Religion and Philosophy
Of History, Resurrection, and the Number Three
One of the cornerstones of almost every Christian denomination is the resurrection of body or spirit. This is almost always based in resurrection of Jesus Christ after three days. This story is particular powerful because it is a demonstration of God’s power over death and is a complete, amazing, and satisfying answer to question of [...]
Lost in the crowd
Community. It is a pretty powerful word–a pretty powerful idea. I have to admit that it is also somewhat foreign to me. I am ever in contact with the idea because of my study of religion–in fact, one of the “not-definitions” of religion is community. But, when it comes down to [...]
The Religion of Codified Laws
I’ve often said that I am firm believer in the individual or communal religious experience. I do not think I’ve made strong efforts to qualify what that means. One of the defining aspects of an institutional religion is the codification of practices into laws, rituals, acceptable practices, etc. For me, this is [...]
Leaving the Garden
Wanted to let you know about my invited post on the most excellent Mind on Fire. It is part of the “Leaving the Garden” series.
http://www.mindonfire.com/2008/02/22/leaving-the-garden-isaacs-journey/
From the site:
“Leaving the Garden” is a weekly series in which we ask someone to reflect on their encounters with religion and uncertainty. Religion is filled with stories of faith; here [...]
Is this what Academia is all about?
Let me tell you a little story.
So to Pope decides to visit an Italian University and give a speech. This is not a churchy event, but is the opening of the academic year and, in my opinion, a pretty big win for the University. Say what you will about the Pope, it is a big [...]
Can Atheists Be Parents?
Editor’s Note: It has been pointed out that this article is from 1970, so I suppose that changes things a little bit. I preserve the original entry nonetheless.
Apparently not in New Jersey.
According to this Time article, a New Jersey couple has been denied the ability to adopt a child because they are not religious. [...]
Moral Vicissitude
Can a forced ideology be called morality?
What I am concerned with here when I say “forced ideology” is when an individual accepts an ideology because they were told to do so, whether this is from a personal authority figure, such as a parent, or something or someone more systemic, such as the military commander for [...]
Optimism, Pessimism, and the ever forgotten Realism
Those who have followed my ramblings over the years know that I am not a fan of either/or, black/white type of thinking. I believe that one of the great things about life is the shades of grey which makes up the bulk of the human experience. It seems to be a natural process [...]
Russian Doomsday Cult
I have been very lax in my study of religion of late. It turns out that when you have assignments and constant pressure that comes with grad school, it’s much easier for it to be hobby. I’m going to file that under ironic and move on. My focus when I was actively [...]
If you really want to be good..
…just be good?
Even though I’ve studied it quite a bit, I have never understood why people argue that morals cannot be exclusive from a god / religion / whatever. The same-old “atheists have no morals” rhetoric.
Perhaps it is because those who express these feelings cannot control themselves?
I have to admit that the idea of [...]
