Monthly Archives: January 2008

Wrong Font on Internet Explorer

Sometime in the last 2-3 days something happened to the look of this website, but only as viewed from Internet Explorer for Windows. I use a Macintosh, so I didn’t see it when it happened. SteveK alerted me to it. It does not look unusual in Firefox or Safari browsers. I apologize for the large …

January 23, 2008 – 6:37 am | By Tom Gilson | Posted in The Faith | Comments Off

Where Relativism Leads: Focusing the Question

Following dozens of interactions here on the topic of moral relativism, it’s time to try to focus our discussions toward a more productive point. Definitions Moral realists (by way of review) believe that there are at least some moral principles that hold universally, objectively, and absolutely; they would obtain even if no human accepted them. …

January 22, 2008 – 3:57 pm | By Tom Gilson | Posted in Ethics | Tagged , | Comments (41)

Links for Martin Luther King, Jr.

He was a man well deserving of honor. Fred Sanders at Scriptorium Daily says, John Piper has the right idea about Martin Luther King Day: Don’t Waste It. In a timely memo, Piper exhorted all pastors and teachers who read his blog to “take note of the day and speak a word of exhortation to …

January 21, 2008 – 10:03 am | By Tom Gilson | Posted in The Faith | Tagged , , | Comments (1)

What Christ Does for Us, Part 7: Showing How to Live

By outward appearances, Jesus Christ had a decidedly mixed beginning. He was born in a stable, but heralded by angels. His parents were obscure nobodies, but His birth aroused such fear in King Herod that the family had to escape to Egypt. Though Magi were bringing Him gifts including gold and fine spices, still when …

January 21, 2008 – 8:15 am | By Tom Gilson | Posted in The Faith | Tagged , | Comments Off

Good Media Commentary on ID and Evolution

Two weeks ago the CBS affiliate in Dallas/Ft. Worth presented a  5-minute television news commentary segment (Tracy Rowlett’s Perspective) on “Teaching Evolution in Public Schools” (click on the video of that name). It’s one of the better overviews of the issue I’ve seen in the media. HT to Evolution News and Views

January 20, 2008 – 7:09 am | By Tom Gilson | Posted in Origins and Science | Tagged , | Comments Off

What Christ Does For Us, Part 6: Among Us, Loving Us

The stage has been set in Parts 1 through 5 (linked below). The human race, meant to be great under God, in worshipful relationship with Him, has fallen mightily by rejecting that relationship. God did not reject us, though. The plan was prepared since before the foundation of the world: Jesus Christ, God Himself, second …

January 18, 2008 – 10:02 pm | By Tom Gilson | Posted in The Faith | Tagged , , | Comments (4)

Brief Note on Ad Hominems in Comments

A commenter this week noted a “thinly veiled ad hominem” directed toward him in a prior comment. I am now changing my threshold for considering these personally-directed arrows to be off-limits. I am going to be quicker to decide they need editing or deleting, in other words. The new wording in the Discussion Policies is: …

January 18, 2008 – 10:37 am | By Tom Gilson | Posted in Unfiled | Comments Off

Brief Note on Comments With Hyperlinks

Just added to the discussion policies: Comments that include five or more hyperlinks are held for moderation, because multiple links are common features of spam. Feel free to write those comments, but expect a delay before they show up.

January 18, 2008 – 10:01 am | By Tom Gilson | Posted in Unfiled | Comments Off

The Awful Hubris of Misdirected Humility

“Who am I to say someone else’s morality is wrong?” the moral relativist asks. It is a stance of humility that he takes, at least on the surface; for how could he be so arrogant as to say what another’s values ought to be? I choose the male pronoun here because of recent dialogues about …

January 17, 2008 – 7:36 am | By Tom Gilson | Posted in Ethics | Tagged | Comments (31)

“POSITION PAPER on INTELLIGENT DESIGN: A BALANCED, RESPECTFUL and RATIONAL PERSPECTIVE”

From BRITES: The veiled agenda of Intelligent Design bleeds through its empty rhetoric like a gushing chest wound staining a freshly bleached T-shirt. ID is a fascist politico-religious movement that masquerades as science and attempts to force a wedge between the scientific community and the wider culture. The ultimate goal of this wedgie is to …

January 16, 2008 – 8:42 pm | By Tom Gilson | Posted in Just For Fun, Origins and Science | Tagged , , | Comments (2)