Christianity Archives

March 26, 2026March 26, 2026

Who Is Artemis?

In just a few days, as early as April 1, 2026, NASA will send astronauts to the Moon to orbit it and then return to Earth as part of the Artemis program. This will be the first time in over 50 years that American astronauts have traveled to the Moon. NASA named the project Artemis for several reasons. Why did NASA choose this name, and who is Artemis?

In Greek mythology, Artemis was the twin sister of Apollo. During the Apollo program, NASA successfully landed astronauts on the Moon six times between 1961 and 1972. The ancient Greeks believed Apollo was the god of the Sun, and Artemis was the goddess of the Moon. NASA chose to name the project Artemis to connect it to earlier lunar missions. Additionally, the Greeks believed Artemis was protective and closely linked to nature. This lunar mission emphasizes sustainability and long-term exploration. While the Apollo missions landed near the Moon’s equator, the Artemis astronauts will explore toward the Moon’s south pole, where they hope to find water. Another reason for choosing a female goddess is that NASA plans to land the first woman on the Moon.

So, who is Artemis? You may be familiar with the incident in Ephesus described in Acts 19. Ephesus was a Greek city in Asia Minor (present-day Turkey). It was home to a temple dedicated to the goddess Artemis. Paul had been preaching there for two years (verse 10) and had led many people to be “baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus” (verse 5). Verse 20 states that “the word of the Lord spread widely and grew in power.”

The gospel’s success in Ephesus angered some merchants, especially a silversmith named Demetrius, who made silver shrines of Artemis. Selling these idols brought in a lot of money for the local merchants. Demetrius stirred up a crowd, telling them that Paul was convincing people that “man-made gods were no gods at all.” He warned: “There is danger not only that our trade will lose its good name, but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis will be discredited, and the goddess herself, who is worshipped throughout the province of Asia and the world, will be robbed of her divine majesty.”

Demetrius’s speech caused a stir, and the entire city was in an uproar (verse 29). The people seized Paul’s companions, Gaius and Aristarchus, and took them into the theater. Only the city clerk was able to calm and dismiss the crowd, telling them that the matter should be settled in court, not in the theater of public opinion.

The question of “who is Artemis” can be answered by saying she is “no goddess at all.” I pray that the Artemis mission will be safe and successful. I also pray that we, as a nation, will not depend on false gods or goddesses but will turn to the one true God, just as many of the people in Ephesus did.

March 20, 2026March 19, 2026

Access to the Bible

This ministry is dedicated to affirming that science and the Christian faith are allies that support each other. The Christian faith is based on the belief system presented in the Bible, which we believe is the Word of God. One common challenge from skeptics is the lack of access to the Bible for everyone. It is unreasonable to claim that Christianity cannot be true because most people in the world have not had access to the Bible or learn what it teaches.

Certainly, some people have not had access to the Bible, but claiming that the Bible isn’t available to most people worldwide is not accurate. According to the Wycliffe Global Alliance website, at least part of the scriptures has been translated into 4127 languages. The Search Light from Edmond, Oklahoma, reported that the entire Bible has been translated into 776 languages, and the New Testament into an additional 1,798 languages.

The dictionary defines language as “a system of communication used by a particular country or community.” God has provided everyone with the opportunity to know He exists. (See Romans 1:20.) There are forces in the world that deny God’s existence and attempt to block access to the Bible. Additionally, human-made religions are plentiful and often distract people from God’s message. While work remains to be done, the “Good News” is widely available in both written and spoken forms, and online. It is up to Christians to spread that message, and it is up to each individual to decide whether to act on what Jesus has taught us.

References: Wycliffe Global Alliance and The Search Light (PO Box 371, Edmond, OK 73083-0371) (Website: www.searchtv.org).

March 19, 2026March 18, 2026

Impact of Marijuana on Neurological Development

Widespread marijuana use in the Western world has not been around long enough for its effects to be fully understood. Alcohol has been used much longer, and its destructive effects are well-documented. We are concerned about the impact of marijuana on neurological development in youth. Your author lives in a marijuana hub. Currently, in Buchanan and Niles, Michigan, there are 26 marijuana shops of various kinds. We see license plates from Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, and Wisconsin belonging to those purchasing marijuana and vape products.

Scientific data on the long-term effects of marijuana are starting to emerge. A recent study tracked the marijuana use of 460,000 young people in California from early adolescence until age 25. It revealed a significant impact of marijuana on neurological development. Thirty-three percent of users developed depression, and twenty-five percent needed treatment for anxiety. Compared to non-users, teens who used marijuana had much higher rates of bipolar disorder and schizophrenia.

