Words of the friendly and civil atheist Gavin G. Young will be in blue. This took place in one of my blog comboxes. ***** Dave, are you familiar with what is called the problem of divine hiddenness? It is related to the problem of evil. Namely, if a loving personal god exists why has the god not revealed himself/herself to some people – including people why prayed to the god and called out to the god to provide evidence of the... Read more
Mary Hammond is a Catholic. She wrote all of the words below (save for a few on her page) on my own [public] Facebook page [see the entire unabridged discussion], in April 2017 [see also another related Facebook thread where she was active]. Her words will be in blue. ***** I put forth to you right now that Dave Armstrong, without regard to who trained the ass, educated the ass, is a reflection of exactly what’s wrong with the Catholic... Read more
Elsewhere, I have explained in great detail why I think that public oratorical debates between Catholics and anti-Catholics are unfruitful, unhelpful exercises, for many reasons. I think it is possible to overcome these pitfalls in written exchanges. My view of such public debates has remained constant for at least five years now. I refused “King James” White when he challenged me to a live oratorical formal debate in 1995 (yes, he asked me first — I have the snail mail... Read more
This is an exchange with Protestant “Realist1234” (Peter) in a combox on my blog. As of writing, he still hasn’t responded to my inquiring questions, over 18 hours. If he ever does respond, I will post it here, with my counter-reply. His words will be in blue. ***** The reason why Protestants like myself do not believe the wine and bread used in the Eucharist are not the actual blood and body of Jesus is not because we don’t believe that... Read more
Apostles Paul and Silas, Kings David and Saul, Prophets Daniel and Samuel, Patriarch Joseph Acts 16:29-31 (RSV) And he called for lights and rushed in, and trembling with fear he fell down before [prospipto] Paul and Silas, [30] and brought them out and said, “Men, what must I do to be saved?” [31] And they said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.” Paul and Silas issue no rebuke or clarification: that they... Read more
[See also Part II] Introduction In an e-mail, I wrote (more or less “off the cuff”): As for my $00.02 on this, I think the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki was clearly immoral by just war standards, and cannot be morally justified. Pre-emption is a notion I have no trouble with, and I believe it can be synthesized with traditional just war standards, but killing 100,000 civilians, whether at Dresden or in Japan, cannot. The decision may have been “complex” or... Read more
Scott Hahn and Steve Ray Supposedly Were Motivated Primarily or Solely by Financial Gain, to Become Catholics? [all material below is public Internet material] *** One “Binky Brown” [a former Catholic] writes [on the anti-Catholic CARM discussion forum] (7-10-04): “Observations About ‘Clergy Converts To Catholicism’ “ You know the people I’m talking about: Scott Hahn, David Currie, etc.. My observation is that, if you study these men, sooner or later it becomes obvious that they were in a position where... Read more
Does the following statement (about President Trump) align with biblical teaching? You be the judge: “Massively Ignorant Bigot and Garrulous Buffoon-in-Chief”. Now here is what I believe (as best I can ascertain) is the relevant biblical teaching on the topic of honoring and respecting political rulers: 1 Peter 2:17 (RSV) Honor all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor [even if pagan, anti-Christian, or persecuting: at that time, it was Nero] Exodus 22:28 You shall not revile God, nor... Read more
This is another discussion (posted one yesterday) with my friend, Deacon Steven D. Greydanus, from my Facebook page. It came about spontaneously today, and so (as with most of my debates), I am sharing it more widely, so that others can ponder two sides of a given debate and use their own critical faculties to see where they stand. This is what I love about back-and-forth dialogue. His words will be in blue. ***** The Great Dealmaker got no deal... Read more
Exchange with my friend, the esteemed Deacon Steven D. Greydanus, from my Facebook page. His words will be in blue. ***** “I surround myself with the best people. I know the best people.” — the president with the highest turnover rate in modern history, including five former advisers who have pleaded guilty Are you still in the ranks of the Gospel-denying “Christianist” followers of antichrist GOP, or have you departed to an irrelevant 3rd party by now? Who cares who... Read more
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