Is Science a "Religion"?

In an interesting op-ed Paul Davies concludes: "until science comes up with a testable theory of the laws of the universe, its claim to be free of faith is manifestly bogus." In this copyrighted article, he explains that the only rational way to be a scientist is to BELIEVE that the "laws of physics" are absolute. Whether a scientist is peering into "inner space" at the sub-atomic level, or the vast expanse of outer space, he is EXPECTING to find order, not chaos. Even when he tries to explain HOW everything came to be, he must depend on the basic laws of physics to assemble "order" from chaos.

And so, away with this nonsense that "faith" is devoid of reason! For "reason" is not devoid of faith. And, it never will be. It is impossible for a finite mind -- even the collective minds of all of humanity -- to explain the infinite source of the "laws of physics." Isaac Newton was a genius, but he was also very religious. He saw the connection. Let our self-appointed gurus of science take note.

Debate excerpt: Mike on Morals

From YouTube comes a pertinent answer to "What is the most pressing moral issue facing this country today?" Huckabee's pro-life concerns reach far beyond the womb:

Chuck Norris Approved

And now, the winning TV ad of the primary season:

Pastors and Pews by Mike Huckabee

Some may wonder why we Christian Conservatives are so divided over the choices for the Republican nomination. I sure do. How can such good men as Bob Jones, III, and Pat Robinson make such endorsements as they have done? And why is James Dobson reluctant to make HIS voice known in a personal endorsement? We know who he WON'T endorse already!

Anyway, it is clear to THIS Christian Conservative who should be our standard bearer. I, for one, AM voting for a pastor, not just a president! I like Mike! And so, here is a much longer video (over 40 minutes) which gives a very real feel for just who this man is:



Please feel free to spread this message. We need a true conservative Christian to lead this nation back to God.

I Like Mike!

It is a sad day when the biggest names in Conservative Christianity endorse candidates for their chances of winning. I submit to you all that ANY strong conservative will beat Hillary in the South - especially the "Deep South." If the conservative Christian community will just exert their strength in numbers behind ONE MAN - and that man being one of them! -- He can win! This add is a good one:

"Hell" to pay!

For years -- well, actually for decades, mankind has been battling "air pollution." And for good reason. Natural "air" is a combination of nitrogen, oxygen, trace minor gases, water vapor, and carbon dioxide. The last two are what have come to be known as "greenhouse gases." Pollution is the introduction of dangerous gases and particulates that compete with natural air in interaction with plant and animal life on the planet.

The Environmental Protection Agency highlights the six most common pollutants, four of which so compete - and thus poison all life on the earth. These pollutants are: carbon monoxide [CO], Nitrogen dioxide [NO2], Ozone [03], Sulfur dioxide [SO2], particulate matter [dust, dirt], and lead [Pb, the ultimate "heavy metal"]. The first four are gases that co-opt life-sustaining oxygen in a way that cannot be easily released to feed cells in living things. CO2, on the other hand, is used by trillions of plant cells to build sugars to build healthy plants and feed hungry animals! The number one contributer of Carbon dioxide is - hold onto your hats - breathing animals!! Both plants and animals exhale the other leading "greenhouse" gas: water vapor! This is the beautiful cycle of life created by our wise Creator.

But now, as natural cycles seem to be bringing a warming trend to our planet, some people are considering artificially alter the air (at least above the clouds) to cool down the earth - or halt the warming - much the way a major volcano does. That is, by introducing Sulfur into the stratosphere! Ah, yes, salvation is to come from the bowels of the earth! What could be the consequences of a cloud of sulfur above our [water vapor] cloud cover? And how much would be needed to "save the icecaps (and the polar bears)"?

Two pictures come to mind - one ancient and one modern. That place of death now known as the "Dead Sea" once had thriving cities on its shores: Sodom and Gomorrah. The brimstone that covered them was this same sulfur that these environmental zealots seek to spew into the air! And who can forget the world of The Matrix! Humanity tried desperately to remove sunlight as a power source of the up and coming computers, only to become the living batteries to run the Beast!

As it was once said: "It's not nice to fool Mother Nature." How much more so if mankind seeks to "save" the earth unnaturally!

Gap Theory - Revisited

"And the earth became without form, and void."

Or at least that is how some scholars have CLAIMED Genesis 1:2 should read. (The Original Scofield Reference Bible, for instance.) This was to allow for the time that would have produced the geological "evidence," and possibly even evolutionary development. Well, now the evolutionists have come up against a "gap" of their own.

