Thu - November 22, 2007
Happy Thanksgiving!
So much to be thankful for! This year it's just the
four of us at home. We had our afternoon feast, cleaned up, took the obligatory
nap, and then drove the Colonial Parkway to see the colors. Last night we had a
multicultural, three-church worship service of Thanksgiving, held at our church
this year (it rotates year to year). I could certainly echo the first couple
paragraphs of Douglas Wilson's Thanksgiving
message: Thanksgiving is about really understanding who God
is.
And then there's that other Thanksgiving tradition. We can all be thankful that the Pilgrims came to America so we could establish the real meaning of football here.
And then there's that other Thanksgiving tradition. We can all be thankful that the Pilgrims came to America so we could establish the real meaning of football here.
Posted at 05:25 PM Read More |
Tue - November 20, 2007
God Bless You
I received this email this
morning:
"Tom, I must admit Christians take first prize for hypocrisy; your book the Bible dams [sic] those who do not believe in your God but when we show another point of view you race to your chariots to fight the truth. It is very sad, and probably the reason why I am not a Christian, that you have so much hate and intolerance in your Christian families. There is more ethics and morals in the small finger of Bertrand Russell than the entire Christian community. Please God save us from your followers.
"You have my blessing in the hope you see the light of day.
"Happy Thanksgiving
"R. B."
For any of you who feel similarly, here is my response, which I emailed back to the sender.
"Tom, I must admit Christians take first prize for hypocrisy; your book the Bible dams [sic] those who do not believe in your God but when we show another point of view you race to your chariots to fight the truth. It is very sad, and probably the reason why I am not a Christian, that you have so much hate and intolerance in your Christian families. There is more ethics and morals in the small finger of Bertrand Russell than the entire Christian community. Please God save us from your followers.
"You have my blessing in the hope you see the light of day.
"Happy Thanksgiving
"R. B."
For any of you who feel similarly, here is my response, which I emailed back to the sender.
Posted at 02:22 PM Read More |
Sat - November 10, 2007
Free Esco!
Here at the National Conference on Christian
Apologetics we have heard from Robert Escamillo. He had been a high school
teacher in Raleigh, NC--with a Ph.D. from Yale. He had had Buddhists, Wiccans,
and others share with his class. Fine. But when he had a Christian come share
what it was like to be a Christian in a Muslim country, he raised the ACLU's
ire, got reassigned, had a 12-page reprimand placed in his file. His story is at
freeesco.com. (I'm typing this
as I heard it from the stage in real time; if I have some facts wrong you can
correct them from the website.)
His call as he left the stage: "Teenagers, we need you to lead in a culture that does not know Christ--we need you to lead a tsunami of love!"
His call as he left the stage: "Teenagers, we need you to lead in a culture that does not know Christ--we need you to lead a tsunami of love!"
Posted at 01:57 PM Read More |
Call To a Deeper Discipleship
Last night before 4,000 people at the National Conference on
Christian Apologetics, Josh McDowell and his son Sean--who is an
outstanding speaker and apologist in his own right--spoke forcefully, not on how
we can know Christianity is true, but on how we can connect with our generation
today so that they will be open to listen. For the Christian church has not been
doing well in this lately. As Josh said repeatedly, it's not our convictions
that are getting in the way. It's our attitudes. It was not the early church's
attitudes that earned them persecution. It was their convictions. We have it
backwards today.
Posted at 06:55 AM Read More |
Tue - November 6, 2007
"The Turning of an Atheist"
If you've read this
Mark Oppenheimer article screed about Antony Flew, be sure you
also read this
response (below the fold) from Roy Varghese. Note also what Victor
Reppert has to say about the quality of Oppenheimer's
journalism.
We expect one-sidedness from some forms of media. There are opinion pieces, there are arguments, there are polemics, there are even political advertisements. This, though, had every appearance of being a piece of journalistic reporting. But journalism usually involves asking other involved parties for their views on a matter.
We expect one-sidedness from some forms of media. There are opinion pieces, there are arguments, there are polemics, there are even political advertisements. This, though, had every appearance of being a piece of journalistic reporting. But journalism usually involves asking other involved parties for their views on a matter.
Posted at 04:56 PM Read More |
Fri - November 2, 2007
Polytheism Is Good For You?
Mary Lefkowitz thinks a return
to polytheism might be socially useful. But are we actually supposed
to believe
it? She seems rather coy on that
question.
Actually her editor may be to blame for some confusion here. The headline reads, "Bring Back the Greek Gods," but I can't find in the article where she actually recommends that. She certainly has had her fill of monotheism, though; but it's based in some confusions, for example in the way she finds it unable to account for "the evil and confusion in the world." Polytheism's explanation of evil is actually considerably more confusing than the Christian account.
Actually her editor may be to blame for some confusion here. The headline reads, "Bring Back the Greek Gods," but I can't find in the article where she actually recommends that. She certainly has had her fill of monotheism, though; but it's based in some confusions, for example in the way she finds it unable to account for "the evil and confusion in the world." Polytheism's explanation of evil is actually considerably more confusing than the Christian account.
Posted at 12:58 PM Read More |
Wed - October 31, 2007
Westboro Gets Slapped
On the one hand, there are free speech issues here.
On the other hand, I hope the $11
million penalty with which the so-called Westboro "Baptist Church" has
been slapped will put the brakes on their unChristian, unloving, ungracious,
outrageous public behavior.
They need to stop representing their hate as being a Christian message. They just need to stop doing it, period.
Hat tip to ChristDot.
They need to stop representing their hate as being a Christian message. They just need to stop doing it, period.
Hat tip to ChristDot.
