Muddling Toward Maturity Blog

SUGGESTIONS ON PREPARING TO MEET ACADEMIC INTIMIDATION

After linking to one of my posts, Wintery Knight (whose blog should be read on a daily basis) went on to offer advice to prospective conservative and Christian students.   One would do well to click through to the links embedded in his post.  He wrote:

. . . young conservatives and Christians need to get used to staying calm while ideas that they don’t agree with are shouted in their faced in the typical vulgar, abusive manner that secular leftists seem to find so fetching these days. The best way to do that is to watch as many debates as possible in advance and get used to sitting still and disagreeing while someone else explains their point of view. . .

Other points of view are only annoying if you have lousy reasons for your own point of view. If you put the time in learning your arguments and evidence, and the best that could be argued against you from the other side, then there should be no problem. . .

We need to start making it common knowledge that atheism does not ground morality and that is a worldview that is responsible for hundreds of millions of deaths in the last 100 years alone.  That point must be made over and over – that when someone claims to be an atheist it should be immediately put to them that meaningful morality is not rationally grounded by their worldview. Don’t let them make any moral judgments without challenging them on the foundations of morality.  . . .

ARE JUDAISM AND CHRISTIANITY AS VIOLENT AS ISLAM?

This is a tremendous article by Raymond Ibrahim.  It appears in the Middle East Quarterly, Summer 2009.   (HT: Michael Rubin)   If the subject interests you even moderately,  Ibrahim's article would be well worth printing for handy reference.  It begins:

"There is far more violence in the Bible than in the Qur'an; the idea that Islam imposed itself by the sword is a Western fiction, fabricated during the time of the Crusades when, in fact, it was Western Christians who were fighting brutal holy wars against Islam."[1] So announces former nun and self-professed "freelance monotheist," Karen Armstrong. This quote sums up the single most influential argument currently serving to deflect the accusation that Islam is inherently violent and intolerant: All monotheistic religions, proponents of such an argument say, and not just Islam, have their fair share of violent and intolerant scriptures, as well as bloody histories. Thus, whenever Islam's sacred scriptures—the Qur'an first, followed by the reports on the words and deeds of Muhammad (the Hadith)—are highlighted as demonstrative of the religion's innate bellicosity, the immediate rejoinder is that other scriptures, specifically those of Judeo-Christianity, are as riddled with violent passages.

Ibrahim tackles the issue competently and lays to rest egregious misrepresentation and propaganda against Christianity.  Read the article for the clarity and insight that is hard to come by in popular media.  Ibrahim offers accurate history and theology. 

SAN DIEGO COUNTY TRYING TO STOP HOME BIBLE STUDIES

- Update 6/4/09 - San Diego withdraws Bible study warning 

According to 10 News in San Diego:

SAN DIEGO -- A local pastor and his wife claim they were interrogated by a San Diego County official, who then threatened them with escalating fines if they continued to hold Bible studies in their home, 10News reported.  [more . . .]

The Family Research Council comments:

Where two or more are gathered in Christ's name, there San Diego County officials will be also. For a suburban California family, this was the shocking reality during last month's Good Friday holiday. A local pastor and his wife invited a dozen or so people to their house for a Bible study, only to be interrupted by a San Diego employee who threatened to fine the couple for breaking an obscure County land code.

People at Pastor Jones's church are stunned by San Diego's actions, particularly its investigation of the group's activities. According to the family's attorney, Dean Broyles of the Western Center for Law & Policy, the officials asked pointed questions such as, "Do you have a regular meeting in your home?" "Yes." "Do you say amen?" "Yes." "Do you pray?" "Yes." "Do you say, 'Praise the Lord?'" "Yes."

What business is it of the county's how the Joneses' worship? This is not communist China. The Joneses aren't operating an underground church in violation of state law. This is their home! And

WEIRDNESS WITH THE GOOGLE SEARCH ENGINE AND "MUDDLING TOWARD MATURITY"

For those who have ever used the Google search engine to find "Muddling Toward Maturity," you are probably aware that Google always brings people directly to one of my sub-topics, "Anti-Christian."  I wonder why that is so.  Does Google have a bias?  I don't know, but be that as it may,  I have many other topics!  If you have newly arrived at the "Anti-Christian" sub-topic, please check current posts here.

(This message was first posted January 19, 2009.  Because Google continues to send searchers to the "Anti-Christian" sub-topic, it requires reposting.)

FOUR-MINUTE OVERVIEW OF 11 ARGUMENTS FOR CHRISTIANITY BY WILLIAM LANE CRAIG

Wintery Knight Blog has much outstanding material, especially on Christian apologetics.  I am indebted to that blog for the video of William Lane Craig's interaction with Christopher Hitchens mentioned in the title of this blog post.  The short video clip offers a well-done "taste" of the solid, persuasive material William Lane Craig brings to his dialogs.

WHO DESIGNED THE DESIGNER? DOUG GROOTHUIS RESPONDS TO RICHARD DAWKINS

Douglas Groothuis, aka "the Constructive Curmudgeon" and Professor of Philosophy at Denver Seminary writes:

My paper in "Think: Philosophy for Everyone" (a publication of The Royal Institute for Philosophy) is now on line (Spring, 2009 edition, pages 71-81). It is a secular journal, which encourages creative forms for doing philosophy that will reach past the purely academic world. That doesn't mean it is dumbed down. Some very prestigious contributors have been featured. For my paper, I designed a discussion between a Christian, an agnostic, and an atheist partial to Richard Dawkins. (In 2004, I published a paper in Think that featured a posthumous report from Pascal about the errors made in a Think paper criticizing his wager argument.) 

