What a New Generation Thinks About Christianity – and Why
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EDWARD H K S ONG Curriculum Vitae
EDWARD H K SONG Curriculum Vitae Department of Philosophy Westmont College 955 La Paz Rd. Santa Barbara, CA 93108 United States of America [email protected] AREAS OF SPECIALIZATION Moral and Political Philosophy AREAS OF COMPETENCE Applied and Professional Ethics, Philosophy of Law, Philosophy of Religion, Public Policy ACADEMIC APPOINTMENTS WESTMONT COLLEGE, Department of Philosophy, Associate Professor, 2015 to present. WESTMONT COLLEGE, Department of Philosophy, Scholar in Residence, 2013 to present. LOUISIANA STATE UNIVERSITY, Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies, Associate Professor, 2013. LOUISIANA STATE UNIVERSITY, Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies, Assistant Professor, 2006-2012. UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA, Lloyd Postdoctoral Fellow in Moral and Political Philosophy, Institute for Advanced Studies in Culture, 2005-6. EDUCATION UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA Ph.D., Department of Philosophy, May 2005 UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD MA, Honour School of Philosophy, Politics and Economics, June 1998 YALE UNIVERSITY, New Haven, Connecticut BA, Philosophy, May 1994 PUBLICATIONS “Preemptive Anonymous Whistleblowing” (co-authored with James Rocha), Public Affairs Quarterly, Vol. 26, No. 4 (October 2012): 257-271. “Acceptance, Fairness and Political Obligation,” Legal Theory, Vol. 18, No. 2 (June 2012): 209- 229. 1 “Rawls’s Liberal Principle of Legitimacy,” The Philosophical Forum, Vol. 43, No. 2 (Summer 2012): 153-173. “Political Naturalism and State Authority,” Journal of Social Philosophy, Vol. 43, No. 1 (Spring 2012): 64-77. “Giving Credit When Credit is Due: The Ethics of Authorship,” International Journal of Applied Philosophy, Vol. 25, No. 1 (Spring 2011): 1-13. “Subjectivist Cosmopolitanism and the Morality of Intervention,” Journal of Social Philosophy, Vol. 41, No. 2 (Summer 2010): 137-151. -
Tracing Kairos: the Modern Applicability of St. Augustine Kelly D
Florida State University Libraries Electronic Theses, Treatises and Dissertations The Graduate School 2008 Tracing Kairos: The Modern Applicability of St. Augustine Kelly D. Israel Follow this and additional works at the FSU Digital Library. For more information, please contact [email protected] FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES TRACING KAIROS: THE MODERN APPLICABILITY OF ST. AUGUSTINE By KELLY D. ISRAEL A Thesis submitted to the Department of English in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Degree Awarded: Summer Semester, 2008 Copyright © 2008 Kelly D. Israel All Rights Reserved The members of the Committee approve the Thesis of Kelly D. Israel, defended on April 16, 2008. _____________________ Kristie S. Fleckenstein Professor Directing Thesis ____________________ Elaine Treharne Committee Member ____________________ Kathleen Blake Yancey Committee Member Approved: ____________________ R.M. Berry, Chair, English Department The Office of Graduate Studies has verified and approved the above named committee members. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract v 1. AN IMPOSSIBLE APPLICABILITY 6 2. A RHETORICAL SITUATION ACROSS TIME 14 The Modern Rhetorical Situation 14 A Redefinition 19 Synthesizing the Modern and Medieval: A Rhetorical Situation for All Times 26 Framework of Analysis 27 3. THE RHETORICAL SITUATION OF ON CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE 28 On Christian Doctrine 28 Exigence 30 Audience 33 Constraints 39 Rhetor 40 Ethics 43 Conclusion 45 4. THE RHETORICAL SITUATION OF JESUS AMONG OTHER GODS 46 Jesus Among Other Gods 48 Exigence 49 Audience 51 Constraints 53 Rhetor 55 iii Ethics 55 Conclusion 59 5. DETERMINING AN IMPOSSIBLE APPLICABILITY 60 Exigences 60 Audiences 62 Constraints 63 Rhetors 65 Ethics 65 Conclusions 66 WORKS CITED 68 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH 71 iv ABSTRACT The purpose of this study is to test the applicability of ancient texts to contemporary concerns. -
The Conflict Between Liberty of Conscience and Church Authority