In an article in the New York Times, John Noble Wilford laments that:

"In the study of human origins, paleoanthropology stares in frustration back to a dark age from three million to less than two million years ago. The missing mass in this case is the unfound fossils to document just when and under what circumstances our own genus Homo emerged.

The origin of Homo is one of the most intriguing and intractable mysteries in human evolution. New findings only remind scientists that answers to so many of their questions about early Homo probably lie buried in the million-year dark age."

How tragic that so much time in digging for bones is used to bolster an unprovable theory which MUST assume that God does not exist. From a single jaw bone whole species are created, dated by the fossil-containing rocks that are around it! And these rocks are dated by the assumed evolution of the presumed extinct organisms that are in them.

In this article, much is made of a few bones found near Russia (Republic of Georgia). This "hominid" is thought to have migrated early on out of Africa, only to return after "evolving" beyond its contemporaries. But alas, the fossil record has a great big gap - one million years wide - with no evidence upon which to build an argument. Quoting a researcher, the article ends:

"Dr. Lieberman said that he and colleagues 'are relentlessly optimistic that we have all the information we need to answer our big questions, but just haven’t figured out the order in which to connect the dots.'

But the real problem, he added, with resignation tempering optimism, 'is that the fossil record doesn’t have enough dots.' ”

First, there is the problem of "irreducible complexity" and now there is just not enough fossils! What's a poor evolutionist to do?

The Nature of Love

"Alex’s final words were: “I love you.”

There is no doubt that Alex had a keen awareness of the situations in which that sentence is appropriate — that is, at the end of a message at the end of the day. But to say whether Alex loved the human who taught him, we’d have to know if he had a separate conceptual grasp of what love is, which is different from understanding the context in which the word occurs. By any performative standard — knowing how to use the word properly — Alex loved Dr. Pepperberg."

Verlyn Klinkenborg, NY Times Editorial

The linked article raises some interesting thoughts about the abilities of animals to actually think. But the editorial raised the question of "grasp[ing] what love is," a concept I have just recently covered in my devotional reading. Just what is love? The best description of Christian love is in I Corinthians 13:4-7 (my own translation):

This love suffers long, for it is kind. This love is not envious. This love does not brag and it is not arrogant. It is not rude, for it is not self-seeking. It is not irritable, for it does not think on bad things. It does not rejoice when it sees evil, but rejoices when it sees the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, expects all things, and it keeps itself under control.

This is of course "charity," or sacrificial love. Alex the parrot certainly displayed an affection for his trainer, as does my cat towards me. Dr. Pepperberg spent thirty years with this one bird, teaching it concepts of colors and shapes, and even, it seems, numbers. Surely, then the filial relationship was established. The bird, though, was just too selfish to know "agape" love. This sacrificial love is known ONLY among men and with God.

D. James Kennedy - Warrior in Christ's Army

“Now, I know that someday I am going to come to what some people will say is the end of this life. They will probably put me in a box and roll me right down here in front of the church, and some people will gather around, and a few people will cry. But I have told them not to do that because I don’t want them to cry. I want them to begin the service with the Doxology and end with the Hallelujah chorus, because I am not going to be there, and I am not going to be dead. I will be more alive than I have ever been in my life, and I will be looking down upon you poor people who are still in the land of dying and have not yet joined me in the land of the living. And I will be alive forevermore, in greater health and vitality and joy than ever, ever, I or anyone has known before.”

D. James Kennedy, Ph.D.

I cannot say much personally about the ministry of the PCA's most famous preacher. His ministries have had worldwide influence and many others are writing of this in blogs and websites this weekend. Dr. Kennedy had suffered a heart attack last December and just two weeks ago had retired from the church he had founded and pastored for almost five decades. I recommend, though, that my readers go to Coral Ridge Ministries website to read of this great servant of our great God.

I recently blogged concerning Dr. Kennedy (about the time of his heart attack, unknown to me) to defend his stance on activism. He had said we are to "take back America for Christ." A local reader of our newspaper was shocked at such a radical statement. The answer to "Who's afraid of Dr. Kennedy?" -- ungodly men and women who fear righteousness! He has passed on, but his legacy remains at Coral Ridge PCA, Evangelism Explosion International, and Knox Theological Seminary, to name a few!

A Wall of Separation

Who would have thought that traffic engineers would be "peace keepers." But that seems to be the case in Israel. With all the talk about a separate Palestinian (that is, Philistine) state within the Biblical bounds of Israel, the present government seems to have come up with a solution for "separate, but equal" access through lands claimed by the separate peoples. Two parallel roads, divided by a concrete, fake stone wall, will bypass Jerusalem. Only verified Israeli or authorized Palestinians will have access to the road with exits into town. Palestinians can pass by town but not enter (routed under or over access roads).

