tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-170715122024-03-14T02:37:47.822+00:00ID.PlusA blog about 'Intelligent Design', natural theology, Christian apologetics, philosophy and anything else that takes my fancy.Peter S. Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14223529929867367465noreply@blogger.comBlogger365125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17071512.post-3822274313993363442016-03-10T15:09:00.002+00:002016-03-11T10:49:40.676+00:00A Reply to WaywardSkeptic on the Moral Argument for God<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";">cf. </span><b><span style="font-family: "times new roman";">‘Another Christian,
Another Go at the Moral Argument’ </span></b><span style="font-family: "times new roman";">(cf.
https://waywardskeptic.wordpress.com/2016/01/22/another-christian-another-go-at-the-moral-arguement/)</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">
</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">
</span></span></span></span>
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: blue;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";"> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: blue;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";">WaywardSkeptic's central objection to the meta-ethcial moral argument for theism is that it misdefines 'objective', taking it to mean 'independent of finite minds' rather than 'independent of any and all minds' (including the mind of God). According to WaywardSkeptic the moral argument is therefore self-contradictory, because it argues that objective moral values and duties depend upon God, but by definition nothing can be objective if it depends upon God! Hence WaywardSkeptic complains:</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">
</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">
</span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="font-size: xx-small;">
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";"> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";">‘It seems Christians just do not understand that for
something to be “objective” it has to be ontologically independent from mind
and values are ontologically dependent on minds.’</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: #274e13;">
</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">
</span></span></span></span>
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";"><span style="color: blue;"> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";"><span style="color: blue;">And:</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: #274e13;">
</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">
</span></span></span></span>
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";"> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";">‘If something is a command it is not mind independent and
thus commands cannot be the ontological basis of morals.’</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">
</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">
</span></span></span></span>
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "cambria";"> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "cambria";">Of course, the moral argument is only self-contradictory if it uses WaywardSkeptic's definition of 'objective', and it doesn't.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">
</span></span></span></span>
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: blue;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "cambria";"> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: blue;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "cambria";">Why should we join WaywardSkeptic in rejecting the definition of 'objective' used by professional philosophers who both advocate and critique the moral argument? </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span>
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "cambria";"> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span>
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "cambria";">WaywardSkeptic goes to the dictionary for a definition of
‘objective’:</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: "cambria";"> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: "cambria";">‘As
an adjective, <span class="skimlinks-unlinked">oxforddictionaires.com</span>
defines “objective” as </span><a href="http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/english/objective"><span style="font-family: "cambria";">the following</span></a><span style="font-family: "cambria";">:</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: #274e13;">
</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span class="iteration"><span style="font-family: "cambria";">1 </span></span><span class="definition"><span style="font-family: "cambria";">(Of a person or their judgement) not
influenced by personal feelings or opinions in considering and representing
facts:</span></span><span style="font-family: "cambria";"><i><span style="font-family: "cambria";"> ‘historians try to be objective and
impartial’ (emphasis original)</span></i><i>
</i><span class="definition">Contrasted with subjective.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: #274e13;">
</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span class="iteration"><span style="font-family: "cambria";">1.1 </span></span><span class="definition"><span style="font-family: "cambria";">Not dependent on the mind for
existence; actual: </span></span><i><span style="font-family: "cambria";">‘ a
matter of objective fact’ (emphasis original)’</span></i></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: blue;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";">WaywardSkeptic also tries to show the William Lane Craig contradicts himself in advancing the moral argument, tweeting (4<sup>th</sup> Feb 2016):</span></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman";">
<span style="color: #274e13;">‘Oddly, even Craig defined "objective" as ~person-relative which
would include ~God-relative.’</span> <span style="color: #3366ff;"><span style="color: blue;">But, of course, in
context, William Lane Craig clearly means relative </span><i><span style="color: blue;">to humans</span></i><span style="color: blue;"> or <i>to finite persons</i>. It breaks the
principle of charity to think that Craig defines objectivity as having
existence independent from any and all minds, including the mind of God, and then
argues that objective moral values and duties exist in dependence upon the mind
of God! Such an argument would be obviously self-contradictory. Indeed, this is
WaywardSkeptic’s central complaint against the moral argument.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";">However, a dictionary definition can't trump the meaning specifically assigned to a term within a philosophical argument. Complaining that the argument in question would fail <i>if some key term within it meant something else</i> (for example, what it means in the dictionary) is simply to attack a straw man.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "cambria";">Not that the meaning assigned to 'objective' in the moral argument is at all odd or unusual. Here's how <i>The Oxford
Concise English Dictionary</i> defines 'objective':</span><span style="font-family: "cambria";"> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "cambria";">‘<b>Objective</b>, adj. 1
not influenced by personal feelings or opinions in considering or representing
facts. 2 not dependent on the mind for existence; actual.’</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span>
</div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">
</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "cambria";">However, by ‘the mind’ here is meant <i>the human mind</i>, as becomes clear
when one looks at the OED definition of 'objectivism':</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">
</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">
</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "cambria";">‘<b>Objectivism</b>, n. 1
the tendency to emphasize what is external or independent of the mind. 2 <i>Philosophy</i> the belief that moral truths
exist independently of human knowledge or perception of them.’</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">
</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">
</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: #3366ff; font-family: "cambria";">Unlike WaywardSkeptic, the OED recognizes that there is a specifically philosophical
meaning of objectivism wherein it is independence from human minds that
is the key point.</span></span><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "cambria";"> </span><span style="color: #3366ff; font-family: "cambria";">Likewise, The <i>Blackwell Dictionary
of Western Philosophy</i> (to which WaywardSkeptic also avers) defines </span><a href="http://www.blackwellreference.com/public/tocnode?id=g9781405106795_chunk_g978140510679514_ss1-193"><span style="color: #3366ff; font-family: "cambria";">moral realism</span></a><span style="color: #3366ff; font-family: "cambria";"> as:</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span>
</div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">
</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "cambria";">‘Any moral
theory which holds that moral facts or ethical properties, such as being good
or bad or being virtuous or evil, exist independent of our beliefs and will ,
and that ethics should find out truths about them.</span><span style="font-family: "cambria";">’</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">
</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: #3366ff; font-family: "cambria";">As Wayward Skeptic observes,
having referenced various sources defining moral objectivism:</span><span style="font-family: "cambria";"> <span style="color: #274e13;">‘I would be up front that, unfortunately, these
pages tend to be anthropocentric...'</span></span><span style="font-family: "cambria";">
</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">
</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">
</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="font-size: xx-small;">
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: #3366ff;"> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: #3366ff;">What is unfortunate is that WaywardSkeptic refuses
to take such 'anthropocentric' definitions seriously, ignoring the specific,
philosophical use of the term ‘objective’ as applied within moral realism.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">
</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "cambria";"><span style="color: #3366ff;">cf. William Lane Craig, 'Theistic Ethics and Mind Dependence' http://www.reasonablefaith.org/theistic-ethics-and-mind-dependence </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: xx-small;">
</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span>
</div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "cambria";"><span style="color: #3366ff;">What WaywardSkeptic needs is an argument to the effect that even if moral values and duties are objective (in the standard philosophical sense assigned to this term within the moral argument), they cannot depend upon or be grounded in God or any quality or qualities of God. An argument showing that if moral objetivism were true then moral platonism must be true would do the trick. WaywardSkeptic doesn't produce such an argument.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "cambria";"><span style="color: #3366ff;"> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "cambria";"><span style="color: #3366ff;">Moreover, any argument to this effect would need to rebut the arguments given by advocates of the moral argument for thinking that there is a connection between objective moral values and duties and the existence of a god. For example, one strand of the moral argument claims that while we obligated by our objective moral duties, we 'can't be obligated by anything non-personal'. Thus H.P. Owen argues:<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";"> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "cambria";"><span style="color: #3366ff;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";">'On the one hand [objective moral] claims transcend every
human person . . . On the other hand… it is contradictory to assert that
impersonal claims are entitled to the allegiance of our wills. The only
solution to this paradox is to suppose that the order of [objective moral]
claims . . . is in fact rooted in the personality of God.<span class="MsoEndnoteReference">' </span></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman";">(‘Why morality implies the existence of God’, edited extract
from <i>The Moral Argument for Christian Theism</i> (George Allen & Unwin,
1965) in Brian Davies (ed.), <i>Philosophy of Religion</i>: <i>a guide and
anthology</i> (Oxford, 2000), p. 648.)</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">
</span></span></span></span></span></span>
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "cambria";"><span style="color: #3366ff;"> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "cambria";"><span style="color: #3366ff;">WaywardSkeptic does take issue with this claim, stating:</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">
</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "cambria";">
</span>
</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";">Actually, yes, you would be obligated by something
non-personal. This would be the normative force for moral properties/facts.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">
</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">
</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";">However, this is merely a statement of disagreement, not a counter-argument. Accepting that there are moral facts, facts that have 'normative force', the question is: how does one <i>explain</i> the normative force of objective moral duties? What is the best explanation of the
normative, obligatory intentionality of the moral facts we experience? It seems that an obligation is, by its very nature, a relation that
can only hold <i>between persons</i> and not between a person and any impersonal reality.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">
</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: #3366ff; font-family: "times new roman";"><span style="color: blue;">Actually, WaywardSkeptic doesn't accept the existence of normative facts. Responding to the claim that 'Torturing an innocent child for the sheer fun of it is morally wrong', WaywardSkeptic writes:</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: #3366ff; font-family: "times new roman";">
</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";">As moral anti-realist, I would not agree to that. I may
prefer it not to happen and I may have a strong, negative emotional reaction to
such an event to occur, I would not say it was immoral in an objective sense.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">
</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";"><span style="color: blue;">Denying the premise that there are normative facts certainly allows one to escape the conclusion of the moral argument for theism, but as far as I am concerned, is a philosophical price-tag too far, one that flies in the face of experience.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";"><span style="color: blue;">WaywardSkeptic also responds to the essentialist rebuttal of the Euthyphro (false) dilemma:</span></span>
</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">
</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: #274e13; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";">The nature route is probably path most taken by Christians
yet it is not perfect... Are these attributes <span style="color: black;">[being holy, loving, kind, just etc.]</span> good and thus make God good or are
these attributes good because God has them?</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">
</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">
</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";">These properties are not good independant of God's reality, because God is the ground and standard of goodness.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";">Nor are these attributes good because God <i>just happens</i> to have them. God doesn't <i>just happen</i> to have the moral properties He has (e.g. being loving) since God has these properties in every possible world. When you get to God you've reached the metaphysical and moral ultimate, the explanatory stopping point for moral values. As Craig writes: '</span></span><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";">God is the greatest conceivable being, and it is greater to be the paradigm of goodness than to conform to it.'</span></span></span><span style="font-size: xx-small;"> (<a href="http://www.reasonablefaith.org/euthyphro-dilemma#ixzz42VkkxT5t" style="color: #003399;">http://www.reasonablefaith.org/euthyphro-dilemma#ixzz42VkkxT5t</a><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: #3366ff; font-family: "times new roman";"><span style="color: black;">)</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: #3366ff; font-family: "times new roman";"><span style="color: blue;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";"><span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 12pt;">. Again,
goodness may be a primitive, foundational concept that is ultimately undefinable
in non-value terms. But that doesn't mean to say that 'God is The Good'
is therefore a meaningless statement or an empty tautology. of course God is God! And of course goodness is good! On Theistic Essentialism, moral goodness
is constituted by the necessary character of God (that doesn't mean one
can't explain what
moral goodness is, or wherein the moral goodness of God consists. One can explain that God is loving, kind, merciful, generous, and so forth. But
this is an explanation-what, not an explanation-why).</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: #3366ff; font-family: "times new roman";"><span style="color: blue;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">W</span>aywardSkeptic is among those whom William Lane Craig refers to as:</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: #3366ff; font-family: "times new roman";"><span style="color: blue;"> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">'those who misguidedly try to rescue the false dilemma posed in the
Euthyphro argument: either something is good because God wills it or
God wills something because it is good. Because these alternatives are
not contradictories it is open to the theist to propose a third
alternative, viz., God wills something because He is good. Unhappy with
this defeat of their dilemma, some have demanded: is something good
because of the way God is or is God that way because something is good?
The critic isn’t listening. We’ve already said that something is good
because of the way God is. “But why is God good?” the critic persists.
It’s hard to make sense of this question. The moral theory just is
that God is the paradigm of goodness, and it makes no sense to ask why
the paradigm of goodness is good. The critic must be asking, “Why
believe your theory?” The answer is, “because it makes the best sense
of objective moral values and duties.” - <a href="http://www.reasonablefaith.org/the-plausibility-of-grounding-moral-values-in-god#ixzz42VhPEdDk" style="color: #003399;">http://www.reasonablefaith.org/the-plausibility-of-grounding-moral-values-in-god#ixzz42VhPEdDk</a></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
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Peter S. Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14223529929867367465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17071512.post-78160088617480174422015-07-27T17:08:00.002+01:002015-07-27T17:26:56.263+01:00Sermon: Philippians 3:7-4:1<h2>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">Audio of this sermon is availabe <a href="http://podcast.peterswilliams.com/e/philippians-37-41-stand-firm-by-pressing-on/"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">here</span></a></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Times; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">7 But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss
for the sake of Christ. 8 What is more, I consider everything a loss because of
the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have
lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ 9 and be found
in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that
which is through faith in Christ - the righteousness that comes from God on the
basis of faith. 10 I want to know Christ - yes, to know the power of his
resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his
death, 11 and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead. 12 Not
that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but
I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. 13
Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it.
But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is
ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called
me heavenward in Christ Jesus. 15 All of us, then, who are mature should take
such a view of things. And if on some point you think differently, that too God
will make clear to you. 16 Only let us live up to what we have already
attained. 17 Join together in following my example, brothers and sisters, and
just as you have us as a model, keep your eyes on those who live as we do. 18
For, as I have often told you before and now tell you again even with tears,
many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. 19 Their destiny is destruction,
their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is
set on earthly things. 20 But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly
await a Saviour from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21 who, by the power that
enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly
bodies so that they will be like his glorious body. 4:1 Therefore, my brothers
and sisters, you whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the
Lord in this way, dear friends! (NIV)</span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Times; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">Any spirituality – whether Atheist, Buddhist or
Christian - has three, organically related parts: Beliefs, Attitudes and
Actions. To alliterate, spirituality is about the integration of Head, Heart
and Hands.</span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Times; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">First of all, our minds believe various things to be
true or false. For example, we believe that Jesus is the crucified and
resurrected Lord who will transform ‘our lowly bodies so that they will be like
his glorious body.’</span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Times; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">Second, our hearts make a response to what our minds
believe. For example, we consider everything we once prized to be ‘garbage’ in
comparison to ‘the surpassing worth of knowing Christ’. Actually, the NIV is
rather tame at this point. The <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Jubilee
Bible 2000</i> is on target when it speaks more bluntly of ‘my Lord, for whom I
have suffered the loss of all things and do count them but dung’!</span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Times; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">This combination of head and heart, of a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">belief that</i> and a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">belief in</i>, is what the Bible means by ‘faith’. Contrary to recent
New Atheist propaganda from the likes of Richard Dawkins, Christian ‘faith’ is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">not</i> a matter of ‘blind faith’. Rather,
Christian faith is ‘a trust in and commitment to what we have reason to believe
is true.’<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_ednref"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=17071512#_edn1"><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">[i]</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"></span></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"> </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Times; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></b></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">Making time to investigate,
at an appropriate level, the reasons for believing Christianity to be true is a
biblical part of Christian discipleship. Paul not only describes his own
ministry in Philippians 1:7 as ‘</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial;">defending and confirming the gospel’ but
in Colossians 4:6 he commands Christians to ‘be ready to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">give answers</i> to anyone who asks questions.’ (NIV) Listen to
Professor </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">William Lane Craig’s</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"> <span lang="EN-US">impassioned
plea for Christians to learn to ‘give answers’ - he says</span></span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">:</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial;"> </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Times; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></b></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">'Christian teenagers are
intellectually assaulted with every manner of non-Christian worldview coupled
with an overwhelming relativism. If parents are not intellectually engaged with
their faith and do not have sound arguments for Christian theism and good
answers to their children’s questions, then we are in real danger of losing our
youth. It’s no longer enough to teach our children simply Bible stories; they
need doctrine and apologetics. It’s hard to understand how people today can
risk parenthood without having studied apologetics… It’s insufficient for youth
groups and Sunday school classes to focus on entertainment and . . . devotional
thoughts. We’ve got to train our kids for war. We dare not send them out to
public high school and university armed with rubber swords and plastic armor.
The time for playing games is past.'</span></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=17071512#_edn2"><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">[ii]</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"></span></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"> </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Times; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></b></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">Let me encourage you to look up
Craig’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Reasonable Faith</i> website and
to consider coming to the next <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Reasonable
Faith</i>? course here at Highfield, which starts on Sunday 11th October.</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Times; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></b></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">Third, Christ-centred faith,
the combination of Head and Heart, influences behaviour. As James writes: ‘Faith
without deeds is dead’ (James 2:26). Thus, to have Christian faith means ‘<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">trusting, holding to, and acting on what one
has good reason to believe is true, in the face of difficulties</i>.’</span></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=17071512#_edn3"><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">[iii]</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"></span></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"> </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Times; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></b></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">Now, in Philippians 3:7-4:1,
Paul takes Christians from ‘the surpassing worth of knowing Christ’ to how we
can ‘stand firm in the Lord’ in the face of difficulties. Philippi was ‘a
favourite location for settling Roman soldiers whose term of service in the
army had ended’</span></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=17071512#_edn4"><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">[iv]</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"></span></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">, and the Greek term for ‘stand firm’ is ‘the
same as that for a soldier standing fast in the shock of battle . . . or a
combatant in a Roman amphitheatre fighting for his life.’</span></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=17071512#_edn5"><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">[v]</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"></span></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"> This is a metaphor for the spiritual warfare of Christian discipleship.
As Paul says in Ephesians: 'our struggle is not against human opponents, but
against rulers, authorities, cosmic powers in the darkness around us, and evil
spiritual forces in the heavenly realm. For this reason, take up the whole
armour of God so that you may be able to take a stand whenever evil comes.'
(Ephesians 6:12-13, ISV)</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Times; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></b></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">Paradoxically, Paul’s
Philippian battle-plan for <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">standing firm</i>
is a matter of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">pressing on</i> and
‘straining toward what is ahead’!</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Times; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></b></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">As 2 Corinthians 11:24-26
makes abundantly clear, Paul knows a little something about having faith
despite external difficulties. </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial;">As he says earlier in the same letter:
‘this slight momentary affliction is preparing us for an eternal weight of
glory beyond all measure’ (2 Corinthians 4:17). </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">Yet the difficulties we face in following Christ aren’t primarily
external. Paul knows that having faith means facing-up to the difficult
internal realities of our own sinful nature. We must begin by realizing that we
have <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">not</i> already obtained all Christ
has called us to: 'Striving for perfection through intellectual and spiritual
enlightenment was a common religious ideal in Greco-Roman antiquity… Paul had
seen such ideas infect the church at Corinth, where some believers claimed that
they had already been perfected by their spiritual knowledge...</span></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=17071512#_edn6"><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">'[vi]</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"></span></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"> </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Times; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></b></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">While disciples of Christ
must desire that sinless perfection that is our heavenly destiny, and must
pursue both maturity and maturation in Christ in the meantime, discipleship
begins with the realization that we can’t gain salvation by perfectly obeying
the law of right and wrong, but only through the ‘salvation’ or ‘righteousness’
that ‘comes from God on the basis of faith.’ Taking our stand on this faith we
can ‘leave the elementary doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity, not laying
again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God’
(Hebrews 6:1).</span></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">Note that while Paul
considers himself to be a mature Christian - ‘All of us, then, who are mature should
take such a view of things’ - he also says ‘I do not consider myself yet to
have taken hold of [that] for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.’ In other
words, while ‘our citizenship is in heaven’ we aren’t there yet! Nevertheless,
‘God has called us heavenwards in Christ Jesus’.</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Times; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></b></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">The term translated as
‘citizens’ could ‘refer to a distinct ethnic group that lived away from its
homeland and was governed by its own constitution – a “city within a city.”</span></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=17071512#_edn7"><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">[vii]</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"></span></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"> So, how are citizens of heaven to cope with
living in a foreign land? How should we handle the tension of desiring heavenly
perfection whilst knowing we are sinners? How can we ‘stand firm in the Lord’, trusting
and acting on what we have good reason to believe is true, despite external and
internal trials? Paul says we should join together in following his example: 'Forgetting
what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal
to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.'</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Times; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></b></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">The imagery here ‘comes from
the athletic arena… where runners would fix their eyes on the post that marked
the end point of the race and winners received a prize’ (a ‘wreath of dry
celery’ worn as a crown).</span></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=17071512#_edn8"><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">[viii]</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"></span></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"> Instead of ‘going for gold’ one supposes that
ancient Greeks talked about ‘going for celery’! What Paul means is that we can
and should ‘forget’ the difficulties of discipleship in light of ‘the
surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus’, where ‘forgetting’ isn’t a matter of
failing memory, but a deliberate choice to live out the gospel. The Greek
translated as ‘forgetting’ can mean to forget ‘in the sense of neglecting… given
over to oblivion…’</span></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=17071512#_edn9"><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">[ix]</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"></span></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"> This ‘forgetting’ is an attitude of the heart
to the effect that, on the basis of knowing Jesus, we will live as forgiven
sinners; that we will shift our goals from ‘earthly things’ towards our
heavenly goal. Indeed, as Nicky Gumbel says: 'Like a runner, the Christian must
not look back . . . We cannot live on past successes or rest on former laurels.