Some days later Groothuis posted  the following:

 John Loftus, host of Debunking Christianity and author of Why I Became an Atheist, kindly asked me if I wished to submit an essay to his blog. I chose a short and fairly popular piece first published at True U called, "Understanding the New Atheism: the Straw God." His fellow atheists have weighed in immediately with more posts that I have time to respond to. So, I encourage some of you apologists to read their responses and to respond in turn: politely and smartly.

DAVID HART'S BOOK: "ATHEIST DELUSIONS: THE CHRISTIAN REVOLUTION AND ITS FASHIONABLE ENEMIES"

R.R. Reno offers a review of David Hart's Atheist Delusions: The Christian Revolution and Its Fashionable Enemies (Yale University Press).  Here's an excerpt from Reno's review:

“But,” as Hart writes in one of those sentences that makes the writer in me jealous, “atheism that consists in vacuous arguments afloat on oceans of historical ignorance, made turbulent by storms of strident self-righteousness, is as contemptible as any other form of dreary fundamentalism.”

So, yes, the modern era presents Christianity with deep and profound challenges, challenges we should engage, because they have the power to reform and deepen our faith. Hart points to David Hume and Edward Gibbon, and especially Friedrich Neitzsche. But it seems that our postmodern age has seen a definite drop in the quality of unbelief. “By comparison to these men,” writes Hart, referring to the serious atheists, “today’s gadflies seem far lazier, less insightful, less subtle, less refined, more emotional, more ethically complacent, and far more interested in facile simplifications of history than in sober and demanding investigations of what Christianity has been or is.”   [more . . .]    HT: Between Two Worlds

Me:  It looks like Hart's book reaches a new level of sophistication and depth and that he wields his verbal sword with notable dexterity.

TOO CHRISTIAN FOR THE CHRISTIAN ENCYCLOPEDIA

Edward Feser reports:

Last Wednesday I reported on a controversy involving the decision by academic press Wiley-Blackwell to suspend publication of the Encyclopedia of Christian Civilization, allegedly on the grounds that it is “too Christian.” The editor of the Encyclopedia, George T. Kurian, has claimed in a memo sent to the work’s contributors that the press intended to pulp the entire initial print run of the work and demands that it be revised so as to make it less pro-Christian, more friendly to Islam, and in general more “politically correct.” 

More . . .

Illinois moment of silence ruled unconstitutional

I am filing this in the "hard to believe department."  According to Mike Robinson of the Associated Press,

A federal judge [Robert W. Gettleman] has ruled that a state law requiring a moment of silence in public schools across Illinois is unconstitutional, saying it crosses the line separating church and state.

"The statute is a subtle effort to force students at impressionable ages to contemplate religion," U.S. District Judge Robert W. Gettleman said in his ruling Wednesday.  [more. . .]

Me:  Has it come to this?  What manner of insanity grips the radical left?  I am wondering when the sane people of the land will rise up against this madness . . .

Weirdness with the Google Search Engine and "Muddling Toward Maturity"

For those who have ever used the Google search engine to find "Muddling Toward Maturity," you are probably aware that Google always brings people directly to one of my sub-topics, "Anti-Christian."  I wonder why that is so.  Does Google have a bias?  I don't know, but be that as it may,  I have many other topics!  If you have newly arrived at the "Anti-Christian" sub-topic, please check current posts here.

MATTHEW PARRIS: "AS AN ATHEIST, I TRULY BELIEVE AFRICA NEEDS GOD"

What a stunning article!    (HT: Hot Air)    This is a "must-read," a great conversation starter.  After reading this article, it is hard for me to understand how Matthew Paris remains an atheist.  I'll give him credit for this: he is extraordinarily objective in his observations and perceptions. This may be one of the best pieces of Christian apologetics I have read in a long time.   Read it!

DESTROYING THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE WEST

A friend sent me a link to the Bill Muehlenberg essay, "Destroying the Foundations of the West," which I am glad to be aware of .  (He cites sources on my shelf I have wanted to read more thoroughly, rather than only dip into!).  I poked around Muehlenberg's website, "CultureWatch," and found much of interest there.  He has written an astonishing number of essays, plus a great number of book reviews.  He is a Christian writer attuned to the cultural challenges facing the modern world.  American-born, his wife is Australian and they make their home in Melbourne, Australia.  A short bio can be found here.

THE POST-CHRISTMAS, POST-CHRISTIAN WEST

Andrew Strattaford reports on "Winter Festival News":

Via the Daily Mail:

A school choir was forced to withdraw from a Christmas event because organisers branded its carols 'too religious'. Around 60 children aged between seven and 11 had spent six weeks practising favourites including Once In Royal David's City and Silent Night for the Corringham Winter Festival. But they were let down at the last minute when their headteacher was informed their programme did not 'dovetail' with the festival's theme.

Strattaford's response:  "Idiotic."   I concur.

NEWSWEEK SAYS GAY MARRIAGE PERFECTLY COMPATIBLE WITH THE BIBLE - (Huh?)

- Update 12/10/08  - The Family Research Council offers a point-by-point logical and theological rebuttal to Lisa Miller's Newsweek cover story.  The FRC's response may be the most definitive, detailed, and helpful of all responses.

- Update #1   12/8/08: Mollie Hemingway offers a blistering attack on Lisa Miller's Newsweek piece.   (HT: Between Two Worlds)

- Update #2   12/8/08: Al Mohler offers a detailed response well worth reading.

