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24Jan 2020 by Post

Science Says: Evolution Explains the Appeal of Baby Yoda

Alison Gopnik, anthropology, baby, Baby Yoda, cheeks, elephants, Evolution, giant squid, Human Origins, Intelligent Design, Internet, Judith Burkart, newspaper, Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, plumpness, puppies, Sarah Hrdy, storytelling, television, The Mandalorian, Wall Street Journal

The Wall Street Journal’s weekend edition has many more opinion and “think” pieces and other soft news than the weekday version. In the mix, they almost never fail to include an article praising evolution. This is so consistent that I wonder if it’s a deliberate editorial policy. Sure enough: in last Saturday’s paper, Alison Gopnik exclaims, “Humans Evolved to Love Baby Yoda.” Well, evolution explains everything, so why wouldn’t it explain why TV viewers are going gaga for the munchkin-like character in The Mandalorian series. Primed as you are by years of having read similar articles by science writers, no doubt you are getting ready for an exercise in evolutionary storytelling. There will be a clever reference to pop culture, a citation of an article from a science journal and…

23Jan 2020 by Post

“World Happiness Report” Focuses on…Government

Canada, creator, Culture & Ethics, Czech Republic, Declaration of Independence, Denmark, faith, Finland, France, Gallup World Poll, GDP per capita, happiness, happiness inequality, Iceland, Israel, Italy, life expectancy, life satisfaction, meaningful life, Norway, Pilate, pro-social behavior, religion, Spain, suicide, technocrats, United States, World Happiness Report

The annual “World Happiness Report” for 2019 is out. Depending on the Gallup World Poll, it turns out the U.S. comes in rather low among free countries at number 19. The Declaration of Independence states that all of us are “endowed” by our Creator with “inalienable rights,” among which is “the pursuit of happiness.” The idea, of course, is that finding happiness is the responsibility of the individual and that government may not unduly interfere with that quest. The Technocrats Speak But according to the study’s technocratic authors, government is the prime creator of happiness. Indeed, the first topic mentioned in the report is “happiness and government,” which are the subjects of the first two chapters. In Chapter 2 they write: At the most basic level, good government establishes and…

23Jan 2020 by Post

“We Are Not of Our Own Devising” — Wells, Nelson Pay Tribute to Phil Johnson

berkeley, biology, California, Charles Darwin, common descent, Evolution, ID The Future, John Mark Reynolds, Jonathan Wells, Pajaro Dunes, Paul Nelson, Phillip E. Johnson

A new episode of ID the Future comes from a Berkeley, California, symposium honoring the recently deceased Phillip Johnson. Download the podcast or listen to it here. Biologist Jonathan Wells recalls how he met Johnson and the huge influence the latter had on Wells’s own research and writing. Then philosopher of biology Paul Nelson reminisces on Johnson’s keen intellect, his eye for hidden assumptions, his awareness that “we are not of our own devising,” and on the mountain range of new knowledge opening up to us in biology, one that scientists knew little about even thirty years ago and that Nelson says points strongly away from Darwin’s idea of common descent. Photo: John Mark Reynolds, Phil Johnson, and Paul Nelson, Pajaro Dunes, California, June 1998, by Suzanne Nelson. The post…

22Jan 2020 by Post

Apologetics and a Different Kind of Persuasion

Apologetics, ApologeticsGuy, apologist, Christianity, Christians, debate, Mikel del Rosario, Persuasion, Skeptics, Theology and Christian Apologetics

By Mikel Del Rosario A Different Kind of Persuasion Have you ever found yourself “in debate mode” while talking to a skeptical friend about Christianity? Perhaps this is because many of us have been equipped with apologetic content (arguments for God’s existence, the reliability of the Gospels, etc.) with less of a focus on an apologetic method for use in everyday conversations. Sometimes, we can get so concerned about winning or making a certain point, that we lose the credibility that an ambassador of Christ should have. Others you don’t notice may be watching and listening to your conversation. If the exchange gets heated, some may be thinking, “I don’t care if Christianity is true if it’s not good.” So, is there a different kind of persuasion to employ? At…

21Jan 2020 by Post

Science as a Jealous God — Free Weekend Conference in Seattle for College Students

Artificial Intelligence, Baylor University, Brian Miller, C.S. Lewis, Center for Science & Culture, Charles Darwin, coercion, colleges, conference, Crowne Plaza Hotel, Culture & Ethics, Darwinism, Discovery Institute, earth, ethics, Evolution, humankind, Intercollegiate Studies Institute, intimidation, jealous god, John West, National Review, natural world, science, scientism, Seattle, seminar, society, students, travel stipend, universities, values, Walter Bradley Center, Wesley J. Smith

Science, rather than opening minds and setting us free from drudgery, is increasingly a tool of coercion and intimidation. If you’re a college student, consider joining us at Discovery Institute on March 6-7 for a free weekend seminar, “Science, Scientism, and Society.” Scientism is a word that designates the impulse to turn science into a jealous god — not a method for exploring the natural world and responsibly harnessing its resources, but the exclusive source of knowledge about all things, including values and ethics. More information and a simple online application are here. January 30 is the deadline to apply for this important, enlightening, and fun event, organized by the Intercollegiate Studies Institute (ISI) and held in Discovery Institute’s offices in Seattle. ISI will provide a travel stipend for students…

