The Lasting Effects of Poison

Back when I was in High School I had a terrible time fitting in.  I also had issues with failure. If I thought that I wasn't going to succeed at some project, essay or exam, I would just run!  There was really no one particular moment or individual that put me in this place, but there is one moment that I do remember.

English class.  Oh, English class how I abhor you or more like - oh English teacher Ms. Irwin how I abhor you.  There's nothing like sitting in an educational setting being reminded how ineffective, insignificant and dumb you are.  It's wonderful to sit there class after class listening to a teacher talk about her wonderful and exciting world travels to a class of middle and low-income students.
Once Ms. Irwin noted that I was a Jack of all trades and master of none.  This was surprising to hear - after all, I was only in grade nine or ten.  What exactly was I supposed to be a Master of at that age?  Acne medications?

Laughable

I came across a site that tells readers that it's important to teach children about how to overcome fear, ignorance

"It Will Pass" is an Australian website aimed at liberating fellow Australians from fear, ignorance and superstition, the occultic tripod of law and religion. Fight terrorism by opposing tyrannical and oppressive government.

We dedicate all content herein to the children of this world, that they may gain liberty through knowledge, and salvation through our glorious Creator Yashua (often called our Lord & Saviour Jesus Christ.)

Laughable

Trying A Little Too Hard

Here is a little something I found while scanning some news.  The supplied photo with the article does nothing for the credibility of the piece - they should have omitted it.  It looks like nothing more than a cave with lime like deposits.  They could have shown some of the "mosaics" found in the cave.  Anyhow, here is the article - spelling mistakes and all;)

Archaeologists unearth ‘first church in the world’ in Rihab Georgeous Church in Rihab near Mafraq, where early Christians are belived to have taken as a shelter from persecution in Jerusalem. Circular-shaped stone seats, supposedly for the clergymen can be seen in the cave (Photo by Rula Samain)" border="0" width="400" src="http://www.jordantimes.com/img/3000/2858.jpg"> A picture shows a cave under Saint Georgeous Church in Rihab near Mafraq, where early Christians are belived to have taken as a shelter from persecution in Jerusalem. Circular-shaped stone seats, supposedly for the clergymen can be seen in the cave (Photo by Rula Samain) By Rula Samain AMMAN - Lying underneath Saint Georgeous Church in Rihab, Mafraq, is what archaeologists describe as the first Christian church in the world. “We have uncovered what we believe to be the first church in the world, dating from 33AD to 70AD,” said Archaeologist Abdul Qader Hussan, head of the Rihab Centre for Archaeological Studies. The discovery was “amazing”, Hussan told The Jordan Times. “We have evidence to believe this church sheltered the early Christians: the 70 disciples of Jesus Christ,” the scholar said. The early Christians, described in the mosaic inscription on St. Georgeous floor as “the 70 beloved by God and Divine”, are said to have fled from Jerusalem during the persecution of Christians, to the northern part of Jordan, particularly to Rihab, he added. Citing historical sources, the expert said the 70 lived and practised their rituals in secrecy in this underground church. We believe that they did not leave the cave and lived until the Christian religion was embraced by Roman rulers. “It was then when St. Georgeous was built,” said Hussan. Saint Georgeous is believed to be the oldest “proper” church in the world, built in 230AD. This status is only challenged by a church unearthed in Aqaba in 1998, also dating back to 3rd century. The findings in the graveyard near the cave offer valuable clues, according to Hussan. “We found pottery items that date back from the 3rd to 7th century,” he added. The findings show that the first Christians and their offshoot continued living in the area till the late Roman rule. “Going down a few steps into the cave, one would see a circle shape area, believed to be the apse, and several stone seats for the ecclesiastics,” he added. Archimandrite Nektarious, Bishop Deputy of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese, described the discovery of the cave as an “important milestone for Christians all around the world”. “The only other cave in the world similar in shape and purpose is in Thessalonica, Greece,” the bishop said in an interview in Amman. The cave also embraces the living place of the first Christians. “A wall with an entrance is the only partition separating the altar from the living area,” Hussan said. There is also a deep tunnel, which is believed to have led the 70 Christians to their source of water, the archaeologist added. Officials in Mafraq say they will capitalise on the discovery to further promote the area. Governor Zeid Zreiqat, who noted Rihab is rich in unique archaeological sites, said that together with the new discovery, these sites can be invested to attract religious tourism. “We are working on developing Rihab to become a major tourist attraction in the near future,” he told The Jordan Times. So far, 30 churches have been discovered in Rihab,” Hussan said. It is also believed that Jesus Christ and the Virgin Mary have passed through this area, he added. I particularly like the part where the governor will be "working on developing Rihab to become a major tourist attraction in the near future".  You do need money for serious archeology! FMF

Danesh Still Has A Lousy Argument

In his latest article "Can a Darwinian Be a Christian" posted Jun 12th 2008, Dinesh D'Sousa uses Micheal Ruse to support his opinion that god/jesus/christianity are real and that Richard Dawkins is a so and so. I've found this is the usual diatribe found in most of Mr. D'Souza's articles.




When Richard Dawkins published The God Delusion, philosopher Michael Ruse was quoted as saying that the book "makes me embarrassed to be an atheist." What especially galls Ruse is Dawkins' pig-headed insistence that anyone who embraces the Darwinian account of evolution cannot remain a Christian.
Ruse is a noted philosopher at Florida State University, an atheist champion of evolution and Darwinism, and author of several critically acclaimed books including Can a Darwinian Be a Christian?
I've been reading Ruse's book, and in it he counters Dawkins' simple-minded argument that God has been proven irrelevant since chance and natural selection now constitute "the blind watchmaker." Ruse writes, "It still leaves open the option of God's designing at a distance. Perhaps God put His design into action through the medium of unbroken law. Perhaps a God who works in this way is superior to a God who has to intervene personally and miraculously."
But doesn't evolution contradict a literal reading of the first chapter of Genesis? Yes, but Ruse points out that there are only two groups of people who insist on reading Genesis in a close-mindedly literal way. The first group is ignorant fundamentalists. And the second group is ignorant atheists like Dawkins.
By contrast, Ruse shows that from earliest times thoughtful Christians like the church father Augustine read the creation account figuratively. And for nearly two thousand years the Catholic Church has followed in this tradition. Ruse adds that while Calvin was a bit more literal-minded than Luther, both leading reformers also allowed for non-literal understandings of creation. Indeed Calvin introduced his doctrine of "accommodation" in which he argued that the Bible is sometimes written in a form as to make itself intelligible to people who are not well educated and don't have a sophisticated understanding of science.
Ruse 's conclusion introduces subtleties that seem entirely beyond the capacity of Dawkins. "Is the Christian obligated to be a Darwinian?" Ruse answers no, but urges Christians to take evolutionary biology seriously because they don't want a Christianity practiced in the dark. "Is the Darwinian obligated to be a Christian?" Again, the answer is no but Ruse adds this advice: "Try to be understanding of those who are." Finally, Ruse gets to the big one. "Can a Darwinian be a Christian?" To which he offers the resounding answer: "Absolutely!"

If one truly understands evolution by natural selection, then any god is only used for filling in gaps the reader cannot fill.  Mr. Ruse's ruse is up.