[This article has been inspired by the numerous visitors to my Facebook page for The God Conclusion who wish to argue the details of evolution theory in the hope of saving everyone their time. However, I know this attempt will ultimately be futile, just as all the others proved to be. Many people just like to argue for the point of argument, and nobody believes they can ever be wrong. (Sadly, this includes me.) The only difference is that I am willing to organize my thoughts into ordinary English and publish them for the world to see. I welcome people who will try to bridge the gap between my understanding and the real world without resorting to insults or sarcasm. I've been thinking about this problem for some time. However, it won't be easy to change my mind at this point with mere words. I'm going to need to see some hard evidence; otherwise I shall remain a Doubting Thomas to Darwinism.] There are very few incontrovertible facts in this world. For example, the universe exists. And life exists. It should also not be a controversial fact that this image of the one-eyed dinosaur was a joke. Perhaps humorless people should contemplate the potential outcome before leaving snide yet serious comments about a joke. I may not be a professional biologist, but I have been blessed with common sense. I can still say what a woman is, and what a woman is not--anyone with XY chromosomes. It is also an incontrovertible fact that life cannot evolve unless and until it exists. The theory of evolution is a human's attempt to describe undirected changes that occur to living … [Read more...]
The Hummingbird
[AUTHOR'S NOTE: This short story originally appeared in the first edition of the anthology God Makes Lemonade. It was the first time I received a check for something I wrote. A friend asked where he could find the story, which reminded me that I've never shared it on my blog. The story is very personal, emotional, and true. The "baby" in the story is now a gorgeous cheerleader in high school.] The Hummingbird Lisa heard a tapping sound but when she checked the front door, no one was there. It wasn’t the first time during the past year she’d thought she might be losing her mind. Given all that had happened, it was understandable. Her beautiful daughter Stephanie dropped out of high school during her senior year because of excessive absences for a mysterious illness that turned out to be morning sickness. A surreal sequence of events caused a rollercoaster of emotion through the course of her pregnancy. In the end a beautiful baby girl named Ava Grace was born, but months of pain and anguish preceded that happy delivery. The baby’s father was 21 year old Josh. Both Lisa and her husband liked the polite young man who seemed to calm their impulsive and unpredictable daughter. Stephanie and Josh met at church. Both families were cautious about their relationship given their age difference because a few years can make a big difference at their age. Although the young couple needed to complete their education, Lisa secretly thought Josh might be the right man for Stephanie one day. His tender and caring nature was demonstrated by the small things he did when he was … [Read more...]
The tilma of Juan Diego
[Author's note: this article was originally published several years ago when I wrote as the Atlanta Creationism Examiner at Examiner.com. The article's original contents have not been edited, requiring a correction: the tilma was not weaved from cotton, but agave plant fiber. As I say below, I'm not Catholic. I don't need for this story to be true; I merely find the alleged details fascinating. Strangely enough, my atheist friends seem to desperately need the story to be false.] I present the following information for your cogitation acknowledging that it is anecdotal in nature, but included there are some very interesting claims made by scientists involved in the story. In the spirit of full disclosure, I confess that I’ve never been to Mexico to personally examine the tilma of Juan Diego. Given the current climate and tendency of drug cartels to shoot or chop of the heads of people, I don’t consider it a tourist friendly travel destination. Therefore, I have planned no trips for the purposes of conducting a personal examination. Besides, we’ve firmly and cheerfully established my lack of credentials in certain natural sciences and my aversion to microscopes and lab coats. My primary source of information for this story of Juan Diego’s tilma came from a book titled Divine Interventions by Dan Millman and Doug Childers. Internet sources appear to confirm much of the information that I found in their book. Juan Diego’s story begins on Saturday, December 9th, 1531 -- the day Catholics celebrate as the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. It is believed to … [Read more...]
