Posts Tagged by materialism
Atheism as ‘Gateway Drug’ to Drifting Away
| November 10, 2009 | Posted by Anthony under apologetics, apologetics academy, atheism, Bible Reliability, Blog, Creationism, evolution, intelligent design, morality, philosophy, scientism, Secular Humanism, spirituality |
As of this writing, I am facilitating a course/discussion regarding the decline of Christianity in America. Someone made a point in the discussion that is similar to one I’ve made previously… but I can’t find where I made it so I’m making it anew. 
The question begins with a look at the measured increase in self-identified ‘religious nones’ in America since around 1990. (This data can be found linked to here.) In 1990, some 8% of Americans identified themselves as having no religion. Today, that figure has doubled. In the meantime, there has been a drop in those identifying themselves as Christians, from about 86% to 76% of the nation’s population. Some back of the napkin calculation suggests that some 30,000,000 fewer people call themselves Christian than did in 1990 with a significant portion of these falling into the ‘religious none’ category.
However, of note, the number of outright atheists has seen only a moderate increase. Even many of the ‘religious nones’ say they believe something.
Scientism: The Atheist’s Religion of Faith
| March 23, 2009 | Posted by Anthony under atheism, Blog, evolution, General, morality, Obama, Papers, philosophy, politics, scientism, theism |
In light of what I have said above it may come as a surprise that I have a very high view of science. But it’s true. I believe that you need the right tool for the job and in many cases that tool is empirical scrutiny. But other jobs require other tools and no hemming and hawwing will change that. For some jobs a hammer, for others a screwdriver and others, pliers. You may have found that sometimes one gets lucky- a screwdriver is best for screws but at last resort a hammer did the trick. But try changing your lightbulb with a hammer and tell me how that goes. 
Let the hammer pound nails and the screwdriver drive screws and air compressor pump up the tire: the right tool for the job, and be wary of anyone who insists on using just one tool for all jobs, and watch out especially if they don’t want anyone looking over their shoulder while they are ‘at work’ and even berate you for suggesting other approaches.
Creationists Lurking Around Every Corner
| February 16, 2009 | Posted by Anthony under atheism, Blog, Christianity and Culture, evolution, General, theism |
Mr. Morris is a Christian, but he is also an evolutionist. Like another famous Christian and evolutionist, Francis Collins, Mr. Morris is fiercely set against Intelligent Design. And why? There is nothing inherent to Intelligent Design to overthrow evolution (Many if not most IDers embrace evolution, just not unguided evolution). And everyone, with the exception of a few hard boiled atheists like Dawkins, concede that evolution doesn’t preclude the existence of God. So what’s your problem with Intelligent Design?
My gut says that the problem is that the Intelligent Designers have been labeled- and dismissed- as closet creationists and as there is no insult worse than to be called a creationist, one must run far away from anything that smacks of the term if one wants to be considered credible, both inside and outside of the scientific community.
The Christian and Social Action
| June 25, 2008 | Posted by Anthony under Blog, General |
You may discuss this post at the corresponding discussion forum thread. In the midst of my various activities lately (finishing my own book, finishing books for review, etc) I have been contemplating and discussing what the proper attitude and conduct should be among Christians towards things like oppressed workers in China and things of that…
Atheism and Facts and the Escape from Oneself
| June 9, 2008 | Posted by Anthony under Blog, General |
A recent commenter said: “Well I don’t believe in invisible entities like gods, angels, spirits, or pixies, faeries,etc…”
I immediately thought to myself all the invisible things that he does believe in. I thought of the invisible things that the scientific community believes in- like all the missing dark matter and the millions of years which life is said to have evolved in which is ever and always invisible to direct observation- and realized with a start a fact which of course I have long been aware of… atheists who hide behind science in their mockery of those who believe in invisible realities mask their true objection- not that invisible realities might exist, but that these realities might be an entity.
Interview question on the writing of Fidelis- a post apocalyptic setting for moral exploration
| May 25, 2008 | Posted by Anthony under Blog, General |
I was handed a bunch of interview questions a while back and we actually had an audio interview but that interview is now lost in the hills of Argentina (I kid you not). I have been answering them one by one on my blog at www.birthpangs.com but this one (and a couple to come) I…
The Fellowship of the King: Graduation Speech, 2005.
| February 18, 2008 | Posted by Anthony under Blog, General, literary apologetics, Podcasts |
If you really want to fix it in your heads what that path looks like and what it means to travel on it I want you to think of the books by Tolkein that have recently been made into movies- The Lord of the Rings trilogy. Doesn’t that series resonate within us so deeply because we secretly desire to live in that world? Do you think that is an accident? Some do! I am telling you that you ARE living in that world, if you have eyes to see it. You need only take the path to the right. As you make your way down that narrow path you will have to cut down vines, move boulders, and cross rivers- hard work, true. But you will journey with elves, dwarfs, hobbits, and men.
I am inviting you to join, not the fellowship of the ring, but the fellowship of the King.
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