Making the Case for Life: Pro-Life Apologetics from Mark Harrington on Vimeo.
Hat tip: Larry O
Aug 16 2010
The smartest person in the room who knows nothing?
There are those folks who like to pretend their superiority by claiming to function only on reason, not having any need for faith. They delude themselves, of course. No one functions only on what they know, or can prove in a scientific or rationalist way. Most people make most of their decisions on faith, whether they allow themselves to admit it or not. In that, I include enormous, life determining decisions, like what to study, whether to study, whom to marry, what life path to choose, what values to live by, and so on. Even science cannot be shown BY science (or any rational process) to be the valid path to truth. At the link there is a discussion about that, and other things.
My point here is a little different, though.
Some people seem to delight in not being sure about anything, because that way they think they aren’t responsible for anything. It’s rather as if they think ignorance of the law is a defense (including natural law and revealed law).
Neither natural laws nor God are impressed by feigned ignorance, however, even when you have maintained the pretense for so long that you’ve forgotten it’s just a script, so that you can safely play your role as a person who isn’t sure of anything much. Shoot, I’ll bet some people could pass a polygraph examination, convincing the operator they’re “agnostics,” sort of the ultimate triumph of method acting.
I’m afraid you’ll have to decide. You can’t sit on the fence forever. You won’t live that long.
Jul 26 2010
Misusing Scripture #4
The last post in this series is here.
I recently heard a Christian speaker saying, yet again, that the “public” thinks Christians are “judgmental” and that we should try not to project that attitude. You’ll also read in books like unChristian that society in general sees Christians as “judgmental.” The problem with this, of course, is that “the public,” which I take to refer to that segment of society that is relatively unchurched, gets its attitudes towards Christians from the media, movies, MTV, TV, some amount of reporting in the news (which always gravitates to what it sees as the most extreme examples of “religious people”), etc. How many of those people with such low opinions of Christians have a relationship with a vibrant Christian who loves the Lord?
It is difficult for the church to overcome the attitudes of people who really have little experience with the church or serious Christians, and who get their information third-hand from biased sources.
I’ve written on this topic of “judgmentalism” before, but I feel the need to add a bit.
Stressing that Christians should not be “judgmental” seems often to mean, by implication, that Christians should not uphold high moral standards and expectations, should not strongly teach traditional moral standards, and so on. It seems especially common to have this emphasis in the “emergent church,”, or the “emerging conversation,” or whatever they’d like to call themselves these days, especially among authors like Donald Miller, Brian McLaren, etc. You’re more likely to hear concern about “judgmental Christians” being expressed from these authors than from more traditionally oriented Christian authors. It seems to me that the “emergent” authors are more likely to be concerned about traditional Christians being judgmental on, say, sexual matters, than they are about “emergent Christians” being judgmental of traditional Christians’ supposed selfishness and social disengagement. It would seem they believe that Christians should not be much concerned about personal sin and immorality (if there even really is such a thing), as long as people are “taking care of the poor” and are nice to the down and out.
In fact, the “emergent” seem quite willing to be “judgmental” about others whom they view as being “judgmental.”
Why is that?
I believe it is due to an almost deliberate misunderstanding of the Biblical texts dealing with being “judgmental,” a misunderstanding that denies historical context and the rest of the Bible.
“Judging” is not the same as “evaluating.” To judge is to impose a penalty or outcome of some kind as a result of an evaluation, all done by a person who has the right to do so, or believes he has. When Jesus told the Pharisees not to judge, he was speaking to people who, in that cultural context, did have the power to impose certain kinds of penalties on other Jews, based on their judgments.
John 18 – New International Version
28Then the Jews led Jesus from Caiaphas to the palace of the Roman governor. By now it was early morning, and to avoid ceremonial uncleanness the Jews did not enter the palace; they wanted to be able to eat the Passover. 29So Pilate came out to them and asked, “What charges are you bringing against this man?”
