Why the topic of abortion matters

31 05 2008

One voice in the abortion debate that is beginning to emerge within Christianity is the one saying that we’ve wasted our time on the abortion issue and that its time to move on. Certainly there has been an emphasis on the effects of abortion and not on the root cause of abortion – this has led to avoiding a real solution. Does this overemphasis, however, mean that abortion is a worthless topic of discussion?

Murder vs. Dignity

If the pro-life side of abortion is correct – that abortion is the murdering of a human life – then abortion is the single greatest moral tragedy in the modern world. It would be the greatest evil (the systematic killing of unwanted humans) of the modern age and, by default, require legislative action.

If the pro-choice side of abortion is correct – that the ‘baby’ is really just a fetus, or an underdeveloped human (non-human) and a collection of tissues – then by speaking out against abortion Christians would be speaking out against a woman’s right to her own body. This would be speaking out against the dignity of choice.

No matter where a person falls on this debate, the issue should be an important one. Though it might appear to be a dead horse, it truly isn’t one – when human dignity and state approved murder are up for discussion, it’s hard to say that the issue is an unimportant one. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Abortion and Christians Series, Philosophy

Abortion and Christians Series

30 05 2008

In addition to the “Re-Thinking Calvinism” series – which I am still working on – I want to also start on a series about abortion. 

Unfortunately, the issue and debate has been mishandled by both sides of the issue and has been debated to the point that people are tired of it. My goal, however, is to first show why abortion is an issue worth debating, why it is morally wrong, and then even use consequentialism and pragmatism to show why it should be outlawed. 

At the same time, I want to approach this matter with the utmost respect and sober mind so as to avoid previous mistakes on the subject. My hope is that people are are pro-abortion (or “pro-choice,” a misnomer I will deal with in this series) will approach this with an open mind, just as I have evaluated and looked at the pro-abortion side with an open mind. 

Most of all, I hope this will open up the discussion in a rational manner.


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Categories : Abortion and Christians Series, Church Related, Secular Culture

Finding God in tough times

30 05 2008

I always teach on the sovereignty of God and how this should cause us to trust in Him. This is quite easy to say when things are seemingly going my way, but when things turn around it is a difficult thing to believe. Currently, things have added up. The transmission just went out on my car (which prevents me from doing my job, which requires me having my own transportation), I currently owe a substantial debt to my school (which is preventing registration), and a whole host of other things are currently going on. Financially, things are stacking up while my income is declining (and has come to a complete stop as of tonight).

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Categories : Devotional

Glenn Beck on Illegal Immigration

29 05 2008

I very rarely watch political talk shows because they’re generally worthless. It’s people attempting to deal with complex matters in about 3 minutes, which often leads to destructive commentary that accomplishes nothing. As Jon Stewart said on Crossfire, these types of shows are hurting America. 

However, I will sometimes catch a few of these talking heads while flipping through the channels. One that has caught my attention is Glenn Beck. Though I do not watch him regularly, he does bring up good points (and bad points), but attempts to do so in a civil manner.

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Categories : Church Related, Secular Culture

Secrets and Judgments

27 05 2008

The other day on Facebook I was surfing around and found this page called “PostSecrets.” Apparently, it’s a group where people can anonymously post secrets about their life without the fear of anyone ever finding out who the secret belongs to. Here are some of the secrets that have been posted:

“I think I’m a lesbian…and I married a man five months ago.”
“I used my daughter’s urine to pass a drug test to get a job at a prison.”
“I’d rather get skin cancer than be pale.”

As shocking as the above secrets are – in that they show an absolute shallowness, confusion, and depravity in our culture – what is worse are the comments made about the secrets. In the few instances where a voice of reason speaks up and says, “This just isn’t right,” they are met with the following comments: Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Secular Culture

#2 – Calvinism and Evangelism/Missions

24 05 2008

One misconception about Calvinism that seems to be prevalent is the idea that Calvinism somehow ruins missions and evangelism. My answer to this, however, isn’t necessarily a negation, but it’s also not an affirmation. In a way, Calvinism does ruin the modern understanding of evangelism and missions. At the same time, it upholds the call to go into the entire world and proclaim the Gospel. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Re-Thinking Calvinism series, Theology

#1 – Humble Calvinism

23 05 2008

One thing must be understood: Calvin’s view of salvation is merely an extension of his overall view on God’s sovereignty. In other words, it’s extremely difficult to accept the “five points” without first accepting some presuppositions.