Israel is willing to give up some of its land for peaceful "co-existence," but it will not allow Jerusalem to be used as a capital for its ancient enemies. From King David's time on, this city has been considered holy. In Solomon's time it became not only the capital, but the "home" of YHWH! How can the home of God be sold out from under Him?! Of course, we know that He owns it all. Not only that, His temple is not His home. God's home is with and IN His people! This is why I believe that the literal interpretation of all the "eternal" promises to Jerusalem are so misguided.

The city is not meant to be an eternal point in space that God considers sacred. The terrestrial city has served its purpose, being replaced by a temporal spiritual city (the church) that points to the eternal "New Jerusalem" which will be the "center of worship" in a new heavens-and-earth. This center of the new universe is described as a cube twelve thousand stadia (approx. 1380 miles) to a side. The only other cube in scripture is the "Holy of holies" - the inner sanctuary where the ark of the covenant was (1 Kings 6:16-20). It was there that God "dwelt." The symbolism is perfect, as the account in Revelation seems to make quite clear (Rev. 21:1-2, 10-27). That city will be the ultimate in "separation" as the eternally blessed will forever be with God while those outside (Rev. 22:15, see also Rev. 21:8) will forever be apart from His love and protection!

Unfortunately, many who consider themselves "God's people" driving on the Israeli side of these new roads in Israel are "heading in the wrong direction" while there is a large contingency of Christians (probably larger than all the Christian Jews in the land) in the population relegated to the other side of the wall. Such irony.

Read about the wall and the roads at the article at the New York Times.

The Brave vs. the Bold

A pumped-up giant (some would say ogre), Barry Bonds meets his match in the consistency of Atlanta pitcher John Smoltz. Incredibly, though Smoltz has allowed more homers against Bonds than any other pitcher, he has shown he can control the ball enough to keep the homerun king at bay in the homestretch. Bonds is still short of Hank Aaron's record, but Smoltz does not intentionally walk him as many others do.

I like that, though I have come to dislike baseball as a whole. The use of steroids has changed the game. It not only spoiled the results of the single season home-run race, it has spoiled the all-time home-run race as well. Just as there should be an asterick next to Roger Maris's old record (broke in a spectacular race by Mark McGuire against Sammy Sosa and then by Bonds three short years later), Hank Aaron's record will also be overshadowed in controversy.

Will Smoltz intentially walk Bond at his attempt at number 755 and/or 756? I think he will pitch as usual. But then, I don't follow baseball anymore.

Ironically, the New York Times article about this match-up has an html entitled "25Bonds.html"
This is strange, unless the bias of the sports writer is against the Braves or something. It sort of shadows the

Leviticus 4:11!

A rather interesting curse, or empty swearing, is the expletive Holy S---. Not quite using God's name in vain, and using a vulgar word for a natural fact of animal life, it brings to mind instructions in the Torah concerning what to do with the left over stuff not burnt on the offer -- take it outside and burn it!

Well, I think saying "Leviticus 4:11" would be a clever way to express one's wonder at some incongruence. Those with a sense of humor would "get it" once they ran to their copy of the Scriptures.

Such was my thought when I read the editorial in the New York Times that explained the little island they dubbed "Little America" near Haiti. A "postage stamp" of land off the coast of Haiti is being claimed by Haiti and the USA. And it is literally a pile of dung! A guano island, first claimed by an American sea captain 150 years ago as a source of fertilizer, Navassa will not support human life, though it supports over 650 other forms of life. Haiti claims it, but we did not recognize them when they made the claim. What a picture of vanity!

An Analytical Visionary

What kind of thinker are you? This test of 18 choices purports to determine what kind of thinker you are and then gives suggestions on how to better communicate with other types of communicators.

This is part of the analysis it gave of my thinking type:

Deep Thinker

You are a deep, thought-filled person who is constantly participating in a dialogue with others to test your creative and rational processes. You're always asking yourself and/or others these three questions:

"Why is something happening?"
"How does it work?'
"Who can I communicate with to help me understand what's happening or who is the best person to work with to complete a specific task?"

Whatever you are thinking about has to have some analytic, precise and systematic criteria with a historical and factual basis. If it does not meet most of these, you first become skeptical and then very intuitively creative in exploring other ways to reconstruct the problem into a different paradigm which may lead to a distinct solution.

Well, that just about sums me up. As my wife of almost 30 years asked, "You needed a test to tell you that?"