30″If he were not a criminal,” they replied, “we would not have handed him over to you.”
31Pilate said, “Take him yourselves and judge him by your own law.”
“But we have no right to execute anyone,” the Jews objected. 32This happened so that the words Jesus had spoken indicating the kind of death he was going to die would be fulfilled.
This shows that the Pharisees and Jewish leaders DID have the legal right to judge and impose various penalties, some quite severe, but they could not impose death as the Romans could.
John 3 – English Standard Version
16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. 19 And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil.
This and other passages show that the power to judge was the power to condemn, meaning to carry out sentence flowing from judgment. The good news was the the Son had entered the world to help sinful humans escape condemnation flowing from righteous judgment. In the following passage, we also see the connection of judgment with the power to condemn, or punish.
John 12 – New International Version
47″As for the person who hears my words but does not keep them, I do not judge him. For I did not come to judge the world, but to save it. 48 There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not accept my words; that very word which I spoke will condemn him at the last day.
On the other hand, there are many passages where Jesus speaks to people quite directly about their sin.
John 5 – New International Version
5One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. 6When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, “Do you want to get well?”
7″Sir,” the invalid replied, “I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me.”
8Then Jesus said to him, “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.” 9At once the man was cured; he picked up his mat and walked.
The day on which this took place was a Sabbath, 10and so the Jews said to the man who had been healed, “It is the Sabbath; the law forbids you to carry your mat.”11But he replied, “The man who made me well said to me, ‘Pick up your mat and walk.’ ”
12So they asked him, “Who is this fellow who told you to pick it up and walk?”
13The man who was healed had no idea who it was, for Jesus had slipped away into the crowd that was there.
14Later Jesus found him at the temple and said to him, “See, you are well again. Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you.” 15The man went away and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well.
I strongly suspect that the Donald Millers and Brian McLarens of the world would accuse any modern person who uttered the phrase, “Stop sinning, or something worse may happen to you,” of being very judgmental, even if that person had just rescued the putative sinner in some way, or fed him, or clothed him, etc.
Jesus did not use people’s sin as an excuse not to associate with them, or to serve them… but he surely was very up front about it, and there was no ambiguity in him about his position on their sin.
Jesus and the Apostles tell us not to judge. That is, we don’t have the right to impose penalties on sinners because of our evaluations of their guilt. We don’t have the right to punish sinners ourselves.
Matthew 7 – New International Version
1″Do not judge, or you too will be judged. 2For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.
Again, it is clear here that judgment potentially involves taking action against the judged.
But when modern writers tell us not to judge, they often use the word as if it means “to evaluate” or “to express an opinion based on an evaluation” or something of the sort. This is simply not the Biblical meaning of the word.
If we were commanded by Jesus not to evaluate people’s behavior, nor to express our opinions of that behavior from a moral perspective, we would have no explanation for passages such as these:
Galatians 5 – New International Version
19The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
Matthew 15 – New International Version
19For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. 20These are what make a man ‘unclean’; but eating with unwashed hands does not make him ‘unclean.’ “
Read Matthew 23. Doesn’t Jesus sound just a bit “judgmental” here? But he is not being judgmental. He is observing behavior, and predicting its consequences if the behavior does not change. He is not, in other words, doing the thing he instructed others not to do.
Mark 7 – New International Version
20He went on: “What comes out of a man is what makes him ‘unclean.’ 21For from within, out of men’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, 22greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. 23All these evils come from inside and make a man ‘unclean.’ “
Even in the case of someone who refuses to end behavior that the entire church finds offensive, we have no right to directly punish, but only to shun:
Matthew 18 – New International Version
15″If your brother sins against you,[b] go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over. 16But if he will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.'[c] 17If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, treat him as you would a pagan or a tax collector.
Clearly, evaluation is not judgment. Expressing an opinion based on evaluation is not judgment.
