BERNARD SHUFORD

From the Twitter of Lance Armstrong, who is, I believe, an agnostic / atheist, I find this…

Combined with my interest in the debate at Deborah Drapper’s blog, I’m pondering how to even formulate my opinion. 

There’s a lot that I don’t know.  I’m just not a REALLY smart guy.

But I’m learning how to count in Spanish, so watch out for me.

Like

Unlike

For a 13 year old, homeschooled young lady from Dorset, England, she has made one bodacious splash in the world…

My real responses are very complicated, but my heart is genuinely with Deborah and her father, Andrew.  This is not an easy discussion.  There are no winners and it never ends.

The BBC videos are well worth watching, but it takes some time.  I’ve not seen them all.

The “Ray Comfort” influence in the witnessing technique bothers me.  The dedication and sensitivity to spiritual things impresses me.  The boldness to witness to just about ANYONE is amazing, while that approach basically elicits a frown from me.  I still respect those who have the nerve to do it.

The boldness to post about creation vs. evolution impresses me.  The reliance on Answers in Genesis and Kent Hovind concerns me, because they’ve attracted the attention of Richard Dawkins and some other HEAVY hitters.

The preaching of the gospel very clearly on BBC3 by a 13-year old when I really don’t do a very good job of that at all impresses me, but the fact that a 13 year old was subject to national and worldwide scrutiny under the roof of her own home confuses me.  Why did the parents allow that to happen?  It seems like a showcase game, and in one way it doesn’t make sense.

Is she indoctrinated?  Is she sheltered?  Is this selective education “child abuse”, as proposed by some commenters?  Is she afraid?  Is she unduly obsessed with hell? 

Is God real?  Is the Bible true at all?  Are religious people indeed the true evil?  Is Deepak Chopra right? 

These are questions being addressed on the blog of a THIRTEEN YEAR OLD.  (Well, not Deepak…)

The Internet is an amazing thing, folks. 

Rambling Prophet, you’ve got a daughter nearly this old.  Imagine if this were your household and your blog were suddenly this busy.

Like

Unlike

“One word from the mouth of God, and galaxies come into being.” – John Piper

Wow.  (I’m not sure it’s technically true, since God spoke multiple words during creation, but the power of the Word of God is still worthy of mention).

Like

Unlike

I don’t want to hijack Tony’s blog post about Mithras, so I just want to fuzz through something here. It is, after all, my blog, so here goes.

Creationism.

Young earth.

Literal Genesis.

(A reading of the comments at The Rambling Prophet is probably necessary to understand the context of this post.)

The question of why “Young Earth Creationism” matters to many Christians.

Why does it matter to ME? What do I really believe about it? Do I even know? Does it really influence my faith? Is it “okay” to acquiesce that perhaps God DID “create” the earth and the universe by initiating a big bang which spouted enough carbon life form to eventually and uncontrollably evolve into human life as we know it today? Is that, perhaps, even a required belief?

The questions are not easy. The questions, believe it or not, don’t have hard and fast, textually discerned answers.

One of the obstacles to Christianity for many is this issue. There are, indeed, many other obstacles, some of which are invented simply as an excuse to avoid life change and commitment to Christ. Some obstacles are genuine “I can’t believe that!” moments, which are only overcome by the regenerating power of God. There is nothing I can offer to a genuine unbeliever regarding these issues.

However, as Christians, what is really the dividing line? What is part of the Gospel, and what is ancillary?

That said, there’ll hopefully be more later.  I’m kind of in defense mode right now, although I feel like I have no battlements, mortar shells, or even bayonets.  Thus, maybe I can come up with a couple of light-hearted posts before I bore you with more junk stuff of this nature.

Like

Unlike