- Update #3   12/8/08: Robert Gagnon, author of  The Bible and Homosexual Practice, has an internet video that one can view titled: "What Does the Bible Teach About Homosexuality?" He answers Neil Elliot, quoted in the Newsweek piece, here.  Gagnon is a Biblical expert.  Many of his scholarly articles can be accessed here.  He also argues six points from a secular point of view against the cultural endorsement of homosexual behavior.

- (Original Post) - Mark Hemingway over at National Review Online's Corner quotes the lede from Newsweek's cover story this week on "The Religious Case for Gay Marriage."  Afterwards he offers some choice words in rebuttal.  First the Newsweek quote:

Let's try for a minute to take the religious conservatives at their word and define marriage as the Bible does. Shall we look to Abraham, the great patriarch, who slept with his servant when he discovered his beloved wife Sarah was infertile? Or to Jacob, who fathered children with four different women (two sisters and their servants)? Abraham, Jacob, David, Solomon and the kings of Judah and Israel—all these fathers and heroes were polygamists. The New Testament model of marriage is hardly better. Jesus himself was single and preached an

RENOWNED PHILOSOPHER ANTHONY FLEW ON "MY PILGRIMAGE FROM ATHEISM TO THEISM"

Flew is not yet a Christian, but he has become a "theist."  For most of his long life he has an international reputation as a a formidable and well-known atheist.  Read the interview here (downloadable PDF available here.)  The interview was published in 2004.

"IS CHRISTIANITY GOOD FOR THE WORLD? - A DEBATE BETWEEN CHRISTOPHER HITCHENS AND DOUGLAS WILSON"

This debate (which I've not yet read) took place during May 2007.  It is available here and also here.  I saw an advertisement in a magazine yesterday that indicated Canon Press will publish the interchange in book form  (same title), September 2, 2008.

VOX DAY - "THE IRRATIONAL ATHEIST"

Joseph Farah interviewed Vox Day, author of The Irrational Atheist: Dissecting the Holy Trinity of Dawkins, Harris and Hitchens. The book is available as a free ebook here.  Vox Day's blog can be accessed here. From the inside cover:

The Irrational Atheist is not a theological work nor is it a conventional religious defense of faith. It contains no arguments for the existence of God and the supernatural, nor is it concerned with evolution, creationism, the age of Earth, or intelligent design. This book contains no arguments from Scripture. In attacking the arguments, assertions, and conclusions of the New Atheists, Vox Day's only weapons are the secular tools of reason, logic and historically documented, independently verifiable fact. The Irrational Atheist is not a book about God, but about those who seek to replace Him....

Arguments pro and con can be found here.

MARY EBERSTADT - "THE LOSER LETTERS" (SCREWTAPE LETTERS FOR OUR MESSED UP TIMES)

This open letter to spokesmen of the New Atheism is a clever bit of Christian apologetics.  Supposedly written by a Christian convert to atheism, it turns out to be a witty and biting commentary on the sexual dystopia that atheistic secularism has produced.  More letters are said to follow.  (Edited 5/17/08)

Update 5/24/08 - Letter #2 - "Some Little Contradictions and How They Grew"

Update 5/30/08 - Letter #3 - "The Trouble With Good Works

Update 6/6/08 - Letter #4 - The Trouble with Dull Art

Update 6/13/08 - Letter #5- "About Those Totally Annoying Christian Convert Traitors"

Update 6/20/08  - Letter #6  -  "Query: Do Atheists Know Any Human Women, Human Children, or Human Families?

Update 6/29/08 - Letter #7 -  "The Unbelievably Annoying Problem of Christian Moral High Ground"

Updeate 7/11/08 - Letter #8 - From Baby Killers to Barnyard Mayhem: My Turn to Atheism, Part One

Update 7/24/08 - Letter #9 - My Turn to Atheism, Part Two. An Internet Café in Portland, the Little Debbie Tea Party, and You.

Update 7/25/08 - Letter #10 - Final letter - Onward, Anti-Christian Soldiers

Canada: Huge Christian Ministry to Disabled Fined $23,000 For Rejecting Homosexual Employee

The Family Research Council notes:

As Ontario's Christian Horizons ministry knows all too well, standing up for your religious beliefs has its price. Last week, the organization was fined $23,000 by Canada's Human Rights Tribunal for asking employees to sign onto a "morality statement" which included a promise not to engage in homosexual relationships. Connie Heintz, a Horizons employee, agreed to the statement, only to reveal later that she was a lesbian. Heintz filed a complaint with the Tribunal claiming that she was "subjected to a poisoned work environment and threatened with the loss of her job." In response, officials ordered the organization to pay Heintz two years' wages, cease all applicant screenings, develop an "anti-discrimination" policy, and send all employees to a "human rights training program." It sounds unfair, yet this is the same rationale that's fueling the U.S. Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) debate. ENDA would mandate employer tolerance of all forms of sexual orientation in hiring, firing, promotion, and many Christian-oriented businesses (such as bookstores and radio stations) may not be protected by the bill's limited religious exemption.

Additional Resources
Huge Christian Ministry to Disabled Fined $23,000 For Rejecting Homosexual Employee

CHRISTIAN GROUP SUES GOOGLE FOR FAILING TO ACCEPT ANTI-ABORTION ADVERTS

The Daily Mail reports:

A Christian group is suing Google over the internet giant's refusal to take its anti-abortion adverts.

The Christian Institute, a "non-denominational Christian charity", wanted to pay Google so that whenever the word "abortion" was typed into the popular search engine, its link would appear on the side of the screen.

The link would have read: "UK abortion law  -  news and views on abortion from the Christian Institute. www.christian.org.uk."