Reformed Theological Seminary THE CONFLICT BETWEEN LIBERTY OF CONSCIENCE AND CHURCH AUTHORITY IN TODAY’S EVANGELICAL CHURCH An Integrated Thesis Submitted to Dr. Donald Fortson In Candidacy for the Degree Of Master of Arts By Gregory W. Perry July 2005 Table of Contents Acknowledgments……………………………………………………………………. iii 1. The Conflict between Liberty of Conscience and Church Authority Introduction…………………………………………………………………… 1 The Power Struggle…………………………………………………………… 6 2. The Bible on Liberty of Conscience and Church Authority The Liberty of the Conscience in Its Proper Place……………………………. 14 Church Authority: The Obligation to Obedience……………………………... 30 The Scope of Church Authority………………………………………………. 40 Church Discipline: The Practical Application of Church Authority………….. 54 3. The History of Liberty of Conscience and Church Authority The Reformed Conscience……………………………………………………. 69 The Puritan Conscience………………………………………………………. 81 The Evolution of the American Conscience………………………………….. 95 4. Application for Today The State of the Church Today………………………………………………. 110 The Purpose-Driven Conscience…………………………………………….. 117 Feeding the Fear of Church Authority……………………………………….. 127 Practical Implications………………………………………………………… 139 Selected Bibliography………………………………………………………………... 153 ii Acknowledgements I would like to thank Reverend P.G. Mathew and the elders of Grace Valley Christian Center in Davis, California for their inspiration behind this thesis topic. The first way they inspired this thesis is through their faithful preaching of God’s Word, right administration of the sacraments, and their uncompromising resolve to exercise biblical discipline. Their godly example of faithfulness in leading their flock in the manner that the Scriptures require was the best resource in formulating these ideas. The second inspiration was particularly a set of sermons that Pastor Mathew preached on Libertinism from March 28-May 2, 2004. -
Ravi Zacharias Interview.Indd
KNOWING & DOING A Teaching Quarterly for Discipleship of Heart and Mind This article originally appeared in the Summer 2002 issue of Knowing & Doing. C.S. LEWIS INSTITUTE A Conversation with: RAVI ZACHARIAS Reprinted by permission from Decision magazine, March 2002 RECENT EVENTS HAVE FOCUSED A GREAT DEAL OF to raise the dead, a power they do not attribute to ATTENTION ON WORLD RELIGIONS. HOW DO ADHERENTS Mohammed, so that’s a conflicting response. OF OTHER RELIGIONS VIEW CHRISTIANITY? As a Christian apologist, I present a defense of the Christian faith in various settings around the Every culture is basically an expression of its world- globe. I have found that if you build a proper foun- view and its religion. Theologian Paul Tillich said, dation for what the Christian faith is all about, as “Religion is the substance of culture, culture is the you lead up to the cross, the listeners sit in stunned form of religion.”1 In most countries religion has silence. They immediately recognize that Christian- worked itself into the fabric of the culture. There- ity stands in stark contrast to everything that other fore, when people view Christianity, it is inescap- worldviews affirm and assert. They know that true able that they will view it within the framework of power is being expressed in the cross—restraint, their historical experience. mercy, forgiveness—all when the very One who is In India, for example, many people find it impos- offering those things had the capacity to counter sible to separate Christianity from the days of the instead with force and with domination. -
ED390648.Pdf
DOCUMENT RESUME ED 390 648 SE 056 959 AUTHOR Poole, Michael TITLE Beliefs and Values in Science Education. Developing Science and Technology Education. REPORT NO ISBN-0-335-15645-2 PUB DATE 95 NOTE 146p. AVAILABLE FROM Open University Press, Suite 101, 1900 Frost Road, Bristol, PA 19007 (hardcover: ISBN-0-335-15646-0; paperback: ISBN-0-335-15645-2). PUB TYPE Reports Evaluative/Feasibility (142) Books (010) EDRS PRICE MF01/PC06 Plus Postage. DESCRIPTORS *Beliefs; *Cultural Influences; Elementary Secondary Education; Foreign Countries; Moral Values; Science Curriculum; Science Instruction; Social Values; Student Attitudes; Technology; *Values ABSTRACT This book asserts that beliefs and values are integral to the scientific enterprise and the theory and practice of education and hence science education, and that it is desirable to explore such matters in the classroom. It aims at helping science teachers demonstrate how spiritual, moral, social, and cultural