Did Nazareth exist during the life of Jesus? How can we know? What does the evidence say? These are questions to which Christians have been asked to give an answer on a more and more frequent basis by those who profess themselves to be “skeptics” in our world today. It is curious that the first-century historicity of Jesus should be the subject of such contention, since this … [Read more...]
But… you're so reasonable!
This is an absolutely priceless story submitted by a reader. Names and details have been deliberately altered / removed, but it is not difficult to imagine a conversation like this taking place at just about any College or University in any Western nation. What may be difficult to image is the conversation turning out as well as it did. … [Read more...]
The Light that can be found – reflections on a lyric by 3 Doors Down
The song "When I'm Gone" by 3 Doors Down begins this way: There's another world inside of me That you may never see There're secrets in this life That I can't hide Somewhere in this darkness There's a light that I can't find Maybe it's too far away... Or maybe I'm just blind... What struck me about this lyric is the comparison with light and darkness. The Bible uses this same … [Read more...]
Bitterblue: Kingdoms of Truth and Lies
Kristin Cashore's recently released Bitterblue, the sequel to Graceling, premiered at #2 on the New York Times Bestseller List. If early reviews and previous successes are any indication, the list of accolades will be impressive – and deservedly so. Ms. Kashore is a gifted writer who spends years honing her books, and it shows. THE BASIC PREMISE The story takes place … [Read more...]
Fallacy Friday: The Straw Man
In my last Fallacy Friday I covered the The Genetic Fallacy, the error of arguing that an idea is false on the basis of where it originated from. Today I want to look at what’s known as the “straw man” fallacy. Origins of the Name This fallacy takes its name from a practice common in the middle ages. A knight would practice jousting by putting a straw man on a horse and … [Read more...]
Penn is "Telling" you There is No God
Penn Jillette of the magician duo “Penn and Teller” has given an interview (back in 2005) to NPR on why he does not believe in God. Along the way, he evinces some misunderstandings and fallacious appeals. What are those misunderstandings? First, Penn claims atheism is “not believing in God.” Aside from the fact this is the non-traditional definition, it also ignores the fact … [Read more...]
Christ in the Story of Ruth
In previous blog posts, I have drawn attention to various Old Testament foreshadows and prototypes of Christ. In this article, I want to draw attention to yet another old testament parallel to Christ. This one occurs in the book of Ruth. The story of Ruth begins with a man by the name of Elimelek, along with his wife Naomi and two sons Mahlon and Kilion, going to live in the … [Read more...]
Why Every Christian Must Practice Epistemic Humility
There are three primary categories for virtue the Christian/theist will affirm. The first are the transcendental virtues: truth, beauty, and goodness. The second set is the theological virtues: faith, hope, and love/charity. Then there are the four cardinal virtues: prudence, courage, patience, and justice. It’s my belief that every Christian must practice epistemic … [Read more...]
Craig's Moral Argument Refuted?
Recently, it was brought to my attention that a YouTube video claims to have debunked William Lane Craig’s first premise in his moral argument. For a refresher, that premise claims “If God does not exist, then objective moral values do not exist.” The objector claims that if even one of the Euthyphro dilemma’s horns are even possible, then the first premise is false. This is … [Read more...]
Did Jesus Claim to be Divine? (Answering Pluralism)
Religious Pluralism is a post-modern way of thinking that rejects the idea that any one religion is true, rather, all religions are equally true and equally valid ways to God. While pluralistic efforts at trying to support equality, tolerance, and dialogue may be noteworthy in some instances, there are serious philosophical, historical, and logical flaws in this type of … [Read more...]