Nor should we be bogged down by past failures, despair over past sins or
bitterness over past wrongs done to us. We are not to dwell on the past.'</span></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=17071512#_edn10"><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">[x]</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"></span></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _ednref;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Times; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></b></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-outline-level: 2;">
<span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">Paul explains that to ‘know Christ’ is to know
‘participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death’. As Paul
writes in Romans 8:17: ‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial;">we
share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.’ (NIV)</span><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"> Again, Paul writes: 'we died
and were buried with Christ by baptism. And just as Christ was raised from the
dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives… So
you also should consider yourselves to be dead to the power of sin and alive to
God through Christ Jesus…' (Romans 6:4 & 11, NLT)</span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Times; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">Taking our stand upon <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">true beliefs</i> about our sin and God’s grace, in combination with the
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">appropriate heart response</i> to these
truths, we can choose to ‘forget’ what is behind and to ‘press on’ to what lies
ahead, ‘the prize for which God has called [us] heavenward in Christ Jesus.’
And although we can’t experience the fullness of our ‘prize’ until the new
heavens and earth, Paul says we can draw ever nearer to God through knowing
Christ Jesus as we await the fullness of his coming: ‘As all of us reflect the
glory of the Lord with unveiled faces, we are becoming more like him with
ever-increasing glory by the Lord’s Spirit.’ (2 Corinthians 3:18, ISV)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">In sum, to be mature disciples we need to believe our
identity lies in the death and resurrection of Jesus, we need to set our hearts
upon the prize for which God has called us heavenwards in Christ, and in the
light of knowing where we come from – forgiveness - and where we are going –
glory - we need to strive to live as citizens of heaven on earth, despite the
‘light and momentary troubles’ (2 Corinthians 4:17) this inevitably involves.
As the writer of Hebrews says: 'let us run with perseverance the race marked
out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For
the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down
at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such
opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.'
(Hebrews 12:1-3, NIV)</span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Times; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">So, let’s join together and follow Paul in ‘going for
celery’!</span></div>
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<div style="mso-element: endnote-list;">
</div>
<div style="mso-element: endnote-list;">
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<div id="edn" style="mso-element: endnote;">
<div class="MsoEndnoteText">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=17071512#_ednref" name="_edn1" style="mso-endnote-id: edn;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;">[i]</span></span></span></a><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">
J.P. Moreland, ‘Living Smart’ in Paul Copan & William Lane Craig (ed.’s), <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Passionate Conviction</i> <span style="color: black;">(B&H Academic, 2007), p. 22.</span></span></span></div>
</div>
<div id="edn" style="mso-element: endnote;">
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=17071512#_ednref" name="_edn2" style="mso-endnote-id: edn;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;">[ii]</span></span></span></a><span lang="EN-US" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> William Lane Craig, ‘Apologetics: Who Needs It?’, </span><span lang="EN-US" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">www.reasonablefaith.org/christian-apologetics-who-needs-it#ixzz3fxRxJeqZ</span></span></div>
</div>
<div id="edn" style="mso-element: endnote;">
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=17071512#_ednref" name="_edn3" style="mso-endnote-id: edn;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;">[iii]</span></span></span></a><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">
David Marshall & Timothy McGrew, </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">‘Faith
and Reason in Historical Perspective’ in <i>True Reason</i> (ed.’s Tom Gilson
& Carson Weitnauer: Kregel, 2013), p. 125.</span></span></div>
</div>
<div id="edn" style="mso-element: endnote;">
<div class="MsoEndnoteText">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=17071512#_ednref" name="_edn4" style="mso-endnote-id: edn;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;">[iv]</span></span></span></a><span lang="EN-US"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Frank Thielman,
‘Philippians’ in Clinten E. Arnold ed. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Zondervan
Illustrated Background Commentary</i>: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Ephesians,
Philippians, Colossians, Philemon</i> (Zondervan, 2002), p. 45-46.</span></span></div>
</div>
<div id="edn" style="mso-element: endnote;">
<div class="MsoEndnoteText">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=17071512#_ednref" name="_edn5" style="mso-endnote-id: edn;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;">[v]</span></span></span></a><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">
Nicky Gumbel, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">A Life Worth Living</i>
(Alpha, 2004), p. 92.</span></span></div>
</div>
<div id="edn" style="mso-element: endnote;">
<div class="MsoEndnoteText">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=17071512#_ednref" name="_edn6" style="mso-endnote-id: edn;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;">[vi]</span></span></span></a><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Thielman, ‘Philippians’ in Clinten
E. Arnold ed. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Zondervan Illustrated
Background Commentary</i>: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Ephesians,
Philippians, Colossians, Philemon</i> (Zondervan, 2002), p. 63.</span></span></div>
</div>
<div id="edn" style="mso-element: endnote;">
<div class="MsoEndnoteText">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=17071512#_ednref" name="_edn7" style="mso-endnote-id: edn;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;">[vii]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> ibid, p. 64.</span></span></div>
</div>
<div id="edn" style="mso-element: endnote;">
<div class="MsoEndnoteText">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=17071512#_ednref" name="_edn8" style="mso-endnote-id: edn;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;">[viii]</span></span></span></a><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">
ibid</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">, p. 63 & 65.</span></span></div>
</div>
<div id="edn" style="mso-element: endnote;">
<div class="MsoEndnoteText">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=17071512#_ednref" name="_edn9" style="mso-endnote-id: edn;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;">[ix]</span></span></span></a><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">
Joseph H.J. Thayer, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Thayer’s
Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament</i> (Hendrickson, 2012), P 240.</span></span></div>
</div>
<div id="edn" style="mso-element: endnote;">
<div class="MsoEndnoteText">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=17071512#_ednref" name="_edn10" style="mso-endnote-id: edn;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;">[x]</span></span></span></a><span lang="EN-US"> </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Nicky Gumbel, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">A Life Worth Living</i> (Alpha, 2004), p. 83.</span></span></div>
</div>
</div>
Peter S. Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14223529929867367465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17071512.post-50987696357900110362015-07-27T16:48:00.003+01:002015-07-27T16:59:59.855+01:00Sermon - Mark 4. 35-41<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: black;">Audio of this sermon is available <a href="http://podcast.peterswilliams.com/e/sermon-mark-435-ff/" target="_blank">here</a> </span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: black;">35 On that day, when evening
had come, He told them, “Let’s cross over to the other side of the sea.”</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: black;">36 So
they left the crowd and took Him along since He was already in the boat. And
other boats were with Him. 37 A fierce windstorm arose, and the waves were
breaking over the boat, so that the boat was already being swamped. 38 But He
was in the stern, sleeping on the cushion. So they woke Him up and said to Him,
“Teacher! Don’t you care that we’re going to die?”</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: black;">39 He got up, rebuked the wind,
and said to the sea, “Silence! Be still!” The wind ceased, and there was a
great calm. 40 Then He said to them, “Why are you fearful? Do you still have no
faith?”</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: black;">41 And they were terrified
and asked one another, “Who then is this? Even the wind and the sea obey Him!”
(HCSB.)</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: black;">Before
immersing ourselves in this passage, it’s worth noting that in the 1980’s a drought
exposed a well-preserved first-century fishing boat in the mud of the Sea of
Galilee, giving us a good idea of the sort of vessel featured in this story:</span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: black;">Under
the direction of the Israeli Antiquities Authority, archaeologists began a race
against time to carefully extract the boat from the mud before the waters
returned… Pots and lamps found inside the boat dated it to the first century. Carbon-14
testing further confirmed the dating. The design of the boat was typical of
fishing boats used during that period on the Sea of Galilee. In the back of the
boat was a raised section like the one where Jesus could have been sleeping, as
indicated in the Gospel accounts. The boat could accommodate 15 people
including crew. This archaeological discovery confirms the description given in
the Bible.<a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=17071512#_edn1" name="_ednref" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference">[i]</span></a> </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: black;">Writing around the middle of
the first century, and probably drawing upon the eye-witness testimony of the
apostle Peter, Mark presents his account of one of the more unusual miracles of
Jesus. The miracle is unusual because it’s not a healing or an exorcism.
Rather, it’s a ‘nature miracle’, like Jesus walking on the water or feeding the
five thousand, which highlights God’s power over nature.</span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: black;">I’d like to clear aside a
traditional reading of this passage that I think is a miss-reading, here
represented by the introduction to Mark 4:35 f in William Neil’s <i>One Volume Bible Commentary</i>:</span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: black;">'Four stories are now added showing the power of the Messiah over
the demon world. Mark makes no distinction between the stilling of the storm
(4: 35-41) and the healing acts of Jesus. All are evidence of his authority
over Satan’s domain. Jesus uses the same word:<span style="font-family: inherit;"> "</span>be muzzled<span style="font-family: inherit;">"</span>, in exorcising the
demon who caused the storm, as he does in the case of the demoniac in 1:25.'
(William Neil’s One Volume Bible Commentary, Hodder & Stoughton, 1962, p.
365.)</span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: black;">Jesus’ use of one word
several chapters ago is a thin foundation upon which to build an
interpretation. It seems to me that in fact only two of the four stories in
this section of Mark clearly have to do with Satan (the daemoniac and the woman
with the issue of blood). Moreover, there’s no evidence elsewhere in scripture
that demons can control the weather.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: black;">Finally, Mark’s account
simply doesn’t read like Jesus is responding to a satanic assassination
attempt! Jesus doesn’t address himself to a demon, but to the wind and the sea:
‘39 He… rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Silence! Be still!”’ Yes,
Jesus’s command anthropomorphized nature; but who among us hasn’t rebuked a
computer when it fails to work?! Our rebuke doesn’t mean we think the computer
is demon-possessed and neither does Jesus’ command for the wind to ‘shut up’.</span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: black;">So, if that’s not what’s
going on in the calming of the storm, what is happening? I think we can better
appreciate Mark’s story if we think about the biblical understanding of
miracles. </span><span style="color: black;">The New
Testament uses various Greek words to describe miracles, including:</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: black;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-language-override: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-synthesis: weight style; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><i><span style="color: black;">Dunamis</span></i><span style="color: black;"> – an act of power (‘<i>Dunamis</i>’ is the root of English words such as ‘dynamic’ and
‘dynamo’)</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: black;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-language-override: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-synthesis: weight style; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><i><span style="color: black;">Teras</span></i><span style="color: black;"> – a wonder</span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">
</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: black;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-language-override: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-synthesis: weight style; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><i><span style="color: black;">Semeion</span></i><span style="color: black;"> – a ‘sign’</span></span></span></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: black;">Michael
Poole brings these terms together when he explains that: ‘<i>Dunamis</i> focuses attention on the <i>cause</i> of a miracle in the power of God. <i>Teras</i> refers to its <i>effect</i>,
and <i>Semeion</i> to its purpose.’<a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=17071512#_edn2" name="_ednref" title=""><sup>[ii]</sup></a>
As a nature miracle, Jesus’ calming of the storm is clearly an act of <i>dunamis</i>. One effect of this <i>teras</i> is obviously to rescue the boats
and their occupants; but another effect of the miracle is to leave Jesus’
disciples as frightened or awestruck of him as they had been of the storm he
stilled. You see, the significance – the <i>semeion</i>
– of this miracle is definitely <i>not</i> a
comforting message about how those who carry Jesus in the boat of their lives
can find peace in knowing that he will calm all the storms of life and rescue
them from danger (an application William Neil’s commentary unfortunately makes)!
For one thing, such a take-home message clearly wouldn’t be true. Plenty of
people find life all the stormier, and sometimes shorter, for being a
Christian.</span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: black;">So what was
it that put the fear of God in to the disciples on this occasion? Jesus’
command of wind and wave would surely have brought to mind the following verses
from Psalm 107:</span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: black;">‘Others went out on the sea in ships, they were merchants on the
mighty waters. They saw the works of the Lord, his wonderful deeds in the deep.
For he spoke and stirred up a tempest that lifted high the waves. They mounted
up to the heavens and went down to the depths; in their peril their courage
melted away. They reeled and staggered like drunken men; they were at their
wits’ end. Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and he brought
them out of their distress. He stilled the storm to a whisper; the waves of the
sea were hushed.’ (Psalm 107: 23-29)</span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: black;">You see, it’s not demons that
scripture describes as controlling the sea, but the Lord God of Israel who,
directly or indirectly, lifts the waves up high or stills the storm. And here
is Jesus, addressing himself to the storm <i>as
God</i>. In other words, Jesus’s miracle of calming the storm is an enacted
claim to divinity – and one that carries with it powerful supernatural evidence
of its truth. And that’s why the disciples end the story as much in ‘fear’ or
‘awe’ of Jesus as they were of the storm he stilled. Amen.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">
</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">
</span></span><br />
<div style="mso-element: endnote-list;">
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">
</span></span><br />
<div id="edn">
<div class="MsoEndnoteText">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=17071512#_ednref" name="_edn1" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US">[i]</span></span></a><span lang="EN-US"> Ralph O.
Muncaster, <i>101 Reasons You Can Believe</i>:
<i>Why the Christian Faith Makes Sense</i>
(Eugene, Oregon: Harvest House, 2004), p. 72-3.</span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">
</span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=17071512#_ednref" name="_edn2" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US">[ii]</span></span></a><span lang="EN-US"> Michael
Poole, <i>Miracles</i>: <i>Science, The Bible & Experience</i> (London: Scripture Union,
1992), p. 32. </span></span></span></div>
Peter S. Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14223529929867367465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17071512.post-80246553063823821672014-12-04T12:29:00.001+00:002014-12-04T12:30:47.169+00:00Just add water? New Scientist article supports Rare Earth hypothesis<br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">An article in the 1st November 2014 edition of <i>New Scientist</i> entitled 'Just add water?' bears the introduction: <span style="color: blue;">'Many worlds harbour oceans - but that alone won't make them as life-friendly as Earth, say planetary scientists Jan Zalasiewicz and Mark Williams.'</span> In the article itself Zalasiewicz and Williams state:<span style="color: blue;"> 'The more we learn about how Earth acquired and retained its water, the more it seems the situation was incredibly fortuitous. And as we discover how water is stored elsewhere in our solar system, our planet is starting to seem like an outlier. Even in a water-filled cosmos, Earth might still be one of a kind amid water worlds far weirder - and more hostile to life - than our own.' </span>The article also states that<span style="color: blue;"> 'its already clear that our solar system is not standard'</span> and that<span style="color: blue;"> 'all the indications are that Earth's long-lived, stable surface oceans are the exception, rather than the rule.' </span>Zalasiewicz and Williams think this makes Earth a <span style="color: blue;">'lucky cosmic jewel'</span>, but they don't even consider the competing explanatory hypothesis provided by intelligent design.</span>Peter S. Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14223529929867367465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17071512.post-80662821921248404202014-11-24T11:52:00.000+00:002014-12-04T12:18:28.156+00:00Noah's Flood<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><br /></span>
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Genesis 6-9 tells the story of
Noah, the Ark, and the Flood. While some Christians interpret the text to mean
that the flood covered the whole globe and try to explain the evidence of rocks
and fossils in terms of this global flood, others don’t think the text requires
a global flood, but one covering the region known to Noah. This reading of the
text fits with the majority scientific opinion that ‘The scientific and
historical evidence does not support a global flood, but is consistent with a
catastrophic regional flood.’<a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Noah%E2%80%99s%20Flood.doc#_edn1" name="_ednref1" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-size: 12pt;">[i]</span></span></span></a></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><br /></span>
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/chHU5HPkxmM" width="560"></iframe></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><br /></span>
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Christian writer
Timothy Keller says:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">‘I believe Noah’s flood happened, but that it was a regional
flood, not a worldwide flood. On the one hand, those who insist on it being a
worldwide flood seem to ignore too much the scientific evidence that there was
no such thing. On the other hand, those who insist that it was a legend seem to
ignore too much the trustworthiness of the Scripture… we should remember that
the Bible often speaks of the “known world” as the “whole world” — compare Gen.
41:56,57; Acts 2:5,9-11; Col.1:23.’<a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Noah%E2%80%99s%20Flood.doc#_edn2" name="_ednref2" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-size: 12pt;">[ii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<ul style="margin-top: 0cm;" type="circle">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #262626; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1;"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Ancient Flood Stories<o:p></o:p></span></b></li>
</ul>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #1e1e1e; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">While flood stories abound in
ancient cultures from many parts of the world, this doesn’t prove that there
was a global flood. Instead, different parts of the world may have suffered
floods at various times in ancient history and may have recorded these events,
or based stories upon them, from within the perspective of their own religious
worldview.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1e1e1e; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">The ancient Greeks and Romans had
a story about Deucalion and Pyhrra, who saved their children and some animals
in a giant box-shaped craft (such a craft would have been unstable in water;
this contrasts with Noah’s ‘floating boxcar’, which would have been stable).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1e1e1e; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">The recently discovered
Babylonian ‘Ark Tablet’ was written during the Old Babylonian period, broadly
1900–1700 B.C. In this version a man called Atra-hasıs is instructed by the god
Enki to ‘Draw out the boat that you will make on a circular plan.’ Atra-hasis’
Ark is effectively a 230 ft wide reed coracle. However, just as in the Noah
story, so in this Babylonian version, the animals are said to enter the Ark
‘two by two’.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Noah%E2%80%99s%20Flood.doc#_edn3" name="_ednref3" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1e1e1e;">[iii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1e1e1e; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">A recent article in <i>Biblical Archaeology Review</i> highlights
the existence of several different </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">Babylonian
accounts of the flood story:<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">‘In the <i>Epic of Gilgamesh</i>, the god Enki tasks Utnapishtim to
save the world from the flood… Later discoveries revealed that the account was
an abridged and modified version of the Akkadian Atrahasis epic, a similar
flood myth that was copied and adapted for centuries in the ancient Near East…’<a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Noah%E2%80%99s%20Flood.doc#_edn4" name="_ednref4" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US">[iv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">According to archaeologist James
F. Hoffmeier:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">‘Given the fact that there were several different traditions
from Mesopotamia, and that they have so many points in common with the Biblical
story, it might be logical to conclude that all the stories recall a common
event that was retold to reflect different social, cultural and theological
contexts.’</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Noah%E2%80%99s%20Flood.doc#_edn5" name="_ednref5" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">[v]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<ul style="margin-top: 0cm;" type="circle">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #262626; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1;"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">The Language and Extent
of Noah’s Flood<o:p></o:p></span></b></li>
</ul>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626;">Noah’s story is related in
‘phenomenological’ terms, that is, from the limited viewpoint of the human
observer. Roger Forster and Paul Marston note that: </span><span style="color: #262626;">‘to translate “the whole eretz” as “the whole earth” is really
misleading to the modern reader, for we think of “earth” in terms of a “Globe”.
To translate it “the whole land”, would much better convey the kind of concept
in the mind of the writer – and often it does not even imply the whole of the
then known world.’</span><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-size: 12pt;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Noah%E2%80%99s%20Flood.doc#_edn6" name="_ednref6" title="">[vi]</a> </span></span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626;">Moreover: </span><span lang="EN-US">‘the
term <i>tebel</i>, which translates to the whole expanse of the Earth, or the
Earth as a whole, is not used in Genesis 6:17, nor in subsequent verses in
Genesis… If the intent of this passage was to indicate the entire expanse of
the Earth, <i>tebel</i> would have<span style="color: #262626;"> been the more
appropriate word choice.’<a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Noah%E2%80%99s%20Flood.doc#_edn7" name="_ednref7" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-size: 12pt;">[vii]</span></span></span></a> Indeed: ‘Although the
geological record contains ample evidence of widespread, devestating local
flooding, most geologists claim to see no evidence of a universal flood.’<a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Noah%E2%80%99s%20Flood.doc#_edn8" name="_ednref8" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-size: 12pt;">[viii]</span></span></span></a> As Davies A. Young asks:</span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">‘Given the frequency with which the
Bible uses universal language to describe local events of great significance,
such as the famine or the plagues in Egypt, is it unreasonable to suppose that
the flood account uses hyperbolic language to describe an event that devastated
or disrupted Mesopotamian civilization — that is to say, the whole world of the
Semites?’<a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Noah%E2%80%99s%20Flood.doc#_edn9" name="_ednref9" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-size: 12pt;">[ix]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<ul style="margin-top: 0cm;" type="circle">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #262626; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1;"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">The Location of the Flood<o:p></o:p></span></b></li>
</ul>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="color: #262626;">Davies
A. Young concludes that ‘there may very well have been a catastrophic deluge in
the Tigris and Euphrates River valleys that severely disrupted the civilization
of that area — a civilization that represented the world to the biblical writer
— and it may be that this is what the biblical story is all about.’</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Noah%E2%80%99s%20Flood.doc#_edn10" name="_ednref10" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-size: 12pt;">[x]</span></span></span></a></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<ul style="margin-top: 0cm;" type="circle">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #262626; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1;"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">The Ark<o:p></o:p></span></b></li>
</ul>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Noah’s ark has <i>not</i> been found (no wooden structure would survive so long unless
buried in glacial ice). Forster and Marston comment: ‘As for the various claims
that the ark has been “found” on some or the other mountain… we remain very
sceptical. Some are manifestly natural outcrops, others are not the shape
described in Genesis, and none is convincing.’<a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Noah%E2%80%99s%20Flood.doc#_edn11" name="_ednref11" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference">[xi]</span></span></a> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">cf. Noah’s Ark Search @ <a href="http://www.noahsarksearch.com/">www.noahsarksearch.com/</a></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">On the basis that a</span> biblical ‘cubit’ was probably about 18 inches, Noah’s Ark is described as being around 450 feet long,
75 feet wide and 45 feet high. Dutch carpenter Johan Huibers spent three years
building what he thinks is a life-size replica of Noah’s Ark:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/vJimDolW7Ao" width="560"></iframe><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<ul style="margin-top: 0cm;" type="disc">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #262626; margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/noah-s-ark-full-scale-replica-opens-in-netherlands-1.1289548">www.cbc.ca/news/world/noah-s-ark-full-scale-replica-opens-in-netherlands-1.1289548</a><o:p></o:p></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #262626; margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2246247/Dutchman-Johan-Huibers-launches-life-sized-Noahs-Ark-replica-Dordrecht.html">www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2246247/Dutchman-Johan-Huibers-launches-life-sized-Noahs-Ark-replica-Dordrecht.html</a><o:p></o:p></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #262626; margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><a href="http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/real-estate/dutchman-completes-20-year-quest-build-full-scale-noah-ark-article-1.1217581">www.nydailynews.com/life-style/real-estate/dutchman-completes-20-year-quest-build-full-scale-noah-ark-article-1.1217581</a><o:p></o:p></span></li>
</ul>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Michael Lahanas discusses some
examples of giant ancient wooden ships in his article, ‘Giant Hellenistic
Warships’ <a href="http://www.mlahanas.de/Greeks/GiantShips.htm">www.mlahanas.de/Greeks/GiantShips.htm</a></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
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A recent article in <i>The Telegraph</i> (April 3rd, 2014) reported that scientists at the University of Leicester:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">'have discovered that Noah's Ark could have carried 70,000 animals without sinking if built from the dimensions listed in the Bible. A group of master's students from the Department of Physics and Astronomy at Leicester University studied the exact dimensions of the Ark, set out in Genesis 6:13-22. According to the Bible, God instructed Noah to build a boat which was 300 cubits long, 50 cubits wide and 30 cubits high... The students averaged out the Egyptian and hebrew cubit measurement to come up with 48.2 cm, making the Ark around 144 meters long... Using the dimensions, the Archimedes principle of bouyancy and approximate animal weights they were astonished to find out that the Ark would have floated.' cf. <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/science/science-news/10740451/Noahs-Ark-would-have-floated...even-with-70000-animals.html">http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/science/science-news/10740451/Noahs-Ark-would-have-floated...even-with-70000-animals.html</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">That said, the ancient use of numbers in the Old Testament is often more symbolic/numerological than literal, and this may be the case with the dimensions of the Ark.</span></div>
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<b><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Recommended Resources<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">‘Noah’s Flood’ <a href="http://biologos.org/questions/genesis-flood">http://biologos.org/questions/genesis-flood</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">Noah Weiner, ‘The Animals Went in Two by Two, According to Babylonian
Ark Tablet’ <a href="http://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-topics/hebrew-bible/the-animals-went-in-two-by-two-according-to-babylonian-ark-tablet/">www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-topics/hebrew-bible/the-animals-went-in-two-by-two-according-to-babylonian-ark-tablet/</a></span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Lorence G.