Dr. Lynn Silver, a pediatrician at the Public Health Institute, explains that marijuana significantly affects brain receptors, and she hopes their study will encourage kids to think twice before they vape or eat a gummy. She states, “With legalization, we’ve had a tremendous wave of the perception of marijuana as a safe, natural product to treat your stress with. That is simply not true.”

First Corinthians 3:16 says, “Do you not know that you are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God has His home in you? If anybody desecrates the temple of God, God will bring them to ruin, for the temple of God is holy, which temple you are.” We see this principle playing out today in the impact of marijuana on neurological development in young people.

References: The Week for March 20, 2026, page 21, cedclinic.com, and healthday.com

March 13, 2026March 11, 2026

Birding and the Brain

An article in New Scientist suggests that birdwatching may change brain structure and help protect against brain aging. Researchers at Canada’s York University studied 48 people whose hobby was birdwatching. Although they all shared an interest in birding, half were experts, and half were novices. The researchers found an interesting link between birding and the brain.

For the test, the researchers selected 18 bird species that looked somewhat similar. They showed each birder a picture of a bird for less than four seconds. Ten seconds later, they asked them to identify that bird species from four images of similar-looking birds.

Of course, the experts outperformed the novices at identifying the birds. They also showed increased brain activity in three areas. These areas of the brain are involved in object identification, visual processing, and attention/working memory. Birding involves all of those brain functions. The researchers concluded that “building expertise in birding reshapes the brain.” The test group ranged in age from 22 to 79. With age, our brain’s structural complexity and organization tend to decline, and the study showed that the decline was less pronounced in the expert birders.

What can we learn from this research on birding and the brain? It could be that those expert birdwatchers already had structural brain differences before they started birding. However, it supports the idea that maintaining brain activity helps to reduce the effects of aging on the brain. It also suggests that other activities or hobbies that use similar skills might also slow brain aging. The skills required for birding involve attention, memory, and sensory integration. Other activities involving similar skills could have the same positive effect on our brains.

We have often heard it said that if you don’t use it, you will lose it. That is true for physical abilities, and it is also true for brain-related activities. Being physically and mentally active helps to keep us healthy and sharp. I believe this principle can also apply morally. Living a life of good moral behavior and following the teachings of Jesus in Matthew 5-7 and elsewhere in the New Testament can make us morally strong and prepared to face the temptations of daily life. Reading and meditating on the Bible, like birding, involves attention, memory, and sensory integration.

Reference: New Scientist magazine, February 2026, and online.

March 11, 2026March 9, 2026

AI to Study the Dead Sea Scrolls

Beginning in 1946 and 1947, some Bedouin shepherds accidentally (or providentially) discovered what has become known as perhaps the most important collection of ancient documents ever found. Known as the Dead Sea Scrolls, more were discovered in the Qumran caves near the Dead Sea until 1956. Researchers are now using AI to study the Dead Sea scrolls.

For Bible scholars, the significance of these documents lies in their confirmation of the accuracy of the transmission of many Old Testament books. Of 15,000 scrolls and fragments dating from the third to the first centuries BC, 40% contain Hebrew scriptures. The most complete Old Testament book is Isaiah, the messianic prophet who predicted much about Jesus Christ seven centuries before His birth.

These scrolls have been studied using paleography (the study of letter shapes), radiocarbon dating, and even DNA analysis of the animal skins on which they’re written. Now, researchers are using AI to study the Dead Sea Scrolls. They named their AI model “Enoch” after the Old Testament figure who didn’t die. (See Genesis 5:21-24 and Hebrews 11:5.)

To train Enoch, researchers used radiocarbon data from other scrolls found in various locations in the Judean Desert. They also instructed the model to analyze the distinctive styles of the characters, cross-referenced with other scrolls. Using this AI method, they examined over 130 scrolls and found that almost all of them were even older than previously estimated.

The bottom line is that these ancient scrolls containing Old Testament texts align closely with the text in our Bibles today. This demonstrates that the Bible has been reliably copied and transmitted over thousands of years. The Bible text today can be trusted to reflect the original writings. Although using AI to study the Dead Sea Scrolls is still in the early stages, it is providing us with a clearer understanding of how and when these documents were produced.

Reference: Biblical Archaeology Review, Spring 2026, page 10, and Wikipedia.org

March 4, 2026March 3, 2026

Water Into Wine Controversy

The “News and Notes” section of our fourth-quarter 2025 Does God Exist journal included an item about the Cana wedding feast where Jesus turned water into wine (John 2:1-11). Our skeptic friends have been quick to challenge this biblical event, claiming it is impossible from a chemical standpoint. John Lankford, a chemistry teacher in Fort Smith, Arkansas, and supporter of this ministry, sent the following comment on the matter:

In the last journal, you addressed this event of “water into wine.” While teaching AP chemistry, a student asked me, “Wouldn’t H₂O changing into all the organics needed for flavoring require a nuclear event?” I explained a POSSIBLE scenario to the class.