But Google refused the advert because it said it had a policy of declining sites which mixed the issue of abortion with religious views.

Its Dublin-based advertising team replied: "At this time, Google policy does not permit the advertisement of websites that contain 'abortion and religion-related content'."

Google does, however, accept adverts for abortion clinics, secular pro-abortion sites and secularist sites which attack religion.

THERE'S A GOOD "GOOD FRIDAY" BOOK: TIM KELLER'S "THE REASON FOR GOD: BELIEF IN AN AGE OF SKEPTICISM"

Update 3/22/08 - Here is a Tim Keller here speaking on "Belief in an Age of Skepticism" at the Veritas Forum at UC - Berkeley, March 4, 2008.  This speech is simply magnificent.  My thanks to the Grey Coats website for posting the video. 

Click here for additional Tim Keller YouTube lectures and dialogs. Here's a February 18, 2008 Newsweek article on Tim Keller.  My previous posts on Keller can be found here, here and especially here.  Note Keller's book, referenced below, which looks like a must-read classic.  Click through to read the Amazon reviews.

**
-Mike Gerson applauds Rev. Tim Keller's new book, The Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism .  Gerson (former head speech writer for President Bush), says of Keller:

His 5,000-strong Manhattan congregation is a model of outreach to 20- and 30-something artists and professionals. Keller's church symbolizes an emerging urban evangelicalism -- at a recent service, he recalls, a Republican speechwriter sat near a songwriter for Madonna. Many of Keller's parishioners are deeply skeptical of the religious right, untroubled by evolution and begin their complex spiritual journeys with serious doubts.

Keller explains that members of this rising generation are not so much relativists as they are philosophically rootless. "They have a deep morality, but they have no idea why." And they generally share some objections to religious belief: that traditional faith is exclusive and intolerant and that the existence of suffering is inconsistent with the existence of a loving God.

A centerpiece argument of Keller's response might be called the myth of secular neutrality. "Skeptics argue that they have the intellectual high ground," he says, "but they are really making

IS ATHEISM GETTING A FREE PASS IN THE MEDIA?

From CBNNews.com:

Does broadcast and print media give atheism the same degree of scrutiny as Christianity and other religious faiths?

The Media Research Center's Culture and Media Institute says no. [Executive Summary here -"Apostles of Atheism."] 

The Institute examined the apparent "rise in atheism," subject covered in broadcast news programs, three leading weekly news magazines, and four programs on taxpayer-funded National Public Radio, all shown during 2007.

Gospel of Godlessness

Although only eight percent of Americans call themselves atheists, the report found that not only is the news media hostile toward religion, particularly Christianity, but the media may be spreading a "Gospel of Godlessness" on the American public.

"Whether deliberately or not, the news media did not subject atheism or atheists to the same skepticism to which they subject Christians and Christianity," the report said. "Journalists who look at America's majority religion through a skeptical prism should equally apply their critical faculties to atheism."

In their report, CMI details their discovery of imbalances in the media's coverage of the religion. Among the findings:

- Eighty percent of feature stories about atheism or atheists had a positive tone, 20 percent were neutral. No feature stories were negative.

- Atheists were used to challenge religious viewpoints more than journalists used religious viewpoints to challenge atheism. Fifty-four percent of atheist-themed stories included a religious counterpoint, but 71 percent of the Christian-themed stories included atheist counterpoints or were written from an atheistic perspective.

Double Standard

"By airing unchallenged interviews and reporting predominantly positive-toned features, the news organizations in this study effectively promoted atheism and held it in higher regard than other religions," the report said. "While the media are not

ANTHONY FLEW'S BOOK TELLS WHY HE ABANDONED ATHEISM

I have appreciated reading a review of Anthony Flew's There is a God: How the World's Most Notorious Atheist Changed His Mind.   Flew wrote:

I must stress that my discovery of the Divine has proceeded on a purely natural level, without any reference to supernatural phenomena. It has been an exercise in what is traditionally called natural theology. It has had no connection with any of the revealed religions. Nor do I claim to have had any personal experience of God or any experience that may be called supernatural or miraculous. In short, my discovery of the Divine has been a pilgrimage of reason and not of faith (93).

The reviewer noted:

There are three dimensions of nature that Flew sees as pointing towards God: natural laws, the teleological organization of life, and the very existence of the universe.

The reviewer noted further:

The existence of a God which flew has come to believe in is not the God of Scripture…but it is a step in the right direction. What is interesting about his posture is how open he is to understanding more about Christianity. I must agree with Scot McKnight’s review of this book in that the Appendix with Flew’s questions about Jesus answered by N. T. Wright is absolutely

9 Democrats Vote "No" on House Resolution Marking Christmas

Unbelievable!  And especially since there were no "No" votes marking Muslim and Hindu holidays.  Michelle Malkin reports (my emphases):

Congressman Steve King reacted this morning to the nine “NO” votes on his resolution to honor Christmas and the Christian faith. The vote shocked Capitol Hill observers because votes on similar resolutions honoring the holidays of Islam and Hinduism passed without any NO votes.

Appearing this morning on the Fox News Channel’s Fox and Friends, King said, “The [nine] naysayers didn’t make it to the floor to debate. I would like to know how they could vote Yes on Islam, Yes on the Indian Religions and No on Christianity when the foundation of this nation and our American culture is Christianity…I think there’s an assault on Christianity in America.”

YouTube video here.

More on "The Golden Compass" Movie

Update 12/13/07 - Don Feder has observations worth reading, even if one has read all the other posts on "The Golden Compass" I have put on this blog.

