I grew up unchurched and was pretty much an agnostic up through my twenties. Even though I got baptized as a teenager into the Presbyterian USA denomination, I did it more for social reasons than anything else. There was no great care taken to make sure I was in the faith. Most of my experience with church up until I was 26 years old was about teachings of being a nice person … [Read more...]
Step One of Using Pop Culture as a Community Apologist: The "Aha!" Moment
I am convinced that one of the easiest things to do as a Community Apologist is to use pop culture to demonstrate that everyone, everywhere (with the exception of the odd sociopath) has a moral intuition. And once people agree that this intuition exists, the conversation can then turn to why it exists and where it comes from. One of the commenters on my last post asked if I … [Read more...]
Book Review: More Than A Theory
I am really excited to bring you this review. Dr. Hugh Ross and the Reasons to Believe (RTB) scholar team are the means that Christ used to keep this modernist thinker from completely giving up on the Christian faith about seven years ago. You can read about this more on my page Nature vs. Scripture. Reasons to Believe provides a scientific and Biblical model of the creation … [Read more...]
The Resurrection of Jesus – A Miracle in One of Three Ways
With Easter just around the corner, we all are reminded once again that the resurrection of Jesus Christ was a miracle. No matter if you believe in God or not, no matter if you’re an atheist or a Christian, the account and effects of Jesus’ resurrection are truly miraculous. Non-Christians may scoff at this claim, but let me explain. The resurrection is a miracle in one of … [Read more...]
"A New Kind of Christian" Critique – Final
Part 1 - Part 2 Although the Bible is not a philosophy book, it does presuppose some ideas about truth which fit foundationalism better than postmodern epistemology. Passage after passage are clear that truth is what corresponds to reality, rather than making truth relative to a linguistic community. Here is a minor sampling: … [Read more...]
Frustrated Apologists
It can be frustrating talking about issues of apologetics with someone who does not believe. If not careful, the apologist can feel as if the source of his or her frustration is the person. This can lead to guilt rooted in the sense that the apologist cares more about arguments of apologetics than loving the person. Have you ever felt that way? I know I have. However, I … [Read more...]
The Rise of the Alincolnists
The 16th President of the United States has grown in popularity in recent months with major Hollywood Blockbusters such as Lincoln and New York Times bestsellers such as Killing Lincoln. In fact, it’d be safe to say that Abraham Lincoln is regarded as one of the greatest and most respected American Presidents to date. Yet new evidence has come to light questioning the … [Read more...]
Cosmic Genesis And Grousing Of Religious Atheists
Michael Palmer’s The Atheist’s Creed records the first article of faith, which characterizes what I call religious atheism, namely “I BELIEVE THAT the cosmos is all that is or ever was and ever will be.”(Palmer 2012:5, emphasis in original), which is contrary to modern cosmology. I recommend reading the first part: Cosmic Beginning And Grousing Of Religious Atheists, before … [Read more...]
Postmodernism, Relativism, and 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: With the collapse of the Iron Curtain, the former Soviet Republics fragmenting from the former Soviet Union, and to some degree, science not being able to answer every question in life, in the late 1980’s and early … [Read more...]
Are We Born Evil?
In the book Isn't Religion Weird? Quotations for Atheists by Dave Lane, an anonymous quote reads: “Why does God punish us with suffering throughout life and an eternity in hell afterwards? Because we are born evil and depraved! But why are we born evil and depraved? Because God makes us that way. So God makes us a certain way and then punishes us for being that way!” … [Read more...]