Be careful of those who tell you not to judge, when in fact they may be saying they don’t want you to evaluate someone’s behavior, nor to express an opinion about it. In particular, I seem often to hear or read of emerging church authors encouraging us not to be concerned about immoral behavior… as if our very moral standards, and publicly expressing those standards, are what drives people away from Christ. Of course, they don’t directly tell us “not to be concerned about immoral behavior.” Rather, they tell us to simply stop talking so much about particular sins that they don’t find particularly troublesome, or else people will say we are being “judgmental.”
I highly recommend I Corinthians 5, a passage from which quotes are rarely drawn by “emerging conversation” authors.
May 24 2010
More potpouri
It’s unseasonably cold at my house today, too. It snowed this morning, a little, very unusual for this time of the year.
Why Israel Can’t Rely on American Jewish “Leaders”
This is what passes for “leadership” in American Jewry. A kabuki dance is orchestrated by an Obama fan to gather other Obama fans to air the mildest criticism and to avoid challenging the factual representations of an administration that is the most hostile to the Jewish state in history. As one Israeli hand who definitely isn’t going to be invited to any meetings with this president put it: “They may be fine rabbis, but they are out of their league here.” And by not directly and strongly taking on the president, they are, in fact, enabling the president’s anti-Israel stance. It is, come to think of it, more than an embarrassment; it is an egregious misuse of their status and it is every bit as dangerous as the quietude of American Jews in the 1930s.
Indeed.
Read Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy first, then read The Cost of Discipleship… again, if you’ve read it before, through the lens of knowing more about Bonhoeffer.
May 11 2010
The Mojave cross has been stolen: UPDATE
A cross at the Mojave National Preserve that has served as a World War I memorial and was the subject of a First Amendment lawsuit that made it to the Supreme Court was reported missing Monday, officials say.
Linda Slater, spokeswoman for the preserve, said the wooden cover over the cross was reported missing Saturday. The uncovered cross was seen again Sunday. But when National Preserve staff went to the site to replace the wooden cover, the cross was gone.
A lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court of the Central District of California in 2001 argued that the display of the cross in the memorial violated the Establishment Clause of the U.S. Constitution. The Supreme Court in April by a 5-4 ruling decided that the cross could stay.
There is, as yet, no word on who removed the Mojave Cross. Your speculations are as good as mine.
But I have my suspicions.
LATER THOUGHT:
I wonder if the people who are willing to do anything to get that cross removed have any concern whatsoever about the beliefs of the soldiers who gave their lives, or their families? Of course, some proportion of anti-religion fanaticism claims to be pacifist, and blames religion for the violence in the world. But if they are the ones who took this cross, it seems they have no compunctions about theft.
UPDATE: Here’s an update with more details.
Apr 13 2010
New life
And despite the comment of the talking head at the end, this reborn musician did not “save himself.”
Mar 18 2010
False connections
Article and picture from CNN: Evangelical leader takes on Beck for assailing social justice churches
An evangelical leader is calling for a boycott of Glenn Beck’s television show and challenging the Fox News personality to a public debate after Beck vilified churches that preach economic and social justice.
The Rev. Jim Wallis, president of Sojourners, a network of progressive Christians, says Beck perverted Jesus’ message when he urged Christians last week to leave churches that preach social and economic justice.
Now here’s what’s sad/funny about this article.
First, the United Church of Christ, as a denomination, is “pro-choice.” So they’re for “social justice” for everyone but the most innocent among us, who apparently do not deserve legal protections of any kind. And as a member in good standing of the National Council of Churches, they never saw a South or Central American socialist/communist dictator they didn’t like. Which means, of course, that they weren’t for “social justice” for the people in political prisons (or dead) in those places. I mean, how bad can a communist dictator be if he has national health care in his country?
Second, when they show a United Church of Christ sign, and quote “evangelical” minister Jim Wallis, they create by association the notions that the United Church of Christ is evangelical, and that evangelicals as a whole have any serious disagreement with Mr. Beck. Both are false.
