philosophy

Ken Samples - The Problems of Evil, from Straight Thinking podcast

havoc — Mon, 25 Apr 2011 13:25:31 +0000

Ken Samples - The Problems of Evil, from Straight Thinking podcast

Life's Ultimate Questions: An Introduction to Philosophy, Ronald H. Nash

havoc — Fri, 28 Nov 2008 05:25:03 +0000

I had already listened to a lecture series which Dr. Nash gave with this book as the text for the course. I'm glad I read the book. I'm actually considering re-listening to the lectures now.

Abecedarians -- they DO exist!

havoc — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 16:25:30 +0000

Oh, my... I'm still thinking about what to think about this. I know people (lots of people) who believe this, but have not formalized it like the Abecedarians, and taken it to it's logical conclussion:

Abecedarians
A 16th century German sect of Anabaptists led by Nicholas Storch who believed that all knowledge, even knowledge of the alphabet, prevents people from a true knowledge of God. Abecedarians believed that God would provide all necessary understanding through divine means such as visions and ecstatic experiences. According to them, all theology and “academic” learning amounted to an idolatrous abandonment of the Christian faith. Their name, Abecedarians, comes from their denial of the ABCs.

I found this on the Theological Word of the Day blog.

Virtues

havoc — Sat, 13 Oct 2007 16:30:39 +0000

Virtues cannot be created instantaneously; the process by which they are acquired is part of the nature of having them. Each of us is given an opportunity to develop into a better or worse person. But we cannot grow in an environment that is free of risk and danger and disappointment. Just as God had good reasons for creating us with free will and for placing us in a lawlike environment, God also had good reasons for placing us in an environment that is challenging, that tests us.
-- Ron Nash, Faith and Reason, p 204

A quote with a problem

havoc — Sun, 17 Jun 2007 14:43:29 +0000

With or without religion, you would have good people doing good things and evil people doing evil things. But for good people to do evil things, that takes religion.
- Steven Weinberg

Well, Steven, there's a problem there.... a fairly obvious problem, once you've looked at it.

Without religion, there is no evil or good. So, when atheists condemn religion as being 'the root of all evil' (Dawkins, most recently), they have to borrow from the Bank of Christian Reason to say, "there is evil, and I can positively identify it." Simply, if there is no God, and there is no absolute Truth, there is no absolute morality, there is no "good," then nothing is evil... there are just actions.

Theology Rocks Show #40 - "Introduction to Thinking Trinitarian Thoughts - What's In There?"

havoc — Tue, 27 Feb 2007 07:40:00 +0000

One of our listeners and friends wrote us asking about the Trinity, "I heard a sermon on this subject; I would like to hear a discussion by you. Some sermons even say, 'Forget the Trinity - they are all "Jesus."' So what is your take?"

That's a great question... and it deserves a thoughtful answer. We don't try to be authoritative on the Trinity, but we try to lay out some guidelines, explain why it's an important doctrinal and philosophical principle, and set some orthodox boundaries. We hope this helps, and generates some good thinking in you. If you have questions, or challenges, feel free to get in touch with us.

Show Links:
- Wikipedia - heresies
- Theopedia.com
- Louis Berkhof (Theopedia link) - History of Christian Doctrines (Amazon.com)
- Summary of Christian Doctrine (online book)
- Reasons to Believe

If you like the show, tell a friend about it! If you don't like it, tell someone you don't like! In either case, you can send us feedback at feedback@opendiscipleship.org. You can also engage in our Open Forums at the web site. You can call and leave us voicemail at our voice line (206) 339-3163 (calling from your cell is probably free). If you're as geeked as Jody, you can record your question or comment and email it to us at the feedback address. You could send a fax to the voicemail number above, if you wanted to....

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