factors affect science. Chapter 1, "Everybody Needs Standards," begins by looking at ways in which beliefs and values are located within science and within education and moves on to fundamental matters about the bases of belief systems. Chapter 2, "What Science Cannot Discover, Mankind Cannot Know?" considers how beliefs about the nature of the scientific enterprise have affected popular views about the status of science, and the particular educational task this presents. The ways in which beliefs and values affect the language of science, its models, and metaphors, is the theme of chapter 3, "Every Comparison Has a Limp." Chapter 4, "Wanted! Alive or Dead," addresses issues of environmental beliefs and models. Chapcer 5, "In the Beginning," deals with teaching about the Earth in space and traces out current interest in metaphysical as well as physical questions about origin. -
Cambrdidge, MA – It Was in 1643 When
THE VERITAS FORUM Harvard University — April 6-13, 2003 For Immediate Release Contact: Kyle Klopcic (617) 493-3392 March 31, 2003 Or Heather Woodruff (617) 512-1643 Cambridge, MA – In an age in which religion colors politics both domestically and internationally, students at Harvard University are coming together this April to examine the intersection of faith and salient societal issues. The week-long Veritas Forum, which will run from April 6th through April 13th, aims to explore the intellectual and personal relevance of the Christian worldview in relation to the issues affecting the world today, from race relations to social justice. Believing that their faith will withstand the questioning of their Harvard peers, the various Christian student groups who organized the Forum will submit their faith to public challenge from intellectual, philosophical, and practical perspectives. Dr. William Lane Craig and Dr. Quentin Smith, co-authors of Theism, Atheism, and Big Bang Cosmology, will be the featured speakers at the opening event of the Veritas Forum, where they will be questioning the existence of God in a debate co-sponsored by the Harvard Secular Society. A wide range of spiritual and societal issues will be addressed throughout the Forum, ranging from slavery and the spiritual roots of jazz to domestic and international social justice. These topics will be investigated via lectures, panel discussions, and workshops with guest speakers such as D.J. Grothe of the Council for Secular Humanism; Gary Chapman, President of the International Justice Mission; Ten Point Coalition founder Reverend Eugene Rivers, and Westminster Theological Seminary Professor William Edgar. -
Read Book the Real Face of Atheism Kindle
THE REAL FACE OF ATHEISM PDF, EPUB, EBOOK Ravi Zacharias | 185 pages | 09 Sep 2004 | Baker Publishing Group | 9780801065118 | English | Ada, MI, United States The Real Face of Atheism PDF Book How does this influence my existence? They discuss the nature of argument and worldview. Zacharia practically states that when there is no objective morality or Moral Law , we mess everything up because we are not able to grasp what is right or wrong without a God telling us what is right or wrong. Average rating 4. Paperback , pages. Shelves: philosophy , christian , apologetics. It falls flat for several reasons not least of which is Euthyphro's dilemma. Living Without God. You would do yourself and your friends a favor by reading this book and passing one on to them. He confidently refutes Harris's claims that God is nothing more than a figment of one's imagination and that Christians regularly practice intolerance and hatred around the globe. Why are we presented with the curious choice between either committing to peculiar concepts about immaterial deities or letting go entirely of a host of consoling, subtle and effective rituals and practices for which there is no equivalent in secular society? In much of the Muslim world, religion is the central foundation upon which family, community, morality, and identity are built. A Reasonable God. In America, and elsewhere, a vigorous dispute between 'intelligent design' and Darwinism is seriously undermining and restricting the teaching of science. If you had infinite knowledge, then you would be the very god that you are saying does not exist. -
Review Essay: Religion and Politics 2008-2009: Sometimes You Get What You Pray For