The first presupposition that must be acknowledged is that though man does take some part in the acquisition of knowledge, most knowledge is revealed by God and all knowledge is only obtainable because of His design plan (see “The Necessity of God in the Acquisition of Knowledge“). Calvinists would tend toward the idea that all “spiritual knowledge” (knowledge about God, salvation, sanctification, etc) is illuminated by God and that this illumination does not occur for all. In other words, though common knowledge or natural knowledge can be gained through the faculties God has supplied us with and can aid in spiritual knowledge, we can only know spiritual truths through the illumination of the Holy Spirit.

The second presupposition is that all truth is external, thus we have no influence on the formation of truth. Though our cultural backgrounds, educational backgrounds, family backgrounds, and other backgrounds can influence our understanding of the truth, truth itself is external to human experience. It is propositional, objective, and external to human thinking and experience. This means – tying in with the last point – that truth is imparted onto humans rather than coming from within humans. Any knowledge gained is merely the acknowledgment of what is already there, an acknowledgment that was also imparted onto the discoverer of the truth.

The third presupposition is that in all knowledge, humans are to keep the glory of God at the center. The first two chapters of Proverbs explain that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of all knowledge and that it is God who reveals knowledge to humans. This means that when knowledge is revealed to us, we are to use it in some way for God’s glory, not our own.

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Categories : Re-Thinking Calvinism series

Re-Thinking Calvinism

23 05 2008

I want to start a series (and I have no idea how long it will last or what all it will consist of) on Re-thinking Calvinism. It seems that there are many misconceptions about what Calvinism is, for both Calvinists and non-Calvinists. 

The goal of this series is to dispel myths about Calvinism and also confront many of the social norms within the “Calvinist community.” The goal is not to prove Calvinism or non-Calvinism, but merely to show there are some wrongful actions on the Calvinist side and misunderstandings about Calvinism on the non-Calvinist side.


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Categories : Re-Thinking Calvinism series

The Husband

21 05 2008

One day a man came home to find his wife in bed with another man. The man, understandably upset, demanded that his wife give an explanation for her activities. The woman, after being away from her husband for a week, decided to send him the following email:

“Dear husband, 

I know that you are left questioning why I would cheat on you and that you are no doubt suffering from some questions, such as ‘did I do anything wrong’ or ‘what could I have done to prevent this?’, but let me assure you that you are approaching this the wrong way.

I had sex with another man in order to help benefit and enrich our marriage. I figured that by sleeping with another man, I would better learn what traditions other wives imparted onto their husbands and I could try that with you. The things he liked and showed me helped increase my understanding and love for you. 

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Categories : Theology

Jean Baudrillard is no simulation

19 05 2008

One of the most under covered and unmentioned postmodern philosophers in America is Jean Baudrillard. This is generally for good reason – to most people he looked like a ‘crazy’ for claiming that the Gulf War actually never occurred. However, Baudrillard’s philosophy is a treasure trove of information that, unlike many postmodern critiques of society, holds quite a bit of truth. I have been reading through some of his works (America, Simulacra and Simulation) and I’m waiting on another to arrive (Simulations). I plan on writing an in depth explanation, analysis, and critique of Baudrillard at some point in the future, but for now I would rather point out some rather interesting points.

Baudrillard claims that there is no such thing as reality in the modern world – at least, reality cannot be known – because everything is a simulation. Anytime we approach a subject our ideas of that subject have been shaped by previous media stimuli. An example of this is (that he uses) is: can you really visit New York City without first having visited multiple New York Cities through media simulation? A person that has watched various movies about New York City is going to have a completely different experience of the city from someone who has never heard of the place and was just dropped in.

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Categories : Devotional, Philosophy, Theology

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