Collins, ‘Yes, Noah's Flood May Have Happened, But Not Over the Whole Earth’ <a href="http://ncse.com/rncse/29/5/yes-noahs-flood-may-have-happened-not-over-whole-earth">http://ncse.com/rncse/29/5/yes-noahs-flood-may-have-happened-not-over-whole-earth</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Answers in
Genesis (global flood advocates) – Flood FAQ’s <a href="http://www.answersingenesis.org/get-answers#/topic/flood">www.answersingenesis.org/get-answers#/topic/flood</a>
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Answers in
Genesis (global flood advocates) – Noah’s Ark FAQ’s <a href="http://www.answersingenesis.org/get-answers/topic/noahs-ark">www.answersingenesis.org/get-answers/topic/noahs-ark</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">BAR, ‘Did this
Winery get Noah Drunk?’ <a href="http://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-sites-places/biblical-archaeology-places/did-this-winery-get-noah-drunk/">www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-sites-places/biblical-archaeology-places/did-this-winery-get-noah-drunk/</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">‘Is the flood
of Noah a parabolic legend?’ <a href="http://triablogue.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/is-flood-of-noah-parabolic-legend.html">http://triablogue.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/is-flood-of-noah-parabolic-legend.html</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">Listen: Unbelievable?, ‘Does the rock and fossil evidence point to
Noah’s Flood or Evolution?’ <a href="http://www.premierradio.org.uk/listen/ondemand.aspx?mediaid=%7B6DB9D833-41FD-4433-8549-853D56C3C8FB">www.premierradio.org.uk/listen/ondemand.aspx?mediaid={6DB9D833-41FD-4433-8549-853D56C3C8FB</a>}<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">Irving Finkel,</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span><i><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">The Ark Before Noah</span></i><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">: <i>Decoding the Story of the
Flood</i> (Hodder, 2014)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">Roger Forster & Paul Marston, <i>Reason,
Science & Faith</i> (Monarch, 1999)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">William B.F. Ryan and Walter C. Pitman, <i>Noah’s Flood: The New
Scientific Discoveries about the Event That Changed History</i> (Touchstone, 2000)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #0c0c0c; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Valentina
Yanko-Hombach, Allan S. Gilbert, Nicolae Panin and Pavel M. Dolukhanov, </span><i><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">The Black Sea Flood
Question</span></i><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">: <i>Changes in
Coastline, Climate and Human Settlement</i> (Springer, 2007)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: xx-small; font-weight: normal; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: small;">Ian Wilson, <i>Before
the Flood</i> (St. Martin’s Press, 2004)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: xx-small; font-weight: normal; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Ian Wilson, <i>The
Bible Is History</i> (Weindenfeld & Nicolson,1999)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Davies A. Young, <i>The Biblical Flood: A Case
Study of the Church’s Response to Extrabiblical Evidence </i></span><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">(Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1995)</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Noah%E2%80%99s%20Flood.doc#_ednref1" name="_edn1" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US">[i]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> <a href="http://biologos.org/questions/genesis-flood">http://biologos.org/questions/genesis-flood</a></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Noah%E2%80%99s%20Flood.doc#_ednref2" name="_edn2" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Cambria",serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[ii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> </span><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Timothy Keller, <i>Genesis</i>: <i>What Were We Put in the World to Do</i>? (New York: Redeemer Presbyterian
Church, 2006), p. 81)</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Noah%E2%80%99s%20Flood.doc#_ednref3" name="_edn3" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US">[iii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> </span><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1e1e1e; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">cf. <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/10574119/Noahs-Ark-the-facts-behind-the-Flood.html">www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/10574119/Noahs-Ark-the-facts-behind-the-Flood.html</a></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Noah%E2%80%99s%20Flood.doc#_ednref4" name="_edn4" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US">[iv]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">Noah Weiner, ‘The Animals Went in Two by Two,
According to Babylonian Ark Tablet’ <a href="http://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-topics/hebrew-bible/the-animals-went-in-two-by-two-according-to-babylonian-ark-tablet/">www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-topics/hebrew-bible/the-animals-went-in-two-by-two-according-to-babylonian-ark-tablet/</a></span><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1e1e1e; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Noah%E2%80%99s%20Flood.doc#_ednref5" name="_edn5" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US">[v]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> </span><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">James F. Hoffmeier, <i>The Archaeology of the Bible</i> (Lion,
2008), p. 38.</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Noah%E2%80%99s%20Flood.doc#_ednref6" name="_edn6" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US">[vi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> </span><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Roger Forster and Paul Marston, <i>Reason, Science & Faith</i> (Monarch,
1999), p. 297.</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Noah%E2%80%99s%20Flood.doc#_ednref7" name="_edn7" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US">[vii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> </span><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><a href="http://biologos.org/questions/genesis-flood">http://biologos.org/questions/genesis-flood</a></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Noah%E2%80%99s%20Flood.doc#_ednref8" name="_edn8" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US">[viii]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> </span><i><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">The
Apologetics Study Bible</span></i><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> (Nashville, Tennessee: Holman, 2007), note for 6:17,
p. 16.</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Noah%E2%80%99s%20Flood.doc#_ednref9" name="_edn9" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US">[ix]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> </span><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Davies
A. Young, <i>The Biblical Flood: A Case Study of the Church’s Response to
Extrabiblical Evidence </i></span><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">(Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1995), p. 312.</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Noah%E2%80%99s%20Flood.doc#_ednref10" name="_edn10" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US">[x]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> </span><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Young,
<i>The Biblical Flood: A Case Study of the Church’s Response to Extrabiblical
Evidence </i></span><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">(Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1995), p. 252.</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<div class="MsoEndnoteText">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Noah%E2%80%99s%20Flood.doc#_ednref11" name="_edn11" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US">[xi]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Forster & Marston, ibid, p. 440.</span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Peter S. Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14223529929867367465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17071512.post-62796673988618938802014-11-18T15:02:00.001+00:002015-01-22T13:36:47.147+00:00Evidence for the Exodus<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
Both Egyptian
chronology and the chronology of the Exodus are matters of ongoing scholarly dispute.
Most scholars think the Exodus under Ramesses II in the 13th century B.C. (the ‘late date’
view). However, many scholars argue for dating the Exodus to c. 1446 BC (the
‘early date’ view - in which case the pharaoh of the Exodus was Amenhotep II)
and a few argue for an even earlier date of c. 1525 BC. Archaeologist James K.
Hoffmeir comments: ‘Until some firm archaeological or textual evidence emerges
to support one of these theories, or an alternative, scholars will continue to
disagree about the dating. An accepted time range for the exodus, then, is
1250-1447 BC, sometime during the New kingdom period.’ - <i>The Archaeology of the Bible </i>(Lion, 2008), p. 50.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Egyptologist Kenneth A. Kitchen points out that it is unreasonable to
expect much by way of archaeological confirmation of the Exodus story: ‘The mud
hovels of brickfield slaves and humble cultivators have long since gone back to
their mud origins, never to be seen again. Even stone structures (such as
temples) hardly survive… practically no written records of any extent have been
retrieved from Delta sites… A tiny fraction of reports from the East delta
occur in papyri recovered from the desert near Memphis. Otherwise, the entirety
of Egypt’s administrative records at all periods in the Delta is lost… and
monumental texts are also nearly nil. And, as pharaohs <i>never</i>
monumentalize <i>defeats</i> on temple walls, no record of the successful exit
of a large bunch of slaves (with loss of a full chariot squadron) would never
have been memorialized by any king, in temples in the Delta or anywhere else.’ <span lang="EN-US">- <i>On the Reliability of the Old Testament</i> (Eerdmans, 2003), </span>p. 245.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Archaeology <i>does</i> demonstrate that, consistent with
the Biblical story of Exodus: 1) Semitic people lived in Egypt in the 19<sup>th</sup>
century BC, and that 2) the nation of Israel existed in the land of Canaan by
1208 BC:<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Joseph’s Canal:<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<br /></div>
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A canal running into
lake Quarun has a traditional name that links it with the pre-Exodus story of
Joseph in Egypt: ‘between 1850 and 1650 B.C. a canal was built to keep the
branches of the Nile permanently open, enabling water to fill Lake Quaran and
keep the land fertile. This canal was so effective that it still successfully
functions today. There is no record of who built the canal, but for thousands
of years it has only been known by one name. In Arabic it's the Bahr Yusef.
This translates into English as The Waterway of Joseph.’ – BBC Religions, <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/judaism/history/joseph.shtml">www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/judaism/history/joseph.shtml</a></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span lang="EN-US">Tomb of Rekh-mi-re</span></b><span lang="EN-US"> (15th century BC): ‘A wall
painting in an Egyptian tomb in the Valley of the Nobles at Thebes shows
foreign slaves making mud bricks, recalling the enslaved Israelites’ forced
brickmaking (<a href="http://biblia.com/bible/niv/Exodus%201.14" target="_blank">Exodus
1:14</a>:5:7).’</span><span lang="EN-US"> </span>– cf. <a href="http://www.gci.org/bible/digging">www.gci.org/bible/digging</a><span lang="EN-US"> cf. </span>Kenneth A. Kitchen, <i><span lang="EN-US">On the Reliability of
the Old Testament</span></i><span lang="EN-US"> (Eerdmans, 2003)</span><span lang="EN-US">, p. 247.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>The Soleb
Hieroglyph</b>: ‘<span lang="EN-US">Among
ancient Egyptian designations for types of foreign peoples in the New Kingdom
Period (1550–1070 BC), the term Shasu occurs fairly frequently. It is generally
accepted that the term Shasu means nomads or Bedouin people, referring
primarily to the nomadic peoples of Syria-Palestine. There are two hieroglyphic
references in New Kingdom Period texts to an area called “the land of the Shasu
of Yahweh.” Except for the Old Testament, these are the oldest references found
in any ancient texts to the God Yahweh… The term Shasu is almost exclusively
used in New Kingdom texts for semi-nomadic peoples living in parts of Lebanon,
Syria, Sinai, Canaan, and Transjordan, and for people groups clearly identified
as Semitic herders…</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"> </span><span lang="EN-US">The New Kingdom inscriptions which refer to “the Land of the Shasu of
Yahweh” are found in two topographical lists. The lists are found inscribed on
the walls of temples, one at Soleb and the second at Amarah-West. Soleb, a
temple dedicated to the god Amon-Re, was built by the Egyptian Pharaoh
Amenhotep III around 1400 BC… Amarah-West, which is also located in Sudan, is a
construction of Ramses II in the 13th century. The section of the Amarah-West
topographical list which contains the reference to “the land of the Shasu of
Yahweh,” is not original with Ramses II, and was almost certainly copied from
the earlier list at Soleb. Egyptologists in general do not question the
appearance of the name Yahweh in these two ancient lists. For example,
Donald Redford writes of the reference to Yahweh at Soleb: <i>For half a
century it has been generally admitted that we have here the tetragrammaton,
the name of the Israelite god "Yahweh;" and if this be the case, as
it undoubtedly is, the passage constitutes the most precious indication of the
whereabouts during the late 15th century BC of an enclave revering this god.</i>’
- cf. <a href="http://www.assistnews.net/Stories/2010/s10010053.htm">www.assistnews.net/Stories/2010/s10010053.htm</a></span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Israel Stele</b> (13th century BC): ‘The name Israel is
inscribed in hieroglyphs on a stone slab found in 1896 at Thebes. It is the
only mention of Israel in all Egyptian records discovered so far, and the
oldest evidence outside the Bible for Israel’s existence. Israel is listed as
one of the peoples in western Asia during the reign of Ramses II’s son,
Merneptah (c.1213-1203 B.C.), offering evidence that the Israelites were
already settled in Canaan (the Promised Land) by that time.’ – cf. <a href="http://www.gci.org/bible/digging">www.gci.org/bible/digging</a><o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p><b>External Evidence</b></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Many details of the Exodus account ring true when compared to
extra-biblical sources.</div>
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<br /></div>
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For example, ‘from the Louvre Roll it is evident that
special religious holidays were granted to the workers, and work rosters from
the workmen’s village of Deir el-Medineh report men being off work to “offer to
their god.” This latter point seems to indicate that Moses’ request for the
Israelites to have time off to worship Yahweh was not unprecedented and may
have been standard procedure (Exod. 5:1).’ – James K. Hoffmier<i>, Israel in Egypt</i>:
<i>The Evidence for the Authenticity of the
Exodus Tradition</i> (Oxford University Press, 1996), p. 115.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Again, we know that ‘Egyptians regularly practices snake charming that allowed
them to put snakes into a kind of catalepsy, whereby they would remain as stiff
as a rod until wakened. This trick is still practised in Egypt today.’ – NIV <i>Archaeological Study Bible</i> (Zondervan,
2005), p. 96.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p><br /></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/hiw5t276QxM" width="560"></iframe></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p><b>Internal Evidence</b></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p><br /></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There is also internal evidence to take into consideration. The basic
story of the Exodus seems to pass both the historical criteria of multiple
testimony and the criteria of embarrassment. As Kenneth A. Kitchen argues: ‘the
phenomenon of an exodus-deliverance recurs all over the biblical corpus… If
there never was an escape from Egyptian servitude by any of Israel’s ancestors,
why on earth invent such a tale about such humiliating origins? Nobody else in
Near Eastern antiquity descended to that kind of tale of community beginnings.’
– Kenneth
A. Kitchen, <i><span lang="EN-US">On the Reliability of the Old Testament</span></i><span lang="EN-US">
(Eerdmans, 2003), </span>p. 245.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>The Miracles of
Exodus<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In his book <i>The Miracles of Exodus </i>(Continuum, 2003), Professor Colin J. Humphreys argues that ‘we have a natural scientific explanation for all ten plagues, which follow a logical, connected sequence… that is highly consistent with the biblical account.’ – p. 143.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Egyptologist Kenneth A. Kitchen observes that ‘the impact of various
plagues can be understood as devaluing or denying Egyptian beliefs.’ – Kenneth A. Kitchen, <i><span lang="EN-US">On the Reliability of
the Old Testament</span></i><span lang="EN-US"> (Eerdmans, 2003), </span>p. 253.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
For example:
‘A massive unruly and destructive Nile flood, red in hue, bringing death, was
the opposite of Hapi (deity of that flood), who was normally bringer of new
life by its waters… <span lang="EN-US">Frogs were a symbol of abundance
(…personified as Heqat), but here again they brought death… the deep darkness
eclipsed the supreme sun god, Re or Amen-Re. Pharoah was traditionally entitled
“Son of Re,” and his patron was made invisible… Death of so many throughout the
land… would probably seem to Egyptians to have negated the power of the gods
completely, and the king’s personal and official key role of ensuring their
favour.’ – <i>On the Reliability of the Old Testament</i>, p. 253.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>How the wind drove back the waters…<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<br /></div>
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‘A new computer
modeling study by researchers at the National Center for Atmospheric Research…
and the University of Colorado at Boulder (CU) shows how the movement of wind
as described in the book of Exodus could have parted the waters… a strong east
wind, blowing overnight, could have pushed water back at a bend where an
ancient river is believed to have merged with a coastal lagoon along the
Mediterranean Sea. With the water pushed back into both waterways, a land
bridge would have opened at the bend, enabling people to walk across exposed
mud flats to safety. As soon as the wind died down, the waters would have
rushed back in… Other researchers have focused on a phenomenon known as
"wind setdown," in which a particularly strong and persistent wind
can lower water levels in one area while piling up water downwind. Wind
setdowns… have been widely documented, including an event in the Nile delta in
the 19<sup>th</sup> century when a powerful wind pushed away about five feet of
water and exposed dry land.’ – ScienceDaily.Com, 2010 <a href="http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/09/100921143930.htm">www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/09/100921143930.htm</a><o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>Recommended Resources<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
<b>Video:<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
‘Internal Evidence for the Historicity of Exodus’ <a href="http://youtu.be/hiw5t276QxM">http://youtu.be/hiw5t276QxM</a><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
‘The Exodus from Egypt, a Lecture with Dr James Hoffmeier’ <a href="http://youtu.be/m2vhrK6Wczs">http://youtu.be/m2vhrK6Wczs</a><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
<b><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0cm; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-font-kerning: 18.0pt; padding: 0cm;">‘</span></b>Lecture - Dr James Hoffmeier – Egyptologist’ <a href="http://youtu.be/GBWWO8dCeY0">http://youtu.be/GBWWO8dCeY0</a> <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
‘Lecture Q&A - Dr James Hoffmeier – Egyptologist’ <a href="http://youtu.be/u3HUJbZsf-w">http://youtu.be/u3HUJbZsf-w</a><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
(DVD) True U, Truth Project – 02 – <i>Is
The Bible Reliable</i>? <i>Building the
historical case</i> (Tyndale/Focus on the Family, 2011)<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
<b>Papers:<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
Gary Byers, ‘The Beni Hasan Asiatics and the Biblical Patriarchs’ <a href="http://www.biblearchaeology.org/post/2009/09/09/The-Beni-Hasan-Asiatics-and-the-Biblical-Patriarchs.aspx">www.biblearchaeology.org/post/2009/09/09/The-Beni-Hasan-Asiatics-and-the-Biblical-Patriarchs.aspx</a><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
ScienceDaily, ‘Parting the waters: Computer
modeling applies physics to Red Sea escape route’ <a href="http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/09/100921143930.htm">www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/09/100921143930.htm</a><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
Rabbi Ken, ‘Archaeology and the Exodus’ <a href="http://www.aish.com/print/?contentID=48938472&section=/ci/sam">www.aish.com/print/?contentID=48938472&section=/ci/sam</a><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
Archaeologist Allan Millard, ‘How Reliable Is Exodus?’ <a href="http://fontes.lstc.edu/~rklein/Documents/how_reliable_is_exodus.htm">http://fontes.lstc.edu/%7Erklein/Documents/how_reliable_is_exodus.htm</a><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
<i>Who Was Moses</i>? (2003) <a href="http://youtu.be/IwnrjU67Dag">http://youtu.be/IwnrjU67Dag</a><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
<b>Books<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
NIV <i>Archaeological
Study Bible</i> (Zondervan, 2005)<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
Alfred J. Hoerth, <i>Archaeology
& The Old Testament</i> (Baker Academic, 1998)<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
James K. Hoffmier, <i>The Archaeology
of the Bible </i>(Lion, 2008)<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
James K. Hoffmier<i>, Ancient Israel
in Sinai</i>: <i>The Evidence for the
Authenticity of the Wilderness Tradition</i> (Oxford University Press, 2005)<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
James K. Hoffmier<i>, Israel in Egypt</i>:
<i>The Evidence for the Authenticity of the
Exodus Tradition</i> (Oxford University Press, 1996)<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
Colin J. Humphreys, <i>The Miracles of
Exodus</i> (Continuum, 2003)<o:p></o:p></div>
Kenneth A. Kitchen, <i><span lang="EN-US">On the Reliability of
the Old Testament</span></i><span lang="EN-US"> (Eerdmans, 2003)</span>Peter S. Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14223529929867367465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17071512.post-23763506302642899112014-11-18T14:31:00.000+00:002014-11-18T14:45:16.293+00:00Sermon - Psalm 70<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<h3>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">This is my Remembrance Sunday sermon from the 8 am service at Highfield Church, Southampton. Audio of the sermon is available <a href="http://podcast.peterswilliams.com/e/sermon-psalm-70/" target="_blank">here</a>.</span></h3>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<h2>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Psalm 70 </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">(New Revised Standard Version)</span><b><o:p></o:p></b></span></span></h2>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br />
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">To the leader. Of
David, for the memorial offering.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br />
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">1 Be pleased, O
God, to deliver me.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> O Lord, make haste to help me!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2 Let those be put
to shame and confusion<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> who seek my life.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Let those be
turned back and brought to dishonour<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> who desire to hurt me.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">3 Let those who
say, ‘Aha, Aha!’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> turn back because of their shame.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">4 Let all who seek
you<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> rejoice and be glad in you.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Let those who love
your salvation<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> say evermore, ‘God is great!’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">5 But I am poor
and needy;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> hasten to me, O God!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">You are my help
and my deliverer;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> O Lord, do not delay!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Psalm 70 claims to
record a Psalm ‘of David’, King David that is. A decade or so ago scholars
could truthfully claim that they didn’t know of any evidence for a historical King
David outside the Bible. Given how little survives from the 10<sup>th</sup>
century B.C, such a state of affairs really wasn’t surprising. Nevertheless, those
with a bias against trusting the Biblical evidence in the absence of external
corroboration made much of this absence – thereby ignoring British Egyptologist
Kenneth Kitchen’s famous maxim that ‘the absence of evidence is not evidence of
absence’. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">However, several
artefacts have since been discovered that confirm the historicity of King David.
