Expelled

Detailed review of "Expelled" by Jeffery Schloss (Center for Faith, Ethics, and Life Sciences Westmont College) with 95 citations ranging from the usual evolution and ID folks to Martin Luther and Robert Frost.

Sadly, the film contributes to an approach that has raised rather than lowered walls between Christians and the surrounding culture. Sadly, it raises the already growing walls of suspicion about any scholarly attempts to explore the relationship between science and faith. Sadly, it raises walls that don’t protect but constrain the spiritual growth of our students, if they are driven to believe they must choose between God and evolution. And most sadly, it is raising all these walls unnecessarily, along a border that is never demonstrated to have been accurately surveyed, much less to be in need of defending.

God Is Not Dead Yet

There is an article at Christianity Today by the title of God is Not Dead Yet: How Current Philosophers Argue for His Existence by W. L. Craig.

For me, the cosmological (Everything has a cause) and the teleological arguments have some validity. Regarding the teleological argument, the recent determination of how many of the fundamental physical constants are fine tuned precisely such that our universe can exist and provide for life provides a justifiable basis for the affirmation. I do not align myself with the intelligent design community however.

The ontological argument seems to me to be a silly play with words. "I'm thinking of something greater than which nothing else exists. In order to be that it must have existence" is one formulation I've heard/seen.

The moral argument was brought about by Kant. Francis Collins came to faith through consideration of this. See his book, The Language of God. I must think more about this one so more. I have never been able to quite "get it".

None of these says anything about God being a He or much about what God's characteristics are. It is a long step from affirming a God as a result of these arguments and inferring certain biblical doctrines.

First Revision: review at Matt Wiebe.

Loving the Storm Drenched

No one changed his mind on an issue because he was humiliated into it.

This is a quote from an article titled "Loving the Storm-Drenched" by Frederica Mathewes-Green. It is lifted from The Best American Spiritual Writing of 2007, edited by P. Zaleski.

This reminds me of a Kirkegaard quote I noted earlier here.

Rex Miller and Alan Hirsch

Have added these two links. Rex Miller communicates how our new age is a digital one and different from the print and broadcast eras. I'm a boomer so my era controls/influences how I think, how I work, and my religious outlook. Then there is the Forgotten Ways blog of Alan Hirsch. I like the way things are changing to the new and at the same time embracing the past. Isn't that paradox.

Depression

Depression is another way of saying "not enough coffee".

Intuitive Leadership: Embracing a Pradigm of Narrative, Metaphor & Chaos

Am reading Intuitive Leadership: Embracing a Pradigm of Narrative, Metaphor & Chaos by Tim Keel. It is part biography. It is also a description of the origins and rationale and perspective of the emergent church. I can't seem to get enough of these kinds of books. I dig the critique of Enlightenment, the philosophy of life into which I was born and to which I subscribed, partly unconsciously, for most of my life and which is the natural habit of my mind. Such books are helping me leave the flatland of modernity.

Here is an interesting quote regarding Celtic Christianity. You know Celtic Spirituality is hot these days.

In a Celtic expression of the Christian faith the imagination is stimulated and awakened to creation and our life in it. God creates and employs the raw materials of life and construes life from them. Thus we don't transcend those things in order to have a spiritual life; rather, in those things we discover the hand and presence of the Creator and awaken to the reality that everything is spiritual and has the potential to be santified in Christ.

I added the bold. So creation is good, not as the gnostics perceive it, and we are free to be creative and imaginative within it.

Eye Strain

It's time for a new eyeglass prescription. I'm getting eye strain if I spend any time online. Have an appointment and will get the care of this taken.

Not much action in the blogosphere these days. People are taking a vacation from it. I need to work more on my layout.

Trying Out New Template

A change is long overdue. I will be playing around with a new template. Some of the older features will eventually be return, in time.

An Artist and Church of Christ member

(photo by Erik Tryggestad see link below)

Here is a wonderful quote from Rolando Diaz:

“Artists connect ... with what everyone is feeling, but they don’t want to talk about — or sometimes even understand how to talk about,” he said.

From the Christian Chronicle article For Cuban Born Artist: All of Life is a Canvas. Read it.

Now is there anyone out there who has trouble talking about feelings? Acknowledging that feelings are important?