My preference with these blog posts is to cover topics beyond origins and Genesis. There is so much other fascinating science to talk about, all of which reveals something about our physical reality and by extension something about the one who created it. But I do sometimes dip into faith and science conversations elsewhere, and lots of people have lots to say and lots to ask about Genesis and origins. Many of these conversations tread and retread the same territory, but one recently stuck with me in a way that I felt merited discussion. The topic was a recent book attempting to muster genetic evidence for recent, special creation of living organisms with limited subsequent diversification. One enthusiast expressed disappointment at the medium and source of a widely referenced critique; they expected something more prestigious of the highest levels of science. Detractors reflected on the book’s lack of methodological sophistication and the volume of unexplained data, indications that the discussion was far from the pinnacle of science.
[Read more…] about Science Corner: Ain’t No Science High Enough
common ground
Devotions: “In-spite-of” Wisdom
“For you bring some strange things to our ears. We wish to know therefore what these things mean.†Now all the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there would spend their time in nothing except telling or hearing something new. So Paul, standing in the midst of the Areopagus, said: “Men of Athens, I perceive that in every way you are very religious.” (Acts 17:20-22)
Wisdom from God comes in many forms. Sometimes it provides us amazing answers to challenges about our faith. Other times God provides opportunities to engage our faith in the “wisdom of the world.” I call this “in-spite-of” wisdom. In spite of the current talk and philosophy and manner of life around us, we can share our faith. A couple of notes about this kind of wisdom from Paul. [Read more…] about Devotions: “In-spite-of” Wisdom
Jim Sire on “Finding common ground with someone radically different.” Part II
James W. Sire digs deeper into Micheal Hickerson‘s Worldview question:
How can we find common ground when someone has a radically different worldview from our own?
In the previous blog post, I argued that as Christians we know that we share a common ground with all people in that we are all created in the image of God to live in a universe created by a loving, righteous, infinite-personal God. I also said that we agree to and use the universal laws of logic (A is A; A is not not-A; and B is either A or not- A). I called this our common ontological ground and minimally common epistemological ground.
But a fully common ground for our communication and our understanding of each other and the world around us requires more than these necessary laws of thought. It requires a common set of basic assumptions. Here are some of them: This universe in which we live has a determinate (not necessarily determined) objective existence other than ourselves and our thoughts (Theists and naturalists agree; Hindus and some Western philosophies deny this). Each of us is one person who is different from other persons and other things in the universe (a notion held by theists, deists and naturalists, but not by Hindus, Buddhists or New Agers). Our minds are capable of knowing something about who we are and what the universe is; we can trust our reason, though we recognize that it has limits in both its scope and its capacity (Theism, deism, naturalism agree; Hinduism and Buddhism reject this). There is a God who is Infinite and Personal, the good Creator of the universe and the one to whom we are responsible (Theists agree; naturalists, New Agers, Hindus, Buddhists disagree). Other necessary assumptions concern morality; the meaning, if any, of the flow of history; the meaning and value, if any, of individual human lives. All of these are understood in different and contradictory ways. Moreover there are different versions of theism — Judaism, Christianity and Islam, to name the big three.
Is there any common ground among these many worldviews, i.e., ground basic enough to undergird convincing arguments for the truth of the Christian faith? [Read more…] about Jim Sire on “Finding common ground with someone radically different.” Part II
Jim Sire on “Finding common ground with someone radically different”
The Worldview Question-and-Answer series with Jim Sire continues with the question:
How can we find common ground when someone has a radically different world view from our own? — Micheal Hickerson, ESN Blog Contributor
James W. Sire’s response:
As a Christian we start with a distinct advantage. We know that all human beings are made in the image of God and that we all live in God’s orderly and meaningful creation. In other words, there is a truth to know, and we were designed to know the truth. The fall has separated all of us from our creator and our ability to know has been adversely affected. But in Christ, we can know the truth and the truth will set us free, first of all from the consequences of sin and then from much of the blindness induced by our fallen nature. This we know. It is a part of our common faith as Christians. In this sense, the content of our Christian faith is a fact of reality. It is who / what we and our world really are. It is not only our ontological reality but the reality of all human beings.
Of course, this fundamental ontological ground is not “known†by those who are not believers. In fact, it is not even “known about†by many of our unbelieving friends. While most of us use the necessary “laws of logic†to think (they are indeed part of who / what we are), we do not share a fully common intellectual (epistemological) ground. That is, we neither assume nor argue from the same fundamental notions about ourselves in the world. So how do we communicate with our non-believing friends?
First, we place our confidence in our own Christian foundations as outlined above. Let’s say we are conversing with Mary, a casual friend and unbeliever. We know that despite our many, many differences, she is created exactly like us. We know she bears the broken image of God as we do. We know that when she thinks, she obeys the same “laws of logic†as we do. We also know that even if she is a naturalist (i.e., atheist) and thinks she lives in totally material reality, she actually lives in the same real God-created world as we do.  In fact we have a common ontological ground. Reality is one thing. There really is a God or there is not. [Read more…] about Jim Sire on “Finding common ground with someone radically different”
Headed to Graduate School: Witness in the Academy
Thus far in two prior posts I’ve suggested that the end-point of a graduate education is to “become a person†in the Biblical sense – that is, to grow into the image of God. This holistic vision will encompass within itself more common educational ideals such as becoming an intelligent, productive citizen and serving the good of humanity.
Secondly, I asked readers to integrate their faith with their field of study, and to do so in the context of Christian community. I hope you’ll take time to read these two earlier posts if you haven’t already.
- Headed to Graduate School: Begin with the End in Mind
- Headed to Graduate School: A Time of Re-imaging
This post is about witness, which can be a tall (and intimidating) order in the academy. I should know. My main job on InterVarsity staff is to travel around the country and speak privately and publicly with students and faculty about Jesus. To say the least, folks on campus are often not very receptive (though sometimes they are).
Professionally, however, I don’t have as much at stake as you – if you’re a grad student or a professor seeking tenure. This isn’t the place to rehearse the tragic stories of scholars who’ve spoken out in the name of Christ only to be “rewarded†with the ruin of their studies or professorships, but we know that it sometimes happens.
Practical Suggestions
So let me suggest some practical ways to be a witness for Christ in the academy. And no, these come with no guarantees of political safety. [Read more…] about Headed to Graduate School: Witness in the Academy