent Design … [Read more...]
Atheism and the burden of proof
When someone makes a claim about the world, if they want to convince others, they are required to provide justification for that claim. This is not a contentious or strange idea, but what does this mean for atheism? Is atheism a belief and does it require justification? In this article I will show that atheism is a belief about the world and that it does require a justification … [Read more...]
Evolution and the Church: A Dysfunctional Marriage
Although none of its followers would call it a religion, evolution has become the religion of the university. Instead, they call it science, even though none of it can be verified in the laboratory. However, even a growing number of atheists are challenging this theory. The late theoretical physicist, Fred Hoyle, dismissed this theory: "Darwinian theory is wrong because … [Read more...]
Understanding the Meaning of "Faith"
Introduction. The other day I was involved in a conversation with a group of men at a Men's Breakfast at our church. One of the discussions we were working over was the meaning of this word, "faith." The definition of faith is very much misunderstood by Christians and maligned by skeptics, depending on which side of the conversation one finds themselves. Allow me explain what … [Read more...]