While it is a great pun, I think the image makes a useful point. Some try to claim that we know more than we do, as though we can know exactly how to fill gaps in our knowledge based on what we do know. Others try to claim that we cannot logically infer anything about the unknown by extrapolating from what we do know. Neither is persuasive. Insufficient data, like Insufficient Data, gives us a recognizable overall picture, while leaving us... Read more
This was drawn to my attention by a blog commenter, reaching them via another site which got it from Reddit. Star Wars and Christianity (and religion more generally) can intersect in all kinds of interesting ways. But I think this is the first time I have seen a photo of someone from Star Wars simply used as though it were a picture of Jesus. Read more
America is under attack. We can look back over the history of our nation and recall figures like William Cornell way back in 1863, or James Holmes and Dylann Roof from more recently. We can look over the list Wikipedia provides of more than a hundred rampage killers and other examples of mass violence in American history. What do almost all the perpetrators of these violent rampages have in common? Look at their last names. Find pictures of them and look at... Read more
From time to time I’ve had a commenter repeatedly copy and paste at length from online sources. In the most recent instance, the sources were credited, and so it wasn’t a case of plagiarism. But that doesn’t make the comments convincing – and that is for much the same reason that student papers which are a pastiche of quotes are unpersuasive. Copying and pasting isn’t an argument, nor for that matter is it how one has a conversation with other people. To... Read more
Neil de Grasse Tyson tweeted yesterday: The next time anybody asks me about my religion, I think I’ll reply “Geek Orthodox.” The next time anybody asks me about my religion, I think I’ll reply “Geek Orthodox” — Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) July 18, 2015 It isn’t what Tyson has in mind, but I could totally see calling my Sunday school class, or a group that met in the evenings to discuss the intersection of science fiction and religion, “The Geek... Read more
A friend of mine spotted this in a bookstore in Perth, Australia, and shared a photo. So it is a real thing. But why is it a thing? Is this designed for people who will buy it simply because it is so bizarre – or because they, like me, are very interested in both Jesus and Star Wars? Or is it an actual playset for people who think of Jesus as the “ultimate Jedi” (as the fine print says)? What do... Read more
The Facebook page Science and Scripture has been making and sharing a number of interesting images. This one nicely sums up an important point about the false antithesis between Christianity and science, and the falsehoods about science, that young-earth creationists peddle. They tell people they have to choose between the Bible and science, and then they find out that the science they were taught to reject in fact has very strong evidence in its favor, people often do what they were told,... Read more
This explains why they had all gathered on one side of the table… The picture came to my attention via Facebook. I can’t quite make out the signature. Does anyone know the original source? Read more
In a conversation about mythicism I had recently, some points came up that I want to share here. In addressing the claims of mythicism, I think a key point is to get the criterion of embarrassment right. I do not think anyone has ever said, as mythicists sometimes claim, that the principle is “this makes me feel embarrassed, therefore it must be historical.” The point of the criterion is that people do not normally invent beliefs and practices which are at... Read more
The image comes from Stuff Fundies Like. I’m working on developing a course on the Bible and music. I’ll have to figure out how to work in this image at some point. Read more
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