20Jan 2020 by Post

Natural-ly There Is A Problem With Evil

Alex McElroy, Apologetics, Atheism, atheist, Christianity, responding to the problem of evil, the problem of evil, Theology and Christian Apologetics

By Alex McElroy One of the most difficult issues to reconcile in life is the presence of evil. This is the case whether one has a theistic, agnostic or atheistic worldview. The existence of evil is undeniable both in our witness and experience but is evil objective in nature or merely an apparition. Even atheist J.L. Mackie recognized a dilemma. In one book, he writes, “There are no objective values.”[1] Elsewhere, he writes, “We might well argue…that objective, intrinsically prescriptive features, supervenient upon natural ones, constitute so odd a cluster of qualities and relations that they are most unlikely to have arisen in the ordinary course of events, without an all-powerful god to create them.”[2] This poses a problem for the naturalist or the atheist because whatever evil does exist…

20Jan 2020 by Post

Westminster Conference on Science and Faith, April 3-4 in Philadelphia: Design and the Designer

biology, Burke Museum, Center for Science & Culture, Chemistry, cosmology, Dallas, Daniel Reeves, Early Church, East Coast, Evolution, Faith & Science, foresight, Intelligent Design, John West, Marcos Eberlin, Melissa Cain Travis, orphan genes, Paul Nelson, Philadelphia, Stephen Meyer, Westminster Conference on Science and Faith

Here in Seattle, the University of Washington recently opened a spectacular and expensive ($106 million) new building for its natural history museum, the Burke Museum. A friend visited there yesterday — I have not yet had a chance to do so — and sent along photos. We were both struck by how the exhibits lay it on thick with regard to evolution as an unguided process. Large signs seem aggressive in advertising the curators’ position: “EVOLUTION ISN’T PLANNED,” declares one display. Another insists that life is “SHAPED BY NATURE,” and, by implication, by nothing else. The culture invests great energy and wealth to bombard us with messages like these. That’s the case even as, at deeper and deeper levels, science reveals evidence of a plan, foresight, a deliberately shaping force working…

20Jan 2020 by Post

How to Respond to People who Mock Christianity

AFR, Apologetics, app, Christianity, cross examined, cross examined official podcast, CrossExamined, crossexamined podcast, Frank Turek, google play, iTunes, Podcast, podcasting, Radio, Radio Show, Spotify, stitcher, Weekly Podcast

Podcast: Play in new window How would you answer these questions? How do you know what is important in the Bible? How can I find out if someone is a Christian without sounding confrontational? How can I deal with coworkers who mock Christianity? Does design lose its meaning if you’re saying everything is designed? What do you say to people who claim God is a bad designer? Should Christians boycott certain businesses? These are questions sent in by listeners that Frank answers on this show. While Frank can’t get to all of them if you have a question you can submit it to Hello@Crossexamined.org. Also, check out these resources: the CrossExamined YouTube channel has answers to hundreds of questions, and several others are answered on the CrossExamined app and CrossExamined…

20Jan 2020 by Post

¿Por qué todos deberían creer que los Evangelios son confiables?

Apologética, Brett Lunn, Cristianismo, Escépticos, Español, Evangelios, Evidencias, Historia

Por Brett Lunn Traducción: Los cuatro evangelios hablan de Jesús, el Cristo. Juntos nos hablan de la vida de Jesús de diferentes formas. Nos hablan de su nacimiento virginal, sus argumentos con líderes religiosos, sus enseñanzas, sus milagros y mucho más. Destacan su crucifixión en una cruz romana y su resurrección de entre los muertos. Pero, ¿qué vamos a hacer con todo esto? ¿Son estas narrativas simplemente falsas por autores que fueron o engañados o lo arreglaron? ¿Hay un caso para la fiabilidad de los Evangelios? Este ensayo destaca un numero de razones por la que todos deberían creer que los Evangelios con confiables. Esto no implica que sean 100% verdaderos, perfectos, o algo parecido. En cambio, los evangelios son algo en lo que debemos confiar, y si podemos confiar…

18Jan 2020 by Post

Putting God on Trial

Al Serrato, Apologetics, Atheism, atheist, Christianity, evil, God, responding to the problem of evil, Skeptics, Suffering, Theology and Christian Apologetics

By Al Serrato “I can’t believe in a God who would allow so much evil and suffering in the world.” Have you encountered this challenge? Most anyone who has tried to defend the Christian worldview surely has. The person bringing this challenge will often claim to be atheist, but when you dig in a bit this challenger is more often someone who knows there is a creator but who is deeply offended by the world, and angry at the God who set all this – the carnage, the anguish, the pain – in motion. In my last post, I restated the traditional Christian response to this problem of evil. God did not create the evil that surrounds us because evil is not a thing. Evil is a departure- a deviation-…

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