Category Archives: Religion

Thought Experiment: What Determines the Facts of the Christian Religion?

Posted on August 24, 2012 by jackpelham

Interestingly, there is no passage in the Bible where one can find a deliberately-written definition of the Christian religion.  Neither are there clear definitions of the terms “Christian” or “Christianity”.   No doubt, this can lead to some “fuzzy math” for … Continue reading →

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A Walk in the Cemetery

Posted on August 22, 2012 by jackpelham

One of the late Stephen Covey’s famous “7 Habits of Highly Successful People” was “Start with the end in mind.”  He suggested that one should consider what he would like to have said about him at his funeral, and then … Continue reading →

Posted in Character, Paradigms, Philosophy, Religion | Leave a comment

Dysrationalia: God defending modern day Israel

Posted on August 22, 2012 by jackpelham

The following conversation (Facebook, on or about 21 August 2012)  shows an amazing display of irrational belief from the original poster.  Note the many attempts to elicit evidence from the OP, as well as the attempts to get him to acknowledge … Continue reading →

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I was with you right up until…

Posted on August 15, 2012 by jackpelham

As I regularly discuss controversial topics with people, I’m often left to interpret the silence with which some people respond to certain logical challenges.  (I call this “crickets”, as in hearing nothing but the crickets chirping.)  Anyway, being always the … Continue reading →

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Understanding What Does Not Constitute Logical Proof

Posted on August 12, 2012 by jackpelham

Let me say at the start that this is not an article on the nuts and bolts of logic.  No, this is an article about irrational human behavior that I have witnessed with such frequency and over such a long … Continue reading →

Posted in Character, Fallacy, Logic, Politics, Religion, Ron Paul | Leave a comment

The Dishonesty of Drive-By Assertions

Posted on July 30, 2012 by jackpelham

What’s a “drive-by assertion”?  It’s my name for an assertion that one makes and thereafter dodges rational debate on the matter. Here are a few varied scenarios that I believe to be typical of what’s going on in our cavalier … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Parenting, Politics, Religion, Science, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

How Celebrating the 4th is Hypocritical for Many Christians

Posted on July 4, 2012 by jackpelham

On the one hand, many Christians interpret Romans 13 as a command that Christians today are to obey the government.  (See the passage below.)  On the other hand, these very same Christians live in a nation that was founded by people … Continue reading →

Posted in Character, Politics, Religion | 2 Comments

The (Presumed) Unassailable Rights of Christians

Posted on July 2, 2012 by jackpelham

I observe in life that some Christians behave as if they have certain unassailable rights.  Among them are: The right to make or to publish any assertion they like, and to never have to prove it. The right to challenge … Continue reading →

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If You Haven’t Done the Math, You Don’t Really Know Anything!

Posted on June 29, 2012 by jackpelham

“He’s always late!” complains the boss.  It turns out, however, that he’s late 8% of the time over the last year.  But the boss doesn’t know the numbers; he’s content just to go with his perception. “Our church really follows … Continue reading →

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The Stunning Question

Posted on June 22, 2012 by jackpelham

Every once in a while, a simple and straight-forward question comes along that can have profound effects on the people who give it the consideration it deserves.  The question itself seems to separate people into different types, based upon how … Continue reading →

Posted in Philosophy, Politics, Religion | 1 Comment