**
Although I have blogged before on the "Golden Compass" movie, I think Archbishop Chaput's recent comments deserve coverage.  Chaput is head of the Catholic Archdiocese in Denver. He writes (my underlining):

The aggressively anti-religious, anti-Christian undercurrent in “The Golden   Compass” is unmistakable and at times undisguised. The wicked Mrs. Coulter alludes approvingly to a fictional version of the doctrine of Original Sin. When a warrior Ice Bear — one of the heroes of the story — breaks into the local Magisterium   headquarters to take back the armor stolen from him, the exterior walls of the evil building are covered with Eastern Christian icons. And for Catholics in our own world, of course, “Magisterium” refers to the teaching authority of   the Church — hardly a literary coincidence. The idea that any Christian film critics could overlook or downplay these negative elements, as some have seemed to do, is simply baffling.

Strangest of all — and in striking contrast to the Harry Potter and Narnia   stories — is the absence of joy or any real laughter in the movie. The talented   child actress who plays the film’s leading role is hobbled by a character that is uniformly unpleasant, rebellious, belligerent and humorless; the kind of   young person described by one of my parent friends as needing a “long time-out.”

Read his entire review.  It's not long.  (HT: Hugh Hewitt) 

"The Golden Compass" Revisited

Update 12/11/07 - I have produced a new post featuring Denver Archbishop Chaput's evaluation.

Update 12/7/07 - Albert Mohler  has a complete review of the movie.  I'll print one paragraph before printing the review in full.  Here's the paragraph (my underlining):

Philip Pullman [the author of the book on which the movie is based] has an agenda -- an agenda about as subtle as an army tank. His agenda is nothing less than to expose what he believes is the tyranny of the Christian faith and the Christian church.  His hatred of the biblical storyline is clear.  He is an atheist whose most important literary project is intended to offer a moral narrative that will reverse the biblical account of the fall and provide a liberating mythology for a new secular age.

And here is the review:

"The Golden Compass - A Briefing For Concerned Christians"

The release of The Golden Compass as a major motion picture represents a new challenge for Christians -- especially parents. The release of a popular film with major actors that presents a message directly subversive of Christianity is something new. It is not likely to be the last.

Having seen the movie at an advance viewing and having read all three books of His Dark Materials, I can assure Christians that we face a real challenge -- one that will

New York Times Op-Ed on "Gospel of Judas" by April D. DeConick: National Geographic Messed Up

Click here for a most interesting evaluation by Dr. April D. DeConick, a professor of Biblical Studies at Rice University and author of The Thirteenth Apostle: What the Gospel of Judas Really Says. Her article appeared today, Dec. 1, 2007, in the New York Times. 

AMID much publicity last year, the National Geographic Society announced that a lost 3rd-century religious text had been found, the Gospel of Judas Iscariot. The shocker: Judas didn’t betray Jesus. Instead, Jesus asked Judas, his most trusted and beloved disciple, to hand him over to be killed. Judas’s reward? Ascent to heaven and exaltation above the other disciples.

It was a great story. Unfortunately, after re-translating the society’s transcription of the Coptic text, I have found that the actual meaning is vastly different. While National Geographic’s translation supported the provocative interpretation of Judas as a hero, a more careful reading makes clear that Judas is not only no hero, he is a demon.

Several of the translation choices made by the society’s scholars fall well outside the commonly accepted practices in the field. . .  (more . . )

Me: This is a fascinating article for anyone remotely interested in the subject.  April DeConick maintains a blog related to her academic work.  Previously, I had read N.T. Wright's Judas and the Gospel of Jesus, an excellent book that I failed to blog about for lack of time. Now, however, it would appear that DeConick's work requires primary attention by all interested in the "Gospel of Judas."

How Should One Respond to Philip Pullman's "The Golden Compass" Movie?

Update 12/7/07 - see my post "The Golden Compass" Revisited

Update: 12/4/07 - Tom Smith calls it a "lovely fascist fable just in time for Christmas."

**  I think Mark Earley offers wise counsel to Christians and others disturbed by the new movie coming out in December, "The Golden Compass," based on the first novel in Philip Pullman's trilogy His Dark Materials.  Early writes:

All of you have probably received the e-mail by now. A lot of Christians have, including many of us here at BreakPoint. One of my colleagues received it from five different people no less!

I am referring to the e-mail that is circulating about the upcoming fantasy film The Golden Compass, based on the book by Philip Pullman. It says that Pullman's fantasy trilogy is openly anti-Christian.

Unlike many other e-mails that get circulated, The Golden Compass e-mail is not a hoax, though, in fairness, there are some incorrect details. (For example, contrary to what the e-mail cites, Jesus is mentioned in the books, and the girl and the boy at the center of the story do not kill God, though they are present when a being calling himself God is killed. God is actually presented as completely unreal in The Golden Compass; there are only angelic beings who try to set themselves up as God and are defeated.)

But the part about Pullman hating the idea of God is completely accurate. He uses his stories to twist and distort familiar biblical accounts of creation, fall, and redemption, making heroes of those who rebel against religion, and having one of his “good” characters even say, “The Christian religion is a very powerful and convincing mistake.” It’s sort of a Da Vinci Code theme for kids.

But I suggest that

Charles Colson vs. Christopher Hitchens: Christianity & Slavery

Colson says Christopher Hitchens needs to get his facts straight.

In his new book, "God Is Not Great", subtitled "How Religion Poisons Everything," anti-theist Christopher Hitchens states, “religion makes people do wicked things they wouldn’t ordinarily do . . . the licenses for genocide, slavery, racism, are all right there in the holy text.”