For example:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">1)<span style="font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">The Tel Dan
Stele - an inscribed monument erected by an Aramaic King in ancient Syria
sometime before 800 B.C that makes reference to ‘Jehoram son of Ahab, King of
Israel’ and ‘Ahaziahu son of Jehoram, king of the House of David’. Both Kings
are biblically attested (2 Kings 9-10) and the language of the ‘House of David’
parallels biblical language about the Davidic Kingdom. </span>(cf. www.bible-history.com/archaeology/israel/tel-dan-stele.html<span style="text-indent: -18pt;">)</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f5/Samuel_and_Saidye_Bronfman_Archaeology_WingDSCN5105.JPG/200px-Samuel_and_Saidye_Bronfman_Archaeology_WingDSCN5105.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><img alt="Samuel and Saidye Bronfman Archaeology WingDSCN5105.JPG" border="0" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f5/Samuel_and_Saidye_Bronfman_Archaeology_WingDSCN5105.JPG/200px-Samuel_and_Saidye_Bronfman_Archaeology_WingDSCN5105.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: small;">The Tel Dan Stele</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span>
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">2)<span style="font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">The Mesha
Stele - a Moabite monument found in 1868 that, it was later noticed, probably mentions
‘the house [of Da]vid.’ </span>(cf. www.bible-history.com/resource/ff_mesha.htm<span style="text-indent: -18pt;">)</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7b/P1120870_Louvre_st%C3%A8le_de_M%C3%A9sha_AO5066_rwk.JPG/200px-P1120870_Louvre_st%C3%A8le_de_M%C3%A9sha_AO5066_rwk.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><img alt="P1120870 Louvre stèle de Mésha AO5066 rwk.JPG" border="0" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7b/P1120870_Louvre_st%C3%A8le_de_M%C3%A9sha_AO5066_rwk.JPG/200px-P1120870_Louvre_st%C3%A8le_de_M%C3%A9sha_AO5066_rwk.JPG" height="320" width="207" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: small;">The Mesha Stele</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-stretch: normal;"></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">3) The Shoshenq Relief is a carving from the temple of
Amun in Thebes that describes Pharaoh Shoshenq’s raid into Palestine in 925
B.C. In a list of places Shosenq says he captured a phrase appears that Egyptologist
Kenneth Kitchen translates as ‘heights of David’. </span>(cf. http://theophilogue.com/2009/04/24/extrabiblical-evidence-for-king-david/)</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">It is also
interesting to note that ‘From the viewpoint of… textual preservation, Psalm 70
is one of the finest.’ (<i>Harper Collins
Bible Commentary</i>, revised edition, p. 420.) Hence, there’s good reason to believe,
when we read Psalm 70, that we are reading song-lyrics written by King David
nearly three thousand years ago. Moreover, given what the Bible tells us of
David’s adventurous life, it’s easy to see that in Psalm 70 David is writing
out of personal experience.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">Despite the obvious urgency of his situation, whatever
that was, note how David <i>asks</i> God to
be pleased to deliver him, rather than trying to demand or command God to
deliver him. David rightly assumes that <i>God
may or may not deliver him</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">It’s so very easy
for us to lay expectations upon God that are rooted in our personal preferences
rather than being rooted in the promises of God. We might wish it otherwise,
but the promises of God concern our <i>ultimate</i>
safety and fulfilment rather than our <i>worldly</i>
comfort. Indeed, Jesus promises his disciples that: ‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">In
this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">’ (John 16:33, NIV.) Those who build their lives upon
the rock of Christ have a firm foundation to see them <i>through</i> the flood-waters, not a talisman to help them <i>avoid</i> the flood-waters (cf. Matthew
7:24). Indeed, Jesus himself asked if he could forego his own cup off suffering
and was told that he could not.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">David’s attitude in Psalm 70 puts me in mind of Daniel’s
three friends: </span><span class="text"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white;">Shadrach,
Meshach and Abednego. Their lives are threatened by King Nebuchadnezzar of
Babylon when they won’t bow down to the golden idol he has set up. They declare:
‘If we are thrown into the flaming furnace, our God is able to deliver us; and
he will deliver us out of your hand, Your Majesty.</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white;"> </span></span><span class="text"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white;">But if he doesn’t, please understand, sir, that
even then we will never under any circumstance serve your gods or worship the
gold statue you have erected.’ (Daniel 3:16-18, TLB.) Their confidence in God
expresses itself in a confidence that God ‘is able to deliver’ them and,
indeed, that on this particular occasion God ‘will deliver’ them; but their
confidence in <i>God does not depend upon
God delivering them</i>. If God does not rescue them, they will <i>still</i> worship God and no one else <i>simply because of who God is</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span class="text"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="text"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">This attitude
towards God, of worshipping Him simply because He is God, is exhibited by David
in Psalm 70 when he writes:<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 36.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Let all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 36.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Let those who love your salvation say evermore, ‘God is great!’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">For David, rejoicing and being glad in God simply for
being who He is comes before praising God for doing what He does, even though
focusing upon God’s actions would be understandable under the pressure David
feels bearing down upon him from those who ‘seek his life [literally, who seek
his ‘soul’]’ and who ‘desire to hurt’ him.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">It would be understandable, wouldn’t it, if David
called upon God to give ‘an eye for an eye’, to take the lives of who seek his
life, to hurt those who want to hurt him. But he does not.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">Indeed, while David calls upon God to humiliate his
enemies, he asks that his enemies <i>thereby
be brought to a turning point in their own lives</i>:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 36.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Let those be put to shame and confusion<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 36.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> who seek my life.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 36.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Let those be turned back and brought to dishonour<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 36.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> who desire to hurt me.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 36.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Let those who say, “Aha, Aha!”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 36.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> turn back because of their
shame.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt; font-weight: normal; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><br /></span>
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; font-weight: normal; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">The third clause here doesn’t seem to mean that David’s enemies should ‘turn back’ <i>from harming him</i> ‘because of their shame’ as the previous phrases describe their shame as resulting from their public failure to harm David. Rather, David’s prayer appears to be that the shame that will result from publically failing to harm him might lead his enemies to ‘turn back’ <i>to God</i>, such that they can be included in the rejoicing of verse 4. Indeed, the American Standard Version renders verse 3 as ‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Let them be turned back by reason of their shame.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; font-weight: normal; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">’ This is how focusing upon God and God’s nature first and foremost, despite his troubled circumstances, leads David to treat even his oppressors. As Jesus commands us in </span>Matthew 5:43-48:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span class="woj"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white;">There is a saying, ‘Love your</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white;"> </span></span><span class="woj"><i><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white;">friends</span></i></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white;"> </span></span><span class="woj"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white;">and hate your enemies.’</span></span><span class="text"><sup><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white;"> </span></sup></span><span class="woj"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white;">But I say: Love your <i>enemies!</i></span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white;"> </span></span><span class="woj"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white;">Pray for those who</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white;"> </span></span><span class="woj"><i><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white;">persecute</span></i></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white;"> </span></span><span class="woj"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white;">you!</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white;"> </span></span><span class="woj"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white;">In that way you will be acting as true sons of
your Father in heaven. For he gives his sunlight to both the evil and the good,
and sends rain on the just and on the unjust too.</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white;"> </span></span><span class="woj"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white;">If you love only those who love you, what good is
that? Even scoundrels do that much.</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white;"> </span></span><span class="woj"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white;">If you are friendly only to your friends, how are
you different from anyone else? Even the heathen do that.</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white;"> </span></span><span class="woj"><span lang="EN-US" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">But you are to be perfect, even as your Father in
heaven is perfect. (TLB)</span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br />
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
Peter S. Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14223529929867367465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17071512.post-16237014486014998972014-09-22T10:50:00.001+01:002014-09-22T10:59:37.499+01:00Sermon - Matthew 9:9-13 (The Calling of Matthew)<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<b><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></b>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">
An audio of this sermon is available <a href="http://www.damaris.org/podcasts/923" target="_blank">here</a>.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<b><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Matthew 9:9-13 (Holman
Christian Standard Bible):<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">9 As Jesus went on from there, He saw a man named
Matthew sitting at the tax office, and He said to him, “Follow Me!” So he got
up and followed Him.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">10 While He was reclining at the table in the house,
many tax collectors and sinners came as guests to eat with Jesus and His
disciples. 11 When the Pharisees saw this, they asked His disciples, “Why does
your Teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">12 But when He heard this, He said, “Those who are
well don’t need a doctor, but the sick do. 13 Go and learn what this means: ‘I
desire mercy and not sacrifice.’ For I didn’t come to call the righteous, but
sinners.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoBodyTextIndent" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoBodyTextIndent" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<o:p><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoBodyTextIndent" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><img alt="File:The Calling of Saint Matthew.jpg" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6d/The_Calling_of_Saint_Matthew.jpg/494px-The_Calling_of_Saint_Matthew.jpg" /></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoBodyTextIndent" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: #f9f9f9; color: #252525; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 21.2800006866455px; text-align: start;">Calling the Apostle Matthew. Artist A.N. Mironov.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="background-color: #f9f9f9; color: #252525; line-height: 21.2800006866455px; text-align: start;"><br /></span>
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Matthew’s
gospel was probably published in the late 50’s or early 60’s of the first
century AD, within thirty years of Jesus’ crucifixion in AD 33. Atheist Richard
Dawkins claims that ‘Nobody knows who the four evangelists were, but they
almost certainly never met Jesus.’<a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Sermons/Matthew%209.doc#_edn1" name="_ednref1" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference">[1]</span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Concerning the New Testament gospels, Dawkins is sure that ‘not one of them’
was written ‘by an eyewitness.’<a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Sermons/Matthew%209.doc#_edn2" name="_ednref2" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference">[2]</span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
However, according to New Testament scholar Craig L. Blomberg: ‘a good case can
still be made for Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John as the authors of the Gospels
that have traditionally been attributed to them’.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Sermons/Matthew%209.doc#_edn3" name="_ednref3" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference">[3]</span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoBodyTextIndent" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoBodyTextIndent" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">For example,
despite being one of the twelve apostles, Matthew - ‘Levi son of Alphaeus’ (cf.
Mark 2:13-17) - was hardly a leading figure, and he’d been a tax collector,
which meant he’d collaborated with the pagan forces of the occupying Romans and
had probably lined his own pockets in the process. By contrast, ‘the later
second-through fifth-century apocryphal Gospels . . . are all (falsely)
ascribed to highly reputable, influential early Christians to try to make them
appear as authoritative and credible as possible.’<a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Sermons/Matthew%209.doc#_edn4" name="_ednref4" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference">[4]</span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoBodyTextIndent" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoBodyTextIndent" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span lang="EN-US">New Testament scholar Timothy
Paul Jones agrees the evidence</span><span lang="EN-US"> suggests the source behind Matthew’s gospel
was indeed ‘a tax collector named Matthew. . .’<a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Sermons/Matthew%209.doc#_edn5" name="_ednref5" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US">[5]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a></span><span lang="EN-US"> </span>Jones goes on to note that:
‘Tax collectors carried <i>pinakes</i>,
hinged wooden tablets with beeswax coating on each panel. Tax collectors etched
notes in the wax using styluses; these notes could be translated later and
rewritten on papyrus.’<a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Sermons/Matthew%209.doc#_edn6" name="_ednref6" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference">[6]</span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
So, when Matthew’s gospel reports Jesus calling Matthew, when it describes
Jesus ‘reclining at [Matthew’s] table’ with other ‘tax collectors and sinners’,
and when it recounts Jesus’ sarcastic response to the disapproving Pharisees,
we‘ve reason to believe we are in touch with an eye-witness report.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">What does Matthew’s report tell us about Jesus’ diagnosis of the human
condition? And what does it tell us about Jesus’ self-understanding?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Jesus diagnoses humanity as suffering from a ruptured relationship with
God. The presenting symptoms of this rupture are plain to the judgmental,
pointing fingers of the Pharisees, displayed for all to see in the ‘tax
collectors and sinners’ to whom Jesus daringly extends table fellowship. And
the Pharisees are right. Matthew and his tax collecting friends had no
pretension to being ‘holier than thou’. The ‘sinners’ reclining at the table with
Jesus really were sinners. Indeed, the term translated as ‘sinners’ means people
who openly impugn or neglect the Law, and as Matthew 21:31-32 indicates, that probably
included prostitutes.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Yet the sinful neediness of these ‘tax collectors and sinners’ led them
to accept the counter-cultural invitation to dinner with Rabbi Jesus. When we
look deeper into Jesus’ habit of extending table-fellowship to social outcasts,
we see that Jesus was foreshadowing the heavenly banquet at which he will dine in
a radically inclusive fashion with followers from all the people-groups of the
world. Blomberg explains:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">one could speak of these meals as enacted prophecy or
symbolic of the kingdom’s surprising inclusions. . . no one is saved apart from
repentance and faith in Jesus. But precisely to enhance the possibilities of
genuine repentance for those alienated by standard Jewish separationism, Jesus
‘mixes it up’ with the notorious and the riff-raff of his world. Scarcely
fearing that he will be morally or ritually defiled by them, in many instances
he winds up leading them to God and to true ceremonial and spiritual wholeness.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Sermons/Matthew%209.doc#_edn7" name="_ednref7" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference">[7]</span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The Pharisees don’t like Jesus’ inclusive approach to ‘sinners’, and
that’s where they go wrong. The Pharisees <i>do</i>
have pretensions of being ‘holier than thou’, pretensions that speak of the
sinful pride at the heart of the ruptured relationship between man and God.
That pride presents differently in the Pharisees than in the ‘tax collectors
and sinners’, but there is it, hollowing out their ‘holier than thou’ religion.
And so Jesus tells the Pharisees to reflect upon a quotation from the 8<sup>th</sup>
century B.C. prophet Hosea, an appropriate source in the situation given that Hosea
was commanded by God to marry a prostitute and to forgive her adultery. Here is
Hosea 6:4-6 (NIV):<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">“What can I do with you, Ephraim?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"> What can I
do with you, Judah?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Your love is like the morning mist,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"> like the
early dew that disappears.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Therefore I cut you in pieces with my prophets,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"> I killed you
with the words of my mouth—<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"> then my judgments
go forth like the sun.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">For I desire mercy, not sacrifice,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"> and
acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Jesus wanted the Pharisees to see that going through the religious
motions without the sort of loving acknowledgement of God that flows through
your life as mercy or love for others – avails nothing. In other words, the
Pharisees need to agree with G.K. Chesterton’s famous letter to the <i>Times</i>:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Dear Sir: Regarding your article ‘What's Wrong with
the World?’ I am. Yours truly, G.K. Chesterton.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">For as Jesus says in Matthew 5:3-7: <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Blessed are the poor in spirit,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"> for theirs
is the kingdom of heaven.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Blessed are those who mourn,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"> for they
will be comforted.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Blessed are the meek,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"> for they
will inherit the earth.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for
righteousness,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"> for they
will be filled.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Blessed are the merciful,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"> for they
will be shown mercy.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">So, Jesus diagnoses the heart of the human problem as a problem of
sinful pride that blocks relationship with God. His application of this
diagnosis to religious people as well as to ‘tax collectors and sinners’ should
drive us all to those opening words from the ‘Sermon on the mount’ in Matthew
5.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">But what of Jesus’ self-understanding? Jesus clearly casts himself in
the role of God. Jesus extends table fellowship to sinners as a parable of
God’s kingdom in which he takes the role of host. Having described himself as
‘a doctor’ for ‘the sick’ who has ‘come to call . . . sinners’ into God’s
kingdom, Jesus references Hosea (whose very name means ‘He saves’). Consider Hosea
6:1-3 (NIV):<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Come, let us return to the Lord.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">He has torn us to pieces<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"> but he will
heal us;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">he has injured us<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"> but he will
bind up our wounds.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">After two days he will revive us;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"> on the third
day he will restore us,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"> that we may
live in his presence.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Let us acknowledge the Lord;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"> let us press
on to acknowledge him.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">As surely as the sun rises,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"> he will
appear;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">he will come to us like the winter rains,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"> like the
spring rains that water the earth.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Thus the Son who would die and rise ‘on the third day’ announces he has
come to ‘call sinners’ into his kingdom. Amen.<span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<br />
<div>
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<br />
<div id="edn1">
<div class="MsoEndnoteText">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Sermons/Matthew%209.doc#_ednref1" name="_edn1" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference">[1]</span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Richard
Dawkins, <i>The God Delusion</i> (London:
Bantam), p. 122.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="edn2">
<div class="MsoEndnoteText">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Sermons/Matthew%209.doc#_ednref2" name="_edn2" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference">[2]</span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Richard
Dawkins, <i>The Magic of Reality</i>: <i>How we know what’s really true</i> (London:
Bantam, 2011), p. 262.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="edn3">
<div class="MsoEndnoteText">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Sermons/Matthew%209.doc#_ednref3" name="_edn3" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference">[3]</span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Craig L.
Blomberg, <i>Jesus and the Gospels</i> (Leicester: Apollos, 1997), p. 365.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="edn4">
<div class="MsoEndnoteText">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Sermons/Matthew%209.doc#_ednref4" name="_edn4" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference">[4]</span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Craig L.
Blomberg, <i>Making Sense of the New
Testament</i>, p. 24.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="edn5">
<div class="MsoEndnoteText">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Sermons/Matthew%209.doc#_ednref5" name="_edn5" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference">[5]</span><!--[endif]--></span></a> <span lang="EN-US">Timothy Paul Jones, <i>Misquoting Truth</i>: <i>A Guide to
the Fallacies of Bart Ehrman’s</i> Misquoting Jesus (Downers Grove, Illinois:
IVP, 2007), p. 119.</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="edn6">
<div class="MsoEndnoteText">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Sermons/Matthew%209.doc#_ednref6" name="_edn6" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference">[6]</span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Timothy
Paul Jones in <i>Why Trust the Bible</i>?
(Torrance, California: Rose, 2008), p. 72.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="edn7">
<div class="MsoEndnoteText">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Sermons/Matthew%209.doc#_ednref7" name="_edn7" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference">[7]</span><!--[endif]--></span></a> cf.
Craig L. Blomberg, ‘Jesus, Sinners and Table Fellowship’ www.ibr-bbr.org/files/bbr/bbr19a03.pdf</span><o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
</div>
Peter S. Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14223529929867367465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17071512.post-33719919847801583492014-07-28T12:04:00.002+01:002014-07-28T12:12:28.871+01:00Sermon - Matthew 13:31-33<br />
An audio of this sermon is available <a href="http://www.damaris.org/cm/podcasts/922" target="_blank">here</a>.<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt;">Discussing Jesus' use of parables, theologian Robert H. Stein notes that: </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14pt;">'Jesus repeatedly used illustrations from daily life. These often contain a distinctly Palestinian or even Galilean flavour. This was originally intended to make the parables more understandable to Jesus' audience, but today it serves also to authenticate them. It is clear, for example, that the Sower [Matthew 14:4 ff.] reveals a Palestinian method of farming in which sowing preceded plowing.' (Bruce M. Mezger & Michael D. Coogan ed.'s, </span><i style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14pt;">The Oxford Companion to the Bible</i><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14pt;">, p. 567-568.) </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14pt;">Hence 'most scholars agree that in the parables one stands on the bedrock of authentic Jesus tradition.' (Ibid, p. 568.)</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt;">When
Jesus taught his disciples to pray he said:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="woj"><b><sup><span style="font-size: 14pt;">9 </span></sup></b></span><span class="woj"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">…you should pray like
this:</span></span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="woj"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">‘Our Father in heaven,</span></span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><br />
<span class="woj">Your name be honoured as holy.</span><br />
<span class="woj"><b><sup>10 </sup></b>Your kingdom come.</span><br />
<span class="woj">Your will be done</span><br />
<span class="woj">on earth as it is in heaven.’ (Matthew 6: 9-10, HCSB)</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt;">First, note that this teaching gives us a definition of 'kingdom'. Your 'kingdom' <i>is</i> where 'your will is done'. God's kingdom is where his perfect will (not just his permissive will) is done.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt;">Second, notice that to
a certain pre-Christian may of thinking, this might appear to be a very strange teaching. What sort of a
god proclaims that he has a kingdom <i>that isn’t
really here yet</i>? What sort of a god tells those who believe in Him to <i>ask</i> that His will be done on earth as in heaven,
rather than simply <i>imposing</i> his will
with some smiting (preferably with brim stone)? As it turns out, the
sort of god who gives these strange teachings is the sort of God that Jesus
claims to reveal and to be. As Psalm 103:3 says: 'The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy.' (KJV) He is the sort of God who becomes incarnate of a
virgin teenage mother and is born in backwater Bethlehem. He is the sort of God who prefers to elicit our
loving obedience by suffering for us than to have us suffer the ultimate
consequence of our sin. As Joel 2:13 puts it: 'Let your remorse tear at your hearts and not your garments. Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and merciful. He is not easily angered; he is full of kindness and anxious not to punish you.' (TLB)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt;">Jesus' use of parables - in what we might call a Socratic teaching style - is wholly in keeping with his suffering-servant-king approach to the task of revelation. parables are designed not to force a message upon the casual listener. whilst yet revealing their meaning to those with sufficiently humble ears to hear. jesus would much rather entice the humble than browbeat the lofty. The Pharisees demand a miracle of Jesus for their personal satisfaction. He calls them a 'wicked and adulterous generation' who will be given no sign 'except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.' (Matthew 12:39-40, NIV.)</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt;">Jesus tells the parables of growth in Matthew 13:31-33 in the midst of rejection. He wants to encourage his disciples not to judge the kingdom of God by present appearances, for the kingdom is a growing reality. As theologian R.T.
