All tagged trust
Reasons for You to Believe, #2. Is the version of the Bible we have in English accurate? In ancient history was it, as some scholars assert, ever taken and manipulated? I begin working through the process—the canonization process—of how we came to have our Bible. Also tackled in this episode: a) is it okay to have some doubts about the Christian faith? b) what is the perfect argument that precedes faith in God? c) what was Jesus' own Bible? and, d) a new election season UN-song!
Many folks have good personal reasons to get a Covid shot. Herein I work through six reasons why I am not, for now, getting an injection. I also explain some of the biases and limitations at work in science and how those have played out, or not, during the Coronavirus mess. What has concerned me? What about our context has made me leery throughout? Come think with me. Or come disagree with me!
Society teaches us that our emotional state is of supreme importance. How does that compare with the Christian way of life? To make the point I tell three of my life-changing stories. How had God re-directed my own path? I also offer some immediate post-election reflections. Come, think and laugh with me.
Do you have to pray, "Dear Jesus, come into my heart," in order to be a Christian? How else might we assess whether someone is a believer? Then, in my final episode in this "Cult of the Now" series, I address the issue of taking a stand. To that end I offer 6 practical steps pertinent for our strange and disorienting era.
Is all faith the same? Doesn't God just look for faith, in general? What does John's Gospel show us about faith? This episode is a sort-of quick hitter (14 minutes). What kinds of faith really exist
What's the difference between a cult and a sect? Why do Mormons have more faith than I do? What about their faith is spurious, from a historical perspective? What is Platonic about their eschatology? What does Mormon faith do to the preeminence of Christ? And, why am I personally conflicted about the Church of Latter Day Saints?
Christians run reason through a sieve of faith, but that in no way cancels out reason. Faith welcomes reason! Even more, faith makes room for doubt! It is true, yes, that God is far greater than reason, but he comes to us in ways that reason welcomes and embraces. In this episode I tell the stories about the first college class I ever taught and about sharing my faith with my mom. I also explore a recent neuroscientist's book on Near Death Experiences.
We all live our lives based on a story. By which story are you living? God is a risky author-actor: he lets other subjects and beings have a role in his own very play. We can say “no,” we can somewhat alter the story. But if we're going to join God at recess, we'll be asked to play by the guidelines of his playground. Oh, and I also speak toward what all this means for me.
Perplexingly, the Bible's undergirding presupposition is Faith. But, just what is faith? How should we define it? And, how does the Bible prove faith? Or, to what did Jesus appeal in order to "prove" himself and his identity? Similarly, how do we explain or prove a miracle? How does faith manifest in everyday life? This episode also contains a movie review.
Are Scientists only objective? Is religious faith unusual? Well, we are taught daily that science is based on pure reason. But in this episode, following Michael Polanyi as our guide, I will show that actually science involves great subjectivity. Moreover, the doing of science involves trust, that is faith, risk, and commitment; qualities that are normally relegated to the world of religious faith.
The standard mantra goes, “faith is for religion, facts are for science.” But the truth is huge chunks of our everyday lives are lived by faith. You don't know how electricity works, but you trust the people who do, and you trust who built your appliances, wired your house. It takes faith to learn how to play the guitar. Faith, then, is not so unusual as we think. This episode also contains a movie review.
