Can We Legislate Morality?

Christian Worldview, Christianity, CrossExamined Apologetics Team, Culture, Legislating Morality, Culture & Politics, Legistlating Morality, Melissa Dougherty, Objetive Morality, Politics
By Melissa Dougherty Since the 1960s, there’s been a measurable dramatic decline in moral ethics here in the United States. Some would argue that it’s been in a general decline since the dawn of humanity, myself included. However, here in the United States, the phrase “legislating morality” has been brought up more and more. Depending on the generation, many people have not heard this phrase or even understood what it means. Some use it as a cliche term to throw in the face of the person trying to promote certain morals that should be either lawful or not. I say that similar to the argument of “there is no absolute truth,” saying that we can’t legislate morality is simply self-defeating. Everyone everywhere intrinsically knows right from wrong. Many people would…
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Jesus is Our Lord, Not Our Mascot.

Apologetics, Christianity, Cross, Jesus, Legislating Morality, Culture & Politics, Melissa Dougherty, postmodernism, Theology and Christian Apologetics
By Melissa Dougherty​ Some churches and people make Jesus a mascot. I’m sure a few people reading this might be scratching their heads, wondering what I mean by this. Others know exactly what I mean. Here in America, sometimes I think we take for granted that we don’t have to “hurt” to follow Jesus. What I mean by that is that we avoid any sort of struggle to obtain most of our Christian virtues. In other words, we’re too comfortable. We own a Bible and go to church and don’t get tortured for it. We praise God in our cars, listening to worship music with the windows down without fear of being imprisoned. Yes, I think we take this for granted. We make Jesus a symbol of our good decisions…
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Five Signs of Spiritual Maturity

Apologetics, Bible, christian, Melissa Dougherty, Spiritual, spiritual maturity, Theology and Christian Apologetics
By Melissa Dougherty​ We all want to be wise in our spiritual walk. We want to grow and make good choices that are right in the long run. We want to exhibit wisdom in all areas of life and be able to be an example for others. But I find it isn’t always the easy road that gets us there. In my experience, I have witnessed what I would consider very mature Christians who exhibit these qualities. I have also seen others who lack them. I want to share what I believe to be five signs of spiritual maturity. These are areas that I see that are scriptural and can be shown by how some Christians respond to certain situations. 1.) They base their reactions on Scripture and God’s character…
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The Pendulum Problem: A Warning of Extreme Beliefs

Are Christians Extreme?, atheist, beliefs, Bible Thumper, Christian Pendulum, Hermeneutic, Melissa Dougherty, Pendulum, Theology and Christian Apologetics
By Melissa Dougherty I have a dog and a cat. Max is my dog whose personality is likened to a lovable, furry, hyperactive toddler. As an anxious dog, nobody is safe from his “watchful” eye. When the doorbell rings, my ferocious dog barks an explosive cry so loud that it vibrates throughout the entire house. His hair stands up, and he aggressively pushes his nose to the door to somehow intimidate his arch nemesis: the poor Amazon delivery dude. “Don’t you hoomans see the problem!? I’m protecting you from the bomb just delivered to our door!” Is a mom walking her baby down the street? A kid riding their bike? Oh, he must inform us about this potential threat by alerting us with all the gusto he can muster because…
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So You Left the New Age… Now What? Five Helpful Tips

Bible, Christianity, Culture CrossExamined, Jesus, Legislating Morality, Culture & Politics, Melissa Dougherty, New Age, theology, Theology and Christian Apologetics
 By Melissa Dougherty We each go through unique difficulties whenever we leave the New Age. Whenever I left the New Age, it was incredibly lonely. I felt like nobody understood what I had just gone through. At the time, it felt like no Christian around me understood what the New Age really was, and to be honest, I was somewhat embarrassed that I had fallen into such beliefs, even after going to church for so many years. I didn’t even understand what I believed was New Age. I had to sift through the theological mud. I also did a Pendulum swing where I just wanted to point out what was wrong with everybody’s beliefs, and I went through a brief phase where basically everything was “New Age,” and there was…
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