General

Commercial Logic: It Makes For Bad Science

By L. ALfred James You’re watching television. A commercial for a moisturizing lotion comes on. It shows a beautiful woman with perfect skin. Chances are a million to one that she did not get her perfect skin by using that exact product (in fact, she probably uses a ton of other products). But the skincare company is hoping you will not think about this. Then another commercial comes on. This one shows a young man with a perfect physique using exercise equipment. Again, chances are a million to one that … Read More »

Was the Bible Corrupted? Part 3: The Septuagint

By Elysia McColley Read “Was the Bible Corrupted? Part 1: Abrogation” Imagine that your family’s ancestry is Scottish, but you have lived your entire life in the United States. You only speak English, and the English that you speak is a different dialect than the English that many Scots speak. You decide one day that you want to connect more with your heritage, so you and your family take a trip to Scotland. When you arrive, you are surprised to realize that in addition to different dialects of English, there … Read More »

If God Knows All Things Then Why Does He Get Angry?

By Elias Ayala (MDiv & M.A.T.) It is true that God knows all things (1 John 3:20), and as such, nothing is a surprise to him. Nevertheless, if God knew from all eternity that Bob would commit some sin in the future, it is not at all inconsistent for God to reveal his displeasure the moment Bob performs the sin within space, time, and history. God can know something will occur in the future, and then reveal his attitude towards it in the present. Christian theism teaches that God is … Read More »

Willful Neglect: Intellectual Suicide

By L. ALfred James In the spirit of the old game show What’s My Line? I have a mystery-guest I would like to you to think about. I would like you to figure out if this mystery guest is a relatively good and decent person, or if he is a relatively bad person. That is, if you had to pick, would you say he is good or would you say he is bad? Moreover, I want you to base your decision solely on the information that I provide here. Don’t … Read More »

Was the Bible Corrupted? Part 2: Peshitta

By Elysia McColley Read “Was the Bible Corrupted? Part 1: Abrogation” Last week, we looked at evidence that the Old Testament has been passed down reliably at least since 250BCE via the Septuagint, a Greek translation of the Hebrew text. This week, we are going to look at the New Testament, particularly at a version of it that may be even older than the Greek manuscripts that most scholars use: the Peshitta, or Aramaic (Syriac) New Testament. The primary language of the Mediterranean during the days of Jesus’ earthly ministry … Read More »

Why Do I Need Jesus to be Saved?

By Elias Ayala (MDiv & M.A.T.) This question is an important one given that it highlights our problem as sinful human beings. The Bible says that “all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). As sinners before a holy and righteous God, we have accrued a debt before him due to our rebellion. Sin is often equated with debt, especially when one reflects upon the Lord’s Prayer. In some translations, the prayer reads “forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors” (Matthew 6:12). Or … Read More »

Wishful Thinking

By L. Alfred James Wishful thinking: it’s something all of us have seen. A good example would be that friend who has fallen madly in love with some person who is an absolute train-wreck waiting to happen. Our friend shockingly fails to see numerous (and serious) shortcomings in the object of their affection. You point out that their heartthrob is consistently irresponsible, refuses to get a job, and regularly blames everyone else for his or her emotional outbursts. “Oh, that’s no big deal,” your friend says. “Everyone has a couple … Read More »

Was the Bible Corrupted? Part 1: Abrogation

By Elysia McColley One criticism of the Bible is that it is corrupted, meaning that the document we have today is not the same as the document that existed 2000 years ago. There are many different ways to approach the topic of Biblical corruption, and I will address some of them through a series of blog posts. I want to begin by pointing to some truths that we need to be aware of as we approach the question of whether or not the Bible was corrupted. If God is omnipotent, … Read More »

Do the Fossils Provide Evidence for Evolution?

By Elias Ayala (MDiv & M.A.T.) No! Let me explain what I mean. Fossils are what we might call “data”. Data are the facts we observe (i.e. fossil remains). The raw data merely provides us with that which we observe, in this case, the fossil record. However, the data must be distinguished from the concept of “evidence”. Data becomes evidence when it is employed within an argument to support certain premises. When we utilize data to support an argument, then the data becomes evidence if it is used correctly and … Read More »

Evolution: Who Is Really Biased Here?

By L. Alfred James It is typically assumed that those who embrace evolutionary theory are unbiased and dispassionate thinkers. They are thought to be champions of science, logic, and objectivity. It is also typically assumed that those who reject evolutionary theory—especially if they are Christians—are paragons of prejudice. They are thought to be hopelessly biased against scientific truth simply because it does not fit with their religious beliefs. “Poor religious folk! Their beliefs blind them to the truth. They have to hide their head in the sand in order to … Read More »