Posted at 10:29 PM Read More |
Fri - October 26, 2007
Miracles: Not Just For the Rest of the World
Just after I wrote my last
post I found this
at Wittingshire. I had heard this before on tape but I did not know it was
available on the 'net. It's a medically documented organic (not merely
psychological) healing, and you can hear it happening yourself if you follow the
link.
Posted at 11:05 AM Read More |
Muslims and Miracles
A survey
of 750 Muslims who converted to Christianity seriously challenges Western
assumptions about God's working in the world. The question was why they made the
decision to convert. While not all the reasons given were unexpected for us who
have a European cultural heritage, two of the top four certainly
were.
Posted at 10:28 AM Read More |
Sun - October 21, 2007
Does the Atheist Deny What the Theist Affirms?
Answer: no. There's a serious disconnect, a failure
to engage the actual question, at least in the example Bill
Vallicella brings up.
Via Christian Thinker. Excellent!
Via Christian Thinker. Excellent!
Posted at 10:17 PM Read More |
Research Data from unChristian
Follow-up to my last
post: you can read research summaries by looking up "Fermi Downloads"
at the unChristian
website. I note also that what I said in that last post about James
Emery White can be attributed to the study's authors. The phrase, "Christianity
has an image problem," appears right on that website. If it was in the book
itself, I missed it--and I've already loaned the book to a pastor so I can't
double-check it.
Posted at 08:09 PM Read More |
unChristian?
Book
Review
I've lost several hours of sleep over David Kinnaman's and Gabe Lyons's book, unChristian: What a New Generation Really Thinks About Christianity ... And Why It Matters. James Emery White, in his Serious Times email newsletter, said* in response to this book, "Christianity has an image problem." With all due respect to Mr. White, one of the authors I most respect, I disagree. Christianity has a reality problem. The problem is shallow discipleship, and the rest of the world sees it for what it is. It's a disturbing picture.
I've lost several hours of sleep over David Kinnaman's and Gabe Lyons's book, unChristian: What a New Generation Really Thinks About Christianity ... And Why It Matters. James Emery White, in his Serious Times email newsletter, said* in response to this book, "Christianity has an image problem." With all due respect to Mr. White, one of the authors I most respect, I disagree. Christianity has a reality problem. The problem is shallow discipleship, and the rest of the world sees it for what it is. It's a disturbing picture.
Posted at 09:42 AM Read More |
Thu - October 11, 2007
Global Aid Network
We're off again to help Global Aid Network (GAiN) pack goods
at their warehouse for shipping to needy people worldwide. It's kind of a
micro-mission trip; we call it an "entry-level" experience. It's very
family-friendly; children are welcome (and safe), and there are ways even for a
5-year-old to genuinely help. Several of our friends who have been to the
warehouse have gone on to be very involved in outreach in Belarus and North
Africa.
GAiN runs volunteer projects like this twice a year. If you're anywhere near the northeastern quarter of the U.S., it's a great way to get your church involved in world mission.
GAiN runs volunteer projects like this twice a year. If you're anywhere near the northeastern quarter of the U.S., it's a great way to get your church involved in world mission.
Posted at 06:15 AM Read More |
Fri - September 28, 2007
How Did They Know God Would Help?
I'm on an airplane now, returning home from my
third trip this week. I've never had a schedule like this before. One reason
this happened is because I added a visit to my sister on Monday and Tuesday; she
is recovering from a serious injury. This current trip has been to meet with
leaders of Global Aid Network (GAiN), a relief and development
organization that's providing help for poor and hurting people around the world.
Meanwhile, at home our family has been helping a young friend who has
experienced more pain than anyone should ever be exposed
to.
Waiting for the airplane to leave Dallas, I was reading Psalm 10, noticing how it relates to experiences like these. The first two-thirds of it is mostly questions, hard ones, starting with (in the English Standard Version):
"Why O Lord, do you stand afar off?
Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?"
Our family is seeing trouble in major ways right now; every family does from time to time. Where is God? The Psalmist knows trouble:
"In arrogance the wicked hotly pursue the poor....
"The wicked boasts of the desires of his soul,
and the one greedy for gain curses and renounces the Lord...."
"His ways prosper at all times;
your judgments are on high, out of his sight;
as for all his foes, he puffs at them...."
"The helpless are crushed, sink down, and fall by his might.
He says in his heart, 'God has forgotten,
he has hidden his face, he will never see it.'"
Waiting for the airplane to leave Dallas, I was reading Psalm 10, noticing how it relates to experiences like these. The first two-thirds of it is mostly questions, hard ones, starting with (in the English Standard Version):
"Why O Lord, do you stand afar off?
Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?"
Our family is seeing trouble in major ways right now; every family does from time to time. Where is God? The Psalmist knows trouble:
"In arrogance the wicked hotly pursue the poor....
"The wicked boasts of the desires of his soul,
and the one greedy for gain curses and renounces the Lord...."
"His ways prosper at all times;
your judgments are on high, out of his sight;
as for all his foes, he puffs at them...."
"The helpless are crushed, sink down, and fall by his might.
He says in his heart, 'God has forgotten,
he has hidden his face, he will never see it.'"
Posted at 09:01 AM Read More |
Sat - September 22, 2007
"The Paradoxical Power of Darkness To Clarify the Truth"
Mother Teresa's decades-long "dark night of the
soul" is well-known now, having been widely reported on in the news.
John Fischer wrote about it on BreakPoint
a few days ago:
"We should not be surprised.
Mother Teresa’s life and ministry was always a stark contrast to the
prevailing Western culture that embraced her as its unlikely spiritual icon. So
shouldn’t it also be true that in her recent spiritual autopsy, the
torment of her soul would be uncovered?"
Posted at 11:06 AM Read More |
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