Both the Thou Shalt blog and Dr. Claude Mariottini have mentioned a recent attempt to find “Bible codes”, this time supposedly foreseeing the current financial crisis. But of course, foreseeing is the wrong word, since no one seems to have picked up on this until after the fact. It is easy to start with current events and then “find” them in the Bible, especially if you are willing to ignore the actual words of the Bible and instead skip to... Read more

Is it just me, or is a legislative act that has been proposed in Texas recently, aiming to exempt religiously-affiliated educational institutions from state regulation, inherently self-contradictory?Here’s the text of the bill, which is available online here: A BILL TO BE ENTITLEDAN ACT relating to exempting certain private nonprofit educationalinstitutions from state regulation applicable to degree-grantinginstitutions. BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:SECTION 1. Subchapter G, Chapter 61, Education Code, isamended by adding Section 61.3031 to... Read more

“Synthetic symbolic religious language has creative potential only to the degree that it is recognized to be symbolic, not literal, language. If it is treated as literal, then the symbols themselves become the focus of attention, and the reality-transforming experience that they were originally coined to express tends to be ignored. Instead of facilitating a process of descent into self-examination and surrender followed by an ascent into a transformed reality, the symbols become logical answers to questions of existence. When... Read more

I thought I’d pass this on… CALL FOR PAPERS The University of Toledo student Journal of Philosophy is currently accepting submissions for the Spring 2009 volume. The general theme of this volume is Philosophy of Religion All undergraduate and graduate student submissions related to this theme will be considered. Examples of appropriate topics include the existence of God (arguments for or against), the nature of God, the problem of evil, religious ethics, religion and its implications on social/political thought, etc.... Read more

Whatever one may say about the long-term prospects of inerrancy, it is clearly a live issue in the blogosphere. Here are a few of the posts that have resulted from, responded to or interacted with my recent post on the subject: Finitum Non Capax FinitiAncient Hebrew Poetry (whose post got a response from, among others, NT Wrong)A dialogue was sparked off between Mrs. and Mr. Floppy HatRev. Mark Stevens If you know of others, please do share them! Read more

As president Obama, himself a Christian, continues to make decisions about stem cells and other matters that most Republican Christians disagree with him on, it is worth seeing again this speech about the Bible and American society given by Obama (HT The Rev’s Rumbles). I can’t think of a better example of why “the Bible says” cannot be a basis for American law than the example Obama himself mentions of Abraham and Isaac. To be Biblical could mean to make... Read more

In a recent book, G. K. Beale speaks of The Erosion of Inerrancy in Evangelicalism. His choice of metaphor is evocative: he believes that inerrancy is like the solid land upon which the house of Evangelicalism is built. It is in danger of being eroded by outside forces, harmful elements. I’d like to suggest that Beale is wrong. Inerrancy is dying of natural causes, or perhaps to choose a better metaphor, it is being eaten up by dry rot from... Read more

At Butler’s Christmas party last year I won two tickets to Stomp, and so I took my son to see yesterday’s performance. We both really enjoyed it – about an hour an a half of music, entirely percussion, and without the use of a single object that could officially be labeled an “instrument”. Read more

Don’t forget to change your clocks if you live in a place that observes Daylight Savings Time. It’s so much easier nowadays than it once was… Read more

Someone found their way to my blog after searching for the phrase “proctology and eschatology”. Apparently some people really are fascinated by everything to do with the end. I’m guessing it was a typo and the person was actually looking for information on protology and eschatology. Still, that’s quite a typo! What amazes me most is that it brought them to my blog – I’m pretty sure this is the first time the word “proctology” has appeared on it… Read more