Is Text “King?”
By: Jim Virkler; ©2014 What does the text say? Pastors refer to the biblical text. They repeat this question when introducing their preferred pulpit topics. A favored topic giving voice to this question during pulpit studies on Genesis is the important question of origins. Not only do pastors deal with the question of the divine…
Read MoreConvincing Proofs
By: Jim Virkler; ©2014 Luke the physician, author of the New Testament Book of Acts and the gospel named for him, was apparently an evidentialist. Even in Luke’s day doctors were required to be skilled diagnosticians able to observe and report carefully. We are unsure what sort of medical training physicians received in the days…
Read MorePrivilege vs Mediocrity
By: Jim Virkler; ©2014 Guillermo Gonzales and Jay Richards produced a book and DVD in 2004 entitled The Privileged Planet: How Our Planet Is Designed For Discovery. These skillfully written resources are a welcome rebuttal for the naturalistic science community’s belief that planet Earth is nothing special in view of the likely presence of billions…
Read MoreEarth Motion Myths
By: Jim Virkler; ©2014 A recent motor trip to the east coast afforded the opportunity to contemplate the simple motions of planet Earth—rotation and revolution. While traveling east by automobile, clock times advance one hour each 800 miles at our latitude of 40 degrees. For a trip of that length we need to advance our…
Read MoreGood Science–Good Theology
By: Jim Virkler; ©2014 What would be the result of incorporating sound science teachings into the educational offerings of our churches? I do not merely speak of the use of a science reference or two in our church Sunday School, youth group, adult Sunday School discussions, or pulpit presentations. Rather, I propose a deliberate effort…
Read MoreSpringtime and Creationism
By: Jim Virkler; ©2014 Spring renewal in the northern latitudes and the acts of creation described in Genesis manifest a few similarities. Both describe new life. Springtime is a renewal of previously existing viability from the previous warm season. Contrastingly, acts of creation in Genesis are initial appearances of entirely new life on Earth. Prior…
Read MoreTacit Knowledge
By: Jim Virkler; ©2014 Michael Polanyi (1891-1976) was a polymath and pioneer in his vision and proposal of tacit knowledge, sometimes known as intuition. This concept went beyond reliance on scientific empiricism in which knowledge is chiefly gained by sensory experiences and experimentation. Polanyi’s famous statement, “We know more than we can tell” indicates his…
Read MoreOptimal Purpose
By: Jim Virkler; ©2014 In the United States, especially in northern latitudes, winter somnolescence retreats in springtime. During the harshly cold, snowy winter just past, pessimists could speculate most life had perished. A few brave winter non-migrant birds dispel these impressions with their ingenious ability to manage nutritional needs and quench their thirst for liquid…
Read MorePrecision Characteristics
By: Jim Virkler; ©2014 In our previous post entitled Precision Creation we highlighted the precision of the universe in terms of its “just right” characteristics, including past and present expansion rate, the size of the cosmos, and quantity of existing matter. Recognition of these “just right” characteristics is only the beginning of our understanding of…
Read MorePrecision Creation
By: Jim Virkler; ©2014 Before man developed telescopes able to clearly image galaxies outside our own Milky Way, some early scientists and philosophers reasoned that our universe appeared far too small to be the work of God. Scripture writers, on the contrary, did not complain that the apparent visible universe was an undersized creation. An…
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