It is a rather empty accusation when put alongside a man like William Wilberforce, who as the film Amazing Grace shows, attacked and abolished the slave trade because of his Christian convictions. As you can see, that raises a difficult question for people like Hitchens: If Christianity “licenses” slavery, then why was the abolition of slavery, both in antiquity and in modern times, driven by Christians?

Christopher Hitchens and Alistair McGrath Debate: "Poison or Cure: Religious Belief in the Modern World"

Last week the Ethics and Public Policy Center and Georgetown University hosted a debate betweenChristopher Hitchens and the Oxford Theologian Alister McGrath   The video is here.

Associated Press Anti-Christian Bigotry Again On Display

Last Friday our local newspaper carried the Associated Press (AP) headline, "Police kill church deacon who shot 5, killing 2, at La. law firm."  As I read the article, I asked myself, "What in the world does 'church deacon' have to do with this story?  It has nothing to do with it."  I immediately chalked it up to anti-Christian bias. 

It turns out I'm not the only one who came to that conclusion.  Michael Medved drew the same conclusion in a column he wrote yesterday:

An October 6^th story by the Associated Press provided a small, odd but disturbing and undeniable illustration of the bitter anti-religious bias that’s become too typical of the mainstream media. The story’s lead paragraph proclaimed: “ALEXANDRIA, La – A 63-year-old Baptist deacon shot five people in a law office here on Thursday, killing two, before being killed by police officers early Friday...”

Later in the article we discover the name of the shooter (John Ashley) and that “anger over a divorce settlement may have prompted the shooting.” We also learn that the killer was a “retired city maintenance worker” who had given no signs of violent behavior before his rampage.

Why, then, did the AP decide that the most important factor in identifying him was his status as a “Baptist deacon”? This is not a professional position – it is a volunteer activity. Wouldn’t it seem odd if they began their story about the tragic shooting by describing Mr. Ashley as “a 63-year-old golfer” or “a 63-year-old Democratic volunteer” or a

Muslim Persecution of Christians Around the World

(Note: Most of the links below do not work properly.  I am working to remedy the situation)

Robert Spencer reviews the situation:

Traditional Islamic law mandates the death penalty for Muslims who leave Islam, in accordance with Muhammad’s command: “Whoever changed his Islamic religion, then kill him.” This is still the position of all the schools of Islamic jurisprudence, although there is some disagreement over whether the law applies only to men, or to women also.

Many Muslims take this dictum quite seriously even today. In August 2007, Mohammed Hegazy, an Egyptian convert from Islam to Christianity, was forced to go into hiding after

Movie Critic Ted Baehr Dislikes (To Put it Mildly) "I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry"

Ted Baehr declares the new movie:

one of the most blatant politically correct, anti-Christian movies of the year. Promoting itself as a comedy about two straight fireman who get married in order to receive better pension benefits, the movie is nothing more than anti-Christian, pro-homosexual propaganda that attacks the traditional, Judeo-Christian moral values of American culture.

Baehr's review includes the following quote which I very much like:

John Adams, the second president of the United States, wrote in 1772, "We see every day that our imaginations are so strong and our reason so weak ... the belief of future punishments so faint that men find ways to believe any absurdity … their reason becomes at last an eloquent advocate on the side of their passions, and they bring themselves to believe that black is white, that vice is virtue, that folly is wisdom, and eternity a moment. ... I dread the consequences."  [more]

Christopher Hitchens and the "New Atheists" Evaluated

Peter Berkowitz offers an excellent critique of Christopher Hitchen's book, "god is not Great."  See also  the 10-part series by Pastor and New Testament scholar, Dr. Mark D. Roberts.  Roberts posted his series after interacting with Christopher Hitchens on the Hugh Hewitt talk show program.  Roberts is specially strong on matters related to the New Testament.  Robert Miller scorns the New York Times for assigning Michael Kinsley to review Hitchens book.  Miller views Kinsley as manifestly incompetent to review it.

Update: Michael Gerson, President Bush's former speech writer, weighs in with a thoughtful article.  He poses the question, "If the atheists are right, what would be the effect on human morality?"  (Read on)      (See also my other posts on the new atheism)

Update #2: Eugene McCarraher at Commonweal offers a blistering review.

Dennis Prager: "Why Are Anti-Religious Books Bestsellers?"

The ever-thoughtful Dennis Prager offers answers and a warning.  I recommend clicking through to read the entire article.   Here are a few excerpts:

In just the last few months, three books attacking belief in God and making a case for atheism have been national best sellers: The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins; God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything by Christopher Hitchens; and Letter to a Christian Nation by Sam Harris. A fourth book, Breaking the Spell: Religion as a Natural Phenomenon by Daniel C. Dennett also sold very well.

In my opinion -- and I dialogued with three of the four authors on my radio show (Dawkins has refused to come on) -- the arguments put forth

Hitchens vs. Hitchens: Atheist vs. Theist

Christopher Hitchens, the commentator, journalist, and most recently author of a book on atheism (God is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything) has a brother, Peter Hitchens, also a journalist and author, and member of the Church of England.  In a recent article, Peter writes:

Am I my brother’s reviewer? A word of explanation is needed here. Some of you may know that I have a brother, Christopher, who disagrees with me about almost everything.

Some of those who read his books and articles also know that I exist, though they often dislike me if so. But in general we inhabit separate worlds – in more ways than one.

He is of the Left, lives in the United States and recently became an American citizen. I am of the Right and, after some years in Russia and America, live in the heart of England. Occasionally we clash in public.