Since we don’t know many details of the event, we can logically SPECULATE some things. First, the “water” was not pure (a misnomer itself) but contained gases like carbon dioxide and oxygen. So, all the basic atoms were in the water. In fact, CO₂ + H₂O + energy —> a sugar + O₂. So, no nuclear reaction is needed to get carbon for grape sugars or flavorings. But an external energy and organizational force is required (which was Jesus, the Word). The oxygen, as a by-product, could give the “wine” a “bubbly effect” that might enhance the taste (similar to how people buy “oxygenated water” today).

This, of course, is just SPECULATION, but basic FACTS about ancient waters and the chemical reaction we see in photosynthesis suggest that Jesus called into play what was already available in nature to perform a miracle. (PS-even the assumed clay jar may have acted as a catalyst). The fact that a miracle can have a “mechanism” does not negate its being a miracle.

At any rate, this SUPPOSITION lets the student know that a “nuclear reaction” need not be what “must happen.”

Thanks to John for his explanation of the water into wine miracle from a chemistry teacher’s perspective.

February 25, 2026February 22, 2026

The Public School’s Job

The February 13, 2026, issue of Time magazine featured an article titled “Censored in the Classroom,” which told the story of Summer Boismier. She was dismissed from her position as a librarian and English teacher in Oklahoma public schools after she made controversial books available to her students. The article is quite biased, portraying Boismier as a victim and implying that the public school’s job is to have every book on every subject in its library.

As a retired public school teacher who spent 41 years at James Whitcomb Riley High School in South Bend, Indiana, I understand the struggles faced by teachers and parents raising teenagers into responsible adults. Oklahoma has tried to prevent easy access to pornographic material for adolescents, which was the cause of Boismier’s issues.

The question is, what is the public school’s job? I would suggest that public schools serve several key functions. One is to teach young people vital skills. Learning to read, write, do math, and understand science, history, and health should be their main priorities. Promoting knowledge of every LGBTQ sexual activity is not the job of the public school’s duty.

As a parent, I want my children to learn life skills that prepare them to become productive, stable, and happy adults. If they have questions about LGBTQ topics, I prefer they find answers at home. The root of this issue is that many parents wish to hand over parenting to schools and dismiss any standards based on religious beliefs. Consequently, concerned parents who can afford it send their children to private schools, while public schools tend to serve students from low-income families. Funding these schools with tax money raises additional concerns for parents. Various experiments are underway to address this, including charter schools, private school vouchers, and scholarships for students from low-income families.

Complicating the public school’s job and parental responsibility is the fact that much online material promotes harmful behaviors. The most important responsibility of parents is to raise their children to lead successful, productive lives that are pleasing to God (Ephesians 6:1-4).

Reference: Oklahomavoice.com

February 20, 2026February 18, 2026

Information Is Fundamental to Everything

At the core of everything is information. DNA carries information in every cell of the human body, as well as in the cells of animals and plants. Without the information in our genes, we could not exist. DNA is a physical molecule, but it contains information that is not physical. We write words with physical ink on physical paper, but the information in those words is not physical, and it is far more valuable than the paper itself. Information is fundamental.

Ancient Greek Stoic philosophers used the word “logos” (translated as “word” in English) to refer to the rational principle behind the universe. The apostle John gave that term a deeper meaning when he used it to refer to the One who created all things. John’s gospel begins with, “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God.” He goes on to say that the Word created all things.

When you read the Genesis creation account, you find, “And God said let there be light” (verse 3). The phrase “And God said” recurs in verses 6, 9, 11, 14, 20, 24, 26, and 29. Hebrews 11:3 tells us, “By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.” Words are not visible. Information isn’t visible. We can put information on paper by writing visible words, but the information behind those words is not visible—yet it is more important than the paper on which it is written.

Information is fundamental, immaterial, and invisible. God is spirit (4:24), meaning that He is not material. The cosmic creation event, popularly known as the Big Bang, involved the creation of matter/energy, space, and time. That means the Creator of matter/energy, space, and time must be immaterial and outside of space and time. Matter/energy cannot create itself. God’s Word created everything we see as God spoke the universe into existence. The Bible doesn’t specify when God created the universe, what physical processes He used, or how long it took. Since God is not limited by our time dimension, time means nothing to Him (2 Peter 3:8).

