As most of my readers know, I am a Christian. In fact, in the literal definition, I am an "evangelical" Christian (but I don't like the term, as it has been grossly misappropriated and misrepresented...but I digress). That being said, I tend to dislike many of the methods of traditional evangelicals, most notably the idea of apologetics. This article is the introduction to a series of articles that will underscore the weaknesses of several arguments of those who practice apologetics. It's not do...

Now, I'm going to ruffle a few feathers here, but hear me out. It is my contention that an absolute position of atheism is poor science and that a scientist who holds it is operating from a preconceived bias that taints his research. Science is, in essence, the quest for knowledge. We attempt to discover more and more about our universe through a series of observations, hypotheses, and tests. And, through the course of history, we have discovered much. But each breakthrough discovery was t...

On Thursday, May 5, Islamic prayer warriors will be out in force. They will be gathering on the city square in America's largest cities, prayer mats in hand, to pray for our nation. This fictional news blurb was written to make a point. Most conservative Christians would be somewhat disturbed by the above statement, as they would a similar statement regarding Wiccans, Buddhists, or other nonChristian religious groups. Frankly, it doesn't disturb me. What DOES disturb me is that Christian g...

Islam has, especially in the years since 9/11, been eager to promote its faith as a religion of peace. They're not alone in this endeavour, as most religions wish to show themselves the standardbearers of peace. But what, precisely, does it mean to be a "religion of peace"? To my thinking, it means a religion that is active in trying to ease conflict throughout the world and to heal those affected by conflict. It is not enough, then, to ideologically align onesself against war and cloister on...

One of my pet peeves as a Christian is people who use their current distress as an excuse to berate God or to abandon their faith. I have seen it pretty often, actually: individuals who converted to Christianity because what the preacher promised them sounded better than AmWay. A quick perusal of the top ten lists in Christian nonfiction will show what I'm talking about here. Prosperity gospel preachers will bilk individuals out of their life savings on the premise of a ten-, hundred-, or tho...

As a longtime Christian, there is an attitude among my contemporaries that I can only describe as incomprehensible. Countless books have been written documenting end times theories based on probably the most misunderstood piece of literature EVER! And virtually all of them have revolved around a fear of the end times. This is silly. Christ will return when He chooses, and, according to MY theology, at least, that should be a time of JOY, not fear and dread, for Christians. The only w...

Well, the pope's gone,and the cardinals will meet next week to determine the next pope. I have come to grips with the fact that I won't be selected, but after much soul searching, I decided to endorse who I consider to be an equally qualified candidate. He is a longtime priest and spiritual advisor, and is almost singlehandedly responsible for the surging success of bocce ball in the United States:

I am not a Catholic. I have never been a Catholic. In fact, of the handful of masses I have attended in my lifetime, I have not been able to sit through one without smirking (no offense to those who ARE Catholic). But I confess: I liked Pope John Paul II, and feel the world is diminished by his demise. The pope was an influential man well outside of Catholic circles. Although I don't agree with many of his decisions, he was a man that spoke out against poverty, and urged Catholi...

I am far too late in writing this blog, as it has been in the back of my mind for probably a month since I saw a similar blog in a different vein. Things to consider: KKK attacks on innocent black men, women and children, especially during reconstruction through the 1950's were perpetrated largely by Christian militants ages 18 to 35 The shooting of Medgar Evers was perpetrated by a Christian militant ages 18 to 35 The shooting of John F. Kennedy was perpetrated by a Christian militant...

Note: I can't respond on the individual in question's thread (he has me blacklisted), so I will do so here. Don't get me wrong. I try to live a good life, and be a good Christian, and, in fact, would love to see most of my friends come to know and understand Jesus Christ. What Christian wouldn't? But I also respect and appreciate the fact that God made us individuals free to exercise our own choices FOR A REASON. Acknowledging God means acknowledging that He knows better than I, and ...

This is one of those things that got me to thinking. While I want to remain neutral in JU feuds, I did get a little intrigued by the charges against the Buddhist practices of one of JU's members. Not a Buddhist myself, I nonetheless have had to learn to understand why I shouldn't take "you're not a good Christian" charges personally, and feel the same principles apply. In my walk as a Christian, I have found there's no such thing as a "perfect" Christian; the closer one SAYS they are to ...

In an earlier article, I defined the difference between an atheist and an antitheist. I am noticing a lot of antitheists trending towards being specifically antiCHRISTIAN. For example, I notice outrage lacking when California schools teach units on Islam, requiring students to take Muslim names and recite Muslim prayers. Yet, they take offense with the name of Christ. I notice further that Michael Newdow hasn't filed an injunction against the use of Roman and Norse gods in the names of five o...

I responded in a recent blog that brought out the possibility that Jesus may have been married. While it's easy to dismiss this as just a piece of Dan Brown fiction, the fact is, there actually are texts dating back to the first century A.D. that make that claim. While these texts are not part of the canon, it DOES at least stand to reason that the folks that dismissed them from the canon may have done so with an agenda. So, I'm conceding the possibility of that point, as I conceded years ago...

I was quoting some of my lyrics that were appropos to another blog's topic, and I started considering exactly why it is that I never made it in the recording industry. I am actually a fairly decent lyricist (I've seen MUCH better, but I've seen a lot worse, too...Kylie Minogue's lyricist, for one). But much of my lyrics have a decidedly Christian take to them, as being a Christian is integral to who I am. So, that pretty much rules out most secular music outlets. So, you'd think I'd be a ...

(Note: Before you get TOO upset, read the subtitle). This is not addressed to anyone in particular. This is addressed to a trend that I find very disturbing. The trend is to "custom fit" one's religion into a box of one's choosing. The theory seems to revolve around the idea that, by cutting and pasting ideas one likes and removing ideas one dislikes, one can come up with a religion that's a custom "fit"...without having to worry about concrete beliefs or anything stupid like that. Not ...