Scholarly Commons @ UNLV Boyd Law Scholarly Works Faculty Scholarship 2010 Review Essay: Religion and Politics 2008-2009: Sometimes You Get What You Pray For Leslie C. Griffin University of Nevada, Las Vegas -- William S. Boyd School of Law Follow this and additional works at: https://scholars.law.unlv.edu/facpub Part of the Law and Politics Commons, and the Religion Law Commons Recommended Citation Griffin, Leslie C., "Review Essay: Religion and Politics 2008-2009: Sometimes You Get What You Pray For" (2010). Scholarly Works. 803. https://scholars.law.unlv.edu/facpub/803 This Article is brought to you by the Scholarly Commons @ UNLV Boyd Law, an institutional repository administered by the Wiener-Rogers Law Library at the William S. Boyd School of Law. For more information, please contact [email protected]. REVIEW ESSAY RELIGION AND POLITICS 2008-2009 THUMPIN' IT: THE USE AND ABUSE OF THE BIBLE IN TODAY'S PRESIDENTIAL POLITICS. By Jacques Berlinerblau. Westminster John Knox Press 2008. Pp. x + 190. $11.84. ISBN: 0-664-23173-X. THE SECULAR CONSCIENCE: WHY BELIEF BELONGS IN PUBLIC LIFE. By Austin Dacey. Prometheus Book 2008. Pp. 269. $17.80. ISBN: 1-591- 02604-0. SOULED OUT: RECLAIMING FAITH AND POLITICS AFTER THE RELIGIOUS RIGHT. By E.J Dionne, Jr.. Princeton University Press 2008. Pp. 251. $14.95. ISBN: 0-691-13458-8. THE POLITICAL ORIGINS OF RELIGIOUS LIBERTY By Anthony Gill. Cambridge University Press 2007. Pp. 263. Paper. $18.81. ISBN: 0-521- 61273-X. BLEACHED FAITH. THE TRAGIC COST WHEN RELIGION IS FORCED INTO THE PUBLIC SQUARE. By Steven Goldberg. -
The Fine-Tuning of the Universe for Intelligent Life
CSIRO PUBLISHING Publications of the Astronomical Society of Australia, 2012, 29, 529–564 Review http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/AS12015 The Fine-Tuning of the Universe for Intelligent Life L. A. Barnes Institute for Astronomy, ETH Zurich, Switzerland, and Sydney Institute for Astronomy, School of Physics, University of Sydney, Australia. Email: [email protected] Abstract: The fine-tuning of the universe for intelligent life has received a great deal of attention in recent years, both in the philosophical and scientific literature. The claim is that in the space of possible physical laws, parameters and initial conditions, the set that permits the evolution of intelligent life is very small. I present here a review of the scientific literature, outlining cases of fine-tuning in the classic works of Carter, Carr and Rees, and Barrow and Tipler, as well as more recent work. To sharpen the discussion, the role of the antagonist will be played by Victor Stenger’s recent book The Fallacy of Fine-Tuning: Why the Universe is Not Designed for Us. Stenger claims that all known fine-tuning cases can be explained without the need for a multiverse. Many of Stenger’s claims will be found to be highly problematic. We will touch on such issues as the logical necessity of the laws of nature; objectivity, invariance and symmetry; theoretical physics and possible universes; entropy in cosmology; cosmic inflation and initial conditions; galaxy formation; the cosmological constant; stars and their formation; the properties of elementary particles and their effect on chemistry and the macroscopic world; the origin of mass; grand unified theories; and the dimensionality of space and time. -
JOSHUA L. MOSS Source: Melilah: Atheism, Scepticism and Challenges to Mono
EDITOR Daniel R. Langton ASSISTANT EDITOR Simon Mayers Title: Satire, Monotheism and Scepticism Author(s): JOSHUA L. MOSS Source: Melilah: Atheism, Scepticism and Challenges to Monotheism, Vol. 12 (2015), pp. 14-21 Published by: University of Manchester and Gorgias Press URL: http://www.melilahjournal.org/p/2015.html ISBN: 978-1-4632-0622-2 ISSN: 1759-1953 A publication of the Centre for Jewish Studies, University of Manchester, United Kingdom. Co-published by SATIRE, MONOTHEISM AND SCEPTICISM Joshua L. Moss* ABSTRACT: The habits of mind which gave Israel’s ancestors cause to doubt the existence of the pagan deities sometimes lead their descendants to doubt the existence of any personal God, however conceived. Monotheism was and is a powerful form of Scepticism. The Hebrew Bible contains notable satires of Paganism, such as Psalm 115 and Isaiah 44 with their biting mockery of idols. Elijah challenged the worshippers of Ba’al to a demonstration of divine power, using satire. The reader knows that nothing will happen in response to the cries of Baal’s worshippers, and laughs. Yet, the worshippers of Israel’s God must also be aware that their own cries for help often go unanswered. The insight that caused Abraham to smash the idols in his father’s shop also shakes the altar erected by Elijah. Doubt, once unleashed, is not easily contained. Scepticism is a natural part of the Jewish experience. In the middle ages Jews were non-believers and dissenters as far as the dominant religions were concerned. With the advent of modernity, those sceptical habits of mind could be applied to religion generally, including Judaism. -