France explains:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt;">the… parables of
growth focus on the paradox of insignificant or hidden beginnings and a
triumphant climax. In Jesus’ ministry this was a real issue: for those outside
the disciple group it affected the credibility of an announcement of God’s
reign which had apparently little to show for it; for the disciples there was
the natural impatience to see God’s kingdom in all its glory, and the total
eradication of all that opposed it. (<i>Matthew</i>,
IVP Academic, 1985, p. 231.)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt;">These parables deal with the inaugurated but not yet fully
flourishing nature of God’s kingdom on earth. And despite the intervening
centuries, this is a reality that Christians face as inhabitants of God’s
kingdom today:</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">31 </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt;">Jesus told
them another story:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt;">The kingdom of heaven is like what happens when a farmer
plants a mustard seed in a field. 32 Although
it is the smallest of all seeds, it grows larger than any garden plant and
becomes a tree. Birds even come and nest on its branches.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">33 </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt;">Jesus also
said:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt;">The kingdom of heaven is like what happens when a woman
mixes a little yeast into three big batches of flour. Finally, all the dough
rises. (CEV)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 19px;">At the present moment, the kingdom appears small, but it's greatness will be seen. At the present moment, the gospel is opposed by many for failing to agree with their worldly agendas; but the gospel is God's blessing for the whole world and will lead to the transformation of the whole world in the new heavens and earth. At the present moment, even today, the kingdom </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 19px;">can look insignificant, like yeast compared to flour by volume when baking bread. Three measures of meal was about 40 liters, which would make enough bread for 100 people. So, just like yeast, the kingdom of God has a powerful effect over time.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 19px;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 19px;">We experience this in our own lives and communities of discipleship as we put on the glory of Christ over time: 'we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.' (2 Corinthians 3:18, NIV.) As Jessee Jackson once said: I am not a perfect servant. I am a public servant doing my best against the odds. As I develop and serve, be patient with me. God is not finished with me yet.' (www.searchquotes.com/search/God_Is_Not _Done_With_Me_Yet/.)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 19px;"><br /></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14pt;">The
mustard seed was proverbially minute, though not literally the smallest seed;
and Jesus literally says it grows ‘greater than the vegetables’, contrasting
the full-grown shrub of about 3 meters with other garden produce. Indeed, Jesus’
imagery calls to mind Daniel</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14pt;">
4:10-12 (HCSB):</span></div>
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<b><sup><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14pt;">10 </span></sup></b><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14pt;">In the visions of my mind as I was lying in bed, I
saw this:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14pt;">There was a tree in the middle of the earth,<br />
and its height was great.<br />
<b><sup>11 </sup></b>The tree grew large and strong;<br />
its top reached to the sky,<br />
and it was visible to the ends of the earth.<br />
<b><sup>12 </sup></b>Its leaves were beautiful, its fruit was abundant,<br />
and on it was food for all.<br />
Wild animals found shelter under it,<br />
the birds of the air lived in its branches,<br />
and every creature was fed from it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt;">In other words, the
kingdom of God will provide refuge not just for Jews but for Gentiles as well. Its fruit, the fruit of the Spirit, the fruit of eternal life, is meant for
all. At the present time that fruit may seem insignificant, but it is ripening, and the great harvest is coming. Thanks be to God for his word!</span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt;"><br /></span>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9f/Mustard_Seeds.JPG/800px-Mustard_Seeds.JPG?uselang=en-gb" height="211" width="320" /></span></div>
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Peter S. Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14223529929867367465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17071512.post-89580212777356784922014-07-08T10:20:00.003+01:002014-07-08T11:05:14.734+01:00Sermon - John 3:1-15<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">An audio podcast of this sermon is available <a href="http://www.damaris.org/cm/podcasts/918" target="_blank">here</a>.</span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span>
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">Today’s gospel reading is John 3:1-15, but I think the best way to unpack
this passage is to incorporate it into my comments:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">There was a man
from the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. This man came to Him
[Jesus] at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that You have come from God as a
teacher, for no one could perform these signs You do unless God were with him.”
(Holman Christian Standard
Bible)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">Extra-biblical
literature tells us of two first century Jewish Nicodemus’s, both belonging to
the Gurion family. The portrait of Nicodemus in John corresponds well with what
is know of this family. John’s Nicodeumus might well have been uncle to one
Naqdimon ben Gurion mentioned in the Talmud.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">Nicodemus comes
to Jesus at night. This has often been interpreted as a secret assignation, but
may simply refer to the natural time for Torah study. Either way, Nicodemus had
seen the miraculous signs and he wants a better understanding of the message to
which those signs point.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">Many find
themselves in Nicodemus’s sandals; intrigued but baffled by Jesus, needing time
to get to grips with his message, but willing to spend that time because they
see enough about Jesus to think that time spent trying to understand him will
be time well spent.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">What follows won’t make much sense unless you know that in Greek the
words for ‘again’, ‘anew’ and ‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">from above’ are the same word: ‘<i>anothen</i>’. With that crucial bit of
information in mind, here’s the rest of the passage:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">Jesus replied,
“I assure you: Unless someone is born <i>anothen</i>,
he cannot see the kingdom of God.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">“But how can
anyone be born when he is old?” Nicodemus asked Him. “Can he enter his mother’s
womb a second time and be born?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">Jesus answered,
“I assure you: Unless someone is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter
the kingdom of God. Whatever is born of the flesh is flesh, and whatever is
born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not be amazed that I told you that you must be
born again. The wind blows where it pleases, and you hear its sound, but you
don’t know where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone
born of the Spirit.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">“How can these
things be?” asked Nicodemus.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">“Are you a
teacher of Israel and don’t know these things?” Jesus replied. “I assure you:
We speak what We know and We testify to what We have seen, but you do not
accept Our testimony. If I have told you about things that happen on earth and
you don’t believe, how will you believe if I tell you about things of heaven? No one has ascended into heaven
except the One who descended from heaven - the Son of Man. Just as Moses lifted
up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, so that
everyone who believes in Him will have eternal life.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">So you see what
happened: Jesus was saying that in order to see ‘the kingdom of God’ Nicodemus
had to be ‘born anew’ or ‘from above’ by allowing God’s grace to forgive him
and raise his human nature (his ‘flesh’) up into the spiritual life of God in a
transformative relationship. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">Jesus’ reference
to water doesn’t refer to the first birth, or to baptism, but recalls the
imagery of spiritual cleansing and re-birth in Ezekiel 36:25-27:</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span class="text"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">‘I will also sprinkle clean water on you, and you
will be clean.</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"> </span></span><span class="text"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">I will cleanse you from all your impurities and all your
idols.</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"> </span></span><span class="text"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you;</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"> </span></span><span class="text"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">I will remove your heart of stone</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"> </span></span><span class="text"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">and give you a heart of flesh.</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"> </span></span><span class="text"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">I will place My Spirit within you</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"> </span></span><span class="text"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">and cause you to follow My statutes and carefully
observe My ordinances.’</span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">So, according to
Jesus, salvation isn’t a matter of being born into the right tribe or ethnic
group, nor of slavishly practicing a set of predictable legal rules in order to
pass a heavenly graduation test. Rather, salvation is a matter of allowing
oneself to being caught up into the wind-like spiritual freedom of God’s
spirit. Here it helps to know that the Greek word for ‘wind’ and for ‘spirit’ is
one and the same word </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">(<i>pneuma</i>).</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">Nicodemus objects
that he can’t be literally ‘born again’. Some readers suppose Nicodemus is
simply being rather thick and cloth-eared at this point; but I wonder if he
isn’t being deliberately evasive. As John 1:11 says: ‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">his own did not
receive him.’ </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">In either case, Nicodemus’ misunderstanding ironically
led to the modern phrase about being ‘a born again Christian’, a phrase that
metaphorically means just what Jesus meant by being ‘born anew’. Jesus uses a
different metaphor in </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">John 15:4-5:</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">Remain in Me, and I in you. Just as a
branch is unable to produce fruit by itself unless it remains on the vine, so
neither can you unless you remain in Me. “I am the vine; you are the branches.
The one who remains in Me and I in him produces much fruit, because you can do
nothing without Me.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">Likewise, seeing
‘the kingdom of God’ is yet another way of talking about relationship with God
in and through Jesus. The ‘k</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">ingdom of God’ is where-ever God’s
perfect will is being followed, and ‘seeing the kingdom’ is equivalent to the
more familiar expression in John of having ‘eternal life’. </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">Jesus defines what he means by ‘eternal life’ in John 17:3: ‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">This is eternal life: that
they may know You, the only true God, and the One You have sent—Jesus Christ.</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">’ Note that this isn’t a matter of merely knowing <i>about</i> God and Jesus as His Christ, but of actually <i>knowing God</i> and <i>knowing Jesus</i> as His Christ or Messiah.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">With the phrase
‘eternal life’, the concept of unending duration is present, but it isn’t the
main idea. The main idea is a certain quality of life seen in Jesus: ‘Christ is
Himself both the personification and guarantee of this life.’ (<i>Zondervan Bible Commentary</i>). Theologian
Alister McGrath comments that:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">‘The
“eternal life” in question must not be thought of as if it were some kind of
infinite extension of everyday existence. Rather, it refers to a new quality of
life, begun here and now through faith, which is consummated and fulfilled
through resurrection. This eternal life is only made possible through the love
of God, which is shown in the astonishing fact that he loves his world so much
that his only Son should die for it.’ (<i>NIV
Bible Handbook</i>, p. 369.)</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">It’s interesting
to observe that Rabbinic tradition speaks of one of Jesus’ disciples being called
‘Nakkai’ or ‘Buni’, which is a Hebrew equivalent to the Greek name ‘Nicodemus’.
<span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="background: white;"> Moreover,
</span></span><span style="background: white;">Christian tradition says that
Nicodemus was martyred sometime in the 1st century.</span> This certainly
chimes with the fact that, although Nicodemus didn’t receive the message of
Jesus in John 3, John later tells us how Nicodemus stood up for Jesus in the Sanhedrin
(John 7:50-52) and how he helped Joseph of Arimathea entomb Jesus, buying the
myrrh and aloes for the burial. </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">As John 1:12-13
says:</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">Yet
to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right
to become children of God - children born not of natural descent, nor of human
decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.’<span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span>
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><img src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e2/Gross_St_Martin_-_Grablegungsgruppe_-_Nikodemus.jpg/640px-Gross_St_Martin_-_Grablegungsgruppe_-_Nikodemus.jpg" height="640" width="337" /></span></div>
Peter S. Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14223529929867367465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17071512.post-7996063797775445942014-07-08T10:15:00.001+01:002014-07-08T11:04:24.609+01:00Sermon - James 1:13-21<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">An audio podcast of this sermon is available <a href="http://www.damaris.org/cm/podcasts/917" target="_blank">here</a>.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><br /></span>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e5/Peter_Paul_Rubens_-_St_James_the_Apostle_-_WGA20192.jpg/361px-Peter_Paul_Rubens_-_St_James_the_Apostle_-_WGA20192.jpg?uselang=en-gb" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">James the Apostle by Peter Paul Rubens.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><br /></span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Today’s gospel
reading is James 1:17-21, but to give it some context, I’m going to start at
James 1:13:<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">No one
undergoing a trial should say, “I am being tempted by God.” For God is not
tempted by evil and He Himself doesn’t tempt anyone. But each person is tempted
when he is drawn away and enticed by his own evil desires. Then after desire
has conceived, it gives birth to sin, and when sin is fully grown, it gives
birth to death. Don’t be deceived [or ‘led astray’], my dearly loved brothers.
Every generous act and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the
Father of lights; with Him there is no variation or shadow cast by turning. By
His own choice, He gave us a new birth by the message of truth so that we would
be the</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> </span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">first fruits</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> of His
creatures. My dearly loved brothers, understand this: Everyone must be quick to
hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger, for man’s anger does not accomplish
God’s righteousness. Therefore, ridding yourselves of all moral filth and evil,
humbly receive the implanted word, which is able to save you.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The
major concern of James’ letter of wisdom is encouraging Christians to persevere
with integrity as they ‘experience various trials’ (James 1:2). Current events
remind us that even today being Christian can mean facing literal trial and
persecution. Remember <span style="background: white;">Dr Meriam Ibrahim,
condemned to hang by a court in <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Sudan</st1:place></st1:country-region>
this week after she refused to renounce her faith in Jesus. Remember the school
girls abducted by ‘Boko Haram’ in <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Nigeria</st1:place></st1:country-region>. A video from their captors
shows about a hundred girls dressed in hijabs, chanting
verses from the Koran. The terrorist leader says: </span>‘These girls have become Muslims.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Such events naturally raise questions in our minds about God and
evil, and it’s good to wrestle with such questions. However, James isn’t a book
of philosophy. It’s a pastoral letter to Christians under pressure. James isn’t
addressing the question: ‘How can God allow hardship?’ He is addressing the
question: ‘What attitude should Christians adopt towards the hardship in their
lives?’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br />
<span lang="EN-US">Although
the word for ‘trials’ and ‘temptations’ is the same word in the Greek, it seems
clear that verse 13 signals a shift in James’ topic, from the outward trials of
persecution to the inner trials of temptation, from our holy trials to our
unholy trials as it were. Douglas Moo comments:<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">‘God, James has said, promises a blessing to
those who endure trials. Every trial, every external difficulty, carries with
it a temptation, an inner enticement to sin. God may bring, or allow, trials;
he is not, James insists, the author of temptation.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">God
doesn’t entice us to do wrong. But doesn’t Genesis 22:1 say ‘God tempted
Abraham’? Well, no, not in the majority of translations it doesn’t. Genesis
22:1 says God ‘tested’ Abraham. When God tests someone, He is providing them
with an opportunity to rise to the occasion and He isn’t willing or desiring
them to fail the test. Whether or not our trials are intended by God as part of
his perfect will, or merely allowed by God as part of his permissive will, <i>God isn’t deliberately trying to trip us up</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span lang="EN-US">In verses 14 and 15 James lays
out our problem with temptation and sin: ‘each person is tempted when he is
drawn away and enticed by his own evil desires. Then after desire has
conceived, it gives birth to sin, and when sin is fully grown, it gives birth
to death.’ In verse 17 James begins to lay out the solution: ‘Every generous
act and</span><span lang="EN-US"> every
perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights; with Him
there is no variation or shadow cast by turning.’ There are two main points
here. The first point isn’t that God and only God is the source of all and only
good things. The word translated here as ‘every’ has a range of means,
including ‘all manner of’. The point is simply that God is a generous giver of
all sorts of good gifts, including the physical cosmos. The second point is
that, by contrast with the unreliable, varying light given to us by the sun and
moon, God’s gift-giving is</span> characterised<span lang="EN-US"> by a reliable consistency. The word translated
here as <i>variation</i> is used in Greek
for the setting of the teeth in a saw or for the alternation of seasons. James
is saying that God’s desire for our salvation doesn’t wax and</span><span lang="EN-US"> </span>wane<span lang="EN-US"> like the seasons or the phases of the moon. God
doesn’t act against his own purposes as if he were double-minded.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Several
commentators note that the phrase ‘the Father of lights’ echoes the Jewish
morning prayer, which moves from acknowledging God as creator to God as
redeemer, so it comes as no surprise when <span lang="EN-US">verse 18 re-introduces God’s gift of salvation for
those who ‘look into the perfect law of freedom and continue in it’ (James
1:25). The gospel is part of God’s perfect will – The NRSV translates the start
of verse 18 ‘He, in fulfillment of his purpose’ - and God won’t give with one
hand whilst taking away with the other.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span lang="EN-US">God’s
clear intention is that we be the figurative </span>‘first fruits<span lang="EN-US">’ of the earthly creation. In 1 Corinthians 15:20
the</span><span lang="EN-US"> </span>Old Testament image<span lang="EN-US"> of the </span>‘first fruits<span lang="EN-US">’ of
the harvest, which were dedicated to God in remembrance of his faithfulness, is
applied to Christ. Here in James the image is applied to those who are ‘in’
Christ. Again, the emphasis is upon God’s faithful provision for his people.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">In
the light of God’s character and provision, it makes no sense for us to say ‘I
am being tempted by God’. Of course, we can say ‘God is <i>allowing</i> me to be tempted’; but we can’t absolve ourselves of moral
responsibility by noting that God has permitted us moral responsibility! Nor
should we dissolve the foundation of our best hope and motivation in the face
of temptation by falsely portraying God as actively opposing his own gospel
intent.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span lang="EN-US">When
we face temptation it is of course true to say ‘you win some, you lose some’. In
2 Corinthians 3:18 Paul celebrates how ‘<span style="background: white;">We all, with unveiled faces, are looking as in a mirror at<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>the glory of the Lord<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>and are being transformed into the
same image<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>from glory to glory.</span>’
On the other hand, Paul laments in Romans 7:21: ‘</span><span lang="EN-US">I want to do good, but in practice I do evil.’ (J.B.
Phillips)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span lang="EN-US">Sometimes
we endure temptation by not giving in to it. At other times we don’t endure,
and our evil desires give birth to sin. The important thing to grasp is this:
if you feel guilty because</span><span lang="EN-US"> </span>you failed<span lang="EN-US"> to endure temptation, then your sin isn’t yet ‘fully
grown’. Rather, your guilt, that pained sense of failure, is itself a new
trial, a new temptation trying to draw you away from the forgiveness and
transforming power of God. The new temptation is to give up the good fight, to
stop enduring and persevering in the process of humbly receiving the implanted
word. It’s the temptation to say ‘Surely God won’t forgive me again’. It’s the
temptation to feel, ‘God can’t fix me, so why bother trying? It’s the
temptation to say ‘I am being tempted by God.’ So let us not be led astray, my
brothers and sisters, but let us ‘humbly receive the implanted word, which is
able to save’ us. Amen.</span></span></div>
Peter S. Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14223529929867367465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17071512.post-78675601649730409882014-07-08T10:11:00.002+01:002014-07-08T10:13:48.820+01:00Mores & Ethics<div class="MsoNormal">
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Mores<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>(from<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>Latin<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>mōrēs</i> or ‘habits’) is a term
coined by<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>William Graham Sumner<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>(1840–1910), an early U.S.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>sociologist, to refer to<span class="apple-converted-space"> social </span>norms<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>that are a) originally informal in
nature even if they have been formalised, b) are more widely observed and have
greater moral significance than other social norms, and c) are attached to
greater social penalties. For example, mores include societal<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>taboos against<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>incest<span class="apple-converted-space"> and </span>pederasty.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Sociologists contrast mores with ‘folkways’ (also a term coined by Sumner), which are social norms
for routine or casual interaction, including ideas about appropriate greetings
and proper dress in different situations. For example:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; margin-left: 36.85pt; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">In many rural regions, people crossing paths in the street nod and say
‘hello’ or ‘how are you?’ Drivers meeting one another on remote country roads
give each other a quick wave. But in most urban regions, neither walkers nor
drivers acknowledge one another unless provoked. Urban residents who travel to
remote places may notice the difference and find the folkways unusual. The
local residents may find the urban newcomers strange or a little cold if they do
not offer greetings, but they will probably not<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0cm; padding: 0cm;">sanction</span></span> <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">them formally or
informally. Likewise, in the city, residents may think newcomers from the
country a bit odd if they give unsolicited greetings, but those greetings will
probably not draw sanctions.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Belle_PSW.doc#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: black;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a></span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Hence mores ‘distinguish the difference between right and
wrong, while folkways draw a line between right and rude. <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">While folkways may raise an eyebrow if violated, mores
dictate morality and come with heavy consequences.</span>’<a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Belle_PSW.doc#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="color: black;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">One might say that folkways describe behaviours that a
society considers right or wrong only relative to that society, in that its
possible to recognize that other societies have different ‘club rules’ and that
there is no objectively correct set of such rules <i>per se</i>. By contrast, moral mores relate to beliefs about moral
values that are considered to be trans-cultural and even objective in nature. Thus
eating soup with the ‘wrong’ spoon at a dinner party would be an example of
transgressing a ‘folkway’. The other guests would consider one uncouth,
uncultured or unfashionable, but wouldn’t think one was morally evil, for using
the ‘wrong’ spoon. On the other hand, using one’s dinner knife to murder the
other dinner guests wouldn’t merely be frowned upon as rude, but would earn you
a jail sentence for doing something considered morally wrong.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The distinction
between mores and folkways can be drawn irrespective of how one answers the
further meta-ethical question of whether or not anything is objectively right
or wrong in the first place, since it only requires that people <i>believe</i> some mores or values to be
objectively correct. Nevertheless, moral values are either <i>Objective</i> (independent of the subject) or <i>Subjective</i> (not independent of, and therefore relative to, the
subject – hence this view is also called ‘moral relativism’). Moral Objectivism
claims that there are moral truths that don’t depend upon our belief in them.
For instance, one culture may believe that cannibalism is right, and another
may think cannibalism is wrong. In order to argue that at least one of these
cultures is <i>wrong</i>, one must be a
moral objectivist (the objectivist needn’t claim to know <i>which</i> culture is wrong to coherently claim that <i>one of them is wrong</i>).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 172.0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Suppose one group of people think
the sun goes around the earth, and another thinks the opposite. Scientists
wouldn’t say ‘These are equally true claims’, but that ‘At least one of these
contradictory claims is wrong’. In this case, we know the earth goes around the
sun; those who think otherwise, <i>however
sincerely</i>, are simply mistaken. Moreover, our coming to know that the earth
goes around the sun was a matter of <i>discovering</i>
the truth, not <i>inventing</i> it.
