Archive: November, 2011
The nutcracker that thought he’d stoke the fire and other bad ideas
“It comes up constantly. Without a god, without an afterlife, how can life have any meaning?” So says ”Bad” of the “Bad Idea Blog” at the beginning of his article “The Meaning of Meaning & Why Theism Can’t Make Life Matter“. Bad doesn’t think this idea is of much worth. Thus he retorts: ”Meaning without God? The question [...]
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Can you see the sun if it doesn’t reflect light?
John Loftus and I have now completed the manuscript for God or Godless and I can say it was the most fun I ever had writing a book. (And I have fun writing books so that’s saying something.) I also think it may be the most important project I’ve ever worked on. (Admittedly depending on [...]
Read moreGod or Godless nears completion
Things have been relatively quiet at randalrauser.com this past week, and for good reason. John Loftus and I have been working hard to finish the manuscript for our debate book God or Godless. And the way the work is progressing, we should be finished within the next 4 or 5 days. At that point I’ll have [...]
Read moreThe Confessions of an Ouranophobe, or How I got over my fear of heaven
A couple months ago I blogged on the notion of a fear of heaven. What follows below is a much longer discussion of the same topic. It is an autobiographical excerpt which I originally wrote for a book I am currently writing on the concept of heaven. Once I decided that the passage would not be included in the book, [...]
Read moreLife is a concentration camp, so why are you smiling?
Few American autuers can boast the kind of reputation enjoyed by Woody Allen. While his films rarely clean up at the suburban Cineplex they are a cherished mainstay at the neighborhood art house. Whatever you think of Woody as a person, his oeuvre speaks for itself. And time and again Woody has explored one particular theme: the [...]
Read moreHave you faced down any tanks lately?
I saw the Clint Eastwood film “Pink Cadillac” on June 4, 1989. But I don’t remember a thing about the film except that it was a comedy of sorts and it included a pink Cadillac. What I do remember came after the film. I said goodbye to my friends and walked out to my car. It [...]
Read moreTwo servings of fruit in every can?
The other day I was in the grocery store when I saw a display featuring cans of a carbonated beverage which promised “Two servings of fruit in every can!” It occurred to me that any society which tolerates the claim that a 355 ml (or 12 oz) can of carbonated beverage possesses two servings of [...]
Read moreCan the Calvinist and Arminian ever sing Kumbaya … together?
Paul Manata wrote several things in response to my recent article on Calvinism and the contrast effect. Since he sounded particularly exasperated this time around I thought I’d better field some of his comments directly. (However, I must admit that I’m presently slower in responding to comments generally than I’d like because I’m finishing a book [...]
Read moreCalvinism and the Contrast Effect
Let’s begin by identifying two different senses of “glory”. Objective glory: the degree of greatness that an individual exemplifies. Subjective glory: the perception others have of the degree of greatness that an individual exemplifies coupled with an appropriate response to that objective greatness. Our concern here is with Calvinism and its explanation for God’s subjective glory [...]
Read moreWhat on earth happened to Colton Burpo? A Discussion of “Heaven is for Real”
Tomorrow morning (November 19) I’ll be speaking from 9 AM – 12 PM at McKernan Baptist Church in Edmonton on the question “What on Earth Happened to Colton Burpo?” If you are asking yourself “Who is Colton Burpo?” I have to wonder where you’ve been. The book Heaven is For Real (Thomas Nelson, 2010) was [...]
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