After the physical creation, God used information to create life, with a DNA code far more complex than any human-made computer code. There could be no life without information to guide the production of proteins necessary for forming living cells and to direct the metabolism that sustains life. Information comes only from intelligence.

The bottom line is that information is fundamental, and it’s built into every living cell. If someone says, “I will not believe unless I can see it,” they are not being honest. Everyone believes in things they cannot see. Information is fundamental, and we cannot see it. The Word created all things (John 1:3). At the right time, the Word became visible: “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). Those who refuse to believe in God because they can’t see Him should remember that “the things that are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.” (See 2 Corinthians 4:13-18.)

February 17, 2026February 11, 2026

Organ Harvesting of Assisted Suicide Victims

Today, in the Netherlands and Belgium, medically assisted euthanasia is legal, and anyone opting for assisted suicide may be contacted by an organ procurement organization. The same is happening in Canada, and some groups want to bring it to the United States. When medically assisted suicide becomes legal, it seems inevitable that it will lead to organ harvesting of assisted suicide victims.

Assisted suicide advocates suggest that if someone wants to die, their organs could be used to help others. Since they are going to die anyway, why not use their parts? When a country or state allows medically assisted suicide, it’s likely that organ harvesters will follow. When lethal injections are legalized, what stops someone from exploiting the mentally ill or disturbed, especially if there are benefits involved? What prevents abuse of the poor or vulnerable? “We will pay for medical technicians to end your life if you agree to sign your organs over to us. You won’t need them, and you won’t have any final expenses.”

So far, the trend of linking assisted suicide to organ harvesting has not gained wide acceptance in the United States, but it’s not certain that it won’t. Bioethics scholar Thaddeus Mason Pope has advocated for organ procurement organizations (OPOs) to be more aggressive in obtaining organs from patients seeking medical assistance in dying (MAiD). The thought is that people who are seeking MAiD but are not terminally ill might have better organs. Instead of letting people commit suicide on their own, do it in a hospital where the organs could be harvested immediately.

The Christian belief is that every life is sacred, and we do everything possible to save lives. When society begins to treat some human lives as worthless and human bodies as commodities to be traded, where does it end? Organ harvesting from assisted suicide victims is adding grease to a slippery slope with no bottom. The consequences are disastrous for a civilized society. Do we want to live in that kind of world?

Reference: medicalfutility.blogspot.com

February 13, 2026February 9, 2026

Nonsense About a Created God

You’ve probably heard this question before. Someone says God created the universe, and then another person asks, “So who created God?” As silly as this question seems, it is often used as an argument against God’s existence by leading atheist Richard Dawkins. His best-selling book from a few years ago, The God Delusion, revolves around this very question. Asking “Who created God?” only makes sense if you are assuming a God who was created. But that’s not the God described in the Bible. It’s not the God that Christians, Jews, or even Muslims believe in. Let’s stop the nonsense about a created god.

When we talk about God, what do we mean? Are we thinking of the God described in the Bible who is eternal, uncreated, and exists before all things? “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the Earth” (Genesis 1:1). Not only did God create everything, but He also sustains the universe (Colossians 1:17 and James 1:17). Richard Dawkins makes it clear he does not believe in God, but the god he does not believe in is not the God described in the Bible. I also do not believe in the god that Dawkins does not believe in. The God who created and sustains the universe is eternal, which voids the nonsense about a created god.

The ancient Greeks believed that matter had always existed, and that some god or gods emerged from the matter. Various gods, filled with human passions and sins, fought for control, bringing about a chaotic world. In other words, matter existed forever, but gods arose and kept things in chaos. Because of this misunderstanding of creation, the Greeks didn’t make much progress in what we now call science. If you don’t believe there is order in the universe, you can’t really study and find order within it.

Long before the Greek philosophers, the ancient Hebrews knew about the eternal God, the Creator of the universe. When the apostle Paul addressed the philosophers on the Areopagus in Athens, he pointed out how inadequate understanding of God. In Athens, Paul saw many idols honoring various gods. Just in case they missed one, he saw an inscription “to an unknown God.” Paul told them that even their own poets acknowledged that humans are God’s offspring, and if that’s true, God cannot be made of silver, gold, or stone—carved by human hands.

Therefore, we don’t need the nonsense about a created god. It’s meaningless. God is not a created being. We are His creation, meant to serve Him. Only by establishing a relationship with God can our lives be truly fulfilled, and this is possible because He seeks that relationship with us. He went so far as to send His only begotten Son to be the perfect sacrifice for our sins and to open the way for us to be restored to the eternal God who created, sustains, and loves us.