Likewise, moral objectivists see ethics as a matter of discovering objective
moral facts about right and wrong, facts that hold even if we sincerely
disagree with them. Hence, according to the moral objectivist, if there’s a
moral disagreement, the fact that some people think one way and others think
another way simply means that some people’s beliefs are mistaken. William Lane
Craig defines moral objectivism as the view that:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">moral values . . . are
valid and binding whether anybody believes in them or not. Thus, to say, for
example, that the Holocaust was objectively wrong is to say that it was wrong
even though the Nazis who carried it out thought that it was right and that it
would still have been wrong even if the Nazis has won World War II and
succeeded in exterminating or brain-washing everyone who disagreed with them.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Belle_PSW.doc#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">As Thomas L. Carson and Paul K.
Moser explain,<i> meta-ethical relativism</i> or <i>subjectivism</i>: ‘states that moral judgements are not objectively
true or false and thus that different individuals or societies can hold
conflicting moral judgements without any of them being mistaken.’<a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Belle_PSW.doc#_ftn4" name="_ftnref4" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">According to subjectivism, the
belief that slavery is okay and the belief that it is not are <i>equally valid</i>, there being <i>no objective fact of the matter</i>.
However, it seems obvious that great moral reforms have come about when one
person, or a group of people, have stood out against the false ethical mores of
their generation and by so doing have not merely changed things, but changed
them<i> for the better</i>. The abolition of
the slave trade was brought about because William Wilberforce and his friends
believed that it was objectively wrong even though it was both socially
acceptable and legal, and the abolitionists worked to convince other people of
this fact. But if subjectivism is accepted, then the change from a society that
traded people to one that didn’t was not <i>progress</i>,
because for the subjectivist <i>there can be
no moral progress, only change</i>. On the subjectivist’s theory there is no
objective value-added between slave-trading <st1:country-region w:st="on">Britain</st1:country-region>
and non-slave-trading <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Britain</st1:place></st1:country-region>,
because there is no objective value to add.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Here’s the same ethical dilemma
in general terms: <i>Does one maintain that
subjectivism is true, and therefore accept that one cannot progress morally, or
does one reject subjectivism in favour of objectivism and so comply with the
intuition that a state without the slave trade is better than one with the
slave trade</i>? One can’t have it both ways. Either subjectivism or our
intuition that some things are objectively wrong must go out the window. Which
horn of the dilemma is most plausible? According to the objectivist, the proposition
that some things are wrong (e.g. slavery) is more plausible than the claim that
subjectivism is true. As atheist philosopher Kai Nielsen argues: ‘moral
truisms... are as available to me or to any atheist as they are to the believer
[in God]. You can be... confident of the correctness or, if you will, the
[objective] truth of these moral utterances... They are more justified than any
sceptical philosophical theory that would lead you to question them.’<a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Belle_PSW.doc#_ftn5" name="_ftnref5" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US">[5]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;">Recommended Resources<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;">Francis
J. Beckwith & Gregory Koukl. <i>Relativism;
Feet firmly planted in mid-air</i> (Baker, 1998)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><span lang="EN-US">Robert K Garcia & <span style="color: black;">Nathan L King</span> (ed.’s).
</span><i><span lang="EN-US">Is
Goodness Without God Good Enough</span></i><span lang="EN-US">?: <i>A Debate on Faith, Secularism, and Ethics</i>
(<st1:place w:st="on">AltaMira</st1:place> Press, 2009)</span><span lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;">Francis
J. Beckwith, ‘Why I Am Not A Moral Relativist’ <a href="http://www.lastseminary.com/moral-argument/Why%20I%20am%20Not%20a%20Moral%20Relativist.pdf"><span style="color: blue;">www.lastseminary.com/moral-argument/Why%20I%20am%20Not%20a%20Moral%20Relativist.pdf</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Peter
Kreeft, ‘A Refutation of Moral Relativism’ <a href="http://www.peterkreeft.com/audio/05_relativism.htm"><span style="color: blue;">www.peterkreeft.com/audio/05_relativism.htm</span></a></span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<div>
<!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br clear="all" /></span>
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<br />
<div id="ftn1">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Belle_PSW.doc#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span lang="EN-US">
‘Folkways and Mores’
<a href="http://www.boundless.com/sociology/understanding-culture/the-symbolic-nature-of-culture/folkways-and-mores/">www.boundless.com/sociology/understanding-culture/the-symbolic-nature-of-culture/folkways-and-mores/</a><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn2">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Belle_PSW.doc#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span lang="EN-US"> John
J. <span style="background: white; color: #252525;">Macionis & Linda M. Gerber,<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>Sociology</i><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>7th ed. (Pearson Canada 2010), p. 65.</span></span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn3">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Belle_PSW.doc#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span lang="EN-US">
William Lane Craig, <i>God? A debate between
a Christian and an Atheist</i> (<st1:place w:st="on"><st1:city w:st="on">Oxford</st1:city></st1:place>,
2004), p. 17.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn4">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Belle_PSW.doc#_ftnref4" name="_ftn4" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span lang="EN-US">
Thomas L. Carson & Paul K. Moser, introduction, <i>Moral Relativism; a reader</i> (<st1:place w:st="on"><st1:city w:st="on">Oxford</st1:city></st1:place>,
2001), p. 2.</span><span lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn5">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Belle_PSW.doc#_ftnref5" name="_ftn5" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US">[5]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"> Kai
Nielson, <a href="http://www.leaderu.com/offices/billcraig/docs/craig-nielsen2.html">www.leaderu.com/offices/billcraig/docs/craig-nielsen2.html</a></span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: x-small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
</div>
</div>
Peter S. Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14223529929867367465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17071512.post-72980276867852615892014-06-16T15:06:00.000+01:002014-06-16T15:09:15.127+01:00Relationships & the Purpose of Life<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span lang="EN-US">According to <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Oxford</st1:place></st1:city> philosopher
Richard Swinburne, ‘The greatest human well-being is to be found in friendship
with good and interesting people in the pursuit of worthy aims.’<a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Belle_PSW.doc#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: black;">[1]</span></span></span></a> People of all faiths and
none can probably find something within Swinburne’s description of ‘the good
life’ to agree with, although as Christian Pastor and writer </span><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white;">Timothy Keller recently tweeted: ‘Everyone says they want community and
friendship. But mention accountability or commitment to people, and they run
the other way.’<a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Belle_PSW.doc#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: black;">[2]</span></span></span></a>
</span><span lang="EN-US">Swinburne’s vision of ‘the good life’ stands in stark contrast to
individualistic beliefs such as hedonism and so-called ‘ethical egoism’, as
well as to the rejection of objective value one finds in some atheistic and
postmodern thinkers.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span lang="EN-US">Swinburne writes as a Christian,
and within the Christian tradition the best and most interesting person is of
course God himself, who sets the context for how Swinburne’s description of ‘the
good life’ is to be understood. First, Swinburne is surely including friendship
with both God and with human beings within his description of ‘the good life’. Second,
one might wonder why Swinburne puts an emphasis upon <i>friendship</i> rather than <i>love</i>,
but the English word ‘love’ may be too vague for Swinburne’s purposes. </span><span lang="EN-US">A recent
article in <i>The Guardian</i> pointed out
that the question ‘what is love?’ is the most searched for phrase on google.
Psychologist Philippa Perry responds to the question:<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; margin-left: 36.85pt; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Unlike us, the
ancients did not lump all the various emotions that we label ‘love’ under the
one word. They had several variations, including: <em>Philia</em><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>which they saw as a deep but usually
non-sexual intimacy between close friends and family members or as a deep bond
forged by soldiers as they fought alongside each other in battle.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><em>Ludus</em><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>describes a more playful affection
found in fooling around or flirting.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><em>Pragma</em><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>is the mature love that develops over
a long period of time between long-term couples and involves actively practising
goodwill, commitment, compromise and understanding.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><em>Agape</em><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>is a more generalised love, it's not
about exclusivity but about love for all of humanity.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><em>Philautia</em><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>is self love, which isn't as selfish
as it sounds. As Aristotle discovered and as any psychotherapist will tell you,
in order to care for others you need to be able to care about yourself. Last,
and probably least even though it causes the most trouble,<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><em>eros</em><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>is about sexual passion and desire.
Unless it morphs into philia and/or pragma, eros will burn itself out. Love is
all of the above. But is it possibly unrealistic to expect to experience all
six types with only one person. This is why family and community are important.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Belle_PSW.doc#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="color: black;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">For Swinburne to simply say that
the greatest human well-being is found in ‘love’ would readily bring to mind
the exclusive and romantic sort of love that the ancient Greeks referred to as
eros/pragma. Whilst valuing eros and pragma, the Christian tradition has always
put the self-giving kind of love the ancient Greeks called ‘agape’ (i.e.
charity) at the centre of its vision of ‘the good life’ (cf. 1 Corinthians
13:4-8). It is thus <i>two way relationship
characterised by self-giving charitable concern for the good of the other
person</i> that Swinburne highlights by talking about friendship with ‘good’
people, for it’s obviously agape love that automatically characterise the
friendship of a <i>good</i> person. Other
kinds of love, including romantic relationships, find their proper place within
this overarching vision of agapistic friendship.
As Benedictine nun Catherine Wybourne writes in <i>The Gurardian</i>:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; margin-left: 36.85pt; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Love is more
easily experienced than defined. As a theological virtue, by which we love God
above all things and our neighbours as ourselves for his sake, it seems remote
until we encounter it enfleshed, so to say, in the life of another – in acts of
kindness, generosity and self-sacrifice… love is life's greatest blessing.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Belle_PSW.doc#_ftn4" name="_ftnref4" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="color: black;">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Recommended
Resources:<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">C.S.
Lewis, <i>The Four Loves</i> (Fount, 1960)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><i><span lang="EN-US">The
Guardian</span></i><span lang="EN-US">, ‘What is love? Five
theories on the greatest emotion of all’, <span style="background: white;">Thursday
13th December 2012,</span>
www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2012/dec/13/what-is-love-five-theories<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<div>
<!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br clear="all" /></span>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: 1.5pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm;">
</div>
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Notes</span><br />
<!--[endif]-->
<br />
<div id="ftn1">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Belle_PSW.doc#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: black;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span lang="EN-US"> </span><span lang="EN-US">Richard Swinburne,
‘The Christian Scheme of Salvation’</span><span lang="EN-US"> in Michael Rea (ed.),</span><i><span lang="EN-US"> <st1:city w:st="on">Oxford</st1:city> <st1:city w:st="on">Readings</st1:city>
in Philosophical Theology</span></i><span lang="EN-US">
vol. 1: <i>Trinity, Incarnation, Atonement</i>
(<st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placename w:st="on">Oxford</st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on">University</st1:placetype></st1:place> Press, 2009), p. 294-307.</span><span lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn2">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Belle_PSW.doc#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: black;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span lang="EN-US"> </span>Timothy Keller, Tweet<span lang="EN-US" style="background: white;"> 4:21 PM - 30 Apr 2014.</span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Belle_PSW.doc#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: black;"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US">[3]</span></span></span></span></a><span lang="EN-US"> <i>The Guardian</i>, ‘What is love? Five theories on the greatest emotion of all’, <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">Thursday 13th December 2012,</span> www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2012/dec/13/what-is-love-five-theories</span></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn4">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Peter.Williams/Desktop/Belle_PSW.doc#_ftnref4" name="_ftn4" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: black;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang="EN-US">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span lang="EN-US"> <i>The Guardian</i>, ‘What is love? Five theories on the greatest
emotion of all’, <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">Thursday 13th December
2012,</span>
www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2012/dec/13/what-is-love-five-theories</span></span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
</div>
Peter S. Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14223529929867367465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17071512.post-23182092717243775762014-04-14T12:38:00.001+01:002014-04-14T13:12:09.021+01:00Palm Sunday Sermon - Matthew 21:1-11<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Matthew 21:1-11 (Holman Christian Standard Bible): </span></b><b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Triumphal Entry</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">An audio pod-cast of this sermon is available <a href="http://www.damaris.org/cm/podcasts/904" target="_blank">here</a>.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">When they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage
at the Mount of Olives, Jesus then sent two disciples, telling them, “Go into
the village ahead of you. At once you will find a donkey tied there, and a colt
with her. Untie them and bring them to Me. If anyone says anything to you, you
should say that the Lord needs them, and immediately he will send them.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">This took place so that what was spoken through the
prophet might be fulfilled:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Tell Daughter Zion,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">“Look, your King is coming
to you,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">gentle, and mounted on a
donkey,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">even on a colt,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">the foal of a beast of
burden.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The disciples went and did just as Jesus directed
them. They brought the donkey and the colt; then they laid their robes on them,
and He sat on them. A very large crowd spread their robes on the road; others
were cutting branches from the trees and spreading them on the road. Then the
crowds who went ahead of Him and those who followed kept shouting:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Hosanna to the Son of David!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">He who comes in the name<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">of the Lord is the blessed
One!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Hosanna in the highest
heaven!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">When He entered Jerusalem, the whole city was shaken,
saying, “Who is this?” And the crowds kept saying, “This is the prophet Jesus
from Nazareth in Galilee!”</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<img alt="Embedded image permalink" src="https://pbs.twimg.com/media/BlGjWAfCUAAOXEm.jpg" /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The events of Palm Sunday remind me of the chorus to
that famous Rolling Stone’s song ‘You can’t always get what you want’:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You can't always get what
you want <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You can't always get what
you want <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You can't always get what
you want <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But if you try sometimes you
just might find <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You just might find <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You get what you need<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Now, we know God doesn’t give us everything we want.
Sometimes we’re prepared to admit it’s a good thing God doesn’t give us
everything we want. What we want isn’t always very noble.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We know God gives us everything we really need. Yet,
if we’re honest, we realise we find it all too easy to confuse getting what we
need and getting what we want. We find ourselves behaving like little children
crying ‘But I neeeed it’ when they want a second helping of cake.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">By riding into Jerusalem on a donkey, Jesus sends a
message, not just about his being the messiah, but about the kind of messiah he
is, about the kind of messiah we really need. The crowd that greet’s Jesus are
so full of the messiah they want, they don’t recognise Jesus as the messiah
they need.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Around 500 BC the priest and prophet Zechariah had
said the messiah would enter Jerusalem ‘riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal
of a donkey.’ Mark and Luke note that the animal Jesus rode was a donkey ‘on
which no one has ever sat’ (Mark 11:2; Luke 19:30). Matthew, an eyewitness,
informs us that two animals, a donkey and the foal of a donkey, were present.
Having mum walk ahead of it would have been a calming influence on junior, so
the inclusion of two animals makes sense. Matthew isn’t contradicting Mark and
Luke. After all, Matthew know Mark’s gospel. Rather, he’s adding information
Mark don’t bother mentioning.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But what of Matthew’s remark that after the disciples
laid their outer cloaks upon both animals, Jesus ‘sat on them’? Images spring
to mind of Jesus trying to straddle two donkeys as they make their way up the
road to Jerusalem! Of course not! In picking up on the ‘synonymous parallelism’
of Zechariah’s prophecy - ‘Look, your King is coming to you, gentle, and
mounted on a donkey, even on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden’ - Matthew
is making a joke with a serious point: By choosing to enter Jerusalem this way,
Jesus is symbolically declaring he is the messiah, but the humble servant-king
riding a beast of burden kind of messiah, rather than the riding a stead of war
ready to kick Roman butt kind of messiah.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And the crowd doesn’t really get it. Yes, throwing
garments in Jesus’ path symbolised submission to Jesus as king, but spreading
palm fronds indicates the reception of Jesus as a national liberator. Some
shout out verses from the Passover season Psalm 118:25-26: ‘Hosanna (meaning ‘O
save’). He who comes in the name of the Lord is blessed.’ However, in the
context of Roman occupation their focus was on the first half of Psalm 118,
which is about God’s past delivery of Israel from military oppressors. That’s
what they wanted, and when Jesus failed to give it to them, the crowd would
soon switch from shouting ‘Hosanna’ to shouting ‘Crucify him!’ (Matthew
27:22-23). When we confuse what we need from God with what we want, there’s a
sense in which we find ourselves amongst that Jerusalem crowd. So, in closing,
let us meditate upon Psalm 118, praying that, unlike the Jerusalem crowd, we‘ll
listen as our servant king tells us the difference between getting what we want
and getting what we need this Easter:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Open the gates of
righteousness for me;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I will enter through them<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">and give thanks to the Lord.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is the gate of the
Lord;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">the righteous will enter
through it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I will give thanks to You<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">because You have answered me<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">and have become my
salvation.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The stone that the builders
rejected<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">has become the cornerstone.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This came from the Lord;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">it is wonderful in our eyes.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is the day the Lord has
made;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">let us rejoice and be glad
in it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(Psalm 118:19-24)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Amen.</span><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
Peter S. Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14223529929867367465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17071512.post-46502014835194684392014-04-03T15:58:00.000+01:002014-04-03T16:00:55.582+01:00G.K. Chesterton & C.S. Lewis: A Comparative Appreciation<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here are my prepared remarks for an evening's discussion with Dale Ahlquist, president and co-founder of the American Chesterton Society, on the relationship between G.K. Chesterton and C.S. Lewis. Our discussion (which was followed by a time of Q&A) was hosted by the Aquinas Centre in the Waldegrave Drawing Room in St. Mary's University, Twickenham, 1st April 2014. <a href="http://www.damaris.org/cm/podcasts/903" target="_blank">An audio recording of the event is available here</a>.</span></div>
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G.K. Chesterton held that ‘Talking about serious
questions is a pleasure’<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/peter.williams.DAMARIS/Desktop/Lewis_Chesterton.doc#_edn1" name="_ednref1" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span class="MsoEndnoteReference">[1]</span></span></a>,
so let me to begin by thanking everyone who has made this pleasurable, serious
discussion possible.<br />
<o:p></o:p></div>
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I love the writings of C.S. Lewis, and, like
Lewis, I love the writings of G.K. Chesterton. With Lewis, I especially love <i>The Everlasting Man</i>. Neo-atheist
Lawrence Krauss could have saved himself from writing <i>A Universe from Nothing</i> if only he’d paid attention to Chesterton’s
observation that: ‘Nobody can imagine how nothing could turn into something.
Nobody can get an inch nearer to it by explaining how something would turn into
something else.’<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/peter.williams.DAMARIS/Desktop/Lewis_Chesterton.doc#_edn2" name="_ednref2" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference">[2]</span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></div>
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Researching my book <i>C.S. Lewis vs. the New Atheists</i> (Paternoster, 2013), it struck me
that Lewis had been the kind of atheist who takes philosophy seriously. As an
atheist, Lewis rejected the positivism and scientism that<span lang="EN-GB"> characterised</span> ‘modernity’. One
might even say that the atheism of Lucretius saved Lewis from the non-theism of
A.J. Ayer!<o:p></o:p></div>
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Lewis believed language puts us in touch with
reality, and he argued, against the positivists, that there’s more than one way
of being in touch with reality. Lewis’ paper on ‘The Language of Religion’ is a
significant rejoinder to positivism.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Lewis didn’t lurch from the strictures of
modernism into the<span lang="EN-GB"> louchness</span>
of post-modernity. His love of philosophy produced neither a narrow rationalism
nor a romantic anti-rationalism, but a pre-modern wisdom that<span lang="EN-GB"> recognised</span> the value of
empirical data without rejecting the transcendent facts of truth, goodness and
beauty.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB">Lewis holes <i>scientism</i> below the
waterline by observing that acts of reason, upon which science depends, don’t
depend upon science but upon rational intuition: </span><span lang="EN-GB">‘You cannot produce rational intuition by argument,
because argument depends upon rational intuition. Proof rests upon the
unprovable which just has to be “seen”.’<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/peter.williams.DAMARIS/Desktop/Lewis_Chesterton.doc#_edn3" name="_ednref3" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span lang="EN-GB">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB">Likewise, </span>in
‘A Plea for Popular Philosophy’ Chesterton points out that:<o:p></o:p></div>
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‘all argument begins
with assumption; that is, with something that you do not doubt… let us clearly
realize this fact, that we do believe in a number of things which are part of
our existence, but which cannot be demonstrated… Every sane man believes that the world around
him and the people in it are real, and not his own delusion or dream.’<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/peter.williams.DAMARIS/Desktop/Lewis_Chesterton.doc#_edn4" name="_ednref4" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference">[4]</span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></div>
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One might almost say that by embracing medieval
ideas about philosophy Chesterton and Lewis anticipated the ‘reformed
epistemology’ of the 1960’s. This goes to show the great sense Chesterton
showed in noting that ‘What a man can believe depends upon his philosophy, not
upon the clock or the century.’<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/peter.williams.DAMARIS/Desktop/Lewis_Chesterton.doc#_edn5" name="_ednref5" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference">[5]</span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
In the same vein, Lewis warned against ‘<span style="color: #141413;">the
uncritical acceptance of the intellectual climate of our own age and the
assumption that whatever has gone out of date is on that count discredited.’<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/peter.williams.DAMARIS/Desktop/Lewis_Chesterton.doc#_edn6" name="_ednref6" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="color: #141413;">[6]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a></span><o:p></o:p></div>
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There is no epistemological good news needed
more by people today than the news that there’s more to knowledge than science.
The failure of scientism means it makes sense to say that murder is objectively
evil and that rainbows are objectively beautiful. Lewis’ influential lectures
on <i>The Abolition of Man</i> remain a
powerful statement of such axiological realism.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Lewis was as much a poet as a philosopher; not
as a centaur is half man and half horse, but as Jesus is fully man yet fully
divine. Lewis was a philosophical poet and a poetical philosopher. When Lewis was<span lang="EN-GB"> memorialised</span> in Westminster Abbey
last year, he was celebrated as much for being the Christian apologist who gave
us <i>Mere Christianity</i> and <i>Miracles</i> as he was for being the
Christian novelist who gave us <i>The</i><i><span lang="EN-GB">
Screwtape</span></i><i>
Letters</i> and <i>The
Chronicles of Narnia</i>.<o:p></o:p></div>
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One can’t separate Lewis’ philosophy from his
fiction. On the one hand, his philosophy uses story to elicit rational insight.