Hurrah for Freedom of Inquiry
FI Feb-Mar 2006 Pages 1/3/06 11:34 AM Page 4 EDITORIAL FI Editorial Staff PAUL KURTZ Editor in Chief Paul Kurtz Editor Thomas W. Flynn Associate Editors Nathan Bupp, Austin Dacey, David Koepsell Managing Editor Deputy Editor Andrea Szalanski Norm R. Allen Jr. Columnists Vern Bullough, Arthur Caplan, Richard Dawkins, Shadia B. Drury, Sam Harris, Nat Hentoff, Christopher Hitchens, Wendy Kaminer, Tibor R. Machan, Peter Singer Ethics Editor Elliot D. Cohen Literary Editor Jennifer Michael Hecht Senior Editors Vern L. Bullough, Bill Cooke, Hurrah for Richard Dawkins, Martin Gardner, James A. Haught, Jim Herrick, Gerald A. Larue, Taslima Nasrin Freedom of Inquiry: Contributing Editors Jo Ann Boydston, Albert Ellis, Roy P. Fairfield, Charles Faulkner, Antony Flew, Levi Fragell, Adolf Grünbaum, Marvin Kohl, Thelma Lavine, Lee Nisbet, J.J.C. Smart, Vital Issues for Svetozar Stojanovi´c, Thomas Szasz Editorial Associate DJ Grothe Secular Humanists Editorial Assistant David Park Musella Art Director Lisa A. Hutter here is an ongoing debate among secular humanists as to Production what our priorities should be, and in particular, what Christopher Fix, Paul E. Loynes Sr. should be the primary focus of FREE INQUIRY. Two subjects Cartoonist Webmaster Don Addis Kevin Christopher have been among the most hotly debated. First is the burn- Contributing Illustrators T ing desire of many secular humanists that we engage in political Brad Marshall, Todd Julie activism. Many secularists, naturalists, and humanists believe that Cover Illustration Todd Julie the United States faces so many critical problems that we need to focus far more intensely on the political battles of today, especially Council for Secular Humanism the culture wars with the Religious Right. -
Blasphemy As Violence: Trying to Understand the Kind of Injury That Can Be Inflicted by Acts and Artefacts That Are Construed As Blasphemy
Journal of Religion in Europe Journal of Religion in Europe 6 (2013) 35–63 brill.com/jre Blasphemy As Violence: Trying to Understand the Kind of Injury That Can Be Inflicted by Acts and Artefacts That Are Construed As Blasphemy Christoph Baumgartner Faculty of Humanities, Utrecht University [email protected] Abstract This article suggests an understanding of blasphemy as violence that enables us to identify various kinds of injury that can be inflicted by blasphemous acts and artefacts. Understanding blasphemy as violence can take three forms: physical violence, indirect intersubjective violence, and psychological violence. The condi- tions that allow for an understanding of blasphemy as physical violence depend on very specific religious assumptions. This is different in the case of indirect intersubjective violence that can take effect in social circumstances where certain forms of blasphemy reinforce existing negative stereotypes of believers. The analy- sis of blasphemy as psychological violence reveals that interpretations according to which believers who take offense to blasphemy are ‘backward’ and ‘unenlight- ened’ do not suffice to explain the conditions of the insult that is felt by some believers. The article shows that these conditions can be explained by means of Harry Frankfurt’s philosophical theory of caring. Keywords anti-religious racism; blasphemy; caring; offense; violence 1. Introduction In recent years, acts and artefacts that were perceived as blasphemous by numerous believers received much attention in public debate as well as in scholarly literature. This concerns the various aspects and interests which motivated public statements and demonstrations for or against such acts © Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, 2013 DOI 10.1163/18748929-00601007 36 C.