A Grain of Salt

Last week, I did something I thought I would never do, but I guess I was speeding toward since I started this blog. I started at a USA Today article about a bishop (Nick Baines) that supposedly “slammed” Christmas carols in a recent book. Judging by the wording of the article, along with the title of the book (which was suspiciously missing it’s sub-title) Why Wish You a Merry Christmas, I assumed that he was another  one of the bunch of crazies that look to profit off Christmas by stirring up controversy, then fading into the background.

Boy, was I in for a surprise.

Almost immediately after the post, I got a message from the author, which you can read by scrolling down a little bit. I don’t feel like copy-pasting the whole thing again.

There, now that you’ve read it, you can understand why I was so embarrassed. With no other knowledge of the book than a news article, I attacked the author. Turns out, USA Today never contacted Nick– and left out what I consider to a very important piece of understanding the meaning of this book, the sub-title. What matters (and what doesn’t) in the festive season is actually a book that (after more research) I can say I recommend to any and everyone who can get their hands on it. And again, my apologies to Mr. Baines.

Lying is FUN!

It’s been a desire of mine to see this movie for the longest time. Then, an article in Entertainment Weekly, which is summed up here, brought my attention to the true point of the plot. It seems that in order to comfort the residents of the world that cannot lie, the main character invents religion as a whole, or as he puts it, “the man in the sky.” “It’s not atheist propaganda,” says Ricky Gervais. I don’t think that the simple inclusion of the plot device is the main issue here. It’s the movie’s rating.

Other movies have had anti-religious viewpoints before, but they were very up front about the ideas portrayed in the movie. Any one who wanted to see the film, and the ways that other people view our religion, and even some ways that we can defend the faith. But this is an anti-religious film hiding in the clothes of a comedy. I haven’t seen it- it could be the most hilarious movie in decades. But that won’t change what it is trying to sell. The hundreds of thousands of teenagers that go to see this movie will be met with a statement-  “God is a good idea, but c’mon, who actually believes that?”

At a certain point, thoughts like this will become all to prevalent. Then we reach a point that Frederick Nietzche talked about- God is dead. I think now would be a good time to explain that I still believe in God. I think Christianity is the best explanation for everything that has ever gone on in the world, and that faith in Jesus Christ is the only way to get to heaven. But, at a certain point, the idea of God is beyond saving in a society. This is getting ever closer in ours– even now the name of God is seen as the epitome of irrational, illogical thought. Unless we make a stand for God, it will soon bet too late- his cause will be seen as “only for the unintellectual.”

We start here.

The 2005 decision by Judge John E. Jones in Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District was celebrated by all red-blooded American liberals as a victory over the forces of darkness. The result was probably inevitable…but the conflicts aired in this trial- over the status of evolutionary theory, the arguments for intelligent design, and the nature of science-reveal an intellectually unhealthy situation…Most importantly, the campaign of the scientific community to rule out intelligent design as beyond discussion results in the avoidance of serious questions about the relation between evolutionary theory and religious belief, questions that must be faced in order to theory and evaluate the scientific evidence for it..

This sums up the feelings that Christian scientists  ( not Christian Scientists, the religious sect against medicine, but scientists who are Christian ) having been trying to promote for the 150 or so years since Darwin published his now famous book, On the Origin of Species. When several students complained about the inclusion of intelligent design in a textbook, the school county was sued for it’s removal. The professor argues instead that it should be taught, as it bears just as much weight as the theory it opposes. Sounds remarkably pro-Intelligent design, right? This article was actually written by prominent Atheist, Professor Thomas Nagel. Of course, he is a professor of law, but the true story here is not the scientific side, but the Constitutional side. The article goes on to quote the book that prompted the lawsuit- it basically says that evolution is a theory, gives 3 or 4 sentences on intelligent design, then instructs students to talk to their family if they want to know more.

What Thomas Nagel saw was a Constitutional crisis. For too long, the rights of students to learn was infringed upon because what was being taught wasn’t widely accepted.  ( I have heard the “flying spaghetti monster” argument that has been used by some. And I will allow this theory to be taught when prominent scientists discover that the evidence for the “flying spaghetti monster” outweighs the arguments for evolution. ) The string of court decisions that are decently anti-Christian seem to have no end. But the decisions aren’t the real purpose behind this post either.

Straw men. That’s right.

Many times, Christians assume that all Atheists are bloodsucking baby-killers with no moral compass. Likewise, some people see Christians as Bible thumping do-gooders who have no intelligence and ignore scientific fact to keep their precious ignorance intact. Thomas Nagel defied one of these stereotypes. He showed that even someone who disagrees with the Creationist view has to admit that it is a acceptable theory. And that’s where we  come in. We have to defy stereotypes also.

Earn the respect of your peers by acting in a way that shows that you have evidence of what you believe. If you can refute a point, do it humbly and calmly. If you have feel you have been defeated in a debate, accept defeat with dignity. Please. PLEASE. If the Christian community as whole doesnt rise up to act in a dignified way, soon our faith will be the laughingstock of the world.

I’ve heard it said that Christianity is an undefendable faith. Any or all proof of God’s existence is purely emotional, or cannot be proven logically.

This is the kind of attitude that is destroying the reputation of the church today.

The argument that the bible has been changed over the years is one of the most prominent anti-Christian tactics used today. The most common response? “But it’s the Bible! You just have to believe!” HA! This is the most easily countered point, but many Christians just fold up in front of it like a scarecrow in a storm. There exist THOUSANDS of Greek manuscripts of the new testament that can be read in the original Greek to check authenticity. Anyone who doubts the Bible’s lack of change can simply read the origina and judge for themselves.

Next, someone might bring up the contradictions of the Bible. Several of the “contradictions” in this compilation are easily refuted, such as

Is Jesus equal to or lesser than?

JOH 10:30 I and my Father are one.

JOH 14:28 Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again unto you. If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father: for my Father is greater than I.

This I fail to see as a contradiction. Jesus, in the first verse, is simply stating that He and the Father are one. The second, he is exalting God over himself, as he must do. He goes from showing his deity, to worshiping God. Some of the supposed contradictions just sound downright silly-

Snails do not melt

PSA 58:8 As a snail which melteth, let every one of them pass away: like the untimely birth of a woman, that they may not see the sun.

I don’t know about the author, but I have seen a dead snail. When you find the shell, and the dead creature slowly oozes out, it sure seems like it has “melted” to me.

Across the internet, there are thousands of websites devoted to debunking these contradictions. And yet, Christians never seem to have any valid arguments to counter the logic of these attackers.

Some even claim that there is no need to defend the faith ( which seem to me like a form of cowardice ).  Paul however, did just that, saying that-

Be ready to speak up and tell anyone who asks why you’re living the way you are, and always with the utmost courtesy. Keep a clear conscience before God so that when people throw mud at you, none of it will stick. They’ll end up realizing that they’re the ones who need a bath.- 1 Peter 3:15 ( The Message )

And that will be the verse that defines the rest of this blog- ALWAYS BE READY. Hopefully, I can arm you with reason through science, history, and philosophy to not doubt God’s existence. And having reason to your belief is always a good thing.