Consider ‘Meditation in a Toolshed’, with its distinction between ‘looking at’
and ‘looking along’ a beam of light. On the other hand, Lewis’ fiction fleshes
out a philosophical skeleton, allowing us to imbibe the <i>atmosphere</i> of a philosophy. I particularly enjoy imbibing <i>The Abolition of Man</i> through <i>That Hideous Strength</i>. I was thrilled by
Michael Ward’s recent discovery of how the medieval cosmology Lewis describes
in <i>The Discarded Image</i> shapes Narnia.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Chesterton said ‘it is only too easy to forget
that there is a thrill in theism.’<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/peter.williams.DAMARIS/Desktop/Lewis_Chesterton.doc#_edn7" name="_ednref7" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference">[7]</span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
I find reading Lewis is thrilling, not because he has anything original to say,
but because he puts his mastery of language wholly at the service of truth. As Lewis advised:<o:p></o:p></div>
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‘no man who bothers about originality will
ever be original: whereas if you simply try to tell the truth (without caring
twopence how often it has been told before) you will, nine times out of ten,
become original without ever having noticed it.’<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/peter.williams.DAMARIS/Desktop/Lewis_Chesterton.doc#_edn8" name="_ednref8" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference">[8]</span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></div>
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Unlike the neo-atheists, Lewis attended
carefully to arguments for the falsehood of naturalism and the truth of theism.
The arguments Lewis gives us are popularisations or developments of arguments
others had already made and which had convinced him. For example, in <i>Mere Christianity</i> he succinctly <span lang="EN-GB">popularised</span> the sort of
meta-ethical moral argument for God developed in W.R. Sorley’s Gifford lectures
on <i>Moral Values and the Idea of God</i>. Likewise, Lewis clearly owes
Chesterton an apologetic debt.<o:p></o:p></div>
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In general terms, in addition to the use of
multiple literary genres, we should note that Lewis’ desire to advocate <i>Mere Christianity</i> follows Chesterton’s
emphasis in <i>Orthodoxy</i> upon ‘the
central Christian theology (sufficiently summarised in the Apostle’s Creed)’<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/peter.williams.DAMARIS/Desktop/Lewis_Chesterton.doc#_edn9" name="_ednref9" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference">[9]</span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
at the expense of ‘the fascinating but quite different question of what is the
present seat of authority for the proclamation of that creed.’<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/peter.williams.DAMARIS/Desktop/Lewis_Chesterton.doc#_edn10" name="_ednref10" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference">[10]</span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></div>
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In specific terms, one sees ancestors to many of
Lewis’ arguments in Chesterton’s work. In <i>The
Everlasting Man</i> he pre-cedes Lewis in debunking the mythical Jesus myth<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/peter.williams.DAMARIS/Desktop/Lewis_Chesterton.doc#_edn11" name="_ednref11" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference">[11]</span><!--[endif]--></span></a>,
lays the foundation for Lewis’ argument from desire<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/peter.williams.DAMARIS/Desktop/Lewis_Chesterton.doc#_edn12" name="_ednref12" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference">[12]</span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
and gives Lewis the ‘mad, bad or God’ trilemma.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/peter.williams.DAMARIS/Desktop/Lewis_Chesterton.doc#_edn13" name="_ednref13" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference">[13]</span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
In <i>Orthodoxy</i> Chesterton touches upon
the argument from desire<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/peter.williams.DAMARIS/Desktop/Lewis_Chesterton.doc#_edn14" name="_ednref14" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference">[14]</span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
and spends several pages planting seeds that may have contributed to Lewis’
anti-naturalism arguments. Chesterton writes:<o:p></o:p></div>
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‘Evolution is a good
example of that modern intelligence which, if it destroys anything, destroys
itself. Evolution is either an innocent scientific description of how certain
things came about; or, if it is anything more than this, it is an attack upon
thought itself.’<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/peter.williams.DAMARIS/Desktop/Lewis_Chesterton.doc#_edn15" name="_ednref15" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference">[15]</span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></div>
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His arguments for this conclusion are best
described as ‘suggestive’. Indeed, Chesterton describes his own style as
attempting ‘in a vague and personal way, in a set of mental pictures rather
than a series of deductions, to state the philosophy in which I have come to
believe.’<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/peter.williams.DAMARIS/Desktop/Lewis_Chesterton.doc#_edn16" name="_ednref16" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference">[16]</span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></div>
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When Lewis takes over from Chesterton in the
wrestling match with naturalism, he comes into the ring equipped with clear
definitions, lean distinctions and a range of heavy-hitting deductions that
continue to spark debate in the professional literature.<o:p></o:p></div>
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In fact, <i>all</i>
of these arguments live on in contemporary debates. For example, the ‘argument
from desire’ has been developed and defended by John Cottingham, John Haldane,
Robert Hoyler, Peter Kreeft and Alister McGrath, among others. The ‘trilemma’
has been developed and defended by the likes of Stephen T. Davis, Douglas
Groothuis and David A. Horner.<o:p></o:p></div>
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However, of all the arguments Lewis defended,
it’s the anti-naturalism arguments of <i>Miracles</i>
and of essays such as ‘De Futilitate’ that resonate most insistently today.
Alvin Plantinga acknowledges his debt to Lewis for his ‘anti-naturalism
argument from evolution’. Moreover, it’s not only in reading contemporary
Christian philosophers such as Plantinga, Victor Reppert, R. Scott Smith or
Angus L. Menuge that one recalls Lewis’ anti-naturalism arguments; it’s also in
reading contemporary non-Christian thinkers such as John Gray, Thomas Nagel,
Alex Rosenberg, John Searle and Raymond Tallis.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Through the many friendships that constituted
‘The Inklings’, Lewis teaches us the importance of being nourished by a
community of scholarship jointly dedicated to following the argument wherever
it leads. Through reading what Lewis called ‘old books’, we have the privilege
of transcending the chronological snobbery of our own age and communing in just
such a fellowship with C.S. Lewis and G.K. Chesterton.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: right;">
Peter S.
Williams – March 2014.<span style="font-size: 15pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div>
<!--[if !supportEndnotes]--><br clear="all" />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<br />
<div id="edn1">
<div class="MsoEndnoteText">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/peter.williams.DAMARIS/Desktop/Lewis_Chesterton.doc#_ednref1" name="_edn1" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: Cambria;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
G.K. Chesterton, ‘No Such Thing’ in <i>Prophet
of Orthodoxy</i>: <i>The Wisdom of G.K.
Chesterton</i> (Fount, 1997), p. 127.</span></div>
</div>
<div id="edn2">
<div class="MsoEndnoteText">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/peter.williams.DAMARIS/Desktop/Lewis_Chesterton.doc#_ednref2" name="_edn2" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: Cambria;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> G.K.
Chesterton, <i>The Everlasting Man</i> (Hodder
& Stoughton, 1927), p. 25.</span></div>
</div>
<div id="edn3">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/peter.williams.DAMARIS/Desktop/Lewis_Chesterton.doc#_ednref3" name="_edn3" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: Cambria;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> <span lang="EN-GB">C.S.
Lewis, ‘Why I am not a Pacifist’<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
</div>
<div id="edn4">
<div class="MsoEndnoteText">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/peter.williams.DAMARIS/Desktop/Lewis_Chesterton.doc#_ednref4" name="_edn4" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: Cambria;">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> G.K.
Chesterton, ‘A Plea for Popular Philosophy’ in <i>Prophet of Orthodoxy</i>: <i>The
Wisdom of G.K. Chesterton</i> (Fount, 1997), p. 127.</span></div>
</div>
<div id="edn5">
<div class="MsoEndnoteText">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/peter.williams.DAMARIS/Desktop/Lewis_Chesterton.doc#_ednref5" name="_edn5" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: Cambria;">[5]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
G.K. Chesterton, <i>Orthodoxy</i> (House of
Stratus, 2011), p. 53.</span></div>
</div>
<div id="edn6">
<div class="MsoEndnoteText">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/peter.williams.DAMARIS/Desktop/Lewis_Chesterton.doc#_ednref6" name="_edn6" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: Cambria;">[6]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
C.S. Lewis, <i>Surprised by Joy</i> (Fount).</span></div>
</div>
<div id="edn7">
<div class="MsoEndnoteText">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/peter.williams.DAMARIS/Desktop/Lewis_Chesterton.doc#_ednref7" name="_edn7" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: Cambria;">[7]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Chesterton,
<i>The Everlasting Man</i>, p. 103.</span></div>
</div>
<div id="edn8">
<div class="MsoEndnoteText">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/peter.williams.DAMARIS/Desktop/Lewis_Chesterton.doc#_ednref8" name="_edn8" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: Cambria;">[8]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
C.S. Lewis, <i>Mere Christianity</i>
(Fount).</span></div>
</div>
<div id="edn9">
<div class="MsoEndnoteText">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/peter.williams.DAMARIS/Desktop/Lewis_Chesterton.doc#_ednref9" name="_edn9" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: Cambria;">[9]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
G.K. Chesterton, <i>Orthodoxy</i> (House of
Stratus, 2011), p. 4.</span></div>
</div>
<div id="edn10">
<div class="MsoEndnoteText">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/peter.williams.DAMARIS/Desktop/Lewis_Chesterton.doc#_ednref10" name="_edn10" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: Cambria;">[10]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Chesterton, <i>Orthodoxy</i>, p. 4</span></div>
</div>
<div id="edn11">
<div class="MsoEndnoteText">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/peter.williams.DAMARIS/Desktop/Lewis_Chesterton.doc#_ednref11" name="_edn11" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: Cambria;">[11]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Chesterton, <i>The Everlasting Man</i>, p.
132 & 199.</span></div>
</div>
<div id="edn12">
<div class="MsoEndnoteText">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/peter.williams.DAMARIS/Desktop/Lewis_Chesterton.doc#_ednref12" name="_edn12" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: Cambria;">[12]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Chesterton, <i>The Everlasting Man</i>, p.
106-107.</span></div>
</div>
<div id="edn13">
<div class="MsoEndnoteText">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/peter.williams.DAMARIS/Desktop/Lewis_Chesterton.doc#_ednref13" name="_edn13" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: Cambria;">[13]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Chesterton,
<i>The Everlasting Man</i>, p. 215 & 229.</span></div>
</div>
<div id="edn14">
<div class="MsoEndnoteText">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/peter.williams.DAMARIS/Desktop/Lewis_Chesterton.doc#_ednref14" name="_edn14" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: Cambria;">[14]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Chesterton,
<i>Orthodoxy</i>, p. 57.</span></div>
</div>
<div id="edn15">
<div class="MsoEndnoteText">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/peter.williams.DAMARIS/Desktop/Lewis_Chesterton.doc#_ednref15" name="_edn15" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: Cambria;">[15]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Chesterton,
<i>Orthodoxy</i>, p. 21.</span></div>
</div>
<div id="edn16">
<div class="MsoEndnoteText">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/peter.williams.DAMARIS/Desktop/Lewis_Chesterton.doc#_ednref16" name="_edn16" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="font-family: Cambria;">[16]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Chesterton,
<i>Orthodoxy</i>, p. 1.</span></div>
</div>
</div>
Peter S. Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14223529929867367465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17071512.post-29412269835813523372014-03-13T12:25:00.000+00:002014-03-13T12:44:09.016+00:00Percentage of American Scientists who Believe in God<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">According to a survey reported in the journal <i>Nature</i> in 1997, c. 40%</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"> of American biologists, physicists and mathematicians said </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">they believed in a God to whom one may pray 'in expectation of </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">receiving an answer.' The survey, by Edward J. Larson of the </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">University of Georgia, was intended to replicate one conducted in </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">1916, and the results were virtually unchanged: '</span><span style="color: #222222;">In 1916, 1,000 leading American scientists were randomly chosen from <i>American Men of Science</i> and <b>41.8% believed God existed</b>, 41.5% disbelieved, and 16.7% had doubts/did not know; however when the study was replicated 80 years later using <i>American Men and Women of Science</i> in 1996, results were very much the same with <b>39.3% believing God exists</b>, 45.3% disbelieved, and 14.5% had doubts/did not know.</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">' (</span><span style="color: #222222;">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientists%27_belief_in_God#Studies_on_scientists.27_beliefs</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">)</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">As a 2006 New York Times article reported: 'surveys show </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">that <b>roughly 40 percent of scientists believe in a God who actively </b></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><b>communicates with humankind and to whom one may pray in expectation of </b></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><b>answers</b>...' (</span><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/28/science/28essa.html?scp=2&sq=scientists%20believe%20in%20god%20atheists&st=nyt" style="background-color: white; color: #1155cc;" target="_blank">www.nytimes.com/2006/02/28/<wbr></wbr>science/28essa.html?scp=2&sq=<wbr></wbr>scientists%20believe%20in%<wbr></wbr>20god%20atheists&st=nyt</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">)</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br style="background-color: white; color: #222222;" /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">According to a 2009 survey of members of the American Assn. for the </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">Advancement of Science, conducted by the Pew Research Center, <b>a </b></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><b>majority of scientists (51%) said they believe in 'God or a higher </b></span><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #222222;"><b>power'</b>, while 41% say they do not believe in God or a higher power (the other 8% are presumably agnostic). More specifically: '<b>33% of those polled believe in God, 18% believe in a universal spirit or higher power</b>, and 41% did not believe in either God or a higher power... 17% were atheists, 11% were agnostics, 20% were nothing in particular, 8% were Jewish, 10% were Catholic, 16% were Protestant, 4% were Evangelical, 10% were other religion.'</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">(cf. </span><a href="http://articles.latimes.com/2009/nov/24/opinion/la-oe-masci24-2009nov24" style="background-color: white; color: #1155cc;" target="_blank">http://articles.latimes.com/<wbr></wbr>2009/nov/24/opinion/la-oe-<wbr></wbr>masci24-2009nov24</a>; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientists%27_belief_in_God#Studies_on_scientists.27_beliefs</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Also in 2009, the religious beliefs of US professors were examined using a nationally representative sample: 'in the social sciences: 23.4% did not believe in God, 16% did not know if God existed, <b>42.5% believed God existed, and 16% believed in a higher power</b>. Out of the natural sciences: 19.5% did not believe in God, 32.9% did not know if God existed, <b>43.9% believed God existed, and 3.7% believed in a higher power</b>.' (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientists%27_belief_in_God#Studies_on_scientists.27_beliefs)</span><br />
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">The most recent survey, on religious beliefs among the general population and among 'rank and file' American scientists (in fields such as computing, engineering, health-care </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">and life sciences), showed that </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><b>only 24.4% of scientists self-describe as </b></span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><b>atheist/agnostic/no-religion</b>, which is about the same percentage of scientists who </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">self-describe as 'Mainline Protestant' (24.9%). Moreover, 19.1% of </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">scientists self-described as Catholic and 17.1% of </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">scientists self-described as Evangelical Christian (hence '2 million out of </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">nearly 12 million scientists are evangelical Christians. If you were </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">to bring all the evangelical scientists together, they could populate </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">the city of Houston, Texas'):</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><br /></span></span>
<table style="background-color: white; border-collapse: collapse; border-spacing: 0px; border: 0px; color: black; font-family: lft-etica-n4, lft-etica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 20.799999237060547px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><tbody style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<tr style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><td style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: top;"><div class="text" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: ff-more-web-pro-n4, ff-more-web-pro, serif; font-size: 1rem; line-height: 1.7em; margin-bottom: 25px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 40px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<strong style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Religion</strong></div>
</td><td style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: top;"><div class="text" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: ff-more-web-pro-n4, ff-more-web-pro, serif; font-size: 1rem; line-height: 1.7em; margin-bottom: 25px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 40px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<strong style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">% All Respondents</strong></div>
</td><td style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: top;"><div class="text" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: ff-more-web-pro-n4, ff-more-web-pro, serif; font-size: 1rem; line-height: 1.7em; margin-bottom: 25px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 40px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<strong style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">% Scientists</strong></div>
</td></tr>
<tr style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><td style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: top;"><div class="text" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: ff-more-web-pro-n4, ff-more-web-pro, serif; font-size: 1rem; line-height: 1.7em; margin-bottom: 25px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 40px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
Evangelical Protestants</div>
</td><td style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: top;"><div class="text" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: ff-more-web-pro-n4, ff-more-web-pro, serif; font-size: 1rem; line-height: 1.7em; margin-bottom: 25px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 40px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
22.9</div>
</td><td style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: top;"><div class="text" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: ff-more-web-pro-n4, ff-more-web-pro, serif; font-size: 1rem; line-height: 1.7em; margin-bottom: 25px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 40px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
17.1</div>
</td></tr>
<tr style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><td style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: top;"><div class="text" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: ff-more-web-pro-n4, ff-more-web-pro, serif; font-size: 1rem; line-height: 1.7em; margin-bottom: 25px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 40px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
Mainline Protestants</div>
</td><td style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: top;"><div class="text" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: ff-more-web-pro-n4, ff-more-web-pro, serif; font-size: 1rem; line-height: 1.7em; margin-bottom: 25px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 40px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
26.9</div>
</td><td style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: top;"><div class="text" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: ff-more-web-pro-n4, ff-more-web-pro, serif; font-size: 1rem; line-height: 1.7em; margin-bottom: 25px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 40px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
24.9</div>
</td></tr>
<tr style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><td style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: top;"><div class="text" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: ff-more-web-pro-n4, ff-more-web-pro, serif; font-size: 1rem; line-height: 1.7em; margin-bottom: 25px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 40px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
Catholics</div>
</td><td style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: top;"><div class="text" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: ff-more-web-pro-n4, ff-more-web-pro, serif; font-size: 1rem; line-height: 1.7em; margin-bottom: 25px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 40px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
23.8</div>
</td><td style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: top;"><div class="text" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: ff-more-web-pro-n4, ff-more-web-pro, serif; font-size: 1rem; line-height: 1.7em; margin-bottom: 25px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 40px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
19.1</div>
</td></tr>
<tr style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><td style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: top;"><div class="text" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: ff-more-web-pro-n4, ff-more-web-pro, serif; font-size: 1rem; line-height: 1.7em; margin-bottom: 25px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 40px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
Jews</div>
</td><td style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: top;"><div class="text" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: ff-more-web-pro-n4, ff-more-web-pro, serif; font-size: 1rem; line-height: 1.7em; margin-bottom: 25px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 40px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
1.9</div>
</td><td style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: top;"><div class="text" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: ff-more-web-pro-n4, ff-more-web-pro, serif; font-size: 1rem; line-height: 1.7em; margin-bottom: 25px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 40px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
3.9</div>
</td></tr>
<tr style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><td style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: top;"><div class="text" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: ff-more-web-pro-n4, ff-more-web-pro, serif; font-size: 1rem; line-height: 1.7em; margin-bottom: 25px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 40px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
Mormons</div>
</td><td style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: top;"><div class="text" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: ff-more-web-pro-n4, ff-more-web-pro, serif; font-size: 1rem; line-height: 1.7em; margin-bottom: 25px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 40px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
1.8</div>
</td><td style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: top;"><div class="text" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: ff-more-web-pro-n4, ff-more-web-pro, serif; font-size: 1rem; line-height: 1.7em; margin-bottom: 25px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 40px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
1.7</div>
</td></tr>
<tr style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><td style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: top;"><div class="text" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: ff-more-web-pro-n4, ff-more-web-pro, serif; font-size: 1rem; line-height: 1.7em; margin-bottom: 25px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 40px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs, Jains</div>
</td><td style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: top;"><div class="text" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: ff-more-web-pro-n4, ff-more-web-pro, serif; font-size: 1rem; line-height: 1.7em; margin-bottom: 25px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 40px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
2.6</div>
</td><td style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: top;"><div class="text" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: ff-more-web-pro-n4, ff-more-web-pro, serif; font-size: 1rem; line-height: 1.7em; margin-bottom: 25px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 40px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
7.2</div>
</td></tr>
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Atheists/Agnostics/No Religion</div>
</td><td style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: top;"><div class="text" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: ff-more-web-pro-n4, ff-more-web-pro, serif; font-size: 1rem; line-height: 1.7em; margin-bottom: 25px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 40px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
15.5</div>
</td><td style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: top;"><div class="text" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: ff-more-web-pro-n4, ff-more-web-pro, serif; font-size: 1rem; line-height: 1.7em; margin-bottom: 25px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 40px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
24.4</div>
</td></tr>
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Something Else</div>
</td><td style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: top;"><div class="text" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: ff-more-web-pro-n4, ff-more-web-pro, serif; font-size: 1rem; line-height: 1.7em; margin-bottom: 25px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 40px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
4.7</div>
</td><td style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: top;"><div class="text" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: ff-more-web-pro-n4, ff-more-web-pro, serif; font-size: 1rem; line-height: 1.7em; margin-bottom: 25px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 40px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
