I'm Callin' My Bookie Even As We Speak!
Although it sounds to me more like something an actuary with too much time on his hands might have come up with, the New York Times reported in May that a leading philosopher has calculated the probability of Jesus' resurrection at "a whopping 97 percent." What I also find interesting is that while this philosopher, Richard Swinburne, has been arguing that the existence of God is improbable, the nonexistence of God is far more improbable. Check out this interesting article from Christianity Today.
Tuesday, July 9, 2002
Monday, July 8, 2002
GOODNESS GRACIOUS - Part 2
Speaking of God.
There's always that whole weird trinity idea. God. Jesus. And that Holy Spirit thing that tends to give me the willies. Kind of the Three Musketeers of supreme beings. "All for one and one for all!" Or something like that. Three for the price of one.
God saying, "Hey, this will mess with their minds. I'll show up as a baby. Grow up. Claim to be Me. And then after being killed for being a heretic and nutcase I'll come back to life. Ta da! And then after that, I'll tell 'em that I've sent this little kind of spirit that will help them tap into me."
Could it be more ridiculous?
Well, yeah, it could.
Every belief system takes a serious leap of faith. Even atheism. Most folks do believe there's something else out there and whatever it is they do believe is always pretty bizarre to someone else - but somehow always makes sense to themselves. I mean how is believable is that whole Celestine Prophecy / Martha Williamson stuff? Or Wicca? Or The Force. Or astrology. Or The Matrix, for that matter.
Its all nuts.
But then, "not believing" is nuts.
Speaking of God.
There's always that whole weird trinity idea. God. Jesus. And that Holy Spirit thing that tends to give me the willies. Kind of the Three Musketeers of supreme beings. "All for one and one for all!" Or something like that. Three for the price of one.
God saying, "Hey, this will mess with their minds. I'll show up as a baby. Grow up. Claim to be Me. And then after being killed for being a heretic and nutcase I'll come back to life. Ta da! And then after that, I'll tell 'em that I've sent this little kind of spirit that will help them tap into me."
Could it be more ridiculous?
Well, yeah, it could.
Every belief system takes a serious leap of faith. Even atheism. Most folks do believe there's something else out there and whatever it is they do believe is always pretty bizarre to someone else - but somehow always makes sense to themselves. I mean how is believable is that whole Celestine Prophecy / Martha Williamson stuff? Or Wicca? Or The Force. Or astrology. Or The Matrix, for that matter.
Its all nuts.
But then, "not believing" is nuts.
Truth Is Stranger Than Fiction
Just when you think you've seen it all, along comes Wash Away Your Sins Bubble Bath! Or, if you need one last piece of evidence that we are very near the end of civilization as we know it, take a look at this amazing story about inspirational figurines that depict Christ playing various sports with kids. Apparently "Jesus got game!"
Just when you think you've seen it all, along comes Wash Away Your Sins Bubble Bath! Or, if you need one last piece of evidence that we are very near the end of civilization as we know it, take a look at this amazing story about inspirational figurines that depict Christ playing various sports with kids. Apparently "Jesus got game!"
GOODNESS GRACIOUS - Part 1
Christians are weasels.
Just like everyone else. There is absolutely no reason to think they should be any less weasely than anyone else EXCEPT that too many Christians go around telling anyone who will listen that they have more of clue than everyone else. So they bring the abuse on themselves and they deserve most of it. Frederick Buechener, a Presbyterian minister and author says that Christians aren't better than anyone else they just have a half-baked idea of whom to thank.
Which brings us to . . .
Jesus. Now there is a nutcase.
He claimed to be the Son of God. He claimed he could do miracles. He said no one could know God without him.
Take a look at Luke 22: 7 – 13
What are the odds of that happening? And what kind of nutball would send people on that kind of wild goose chase?
As CS Lewis suggests he's on par with someone claiming to be a poached egg. Or he's God.
I don't really think there's any middle ground. Even if he was a nutball, he still had some pretty dang good ideas for how to live and how to treat each other.
But he's nuts I tell ya!
Or God.
Take your pick.
Christians are weasels.
Just like everyone else. There is absolutely no reason to think they should be any less weasely than anyone else EXCEPT that too many Christians go around telling anyone who will listen that they have more of clue than everyone else. So they bring the abuse on themselves and they deserve most of it. Frederick Buechener, a Presbyterian minister and author says that Christians aren't better than anyone else they just have a half-baked idea of whom to thank.
Which brings us to . . .
Jesus. Now there is a nutcase.
