Went to bed last night with the news on his mind.
Woke up this morning, another tragedy he finds.
And he wonders why he feels so sad...
He asks God why, why so much suffering and pain.
His Bible sits on the shelf, while God gets the blame.
And he wonders why he feels alone...
He wants to fix the world, make everyone feel nice.
But he can't ruffle their feathers, whatever the price.
And he wonders why he feels guilty...
People go about their lives, not giving God a second thought.
But they blame Him for the suffering, and bloody wars being fought.
And they wonder why they feel empty inside...
July 2009
Monday, November 29, 2010
To those who condescendingly say, "I don't read fiction"...
"The first question to ask about fiction is, Why bother to read it? With life as short as it is, with so many pressing demands on our time, with books of information, instruction, and discussion waiting to be read, why should we spend precious time on works of imagination? The eternal answers to this question are two: ...enjoyment and understanding."
-Laurence Perrine, Literature: Structure, Sound and Sense
-Laurence Perrine, Literature: Structure, Sound and Sense
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Dawkins' Delusion
"As an academic scientist I am a passionate Darwinian, believing that natural selection is, if not the only driving force in evolution, certainly the only known force capable of producing the illusion of purpose which so strikes all who contemplate nature.” (Richard Dawkins, A Devils Chaplain: Reflections on Hope, Lies, Science, and Love)
"Darwinian natural selection can produce an uncanny illusion of design. An engineer would be hard put to decide whether a bird or a plane was the more aerodynamically elegant. So powerful is the illusion of design, it took humanity until the mid-19th century to realize that it is an illusion.” (Richard Dawkins, New Scientist 9/17/05)
“Natural selection.… has lifted life from primeval simplicity to the dizzy heights of complexity, beauty, and apparent design that puzzle us today. After Darwin, we all should feel, deep in our bones, suspicious of the very idea of design. The illusion of design is a trap that has caught us before, and Darwin should have immunized us by raising our consciousness.” (Richard Dawkins, The Theory of Evolution by John Maynard Smith, Forward)
“It is almost as if the human brain were specifically designed to misunderstand Darwinism, and to find it hard to believe.” (Richard Dawkins, The Blind Watchmaker, Preface)
VS
“That consciousness is ruled by the laws of physics and chemistry is as preposterous as the suggestion that a nation could be ruled by laws like the laws of grammar. In human affairs [law] means a rule.… which may be kept or broken. In science it means a rule which is never broken…. Thus in the physical world what a body does and what a body ought to do are equivalent; but we are well aware of another domain where they are anything but equivalent. We cannot get away from this distinction…. The laws of logic do not prescribe the way our minds think; they prescribe the way our minds ought to think…. However closely we may associate thought with the physical machinery of the brain, the connection is dropped as irrelevant as soon as we consider the fundamental property of thought—that it may be correct or incorrect…. [Truth] involves recognizing a domain…. of laws which ought to be kept but may be broken. Dismiss the idea that natural law may swallow up religion; it can’t even tackle the multiplication table single-handed.” (Sir Arthur Eddington, Science and the Unseen World)
"Darwinian natural selection can produce an uncanny illusion of design. An engineer would be hard put to decide whether a bird or a plane was the more aerodynamically elegant. So powerful is the illusion of design, it took humanity until the mid-19th century to realize that it is an illusion.” (Richard Dawkins, New Scientist 9/17/05)
“Natural selection.… has lifted life from primeval simplicity to the dizzy heights of complexity, beauty, and apparent design that puzzle us today. After Darwin, we all should feel, deep in our bones, suspicious of the very idea of design. The illusion of design is a trap that has caught us before, and Darwin should have immunized us by raising our consciousness.” (Richard Dawkins, The Theory of Evolution by John Maynard Smith, Forward)
“It is almost as if the human brain were specifically designed to misunderstand Darwinism, and to find it hard to believe.” (Richard Dawkins, The Blind Watchmaker, Preface)
VS
“That consciousness is ruled by the laws of physics and chemistry is as preposterous as the suggestion that a nation could be ruled by laws like the laws of grammar. In human affairs [law] means a rule.… which may be kept or broken. In science it means a rule which is never broken…. Thus in the physical world what a body does and what a body ought to do are equivalent; but we are well aware of another domain where they are anything but equivalent. We cannot get away from this distinction…. The laws of logic do not prescribe the way our minds think; they prescribe the way our minds ought to think…. However closely we may associate thought with the physical machinery of the brain, the connection is dropped as irrelevant as soon as we consider the fundamental property of thought—that it may be correct or incorrect…. [Truth] involves recognizing a domain…. of laws which ought to be kept but may be broken. Dismiss the idea that natural law may swallow up religion; it can’t even tackle the multiplication table single-handed.” (Sir Arthur Eddington, Science and the Unseen World)
Friday, June 18, 2010
A Father's Day Story...
A true story I heard on the radio last year:
A few days after Father's day in 2005 a line man for a power company was called to reconnect the power in a neighborhood. As he rode up to where the problem was in his bucket, he noticed a Mylar balloon was entangled in the line.
So, he untangled the balloon and reconnected the power. As he was getting back into his truck he noticed there was a note attached to the balloon. So, he got in, started up the truck and read the note:
Dear Daddy,
Happy Father's Day!
I hope you are having a good time in heaven.
Love, Kayla
Just as he finished reading the note, a song started to play on the radio called 'In the Arms of An Angel'.
A few days after Father's day in 2005 a line man for a power company was called to reconnect the power in a neighborhood. As he rode up to where the problem was in his bucket, he noticed a Mylar balloon was entangled in the line.
So, he untangled the balloon and reconnected the power. As he was getting back into his truck he noticed there was a note attached to the balloon. So, he got in, started up the truck and read the note:
Dear Daddy,
Happy Father's Day!
I hope you are having a good time in heaven.
Love, Kayla
Just as he finished reading the note, a song started to play on the radio called 'In the Arms of An Angel'.
Critics
Everyone thinks they are a critic. They seem to think that if they say something (or lots of things) negative about a movie, TV show or band, that they are better than those who actually like it.
You can probably already tell that this post is going to be somewhat of a rant, but, I really have to get this off my chest.
There are probably more movies, TV shows and bands that I don't like than those that I do like. Yet, somehow, I manage to NOT seek out ways to declare my dislike of them to the world.
Whether it's Facebook fan pages, YouTube comments, or Hulu reviews, you will see "critics" everywhere. These people actually take time out of their lives to seek out things they DON'T LIKE in order to insult them! As if there isn't enough negativity in this world already.
People, please don't waste your time (or mine) complaining about how watching a movie or TV show is a waste of time. Don't make others feel bad because listening to the music they like makes you feel bad. Don't spread poison because you are bitter. Get a life and let others live theirs.
"In everything, do to others what you would have them do to you." -Matthew 7:12
You can probably already tell that this post is going to be somewhat of a rant, but, I really have to get this off my chest.
There are probably more movies, TV shows and bands that I don't like than those that I do like. Yet, somehow, I manage to NOT seek out ways to declare my dislike of them to the world.
Whether it's Facebook fan pages, YouTube comments, or Hulu reviews, you will see "critics" everywhere. These people actually take time out of their lives to seek out things they DON'T LIKE in order to insult them! As if there isn't enough negativity in this world already.
People, please don't waste your time (or mine) complaining about how watching a movie or TV show is a waste of time. Don't make others feel bad because listening to the music they like makes you feel bad. Don't spread poison because you are bitter. Get a life and let others live theirs.
"In everything, do to others what you would have them do to you." -Matthew 7:12
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