1.7</div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
(<a href="http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2014/february-web-only/study-2-million-scientists-identify-as-evangelical.html?start=1" style="background-color: white; color: #1155cc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">www.christianitytoday.com/ct/<wbr></wbr>2014/february-web-only/study-<wbr></wbr>2-million-scientists-identify-<wbr></wbr>as-evangelical.html?start=1</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">)</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">According to these statistics, <b>61.1% of American scientists self-describe as Christian and c. 65% self-describe as theist.</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">It's also worth noting that '</span><span style="color: #222222;">the Pew poll found that... younger scientists (ages 18 to 34) are more likely than older ones to believe in God or a higher power.</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">' (</span></span><a href="http://articles.latimes.com/2009/nov/24/opinion/la-oe-masci24-2009nov24" style="background-color: white; color: #1155cc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">http://articles.latimes.com/<wbr></wbr>2009/nov/24/opinion/la-oe-<wbr></wbr>masci24-2009nov24</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">)</span>Peter S. Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14223529929867367465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17071512.post-43428454009948221592014-02-04T12:04:00.002+00:002014-04-14T12:38:48.354+01:00Luke 2:25-35: Simeon in the Temple - a sermon for Candlemas<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="color: #351c75;"><br /></span></span></b>
<b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="color: #351c75;">Luke
2:25-35 (English Standard Version, Anglicised)<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="color: #351c75;">Now there was a
man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout,
waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. And it
had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before
he had seen the Lord's Christ. And he came in the Spirit into the temple, and
when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him according to the
custom of the Law, he took him up in his arms and blessed God and said,<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="color: #351c75;">“Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in
peace,<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="color: #351c75;"> according to
your word;<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="color: #351c75;">for my eyes have seen your salvation<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="color: #351c75;">that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples,<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="color: #351c75;">a light for revelation to the Gentiles,<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="color: #351c75;"> and for
glory to your people Israel.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="color: #351c75;">And his father and
his mother marveled at what was said about him. And Simeon blessed them and
said to Mary his mother, “Behold, this child is appointed for the fall and
rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is opposed (and a sword will
pierce through your own soul also), so that thoughts from many hearts may be
revealed.”</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Arial;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Arial;"><img height="545" src="https://pbs.twimg.com/media/BfdX3ydCMAA9SXo.jpg:large" width="640" /> </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Arial;">Simeon
was living in expectation of seeing ‘the Lord’s Christ’, the Messiah, the
‘consolation of Israel’. In contrast to the politically focused hopes of so
many Jews under the Roman occupation, the consolation Simeon desired: ‘was not
the fulfillment of Jewish political hopes involving deliverance from their
enemies and restoration of David’s throne but rather to the salvation Jesus
brought.’ </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Arial;">(<i>New American Commentary</i>, p. 115.)</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Arial;"> Simeon looked for to the
sort of consolation Jesus pronounces in Luke 19:10: ‘Today salvation has come
to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man
came to seek and to save what was lost.’ As the apostle Paul emphasised in his
letter to the Christians in Rome, true salvation is a relationship with God
embraced by faith and not earned by works. Moreover, this salvation surpasses
the ethnic boundaries of descent from Abraham: ‘<span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">That is why it depends on faith,<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>in order that the promise may rest on
grace and<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>be guaranteed to all
his offspring - not only to the adherent of the law but also to the one who
shares the faith of Abraham,<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>who
is the father of us all…’ (Romans 4:16) This salvation is ‘</span>prepared in
the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for
glory to your people Israel.’ (Luke 2:31-32)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial;">The Holy Spirit told Simeon that he wouldn’t die
before seeing the Lord’s anointed, and moved by the Spirit he went to the
Temple court just as Mary and Joseph arrived with the baby Jesus. Taking Jesus
into his arms, Simeon praises God, blesses Joseph and Mary and gives Mary a
word of knowledge.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial;">Simeon can be understood to contrast one group of
people, ‘that falls (humbles itself) and rises (is lifted up by God)’ </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Arial;">(<i>New American Commentary</i>, p. 117.)</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Arial;"> <span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">with another group of people, who ‘speak against’ God’s
signpost to salvation. Thus Simeon echoes Mary’s own hymn of praise earlier in
Luke’s gospel, which speaks of how God ‘has scattered those who are proud in
their inmost thoughts… but has lifted up the humble.’ (Luke 1:51-52)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Arial;">Simeon
says that by their response to Jesus the ‘thoughts from many hearts may be
revealed.’ <span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">The Greek word translated
here as ‘thoughts’ (<i>dialogismoi</i>)
means antagonistic or evil thoughts. The use of this term continues Simeon’s presentation
of Jesus as a sign that will be rejected. Again, the Greek word translated as ‘hearts’
(<i>kardia</i>) encompasses a person’s
intellect as well as their emotions. In other words, as some people come to understand
Jesus as God’s revelation so Jesus reveals their inner antagonism to God’s
light. Some of these people may allow themselves to be brought low by the encounter,
joining those humble souls who hunger for the good things of God’s kingdom
(Luke 1:53). As Mary says, God’s mercy ‘extends to those who fear him’ (Luke
1:50)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial;">Paul likewise holds out hope that although Jesus
was a ‘stumbling stone’ to the Jews, Israel did not ‘stumble so as to fall
beyond recovery’ (Romans 11:11):<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.85pt;">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial;">‘Not at
all!<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>Rather, because of their
transgression, salvation has come to the Gentiles<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>to make Israel envious. But if their
transgression means riches for the world, and their loss means riches for the
Gentiles,<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>how much greater riches
will their full inclusion bring! … For God<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>has
consigned all to disobedience, that he may have mercy on all.’ (Romans 11:11-12
& 32)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial;">In this light, what are we to make of Simeon’s
parenthetical comment to Mary that ‘</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Arial;">a sword will pierce through your own soul also<span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">’? Of course, ‘The most common
interpretation is that it refers to the sorrow Mary would experience in seeing
her son rejected and crucified.’ </span></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial;">(<i>New American Commentary</i>, p. 117.)</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial;"> However, this comment likely alludes to ‘the fact that Mary would also
stumble and experience difficulty in her son’s mission’</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Arial;"> (<i>New American Commentary</i>, p. 117.)</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Arial;">, as recorded later in Luke’s
gospel. Thus William C. Nicholas Jr. explains that ‘Family ties will not render
[Mary] exempt from making a conscious choice to follow or reject Jesus’
teaching.’ </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Arial;">(‘The
Oracles of Simeon: Luke 2:28-35’)</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Arial;"> As Jesus says in Matthew 10:34: ‘I did not come to bring
peace, but a sword.’</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Arial;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Arial;">As would appear from the Marian perspective of the early
chapters of Luke, and John’s record of the crucifixion, Mary chose to follow
Jesus. Each of us faces the same choice on a daily basis, for as C.S. Lewis said:
‘</span><span style="font-family: Arial;">The one thing Christianity can’t be is moderately
important: either it’s untrue, in which case it’s of no importance at all, or
it’s true, in which case it demands your whole life.’<span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Audio of Sermon: </span><span style="font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.damaris.org/cm/podcasts/896">http://www.damaris.org/cm/podcasts/896</a></span></div>
Peter S. Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14223529929867367465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17071512.post-16047282720609087432013-11-06T10:38:00.002+00:002013-11-06T10:39:30.529+00:00First 'Faithful Guide to Philosophy' companion video<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/YBXyibOIFsA?rel=0" width="560"></iframe><br />
<br />
This is the first of a series of vids - one per chapter - made by Peter Byrom to accompany my latest book, <i>A Faithful Guide to Philosophy</i>: <i>A Christian Introduction to the Love of Wisdom </i>(Paternoster, 2013).Peter S. Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14223529929867367465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17071512.post-77029850977844596372013-08-05T14:26:00.004+01:002013-08-05T14:26:41.369+01:00A New Book & New Website!My new official website <a href="http://www.peterswilliams.com/">http://www.peterswilliams.com/</a> has now launched!<br />
<br />
It hosts info about my books, a selection of my papers, podcasts and videos, as well as links to my various presences on the web (e.g. podcast, YouTube channel, Blog, Twitter Account, etc).<br />
<br />
In the near future I hope to add more papers and a series of videos/podcasts on my latest book:<br />
<a href="http://www.authenticmedia.co.uk/search/product/faithful-guide-to-philosophy-a-a-christian-introduction/9781842278116.jhtml" target="_blank"><i>A Faithful Guide to Philosophy</i> (Paternoster, 2013)</a>Peter S. Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14223529929867367465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17071512.post-89079747891115780622013-04-20T11:51:00.001+01:002013-04-20T12:41:10.272+01:00'The God Argument' - Peter S. Williams vs. A.C. Grayling<br />
I recently debated the existence of God with the well-known neo-atheist Oxford philosopher A.C. Grayling on Justin Brierley's <i>Unbelievable</i> (Premier Christian Radio).<br />
To hear the full debate visit: <a href="http://t.co/mCwGozxTAG">http://t.co/mCwGozxTAG</a><br />
<br />
Here's a YouTube video of our discussion of the design argument from cosmic fine-tuning:<br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/sbzHAaIWHO4?rel=0" width="560"></iframe><br />
<br />
(I didn't know they'd be video recording our discussion. If I'd know, I would have dressed smarter!)<br />
<br />
This section of our debate has generated some on-line discussion (e.g. <a href="http://www.uncommondescent.com/news/video-a-c-grayling-demonstrates-that-he-doesnt-understand-specified-complexity/" target="_blank">here</a> & <a href="http://www.facebook.com/UnbelievableJB/posts/308632175932113" target="_blank">here</a>) and was picked up by some blogs:<br />
<br />
Jonathan Mclatchie, 'British Atheist Philosopher A.C. Grayling Is Confused About Intelligent Design' <a href="http://www.evolutionnews.org/2013/04/ac_graylings_co071041.html">http://www.evolutionnews.org/2013/04/ac_graylings_co071041.html</a><br />
<br />
Mike Keas, 'Confusion about how Fine-Tuning Implicates Intelligent Design: British Atheist Philosopher A.C. Grayling' <a href="http://blogs.christianpost.com/science-and-faith/confusion-about-how-fine-tuning-implicates-intelligent-design-british-atheist-philosopher-a-c-grayling-15612/">http://blogs.christianpost.com/science-and-faith/confusion-about-how-fine-tuning-implicates-intelligent-design-british-atheist-philosopher-a-c-grayling-15612/</a><br />
<br />
Concerning Grayling's observation that his parents and grandparent's etc. had to have meet in order for him to be born, he admits on page 80 of <i>The God Argument</i> that this is <b>'a retrospective observation'</b>, which amounts to admitting that his grandparent example isn't analogous to the <i>independently specified</i> complexity of cosmic fine-tuning.<br />
<br />
<br />
Here's a YouTube video of our discussion of the Cosmological Argument:<br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/mhxQWMAreCc?rel=0" width="560"></iframe><br />
<br />
<br />
Peter Byrom kindly gave me permission to reproduce here an e-mail he sent in to Justin Brierly's <i>Unbelievable</i> following the broadcast:<br />
<br />
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<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">Dear Justin,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">Very glad you were
able to get A.C. Grayling onto your show, though it is odd that he appears to
have suddenly re-discovered an interest in theistic arguments: When you invited
him to debate William Lane Craig in 2011, he dismissed the whole discussion of
arguments for God as "an empty prospect", but now apparently they're
worthy of a whole new book called "The God Argument"!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">But onto the
discussion itself: it was astonishing to hear a Professor, who charges £18,000
tuition a year, exhibiting such fallacious and sloppy reasoning. I counted at
least six invocations of the genetic fallacy: where Grayling tried to undermine
inferences to God, agent causation (and even the principle of causation itself)
by repeatedly claiming that humans are psychologically and historically
pre-disposed towards them. So what? This does nothing to address the argument.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">In fact, when
invited to respond to Peter S William's critique for why you do not need an
explanation of an explanation, Grayling had nothing else to offer other than
the genetic fallacy!<b> I encourage listeners therefore to do an
experiment:</b> listen to the show again, but omit every instance where
Grayling says something like "it's very natural for us humans to infer
this, because..." or "that's a very egocentric way of seeing things",
and see what you're left with!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">As for the specific
arguments:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">Teleological:</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;"> Grayling admitted he would draw a design inference
from Peter S William's analogy of the cash machine... so why not the
fine-tuning of the universe? The most Grayling could do was fixate upon the
alternative analogy of the contingent events which led up to his birth, but
this was simply not an example of specified complexity: <i>the existence of AC
Grayling as opposed to some different human life</i>, does not conform to an
independently given pattern in the way that <i>the existence of human life as
opposed to a lifeless universe does</i>. </span>This blog post by Jonathan Mclatchie
goes into brilliant detail on why Grayling is confused here, and I recommend it
to all listeners: <a href="http://www.evolutionnews.org/2013/04/ac_graylings_co071041.html">http://www.evolutionnews.org/2013/04/ac_graylings_co071041.html</a></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">Furthermore,
Grayling was content to say "we exist, that's a fact, and that's just the
way it is"! Apart from this being a disturbingly incurious statement,
Grayling then made a completely illogical leap: claiming that "we exist,
that's just a fact, therefore it's due to chance". But how does that
follow? The same would be true of our existence if the explanation were physical
necessity or design. So Grayling was simply plucking his preferred explanation
out of thin air.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">Grayling also
doesn't appear to be up to speed on the problems with multiverse models (lookup
the criticisms by Roger Penrose especially). But even if there <i>were</i> an
infinity of all possible outcomes in a multiverse, Grayling would have to face
the problem that there would be an infinity of universes where somebody enters
the correct PIN code for his bank account by sheer chance, and an infinity of
universes where the words in Grayling's books arise out of no intelligent
cause! ;-)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">Cosmological</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">: Grayling persistently side-stepped the inference to a
necessary being in the most school-boyish manner: he seemed to think he could
undermine the idea of a necessary first cause of the universe by calling it
"Fred", but that is mere semantics! What matters is not what you call
something, but the properties of what that being actually is. An englishman
will say "dog", a frenchman will say "chien", but they're
still referring to the same thing (it's called "ontology",
Professor)!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">Grayling then
contradicted himself on multiple counts: he said it was meaningless to invoke
an uncaused first cause, then offered naturalistic versions of "uncaused
first causes" (even going further to offer logically contradictory
"self-caustion"); He said reality may be different to what we
can comprehend, then complained God was incomprehensible; he said we
humans cannot get our heads round things not being caused, then complained that
God would need to be caused! He demanded an explanation for God, but not for
the universe; he even went so far as to describe the question "why is
there something rather than nothing" as a meaningless question, and
compared it to asking "why is 3 greater than 2"... but the irony is
that there IS a meaningful answer to that question: <b>NECESSARILY</b> EXISTENT
mathematical axioms!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">Moral:</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;"> This one was simplest (and most simplistic) of all.
Grayling said that facts about human flourishing serve as a basis for objective
moral values, but this is nonsense: those descriptive facts do nothing to <b>pre</b>scribe
the obligation that humans <b>ought</b> to flourish! It was also telling that
he had no response to the "horn-splitting" Euthyphro Dilemma
resolution... as if he'd never even heard of it.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">In all, Grayling's
arguments were horrendous, yet he has an unnerving rhetorical talent for
dressing up sheer lack of curiosity as some kind of sophisticated, academic
virtue. Do not be fooled!</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial;">In short, if you're AC Grayling:</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial;">- the existence of life "is just a fact",</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial;">- the existence of the universe "just is, with no explanation",</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial;">- and human flourishing "just is good".</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial;">...And yet Grayling is renowned for quoting Socrates' saying "the unexamined life is not worth living"?</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial;">Noted Christian philosopher Keith Ward reviews A.C. Grayling's <i>The God Argument </i><a href="http://www.bethinking.org/who-are-you-god/introductory/book-review-a-c-graylings-the-god-argument.htm" target="_blank">here</a>.</span></div>
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<!--EndFragment-->Peter S. Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14223529929867367465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17071512.post-42291480927800158612013-03-22T11:50:00.003+00:002013-03-22T11:51:31.647+00:00The Cardiff University God Debate: Peter S. Williams vs. Prof. Christopher Norris<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/wWhkJZw4inY?rel=0" width="640"></iframe><br />
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Here's my debate on the existence of God with Prof. Christopher Norris at Cardiff University. An audio recording of the debate is available <a href="http://www.damaris.org/cm/podcasts/786" target="_blank">here</a>Peter S. Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14223529929867367465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17071512.post-34036279950656462602013-02-18T12:01:00.000+00:002013-03-26T15:41:05.536+00:00C.S. Lewis vs the New Atheists - Trailer<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Irpk_3cjix0?rel=0" width="640"></iframe><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;">A</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><i>free sample chapter</i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;">is</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: orange;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><a href="http://www.scribd.com/doc/131645347/C-S-Lewis-vs-the-New-Atheists-Sample-Chapter" style="text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">available here</a></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;">.</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><br /></span></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;">You can listen to Peter's talk from the official book launch at the Oxford C.S. Lewis Society on March 5th 2013<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: orange; line-height: 20px;"><a href="http://www.damaris.org/cm/podcasts/794" style="text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">here</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"> and to a recent interview about the book with Brian Auten of </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><i>Apologetics 315</i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: orange; line-height: 20px;"><a href="http://www.apologetics315.com/2013/03/peter-s-williams-on-cs-lewis-vs-new.html" style="text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">here</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;">.</span></span><br />
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'This book shows the breadth, depth, and durability of Lewis's Christian apologetics.' - Dr. Michael Ward, Senior Research Fellow, Blackfriars Hall, Oxford University & author of <i>Planet Narnia</i><br />
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‘Given the New Atheists’ confident rejection of religious belief, one might have thought that their case would stand up to scrutiny when compared with the most prominent Christian apologist of the twentieth century, C.S. Lewis. In this book, Peter Williams clearly demonstrates that this is not the case at all. He shows that Lewis rejected his earlier atheism as a result of an in-depth consideration of the nature of reality, whereas the New Atheists fail to back up their rhetoric with any serious evaluation of the arguments. This highly readable book will be of interest to all who wish to evaluate the New Atheism and to understand the enduring legacy of C.S. Lewis.’ - Dr. David Glass, author of <i>Atheism’s New Clothes</i><br />
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‘While they terrify many an unprepared soul, the new atheists are really paper tigers. Their roar rings hollow, their swagger lack intellectual rigor. Their arguments, while strident, are really hapless and hollow. Williams carefully exposes their fallacies and rebuts their arguments with biblical and intellectual rigor. This is a savvy work of apologetics for our day.’ - Dr. Douglas Groothuis, Professor of Philosophy, Denver Seminary<br />
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'I recommend [Peter's work] enthusiastically.' - Dr. William Lane Craig, Research Professor of Philosophy, Talbot School of Theology</div>
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<li style="background-color: #f6f6f6; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Trebuchet, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; list-style-type: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><a href="http://www.damaris.org/cm/podcasts/717"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: orange;">Audio: Interview on C.S. Lewis vs the New Atheists (2012)</span></a></li>
<li style="background-color: #f6f6f6; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Trebuchet, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; list-style-type: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: orange;"><br /></span></li>
<li style="background-color: #f6f6f6; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Trebuchet, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; list-style-type: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><a href="http://www.damaris.org/cm/podcasts/716"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: orange;">Audio: Lecture on C.S. Lewis vs the New Atheists (2012)</span></a></li>
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<br />
You can order online from: <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/LEWIS-VS-THE-NEW-ATHEISTS/dp/1842277707/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1361187062&sr=8-1" target="_blank">amazon.co.uk</a>, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Lewis-Vs-New-Atheists/dp/1842277707/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1361188090&sr=1-1&keywords=c.s.+lewis+vs+the+new+atheists" target="_blank">amazon.com</a>, <a href="http://www.authenticmedia.co.uk/search/product/cs-lewis-vs-the-new-atheists-peter-s/9781842277706.jhtml;jsessionid=301035EA38BA647ECE811EE1CF795BA1" target="_blank">authentic</a>, <a href="http://bookshop.blackwell.co.uk/jsp/welcome.jsp?action=search&type=isbn&term=1842277707" target="_blank">blackwell</a>, <a href="http://www.bookdepository.co.uk/CS-Lewis-Vs-New-Atheists-Peter-Williams/9781842277706?b=-3&t=-26#Bibliographicdata-26" target="_blank">thebookdepository</a>, <a href="http://direct.crossrhythms.co.uk/product/C-S-Lewis-Vs-The-New-Atheists/Peter-S-Williams/132279" target="_blank">cross rhythms</a>, <a href="http://www.eden.co.uk/shop/c-s-lewis-vs-the-new-atheists-4069574.html" target="_blank">eden.co.uk</a>, <a href="http://www.koorongbooks.com/search/product/c-s-lewis-vs-the-new-atheists-peter/9781842277706.jhtml;jsessionid=C0FB29CA0BE53E03E66872A75289B767?printable=true" target="_blank">koorong</a>, <a href="http://www.waterstones.com/waterstonesweb/products/peter+s-+williams/c-s+lewis+vs+the+new+atheists/9588033/" target="_blank">waterstones</a>, <a href="http://www.wesleyowen.com/search/product/c-s-lewis-vs-the-new-atheists-peter/9781842277706.jhtml" target="_blank">wesley owen</a>, <a href="http://www.whsmith.co.uk/Products/CS-Lewis-Vs-the-New-Atheists+Paperback+9781842277706" target="_blank">whsmith</a>.Peter S. Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14223529929867367465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17071512.post-65706166168209281202013-01-29T10:40:00.003+00:002013-01-29T10:41:40.811+00:00A Pre-Modern View of Postmodernism (Romania)Video of my lecture at a conference on Postmodernism at Eastern Bible College in Romania, May 2012.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Mhf6-H6l2K4?rel=0" width="560"></iframe><br />
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You can <a href="http://www.damaris.org/cm/podcasts/707" target="_blank">download audio of the lecture & Q&A time</a>.Peter S. Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14223529929867367465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17071512.post-6311445181034761372013-01-24T12:45:00.002+00:002013-01-24T12:45:35.904+00:00The Ontological Argument (question begging?)I make a brief 'appearance' in this video on the ontological argument, having corresponded with the author!<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/FC94N-mZnrM?rel=0" width="640"></iframe>Peter S. Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14223529929867367465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17071512.post-21966681926451803492013-01-17T10:31:00.001+00:002013-01-24T12:45:52.703+00:00Now on TwitterJoined Twitter yesterday, cf. <a href="https://twitter.com/Williams_PeterS">https://twitter.com/Williams_PeterS</a>.Peter S. Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14223529929867367465noreply@blogger.com