Skeptic Challenges Archives - Page 3 of 24

October 31, 2023October 30, 2023

Neanderthals and the Bible

In 1856, workers in Neander Valley near Dusseldorf, Germany, discovered a cave containing human bones that were different from modern humans. Scientists gave those bones the name Neanderthal, which means “Valley of the New Man.” We have written about this before (such as HERE, HERE, and HERE), but how can we reconcile Neanderthals and the Bible?

Since that first discovery, anthropologists have found Neanderthal remains throughout Europe and elsewhere. Neanderthals had large brains, thick bones, and muscle attachments, indicating high strength. The age of these specimens is much greater than any written human communication. They lived a nomadic lifestyle and dwelled in caves and natural shelters. They did not have cities or build sophisticated structures, but recent studies show intelligent behavior, including mastering fire for cooking, controlling animals, and providing warmth.

Genetic studies show that modern humans had Neanderthal ancestors. Some writers claim that Neanderthals were humans physically but had no soul and, thus, no spiritual awareness. That raises the question of how Neanderthals connect with Adam in Genesis 1 and 2. Those who promote theistic evolution say that ape-like hominoids evolved. Then, when these individuals reached a certain level, God infused them with a soul and called them “Adam,” Hebrew for “of the ground.” Some claim that Cain encountered Neanderthals in the area that Cain was banished to in Genesis 4:14 and following.

The point is that rather than deny that Neanderthals existed, we need to realize that there are many possible ways to reconcile Neanderthals and the Bible account of Adam and Eve. As scientists make more discoveries, the picture may become more evident. Meanwhile, we know the biblical account is valid and not at odds with findings about human history.

References: The Naked Neanderthal by Ludovic Slimak and wikipedia.org

October 27, 2023October 25, 2023

Attitude Toward Money

“Come all of you who are thirsty, come to the waters, and you who have no money – come and buy and eat; yes, come and buy wine and milk without cost. Why spend money on what is not bread and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen to me and eat what is good, and your soul will delight in the richest of fare.” – Isaiah 55:1-2

One of the great mistakes of both atheists and religionists is their attitude toward money. Money is the number one cause of divorce in America. There are well-oiled machines designed to extract money from you and me. Some religious groups feel they must beg and coerce for money to do their work. Some secularists think that being rich is the only way to happiness. The fact is that the financially wealthiest people among us have not been the happiest. Here are a few biblical warnings about money.

1) MONEY CAN’T BUY EVERYTHING. The passage from Isaiah refers to what brings real happiness and satisfaction. Having a purpose in life and knowing you are fulfilling that purpose brings incredible joy. Regardless of your attitude toward money, and no matter how much you have, all the money in the world will not help when death comes.

2) MONEY CAN BE USED FOR GOOD. Luke 16:9-13 finds Jesus telling His followers that through the proper use of money, they can make friends by improving their future, helping others find their purpose in life, and building up the Church (not a human institution) to be an agent of good. Matthew 25:34-40 shows explicitly how Christians can use money. Not only does feeding the hungry, providing water for the thirsty, clothing those who are cold, taking care of the sick, taking in those who need shelter, and helping those in prison meet the needs of hurting people, but it also brings true satisfaction to those who provide it.

3) MONEY MAKES A GOOD SERVANT BUT A BAD MASTER. First Timothy 6:10 says, “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many arrows.” Notice it is not money that is evil, but the love of money. Our attitude toward money can lead us astray. Second Corinthians 9:6-8 talks about sowing generously and tells us God loves those who give cheerfully. A casino is near our meeting place, and people have come to us in tears because they lost what money they had there. We must ask, “Who or what is your master?”

It has always been a practice of the “Does God Exist?” ministry to not ask anyone for money. If God wants this work to be successful, He will fund it, and He does that through people who love Him and cheerfully wish to use the money God has provided them to support causes that make a difference.

October 20, 2023October 16, 2023

What Is a Legalist?

One of our detractors recently wrote that she hates me because I am a legalist. I asked her to define “legalist,” and she refused. What is a legalist? The problem is understanding the difference between a legalist and a believer. My detractor had earlier sent me an email stating that she was applying to be the preacher in the congregation where we worship.

The detractor cited the fact that the government has passed a law that no one can be denied a job based on race, gender, or sexual orientation. She is a lesbian woman and since I have never seen her, I don’t know her race. The fact that I believe God has established different roles for men and women makes me a legalist in her opinion. When I asked her if there was a job a woman could do that I am excluded from she said “No.” When I asked her if she thought I could be a mother, she hung up.

So, what is a legalist? A legalist is a person who makes a law out of their opinion or tradition and forces that on everyone else. God has given us certain laws that even an atheist should not question. One example would be not murdering. That does not make God a legalist because it is not an opinion or me a legalist because I support it.