Anyway, if anyone happens along to this, the test can be accessed here. The folks at ActualMe.com have apparently employed some good social scientists, because they figured out my three-quarter brain just about right. Now if I could just come to a conclusion! :-)

Liberal Whining at the New York Times

Which is worse - prosecuting a policeman for roughing up a known drug dealer, or pursuing a gang of sex slave marketers within the bounds of the US? A no-brainer, huh? Of course, it would be the modern slave traders! But note what the New York Times writes:

Pursuing trafficking cases, rather than those involving hate crimes or police abuse, was seen as important to moving ahead in the department, current and former career officials said. They added that political appointees in supervisory positions frequently vetoed proposed hate crime investigations or questioned them to death.

“You only needed for that to happen a few times and people got the message they shouldn’t be eager to send up such cases,” said one lawyer who would talk only on condition of anonymity.

It seems that their anonymous sources think priorities should be in harassing overworked cops or prosecuting a guy for beating up someone who happened to be of a different world view or ethnic differences. Slavery or prejudice? Where should the priorities be placed?

It is a sign of the depravity of man to traffic in the carnal pleasures of the unrestrained few. Prejudice has been with us since the tower of Babel (and probably before!) and seems to be a built-in flaw (or defense mechanism in some cases). It is hateful to beat up anybody - especially those weaker than you - and someone who showed respect (dare we say "love") for his fellow men would not beat anyone up anyway!

The bulk of the article, though, was the Liberal Times whining about "special" attention being shown to people of faith in the Bush Administration. It is ironic that many of those who are receiving this much needed attention are the same ones turning against the President on his approach to immigration. He is our friend, folks! Just look who his enemies are!


The article complains that a total of eight graduates of conservative religious based law schools -- Ava Maria (Catholic) and Regents (Evangelical) -- in a three year period which "only" saw 63 from the leading liberal law schools (Harvard and Yale). This "marked increase" was somehow a political move in what, to them, has always been "nonpartisan". What hypocrisy! Harvard STILL puts out the majority of government lawyers -- 16 of 31 -- with more that ALL others combined in 2006! In fact, all the religious based schools (five listed) came out far behind the secular schools (four listed), being overwhelmed 6 to 25.

The irony of this is that both Harvard and Yale were founded early in this nation's history for the express purpose of educating the next generation of MINISTERS! Google pulled up this site (http://www.whatyouknowmightnotbeso.com/academia.html) in which the truth of our founding institutions is clearly laid out! Only with the Liberal Press can such an overwhelming ADVANTAGE be seen to be a problem! The one-fifth representation, including one Mormon is surely close to that of the general community and should not be feared.

The graphic above was on the NY Times, copyright 2007.

Reasoning with Liberals

I am beginning to wonder if you can even reason with the liberals any more. Coming from the New York Times, the reporters try to be reasonable as they report the what appears to be spiteful decision of the top Democratic contenders to even appear on a Fox News sponsered debate. It even has the Liberal media confused:

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/27/washington/27fox.html

by Raymond Hermandez and Jacques Steinberg

[T]he leaders of the Congressional Black Caucus began looking for a television outlet to co-sponsor and broadcast a presidential debate to address the concerns of minority voters.

Only one news channel made an acceptable proposal, and an unlikely channel at that: Fox News, in what some Democrats viewed as an effort to associate itself with a group that could help it make good on its claim of presenting “fair and balanced” news coverage.

But now that relationship is being shaken by the decision of Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York, Senator Barack Obama of Illinois, and former Senator John Edwards of North Carolina to shun the debate . . .

Fox’s proposal included broadcasting the debates in prime time, giving the caucus a say in selecting moderators and covering much of the production cost. . .

There is no reasoning with them. It is all about power with them. Compromise means agreeing with them, as we can see with the vitriol that continues even after a compromise has been worked out on immigration reform. Of course, the right wingers are just as opposed to the new bill. Many of them are no more willing to accept anything but their way either. There is no reasoning with them, either!

Fox News tries to be fair, but they apparently can't be balanced as long as news directors edit what is aired. Someone has to CHOOSE what is aired, and in that there is a bias. But to shun such a network because they can't control them -- that is not fair. Not to the network, nor to their viewers.

Perhaps the minority voters will see through the propoganda of the left in this most recent hypocrisy. Or not.

"You didn't have a baby, you had a fetus"

How utterly heartless to say such a thing to a grieving mother of a stillborn child. But such is the mindset of the pro-abortion crowd. The state official that explained to Joanne Cacciatore that a death certificate was all she would get was just pronouncing the "official" practice in most states. A baby is not "alive" until it breathes air.