Third, “social justice” is a euphemism for statist solutions to “social problems.” Otherwise, churches that use the term would be talking about Christian charity, love, mission and service, which are wonderful, old and uncontroversial ideas, not “social justice.” And, of course, the origin of the term “social justice” had nothing to do with any church, being an artifact of Marxist thought and its intellectual descendants. (And isn’t Mr. Beck taking heat for pointing that out.)
It’s interesting that by pointing that out, Mr. Beck has become the subject, instead of the perversion of the concepts of Christian charity, love, mission and service into “social justice” that is preached by the “Christian Left.”
Fourth, the United Church of Christ is shrinking, fast. It is simply dying out. Along with most of the rest of the “mainline protestant” groups. That’s what happens to Christian groups that abandon their central teachings and moral values to appeal to the world. So in a few years or decades, it’s likely that no local congregation will be around to maintain the sign above.
Some churches are converted to skating rinks when they’re sold due to lack of interest, or lack of surviving members, if the building is big enough.
That sign looks big enough to list prices and hours of operation.
Mar 13 2010
The wrong number was the right number
Here’s why we need to support crisis pregnancy centers that work with mothers to save babies.
Astonishing Coincidence saves baby from abortion in Indianapolis
I know you’re familiar with the old saying, “God works in mysterious ways.” Please sit down and read this whole story. Our God of mystery has outdone Himself this time!
A young woman in Indianapolis, Indiana – we’ll call her Erin – woke up, saw her kids off to school, dropped her preschoolers at a friend’s house, and noticed that she was late for an appointment … at Planned Parenthood … for an abortion.
So Erin picked up her phone and called to see if she could still come in. She thought she was calling Planned Parenthood. In her haste, she dialed a wrong number.
Instead of Planned Parenthood, she got Joseph, who was answering the cell phone that’s being used by …
… get ready for this …
… 40 Days for Life in Indianapolis!
~ David Bereit, National Coordinator, 40 days for LifeJoseph took a deep breath and tried to be as calm as possible. He took Erin’s name and number and simply said that a counselor would call her back.
So Elizabeth, the counselor, called Erin. Elizabeth begged her not to hang up, and then explained that she had not reached Planned Parenthood. Asked if she was a Christian, Erin said “yes.” So Elizabeth told her God’s grace was at work in this “wrong number” situation.
So what had led Erin to the abortion center? Simply put – desperation.
She has four children, their father is in jail, she had lost her job, her electricity is about to be shut off, and she doesn’t have enough money to pay the rent.
Later, Erin arrived at Planned Parenthood with her aunt. The aunt told counselors she opposed the abortion, but Erin’s mother and sister insist it’s the best answer. They say Erin just can’t handle another child.
In the meantime, Elizabeth had spread the word about Erin’s situation. A volunteer offered to pay her electric bill. Ten others pooled their cash to pay her rent.
Eileen in Indianapolis says a local group is now working with Erin to help her find a job. “She has a lot of potential,” Eileen said, “but needs support since her mother and sister are still encouraging her to abort the baby.”
Erin has reacted with both joy and disbelief that strangers were helping her. She has called Planned Parenthood to cancel her appointment and request a refund.
Please keep Erin and her family – and all those helping her – in your prayers.
So, you see? God does work in mysterious ways. There are no coincidences … and in this case, no wrong numbers!
Feb 17 2010
McLaren’s “new” ideas?
Christianity and McLarenism: a review of McLaren’s new book by Kevin DeYoung
Brian McLaren’s latest book, A New Kind of Christianity: Ten Questions That Are Transforming the Faith, is two steps forward in terms of clarity and ten steps backward in terms of orthodoxy. A New Kind of Christianity, more than any previous McLaren project, provides a forceful account of what the emergent leader believes and why.
I think McLaren has strayed quite far from anything recognizable as “historic Christianity”… a fact of which McLaren seems quite proud.
Continue reading “McLaren’s “new” ideas?”
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