As a Christian who taught in public schools for 41 years, I have an opinion that recreational marijuana and alcoholic drinks should not be marketed in a place where teenagers have easy access to them. I base my opinion on seeing the horrible damage done by these recreational drugs. My opinion is that they should be removed from grocery stores, quick-stop stores, and filling stations. I have Christian friends who strongly disagree, and they have that right. I am not going to denigrate them or segregate the church over this issue. I can provide evidence of the destructive nature of these drugs (as we have done HERE and HERE), but a legalist would disfellowship another Christian if they drank a beer.

Legalism is a mindset, and Jesus gave us a classic example of what is a legalist in Luke 18:9-12. In this case, it was a Pharisee extolling the things he was doing that the tax collector was not doing, including fasting and giving tithes. He assumed that the tax collector was inferior to him. This ministry is about providing evidence of God and Jesus Christ and asking people to decide how they will use that evidence. It is not my job to tell you what to believe or how to live. I only ask that others not be legalists by telling me I can’t present that evidence or must be forcibly stopped and punished for engaging in a Christian activity just because they disagree.

October 18, 2023October 16, 2023

Generation Z Questions and Faith

Generation Z is a label applied to those born between 1996 and 2010. These young people have grown up with COVID, climate concerns, and lives run by digital controls. Gen Z-ers have been bombarded by hypocrisy in adults, threats of violence, and an atheistic government lacking moral standards. How do those factors affect Generation Z questions and faith?

Those who study demographics tell us that 33% of these young people believe it is impossible to know if God is real. Only 4% have a biblical worldview, and less than 40% identify themselves as “Christian” in the term’s broadest sense. It is not hard to understand why these numbers exist, but the larger question is how can we address Generation Z questions and needs?

The answer is not in preaching to them or quoting scripture. That doesn’t mean the Bible should not be part of addressing their needs, but we must change how we approach them. How did Jesus address the struggles of His disciples and other people of His day? In Luke 7:20-23, John the Baptist sends men to Jesus, asking if He was the one the prophets had said would come.

How did Jesus respond to the question? In verse 22, He said, “Go and tell John the things you have seen and heard.” He then refers to the evidence of the miracles performed. When Thomas didn’t believe that Jesus had risen, what did Jesus do? (See John 20:26-28.) In Luke 24:36-43, the disciples were frightened, thinking they were seeing a ghost. Jesus said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts rise in your minds? Look at my hands and my feet. It is I myself! Touch me and see.” He then ate a piece of broiled fish so they could see he was real.

The point is that Jesus dealt with doubt by showing evidence. He didn’t tell them to blindly believe. He didn’t quote scripture to them. If Jesus appeared in the flesh today, some people would still find a way to deny Him, as the religious leaders of that day did. However, our discussion must center around evidence, not human-made creeds or denominational dogma, and it must be backed up by living a Christ-like life.

We must show evidence that God is real, that we are uniquely created in God’s image, and that we have a soul that makes us different from other forms of life. Furthermore, the teachings of Jesus show that He is far beyond a mere human, and following His instructions can give us a life of fulfillment and purpose. Generation Z questions are the same things people asked of Jesus. We have the tools to address those questions as we show the reality of faith by how we live our lives.

Data from the Barna Group (2018), Impact 360 Institute (2018), and Pew Research Center Religion in Public Life (2022)

October 17, 2023October 15, 2023

Quantum Scammers – Quantum Quackery

Scammers have recently made several claims about quantum physics and its applications. Quantum scammers claim that an interface called Quantum Xrroid Consciousness can use quantum physics to treat various physical ailments, including cancer. Others advertise “quantum power” as a solution to everything from climate change to control of the ozone hole. People are selling “quantum stones” as high-vibration stones for healing arthritis and muscular problems. “Quantum threads” are being promoted as the fabric of space-time to bring the energy of the universe to those who use them properly.

Scammers and quacks will latch onto anything to bilk people out of money or, in some cases, even harm them. Scammers were active in biblical times. Acts 8 tells of a sorcerer named Simon who saw the power of the apostles and wanted to buy it to advance his quackery. In Acts 19, we read about a group of Jewish exorcists who heard about exorcisms by the apostles and tried to do it themselves. Snake oil salesmen did a lively business in the early American frontier. Recently, scammers have sold marijuana to cure everything from athlete’s foot to cancer. My son-in-law died because he was convinced to try marijuana to cure his bone cancer rather than using conventional medical treatments.