This is patently false! And the abortionists know this. The science is so clear that the pro-abortion forces are against the movement that has gotten nineteen states -- including such bastions of liberalism as California and New Jersey! -- to pass laws allowing official documentation of the births. But Democratic governor Bill Richardson (who happens to be "running" for president) has vetoed a bill that would have given babies in New Mexico this honor.

How can someone be granted a "death certificate" without first having LIFE? That is a logical inconsistency if language means anything at all. What a stillbirth amounts to is a spontaneous late-term abortion. A majority of "abortions" used to be just "stillbirths," for intentional acts of violence against a developing child was thought to be barbaric. Unfortunate deaths of developing children were grieved as any such tragic deaths were.

Thankfully, South Carolina is one of the states that offer certificates. But three cheers -- and accolades -- to Indiana, Missouri, and Arizona! These states not only offer certificates, they give tax exemptions for the child. Now THAT'S commitment to life.

Chart and story

I read this first in the NYTimes Headlines online edition, Seeing the headline there, I immediately thought of the "abortion debate." And sure enough, that angle received its due. I was a surprised that some at Planned Parenthood were soft to the idea of giving the parents ways to greive their loss.

Solar Powered Flashlight -- for real!

Okay, I know folks have joked about a "solar powered" flashlight. I mean, after dark, how would you use one? But then, who's to say that a solar battery charger couldn't do the trick?

I had seen solar-powered walk lights advertised, but I didn't need those. It makes sense, but I didn't think how much of a difference it would make to Africa and other developing nations where ineffecient kerosene and throw-a-way batteries were eating away at there economy and their ecology. No, I don't necessarily mean "global warming," but just that there are more economical and "safer" ways of getting light into the darkness.

Anyway, I thought this would be a good way to get the message out:

Here is the URL. This is a GOOD IDEA. More on this later.

400 Years! Happy Birthday Jamestown

This weekend marks the beginning of the fifth century of English America. In a very real way, the observance of the signing of the Virginia charter on May 14, 1607, is a "birthday" celebration for America. The "American dream" began with this experiment in liberty. Though a commercial enterprise, its purpose was primarily for the furtherance of the Kingdom of God on earth. One hundred years ago, these words were inscribed on a monument to mark the 300th anniversary (concluding instructions to the colonists):

Lastly and chiefly, the way to prosper and achieve good success is to make yourselves all of one mind for the good of your country and your own, and to serve and fear God, the Giver of all goodness, for every plantation which our Heavenly Father hath not planted shall be rooted out.

Ah, yes, the American dream was still alive at the dawn of the twentieth century. Now, though, history is being re-written daily. Lest we forget our heritage, let us reflect with Stephen McDowell on the Uniqueness of the United States:

"America has been different than any nation in history. America has been exceptional. This has not been due to any inherent value of her people, but has been due to the valuable ideas upon which she was founded.

These include such ideas as: valuing the individual; freedom of worship; opportunity for all to labor and benefit from the fruit of their labor; freedom to elect representatives; freedom of expression of ideas; freedom to own property; freedom to get ideas, start businesses and create wealth; limited jurisdiction of civil government; the central role of the family."

"D.S." should not mean "Death Sentence"

I was catching up on this week's headlines and come upon this article.

This article calls attention to parents of children with Down Syndrome fighting for the continued acceptance of these precious people. I have known the worst cases and the best, and it is a tragedy that 90% of those parents told their child will suffer this disability will chose to terminate that young life before it gets a start! To be fair to these parents, most of those that consent to the test are predisposed to abortion as an option anyway. But nonetheless, I salute these parents of Downs children who are speaking out.

By the way, this seems to be largely non-political, and is not linked to any pro-life group.

Not Quite Solomon

For my small readership, I offer this test (available here for a limited time). On the side bar of the New York Times online, the teaser was an offer to test by Monica Ardelt from the University of Florida to assess one's "wisdom." Since fear of God is the beginning of wisdom, I was not sure how well I would do on such a test. Thirty-nine questions later, I find out (at least according to this scientist's test) that I am moderately wise.



I suppose this is about right, since I am probably two-thirds of the way through life. That would mean, of course, that I project myself to live another 27 years at least! At least by the age of 81 I might rate an 4.5. Since my grandmother Allen was my oldest surviving grandparent at 88, I suppose the 81 is reasonable. I have surmised elsewhere that my unusually good health might have "condemned" me to the life of a centenarian. If I do, then I guess I might attain the covetted rating of "5" on the good doctor's scale.

I wonder what HER score was? :-)