Quote of the Week VII

Whether the treatment of that portion of our knowledge which lies within the province of pure reason advances with that undeviating certainty which characterizes the progress of science, we shall be at no loss to determine. If we find those who are engaged in metaphysical pursuits unable to come to an understanding as to the method which they ought to follow; if we find them, after the most elaborate preparations, invariably brought to a stand before the goal is reached, and compelled to retrace their steps and strike into fresh paths, we may then feel quite sure that they are far from having attained to the certainty of scientific progress, and may rather be said to be merely groping about in the dark. (Kant, Immanuel. "Critique of Pure Reason" Barnes and Noble; New York: 2004)

Quote of The Week VI

When testing world views we cannot presuppose the truth of a given context or framework, for that is precisely what is being tested. Combinationalism cannot be a test for the context (or model) by which the very facts, to which the combinationalists appeal, are given meaning. An apologist, for example cannot legitimately appeal to the miracle of Christ's resurrection as a proof for the existence of God. Unless there was already a God to perform that miracle (or act of God), the ressurection could not be a miraculous confirmation of God's existence. Acts of God presuppose a God who can act. And to presuppose a God who can act in order to prove by one of his acts that he exists is viciously circular reasoning.

(Norman Geisler. Page 129 of "Christian Apologetics". Baker Book House; Grand Rapids: 2006)

The Heart Is Held

But what could I give you if I wished?
And what could take the death from you again?
And all this talk of leaving so far gone for now
And every kiss a bitter memory.
But in these things you still remain
The questions and the still-born pain
These things I carry in my sack
That weigh me down and keep me back
These things that keep you close to me
Are never things I want to see.
And never do I let them go
But I'm not holding on, you know,
And it makes one wonder how that works,
And how the pain makes muscle-jerks
And all the symptoms here to see
But never answers for you or me,
But never answers for you or me.

And Never On My Own

The things that God has brought me through often surprise me. They are often things that I would never have imagined I could handle (and in a sense, it is often the case that "I" did not handle them by myself). It also comes as a surprise to me what circumstances actually bring me to my knees. The body has one head. The body will be one- let us remember him who has promised things through it.

It occurs to me that life must be a whole or nothing at all. The reason is simple, I cannot live in pieces. I cannot live in parts. I am one person and I cannot live as two or three or four. Integrating the parts must be my goal.

Panamerica and Beyond- Extrem Events Style

So I ran into Karl Bushby the other day and he was talking with two gentlemen from Germany. As it turns out, one of them was Matthias Jeschke, who was the driving force behind the 2006 trip from Prudhoe Bay to the tip of south America in three vehicles running on biofuels. It was a brilliant trip-- not only did they run on biofuels for more than fifteen-thousand miles, but they also broke the time record (they finished the drive in fifteen days). They have something else a little more spicy planned and I suggest you check it out. On a side note, the other fellow's name was Joachim- I've never met anyone named after that particular king of Israel before. Cheers Gents!

Quote of the Week V

The discipline of silence is the voluntary and tempory abstention from speaking so that certain spiritual goals might be sought

(From pg 184 of Donald Whitney's "Spiritual Disciplines For The Christian Life" NavPress; Colorado Springs: 1991)

On Boston

You know the thing I like about Boston? The thing I like is the size. You know it is right on the coast, but as near as an hour and a half from the mountains. There are about a million people- and a charming number of one way streets. There is a lovely new artistic bridge- and the old hideous expressway is no more. Plenty of pubs that serve decent clam chowder and a whole lot of music. I've always been partial to the BMFA and the Boston Museum of science often has exhibits I would tend to classify as "cool". There is plenty to visit, plenty to see, and if you like history-- well, for America, there is more than you can shake a fist at.

Quote of the Week IV

"Is there a problem here at all? According to Goldman, 'Plantinga owes us an answer to the question precisely what cognitive faculties are there, and which ones must be functioning properly for a given belief to be justified?' But why do I owe us an answer to that question? No doubt it would be nice to have one, and no doubt a really complete theory would include something like such an account. But this just means that without such an answer my account is incomplete-- which of course it is. For Goldman, on the other hand, the problem is not incompleteness, but something much more debilitating: we can see that no matter which level of generality we select, the analysis will give us the wrong results. No analogue of that problem, so far as I can see, afflicts my account."

(Plantinga, Alvin. "Warrant and Proper Function" page 29. Oxford University Press; New York: 1993)