None of this has any scientific support. “Quantum threads” don’t exist. Religious quantum scammers suggest that “profound sounding” can open the universe to quantum spiritual understanding through meditation. Quantum theory deals with the composition of particles smaller than atoms, not some plasma that we can harness and use.

We live in an age of incredible spiritual and biblical ignorance. Apostle Paul wrote, “All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness so that the man of God may be complete (thoroughly equipped) for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16). Don’t be misled by claims of people using scientific words to support false medical or religious claims. You can always rely on the truth of God’s Word.

Reference: New Scientist magazine Autumn 2023 and Wikipedia.

October 12, 2023October 11, 2023

Art and Science – Faith and Science

Brian May cofounded the rock band Queen along with Roger Taylor and Freddie Mercury. He is known as one of the greatest guitarists in the history of rock music, and he is also an expert in astrophysics and a consultant to NASA. May combines his art and science, earning a Ph.D. in astrophysics in 2007 with a thesis involving the study of zodiacal dust, which fills interplanetary space in our solar system.

May worked with NASA on the asteroid sampling mission OSIRIS-REx. Finding a safe landing spot to take samples of the asteroid Bennu was one of the most significant challenges of the mission. May found a way to use images captured by OSIRIS-REx’s cameras and process them into 3-D images showing the rugged contours of the asteroid. Those images allowed NASA scientists to decide where to land the probe.

In a National Geographic interview, Nadia Drake asked May about his approach to art and science and how he combines these two fields. May made an interesting statement about his personal approach to this issue:

“This is central to my life and my beliefs. I was told that I couldn’t do art and science as I progressed through school. I was very resentful about that because I loved them both. I feel like the rest of my life has been trying to prove them wrong. More and more and more, I’ve discovered that artistic thinking and scientific thinking are just different parts of the same thing. It’s a continuum. They’re inextricably linked. You have to have both sides to function at your full potential.”

According to Wikipedia, May describes himself as an agnostic, but his approach to linking art and science can apply to faith and science. Our quarterly magazine has a regular column in which leading scientists explain how they mesh faith and science. Those who try to use science to destroy faith are making a fundamental error. Our faith in the Creator makes us want to learn more about the creation. At the same time, science is a great tool to grow one’s faith because the more we know of the creation, the closer we get to the Creator.

Reference: National Geographic October 2023, page 20

October 11, 2023October 10, 2023

Nobody Is an Expert in Everything

Everyone knows that Albert Einstein, the father of relativity, was a genius. Over the years, we have published several articles dealing with relativity and how it helps us understand modern cosmology and the nature of God. One unintended lesson we can learn from Einstein is that a genius in one area of human endeavor may still be below average in other areas. Nobody is an expert in everything.

Reader’s Digest had a wonderful story of an area of human endeavor in which Einstein failed miserably – sailing a sailboat. In 1939, Einstein rented a cottage in Cutchogue, Long Island, New York. A sailboat came with the house, and Einstein decided to go sailing, thinking that he could be oblivious to the world while sailing.

The problem was that Einstein knew nothing about sailing and couldn’t seem to learn how to do it. On top of that, Einstein had never learned to swim. He capsized the boat over 30 times, requiring local people to rescue him and the boat, towing them to safety. Once, Einstein got caught in a strong wind that took him to Connecticut, where he was stranded and again had to be rescued.

Interestingly, movie stars or professional athletes often comment about politics, education, or how to raise a family, and the media presents it as an expert opinion. A star quarterback in the NFL is probably a poor choice to give a lecture on global warming or vaccines. Being good in one area does not mean you are good in all areas because nobody is an expert in everything.

The same goes for religious leaders commenting on cosmology or paleontology. Sometimes, when I have discussed rock types or methods of measuring time and distance in outer space, a preacher will counter with a comment showing a lack of understanding of those topics. I have heard statements from church leaders indicating that granite was laid down by Noah’s flood or that the Web telescope is looking at galaxies created less than 10,000 years ago.

Knowledgable young people recognize when a church leader makes a disproven scientific statement, and it causes them to see the Church as a relic of the past with no help in their daily lives. Those factors are part of the reason young people leave Christianity. Nobody is an expert in everything, but sometimes, we are better off being silent rather than displaying our lack of understanding.

Reference: Reader’s Digest, September 2023, pages 60-61.

October 10, 2023October 9, 2023

The Church is People, Not Buildings

When Christ walked among humans teaching God’s message, He did not call for building physical structures of brick and mortar but for changing lives. In John 4:21-24 Jesus said to the Samaritan woman: “A time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem … a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and truth.” The point is that the Church is people, not structures.

