JWSTSOOY #003a: Grandparents Strangle Grandchild Covered in Blood, Blame Their Actions on Her "Demonic Possession".

'Exorcism' call leads to death of man

We'll leave the discussion for whether demonic posessions are real or not for a later post. These grandparents are simply insane.

Simple Question #011a: Do animals have souls?

Is there anything in the Bible indicating that animals don't have souls? If not, then why does this theory persist? Humans have an awful track record of assuming what God intends, so I'm not sure we should assume not just because it's more convenient or easier.

What do you think?

Tammy Faye Goes to Huge Diamond-Encrusted Auditorium in the Sky

On the heels of the last post about mega churches comes the news that one of the earliest and most iconic examples of televangelism, Tammy Faye Messner has died.

Are Mega Churches Evil?

If the title of this post isn't leading, I have no idea what would be.

If I had to give a simple answer, I would say that they are not. I would quickly follow up with the observation that the tendencies of these kinds of Churches (their size, their fast-food/fast-faith mentality, their money obsession, etc...) are symptoms of a deep rooted flawed (some might argue evil) approach to organized religion.

Don't get me wrong. Some of the leaders of these groups are really quite dangerously manipulative of their followers. Any form of prosperity theology is wrong-headed and counter-intuitive to Jesus' teachings, in my opinion. Very often it seems that the very people preaching in a judgmental, buzzword-heavy manner end up being found guilty of the very sins they publicly reject so vociferously.

Well, now you know some of what I think on the subject. What do you think?

8 Random Factoids Meme

I've been tagged by my friend and co-blogger Revrin Rick over at the fantastic yes yes yes ... is the answer blog in a random facts meme.


Rules to play:

1. Players start with 8 random facts about themselves.
   
2. Those who are tagged should post these rules (on your blog or in emails if you want, and send 'em around, since not all my pals have blogs, or just list 'em in comments on this post) and their 8 random facts.
   
3. Players should tag 8 other people and notify them they have been tagged.

My 8 random factoids:

1. I'm easily amused by animals.
   
2. The current two-party political system in the U.S. is repugnant to me.
   
3. A world without irritating people is unimaginable to me and I'm not convinced that's a bad thing.
   
4. I love a wide variety of music. Having said that, I must admit that most modern religious music does nothing for me.
   
5. Horror movies with no sense of humor are useless to me.
   
6. I hate cilantro. I've tried to like it... really, I have.
   
7. Marcel Duchamp is one of my favorite modern artists, but he also ticks me off.
   
8. I realize that there are people who do not love their fellow human beings and I hate people like that. ;)

Whew! That was harder than I expected. What are your 8?

Comments are Encouraged & New Section: Twitter

Just in case it wasn't apparent to anyone who drops by this site, I heartily encourage comments. In fact, there are days where I don't create any new posts because I'm more directly involved in talking with other people who comment here. In fact, I anticipate a good discussion will ensue in the BBS: Parable of the Wicked Tenants post below and it would be great if you would chime in!

I've also added a relatively new section to this site: Twitter. What the heck is that? We'll, without getting too deep into it, Twitter is an easy way for me to tell you what I'm doing related to this blog. I update my Twitter status multiple times a day which can be good if you're wondering whether I've fallen off the face of the earth or I'm just working on a new post.

FYI: For those wondering, I fell off the face of the earth a long time ago.

BBS - The Parable of the Wicked Tenants

The Parable of the Wicked Tenants.

This one is maybe a bit confusing to me. It seems like the people responding to Christ's question about what will happen is (at least somewhat) appropriate. Then His response is cryptic to me. Maybe it's just because I haven't had enough coffee this morning, but maybe you can help me understand what's going on here. Is Jesus differing with their opinion or just agreeing with them and then pointing out their inability to see prophecy through His words?

I love when Jesus does this: telling a story with a complex, yet obvious outcome and then simply pointing out how it's relevant to the current situation. In everyday life, I believe these kinds of connections are the basis of Deja Vu. Christ makes that connection part of the conscious rather than the subconscious.

What do you think?

Simple Question #010a: Is Intelligent Design Necessary?

For Christians, is the concept of Intelligent Design really necessary to reconcile science with the Bible?

It's a straightforward question. There are many ways in which, at least on the surface, the Bible seems to contradict scientific findings of the last 100 years. Does this mean you need to "find God" in these scientific results before you can rest easy in your faith?

I have an opinion or two, but I'd love to hear what you think first!

Simple Question #009a: Where do you see God?

I was looking at some pictures recently and reflecting on how we can see God in it all. Some images seem to bring up God more presently than others for me. That prompts me to ask this question: In what do you see God most clearly?



Too sweet? Maybe, but I still like it. :D

Christian Paintball

Why not?

Christian paintball park provides friendly fire

Wisdom from a Bathroom Wall

This was passed on to me many years ago from someone who claimed it to be found among the other scribblings on a public bathroom wall:

Not old enough to know better.
Old enough to know better.
Not old enough to know.
Old enough to know.
Not old enough.
Old enough.
Not old.
Old.
Not.

I think I got that right. :D

Simple Question #008a: What Makes Someone a Christian?

After listening to an NPR segment on Mormonism, I must admit I feel as if I have a better understanding of this religion (however illusory that assumption may be). It was interesting that someone just before the segment aired said she didn't consider Mormons or Catholics to be Christians. Wha-wha-what?

That got me thinking about what exactly is it that makes someone a "Christian". What do you think?

Stem Cells from Eggs?

Scientists: Stem Cells Created From Eggs

If this ends up being a legitimate source for stem cells, will this silence those who argue it's better to destroy unwanted embryos than save existing human life? I doubt it.

I have to admit that this subject raises concerns in me. I can see that there is a clear line of progression between zygotes and babies. At what point in development should a moral person, regardless of faith, believe the cluster of viable joined human zygote cells becomes human life with some sort of defensible rights? Or maybe that's not the true framing of the argument at all...

We all have living organisms inside of us that we kill everyday. Those of a developing human have more value to us as humans. Maybe it's a matter of who gets to say what happens to the cells growing inside of each of us. Why should the government have a say in what happens inside my body that can overrule my wishes.

God knows we're not going to solve the abortion debate within the confines of this blog. But maybe we can have an intelligent discussion about the subject. What do you think?