Soulish Avian Enthusiasm
By: Jim Virkler; ©2012 Our previous posts on the collective enthusiasm of birds in our immediate Northern Illinois neighborhood need some updating. Along with my personal sharing of a few local adventures with birds, I must repeat a definition of soulishness from my summer post on that subject. Soulishness is a trait imparted by our…
Read MoreNatural Theology and Science
By: Jim Virkler; ©2012 Alister McGrath is a theologian and scientist of high reputation. He has written a three-volume work on the relationship between Christian theology and the natural sciences entitled A Scientific Theology. McGrath approaches his subject from a position of creedal purity and orthodoxy, described by McGrath as a characteristic of evangelical faith.…
Read MoreSuperstorm Sandy
By: Jim Virkler; ©2012 For many days we have been forewarned of a weather disaster of historic proportions. Hurricane Sandy, as usual, formed in warm tropical waters and merged with a rare confluence of meteorological factors to produce one of the great weather events of our time. It has affected millions of people in our…
Read MoreCause and Effect
By: Jim Virkler; ©2012 Our understanding of reality includes, among many other abstract topics, the frequently used scientific inquiry of cause and effect. In terms of origins discussions, for example, we might ask if the molecules to man origins theory of man’s existence is explainable by a naturalistic evolutionary process, or do we explain man’s…
Read MoreTrue Rapturous Amazement
By: Jim Virkler; ©2012 We learn much from the pronouncements of secular scientists. Those who work within the venue of nature’s wonders are uniquely positioned to see the beauty and harmony of natural law. The wonder they experience observing and working within this harmony sometimes reads like a true religious experience. In one sense, their…
Read MoreGod’s Global Control
By: Jim Virkler; ©2012 Our 10/13/12 post on “Global Warming and Evolution Conjoined” (particularly anthropogenic global warming) details a recent movement to link two controversial scientific theories. We characterize our reference to global warming theory as an alarmist view of significant temperature rise, unprecedented weather disasters, disastrous sea level rise, and fatal consequences for many…
Read MoreGlobal Warming and Evolution Conjoined
By: Jim Virkler; ©2012 In 2007 the logo for NCSE (National Center for Science Education) was redesigned. It featured an original sketch by Charles Darwin depicting his concept of the tree of life. NCSE is unabashedly oriented toward promoting evolution in our educational system. Their efforts in this area may be characterized as militant and…
Read MoreWeather Disasters and Global Warming
By: Jim Virkler; ©2012 Older people enjoy telling the most memorable weather events from their early childhood. My personal favorite is the 1947 snowstorm in central New York which closed school in that Snow Belt for a solid week and drifted our country road shut with drifts well over the height of the plow blades.…
Read MoreClimate of Disagreement
By: Jim Virkler; ©2012 Evolution continues as a lively “red meat” discussion topic both within and outside the church. The long running controversy over the extent of evolution of earth’s life forms, however, may be taking a back seat to the newest, modern scientific controversy. The National Center for Science Education and other secular education…
Read MoreEvangelical Declarations and Climate Initiatives
By: Jim Virkler; ©2012 If matters of a secular nature such as service to our fellow man, scientific discoveries, or politics were not sufficiently important to command our attention at coffee table discussions, theology always adds an extra dimension. This may be especially true if we deal with controversial matters such as climate change and…
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