He claimed to be the Son of God. He claimed he could do miracles. He said no one could know God without him.
Take a look at Luke 22: 7 – 13
What are the odds of that happening? And what kind of nutball would send people on that kind of wild goose chase?
As CS Lewis suggests he's on par with someone claiming to be a poached egg. Or he's God.
I don't really think there's any middle ground. Even if he was a nutball, he still had some pretty dang good ideas for how to live and how to treat each other.
But he's nuts I tell ya!
Or God.
Take your pick.
One Nation Under God and Her Father's Selfish Motives
If you're like me (and I know you're glad you're not) you may have some mixed feelings about the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling that reciting the Pledge of Allegiance in it's current form is unconstitutional. Although I'd prefer to see the phrase "under God" left in, I can't help but think that whether it's there or not will have no affect on the spiritual life of me or anyone else. In fact, I can't help but think that God may be sitting up there saying, "People, people, people! I'm a lot more interested in how your relationship with ME is doing and a lot less interested in whether or not the Pledge of Allegiance acknowledges me or not!"
An interesting sidelight to the whole controversy is that the man who brought the lawsuit, Dr. Michael Newdow, an emergency room doctor with a law degree, said he did so on behalf of his daughter. He said that the pledge harmed his daughter's First Amendment rights because she had to "watch and listen as her state-employed teacher in her state-run school leads her classmates in a ritual proclaiming that there is a God, and that ours is `one nation under God.'" What makes the whole thing even more interesting is that Dr. Newdow filed the legal suit in June "against the wishes of his daughter and her mother, both of which identify themselves as Christians and attend a Calvary Chapel.
If you'd like to read more, check out this article from CPINews.Net
If you're like me (and I know you're glad you're not) you may have some mixed feelings about the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling that reciting the Pledge of Allegiance in it's current form is unconstitutional. Although I'd prefer to see the phrase "under God" left in, I can't help but think that whether it's there or not will have no affect on the spiritual life of me or anyone else. In fact, I can't help but think that God may be sitting up there saying, "People, people, people! I'm a lot more interested in how your relationship with ME is doing and a lot less interested in whether or not the Pledge of Allegiance acknowledges me or not!"
An interesting sidelight to the whole controversy is that the man who brought the lawsuit, Dr. Michael Newdow, an emergency room doctor with a law degree, said he did so on behalf of his daughter. He said that the pledge harmed his daughter's First Amendment rights because she had to "watch and listen as her state-employed teacher in her state-run school leads her classmates in a ritual proclaiming that there is a God, and that ours is `one nation under God.'" What makes the whole thing even more interesting is that Dr. Newdow filed the legal suit in June "against the wishes of his daughter and her mother, both of which identify themselves as Christians and attend a Calvary Chapel.
If you'd like to read more, check out this article from CPINews.Net
Sunday, July 7, 2002
Modesty Is The Best Policy!
The folks at Modest Needs have got it right. In their own words, "Modest Needs is a website dedicated to the power of the very simple idea that changing one person's life for the better DOESN'T require a great deal of money. All it takes is a willingness to ACT on the desire to help others, as we can, with what we can."
A guy named Keith Taylor (who says he is "a professor of medieval literature, drama and film at Middle Tennessee State University") founded Modest Needs on March 21, 2002. He says that "every month until I die or the Internet becomes obsolete, I will set aside $500--about 12% of my current gross monthly income, plus what once was my cigarette money (Yes, I quit smoking for Modest Needs!)--to help individuals meet small financial needs that they simply cannot afford to pay on their own."
Keith would like lots of us to join him in this effort. In the few short months Modest Needs has been up and running, they have funded 177 projects and raised about $45,000.
The folks at Modest Needs have got it right. In their own words, "Modest Needs is a website dedicated to the power of the very simple idea that changing one person's life for the better DOESN'T require a great deal of money. All it takes is a willingness to ACT on the desire to help others, as we can, with what we can."
A guy named Keith Taylor (who says he is "a professor of medieval literature, drama and film at Middle Tennessee State University") founded Modest Needs on March 21, 2002. He says that "every month until I die or the Internet becomes obsolete, I will set aside $500--about 12% of my current gross monthly income, plus what once was my cigarette money (Yes, I quit smoking for Modest Needs!)--to help individuals meet small financial needs that they simply cannot afford to pay on their own."
Keith would like lots of us to join him in this effort. In the few short months Modest Needs has been up and running, they have funded 177 projects and raised about $45,000.
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