  Peter Hitchens describes their upbringing and then says,

Christopher is an atheist. I am a believer. He once said in public: "The real difference between Peter and myself is the belief in the supernatural.  I’m a materialist and he attributes his presence here to a divine plan. I can’t stand anyone who believes in God, who invokes the divinity or who is a person of faith."

I don’t feel the same way. I like atheists and enjoy their company, because they agree with me that religion is important.

Of Christopher's book, Peter says:

I liked and enjoyed this book, and recommend it to anybody who is interested in the subject. Like everything Christopher writes, it is often elegant, frequently witty and never stupid or boring.

I also think it is wrong, mostly in the way that it blames faith for so many bad things and gives it no credit for any of the good it may have done.

I think it misunderstands religious people and their aims and desires. And I think it asserts a number of things as true and obvious that are nothing of the sort.

Concerning Christopher's atheism, Peter sees various problems.  For example,

Where is his [Christopher's] certain knowledge of what is right and wrong supposed to have come from?   

How can the idea of a conscience have any meaning in a world of random chance, where in the end we

Newsweek Features a Dialogue Between Evangelical Pastor Rick Warren and Atheist Sam Harris

Journalist Douglas LeBlanc makes some astute comments about Newsweek religion editor, Jon Meacham, in a blog post on the lively dialogue between the evangelical pastor Rick Warren and the atheist Sam Harris.  In his last paragraph, LeBlanc writes:

Newsweek could have shown more imagination in choosing a sparring partner for Harris. Terry [Mattingly - another Christian journalist] thought of Armand Nicholi. I suggest John Polkinghorne. I would not mind hearing from Christopher Hitchens on behalf of atheists, especially since he has another book to promote, and there’s something weirdly satisfying about hearing a British accent when your beliefs are being trashed.

I would add to the two suggestions above a more international cast, either of the prominent Indian Christian thinkers and apologists, Vishal Mangalwadi or Ravi Zacharias. 

Jesus' Tomb Found? Filmmaker James Cameron Thinks So

I had not planned on blogging about the alleged "find" of Jesus' tomb because I thought it nonsense, but I see it is getting so much media play (including "Larry King Live" et al) that I had better at least make some mention of it.  Maybe the best way to do that would be to cite responses.  I wish I had time to produce extracts but I don't.  To "No Compromise" blog I am indebted to the following links:  Ben Witherington,  James White, and Brian Maloney (of "Hot Air" fame).

The Anchoress isn't a bit concerned (she titles her post "Laughing at the Jesus Tomb.")  She offers a slate of websites to check out for additional comments including Mac’s Mind, Stand to Reason, Captains Quarters Blog, Texas Rainmaker,  The Dude finding Jesus, and Doug Ross.   

Maybe I should be concerned, but I'm not.  I'm bored.  I've lived too long.  I'm too aware of the way these media blitzes work.  It's all so tedious.  Besides my own skepticism, many of the posts above (see for example the Stand to Reason post) explain the huge, really really huge, improbability of this being the tomb of Jesus.  So I say, rest easy, keep trusting in the Lord.  These attacks on Christian faith, though mounting in intensity, should be expected.   (Cf. the extraordinary hype given the story on NBC's "Today" show)

Actually, from another perspective, maybe this media blitz should be welcomed.  Considering the state of religious knowledge in the United States at present, it may come as a revelation to some that Christian faith is built on the proclamation of Jesus Christ's resurrection from the dead.  That may come as a shock to some people.

The MSM Does It Again: Bigoted Anti-Christian Bloggers Amanda Marcotte and Melissa McEwan Get Painted As Victims of the "Vicious" Right

It's amazing how the MSM twists the truth with the result that two bona fide vulgar, crude, anti-Christian bigoted bloggers come off looking like victims of "hateful" narrow-minded Christians.  I am referring to the way the MSM handled the resignations of two bloggers (Amanda Marcotte and Melissa McEwan) from Presidential candidate John Edwards' staff.  The story has been in the news as most of you know.  But are you aware of the MSM's bias in reporting?  Read this article.

Update:  Tim at Random Observations makes some good points concerning rampant narcissism on the Left.  He quotes former Los Angeles NOW president Tammy Bruce who said:

The Left’s organizing relies on selling the line that everyone who disagrees with the leftist status quo is a hater of some sort; those who disagree with leftist policy are not dealt with as serious people who have a different opinion on the issues. That would then require arguments based on reason. Instead, leftist leadership casts their opposition as haters who live every moment planning to eradicate the gay, woman or black. When your base is primarily narcissistic that’s an easy line to sell, remains emotional devoid of reason, and makes people easy to condition and control. Leftist politics, like a vicious circle, rely on the damaged as footsoldiers, while the most damaged, the “Malignant Narcissist,” ... move into positions of power and leadership...   [Tim's emphasis]

Tim's further comments are well worth reading.

THE NEW ATHEISTS: ARROGANT, RIGID AND CHARMLESS

I borrowed the above heading from Verum Serum's reference to a Sam Schulman article in the Opinion Journal.  Schulman writes:

What is new about the new atheists? It's not their arguments. Spend as much time as you like with a pile of the recent anti-religion books, but you won't encounter a single point you didn't hear in your freshman dormitory. It's their tone that is novel. Belief, in their eyes, is not just misguided but contemptible, the product of provincial minds, the mark of people who need to be told how to think and how to vote--both of which, the new atheists assure us, they do in lockstep with the pope and Jerry Falwell.