Despite the clear teaching of Jesus, humans continue to waste massive amounts of money on structures while poverty and starvation afflict most people on this planet. I am a graduate of the University of Notre Dame, and I was reminded of this fact by the Autumn 2023 issue of Notre Dame Magazine. It contained a fact sheet showing the cost of the golden dome at Notre Dame and the Virgin Mary statue atop it. The dome was built in 1883, and the statue was placed there in 1880. The total surface area of the dome and statue is 7,300 square feet, and it is gilded with 23.75-carat gold leaf.

The hollow cast iron statue weighs roughly 4,400 pounds. The gold leaf that covers the statue and dome weighs only 15 pounds. Because of weathering and wear and tear, the gold has to be replaced periodically. The most recent regilding in 2023 was the twelfth time. The price of gold in October of 2023 is $1848.47 per ounce, which is $29,575.52 per pound. That means the gold cost $443, 632.80 not counting labor, cleaning, lighting, etc. The advertising value of the gold dome for the university has to be weighed by the school’s administration. I know that the football team and the gold dome are great publicity for the school, and we do not intend to criticize what they do to promote their institution.

The point is that Christians should realize that the Church is people, not buildings. Expensive structures are not what Christianity is about. In Matthew 25:21-46, when Jesus pictured God’s judgment, it is not the buildings, crosses, or educational institutions that indicate who is saved and who is lost. The point is how we have used what God has given us to benefit the lives of others. Those skeptics who condemn Christianity as extravagant in wasting money should look at what Jesus taught, not the wastefulness of misguided human efforts.

September 14, 2023September 13, 2023

ASA Journal 75th Anniversary

On January 7, 1949, the first issue of the Journal of the American Scientific Affiliation was released. It was a bulletin written by scientists who believed in God and who wanted to make an academic response to the skepticism creeping into America’s secular education. The ASA is not an effort by preachers but a product of the thinking and faith of scientists who believe in God. The ASA Journal is active today, and they released volume 75 # 2 of their journal Perspectives on Science and the Christian Faith in September 2023.

The 75th-anniversary issue of the ASA Journal contains twenty-five ASA fellows and editors who tell of their work in conveying academic support for faith through science. Every issue of the ASA journal contains book reviews, but this issue has 20 reviews of books dealing with various apologetics issues.

Anyone can read the ASA Journal, but members of the American Scientific Affiliation must “have attained a bachelor’s or higher degree in a science-related discipline, or they must be philosophers, historians, Bible scholars, theologians or other professionals whose vocational activity contributes to the intersection of faith and science.” They must also give assent to the “statement of faith” (you can see this statement on www.asa3.org-ABOUT-Statement of Faith.)

It is essential to understand that this group consists of people from all denominations and belief systems who believe science supports faith in God. The scholars debate and sometimes express views that others, including your author, may disagree with. However, the organization has made a robust academic response to the growing tide of skepticism, naturalism, agnosticism, and atheism in America today.

You can get more information at www.asa3.org or 978-887-8833. Their mailing address is American Scientific Affiliation, 218 Boston St., Ste 208, Topsfield, MA 01983-2210.

August 31, 2023August 29, 2023

Keeping Religion Out of Government

The Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF), operating out of Madison, Wisconsin, has advocated for keeping religion out of government. That position agrees with the teachings of Jesus Christ, who urged his followers to “Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s; and unto God the things that are God’s” (Matthew 22:21). However, atheism is a religious faith, and it too needs to be kept out of government.

When atheistic “survival of the fittest” becomes the state religion, the result is war, slavery, and genocide on a massive scale. We have seen that in Russia and other atheist countries. However, keeping religion out of government also means avoiding oppressive religious laws like those in the Middle East. Unfortunately, as the American people reject Christian principles, we see a growth of atheistic beliefs in the U.S. government.

FFRF runs ads in Scientific American and other academic journals, and a recent ad says the FFRF is determined to “keep religion out of government and social policy.” Social policy means any discussion of morality or government action with moral consequences. We see the conflict over abortion, where religious views state that all humans have exceptional worth because they are created in the image of God. At the same time, atheistic views say that humans are just animals and that destroying human life is no different from killing any other form of life.

Religious beliefs are the basis for assuming that human life has infinite value. Government policies based on atheism assume that human life has no special value and should not be sustained if doing so is too expensive. The data shows that a large percentage of medical expenses happen during the last year of life.

Government influencers suggest that when an older person requires excessive medical help, they should be euthanized to save money. Atheist ethics advocates like Peter Singer at Princeton suggest euthanizing the mentally ill who have no real chance of being cured. They also suggest that prisoners with life sentences should be put to death rather than supported by the state.

Keeping religion out of government social policy means rejecting atheistic “survival of the fittest” evolutionary theories. Like the fall of ancient Rome, the greatest danger to our country does not come from military forces on the outside but from the collapse of morality within.