For them, belief in God is beyond childish, it is unsuitable for children. Today's atheists are particularly disgusted

CHRISTIANS AND OTHER NON-MUSLIMS FACE TERRIBLE TREATMENT IN IRAQ

Nina Shea, whom I consider one of the heroes of our age, spotlights the terrible plight of Christians and other minorities in Iraq.  Where is the United States government's concern for these who are suffering so immensely?  She writes:

. . . The plight of Iraqi’s one million Christians and non-Muslim minorities is not on anyone’s radar screen. The Iraq Study Group Report, for example, ignored them completely.

The situation of the non-Muslim minorities — largely Christians (Chaldean Catholics, Assyrians, Syriac Orthodox, Armenians, Protestants, and Evangelicals), but also including Yizidis (adherents of an ancient angel religion), Mandeans (followers of John the Baptist), Baha’is, Kaka’i (followers of a syncretistic religion in the Kirkuk area), and Jews — is uniquely dire. Half of them are estimated to have been driven

THE NAZI HOLOCAUST, J.R.R. TOLKEIN, IRAN'S AHMADINEJAD

The Colossus blog offers useful reflections on the relevance of Tolkein, the history of Naziism, and the face of evil in Iran's Ahmadinejad.   (HT: Hugh Hewitt)

Silliness Taken to Extremes: Nativity Movie Banned from Christmas Celebration for Fear of Offending Non-Christians

Lots of news reports on this, including the Chicago Tribune.    WorldNetDaily has an article:

The so-called war on Christmas has been reignited with an ironic decision by the city of Chicago to ban advertisements for "The Nativity Story" movie from a local Christmas festival, fearing they might offend non-Christians.

"This is one of the most blatant forms of religious discrimination imaginable," said Jay Sekulow, a Christian who is chief counsel of the American Center for Law and Justice. "To suggest that a movie about the birth of Jesus Christ should not be included in a Christmas festival is absurd.

Anti-Christian Books on Best Seller List: Sam Harris' "Letter to a Christian Nation" and Richard Dawkins's "The God Delusion"

Chuck Colson's Breakpoint essay today spotlights a couple of anti-Christian books on the New York Times' Best Seller list, namely Letter to a Christian Nation by Sam Harris and  Richard Dawkins’s The God Delusion.  I like the fact that Colson always includes a suggested reading list at the conclusion of his articles.

Update 11/30/06 - Scott McKnight and "RJS" (a scientist at a research university in the USA) have filed a first response with reader response following.  I expect to post additional updates from McKnight's blog as well as others.  Update #2 - 12/7/06 is here.  Check the reader responses also.  They're often helpful and stimulating.  Update #3 - 12/13/06.   McKnight and RJS offer a response to Richard Dawkins' third and fourth chapters.  Two summary statements:  "As with so many of his argument he argues by assertion, discounts evidence to the contrary, relies on ad hominem, and emphasizes ridicule."   "As a proof for the nonexistence of God, Dawkins’ argument seems so circular as to be laughable."  Update #4 - 12/25/06 - Peter Williams offers four talks in response to Richard Dawkins.   Professor Alister McGrath of Oxford will be publishing The Dawkins Delusion in the UK, February 2007 (SPCK) and in the United States in May 2007 (IVP).

IS CHRISTIAN FUNDAMENTALISM A GREATER THREAT THAN RADICAL ISLAM?

It's pretty scary when people, who should know better, declare that Christian fundamentalism poses a greater threat than radical Islam.  The level of ignorance -- or is it pure unmitigated bigotry? --  is quite breathtaking.  As I said, this is truly scary.   Click here to read Jonah Goldberg's response to a Bryan Burrough review of Andrew Sullivan's book,  The Conservative Soul.   Goldberg rightly refers to the Burrough review as "silly."   I've reproduced Goldberg's response below.   [See also my earlier post On the Subject of Theocons...] 

ON THE SUBJECT OF THEOCONS...

Here's an historically interesting little quote:

“There is a mighty task before us and it welds us together.   It is to make the United States a mighty Christian Nation, and to Christianize the world.” 

— Woodrow Wilson.

(HT: Jonah Goldberg)

I posted the above and then realized that the subject of an alleged theocratic threat has achieved hysteria-like levels in certain contemporary circles.  Rich Lowry over at National Review Online  has an excellent article surveying the facts and calming the fears.    He mentions, but doesn't link to, Ross Douthat in First Things, "Theocracy, Theocracy, Theocracy" and Peter Steinfels in the American Prospect, "Be Not Afraid".

Rosie O'Donnell's Comparison of Radical Christians to Militant Muslims

Don Feder has a useful column taking to task Rosie O'Donnell's nonsensical  (and obscene) comment last week on ABC's "The View" in which she lumped together "radical" Christians with militant Muslims.  To that anti-Christian smear Feder responded:

Let’s see if I’ve got this straight:

Militant Muslims behead prisoners.  Radical Christians oppose embryonic stem-cell research.

Militant Muslims blow themselves up in crowded shopping malls, slaughtering women and children.  Radical Christians defend traditional marriage.

Militant Muslims fly planes into buildings, Radical Christians work to protect the sanctity of human life.

Militant Muslims threaten to kill those whom they believe have insulted their precious Prophet.  Radical Christians threaten to launch consumer boycotts.

Militant Muslims issue fatwas.  Radical Christians distribute voter guides.

Yep, I can see the similarities all right. The two are as alike as peas in a pod.  No wonder Jerry Falwell is so often mistaken for Sheik Nasrallah.

In this same article, Feder talks about ABC's documentary "Jesus Camp."  Recognizing the popularity of media attacks on Christianity, Feder says, "If I wanted to make a fast buck, I'd write a book titled:  The Unintelligent Leftist's Guide to Hating the Christian Right - In the Name of Tolerance and Diversity."