Careful Thought

What is up with all the scientists who simply refuse to kowtow to their global warming overlords?  Don’t they realize they could be ex-communicated from AlGore’s Church of Global Warmenism?

50,000 new Deniers:  The American Physical Society, an organization representing nearly 50,000 physicists, has reversed its stance on climate change and is now proclaiming that many of its members disbelieve in human-induced global warming. The APS is also sponsoring public debate on the validity of global warming science. The leadership of the society had previously called the evidence for global warming “incontrovertible.”

In a posting to the APS forum, editor Jeffrey Marque explains,”There is a considerable presence within the scientific community of people who do not agree with the IPCC conclusion that anthropogenic CO2 emissions are very probably likely to be primarily responsible for global warming that has occurred since the Industrial Revolution.”

The APS is opening its debate with the publication of a paper by Lord Monckton of Brenchley, which concludes that climate sensitivity — the rate of temperature change a given amount of greenhouse gas will cause — has been grossly overstated by IPCC modeling. A low sensitivity implies additional atmospheric CO2 will have little effect on global climate.

(HT: Small Dead Animals)

Technorati Tags: al gore, climate change, global whining, religion

Tags: al gore, climate change, global whining, religion

It was only a matter of time, I suppose.  Rick at HolyCoast posts a WorldNet Daily article about a Michigan man suing Zondervan and Thomas Nelson publishers for printing bibles that call homosexuality a sin.

“A homosexual man who has a blog on Sen. Barack Obama’s campaign website is suing two major Christian publishers for violating his constitutional rights and causing emotional pain, because the Bible versions they publish refer to homosexuality as a sin.

Bradley LaShawn Fowler, 39, of Canton, Mich., is seeking $60 million from Zondervan and another $10 million from Thomas Nelson Publishing in lawsuits filed in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, the Grand Rapids Press reported.

Fowler filed his claim against Grand Rapids-based Zondervan Monday, alleging its Bibles’ references to homosexuality as a sin have made him an outcast from his family and contributed to physical discomfort and periods of “demoralization, chaos and bewilderment,” the paper said.  He filed suit against Tennessee publisher Thomas Nelson in June.

Zondervan says that even if Fowler’s claim is credible, he’s suing the wrong party. A company spokesman told WOOD-TV in Grand Rapids that Zondervan doesn’t translate the Bible or own the copyright for any of the translations but relies, instead, on the “scholarly judgment of credible translation committees.”

U.S. District Judge Julian Abele Cook Jr. refused Monday to appoint an attorney to represent Fowler in the Thomas Nelson case, saying the court “has some very genuine concerns about the nature and efficacy of these claims.”

Fowler, who is representing himself in both lawsuits, says in his complaint against Zondervan that the publisher intended to design a religious, sacred document to reflect an individual opinion or a group’s conclusion to cause “me or anyone who is a homosexual to endure verbal abuse, discrimination, episodes of hate, and physical violence … including murder.”

Fowler alleges both Zondervan and Thomas Nelson, with its King James Bible, manipulated Scripture without informing the public by using the term “homosexuals” in a New Testament passage, 1 Corinthians 6:9.
He told the Grand Rapids TV station in an interview he wants to “compensate for the past 20 years of emotional duress and mental instability.”

Technorati Tags: faith, homosexuality, sin, Thomas Nelson, Zondervan

Tags: faith, homosexuality, sin, Thomas Nelson, Zondervan

Any guesses which faith this guy professes?  Lutheran?  Episcopal?  Militant Catholic?  No?  Just curious.

Police Say Georgia Man Killed Own Daughter to Protect Family Honor

(Fox News) A Georgia man will appear in court Monday on charges he killed his own daughter for disgracing the family.

Police said 54-year-old Chaudhry Rashad was so angered that his daughter, Sandela Kanwal, planned to divorce her arranged-marriage husband that Rashad killed her after a heated argument at the family’s home, FOX News affiliate MyFoxAtlanta reported.

When police arrived at the scene, police said they found Rashad’s two sons at the end of the driveway and their father smoking a cigarette in the garage. After entering the home, Kanwal’s body was discovered in the bathtub cold to the touch, officials said.

Rashad was taken to the Clayton County jail where he reportedly confessed to strangling his 25-year-old daughter.

The news shocked neighbors and family friends.

“The family is very upset and stressed,” said Shahid Malik of the Pakistani American Community of Atlanta. Malik told MyFoxAtlanta that he met with the family Sunday and said they were all traumatized.

Police said Kanwal hadn’t seen her husband, who lives in Chicago, for months.

Technorati Tags: gwot, islam, religion

Tags: gwot, islam, religion

Brant Hansen at Letters From Kamp Krusty has an odd piece about a spiritual experience at a chicken joint:

My friend went to “C.R. Chicks” to eat some chicken.  It’s a little place where they have rotisserie chicken, and it’s pretty good, I think.  That’s my opinion.

He ran into a person he used to go to church with.  She asked, “Hey — haven’t seen you for awhile.  What’re you up to?”  He’d actually stopped going there a year and a half ago.  He told her he found some friends who really loved him, and he’s really growing and stuff, and no, he doesn’t go to that church anymore, but it’s all cool.

She loudly began praying for the “spirit of rebellion” to come out of him.  My friend says he didn’t really feel anything happen after that, but he finished his chicken there at C.R. Chicks.   

C.R. Chicks also has meat loaf sandwiches which are pretty good. 

I’m thinking that chicken joints should be exorcism-free zones.  At least when they have good meatloaf sandwiches.

Technorati Tags: religion

Tags: religion

C. Michael Patton at Reclaiming the Mind is reading my mind.  No sooner had I posted this piece yesterday when he posts this.  It’s a great description of how we are to relate to one another in the face of our disagreements.  Read the whole article (he promises two more on the same topic), but here are ten guidelines he proposes for interacting with grace:

1. Never say anything to someone online that you would not say in face to face. (2 Cor. 10:10-11)

2. Don’t take things too personally. Understand that many people are insecure and will interact with violent resolve to shield their insecurity. (Prov. 16:18)

3. Don’t take things too personally, but realize that [others may be saying] things we may need to hear. (Prov. 27:6)

4. Don’t respond immediately. Give yourself some time. Rash reactions are like drops of blood. Once the shark smells it, he will attack for the kill. (Prov. 12:18)

5. Interact with great humility. Go out of your way to recognize the right things that are said before you respond to the attacks. (Prov. 15:1)

6. Recognize that while you are separated from the other person by cyber space, there is no space that can separate you from God. (Ps. 139:7-9; Matt. 12:36) 

7. Remember that virtual interactions have real people on the other end. These people are created in God’s image. Whether believers or not, they are like God. Who are we to curse someone created in the image of God? (Jam. 3:8-9)

8. Shower your response with biblical truth, but don’t shove the Bible down people’s throats. This can come across and arrogant and sloppy. Be tactful and sensitive to the context of the situation. Often, people do not avoid the Bible, they just avoid you with a Bible in your hands. (Eph. 4:29)

9. Don’t be a people pleaser. You will never satisfy everyone all the time. Speak what needs to be said without fear of reprisal from some particular group that you are trying to please. This is particularly hard for me. Sometimes when I write, I write to the donors of Reclaiming the Mind Ministries. Sometimes I shape it for the legacy of Dallas Theological Seminary. Sometimes there are particular people (other bloggers) that I am fond of that I don’t want to hurt or disappoint. There is a fine line between being sensitive to an audience and compromise to an agenda. (Gal. 1:10)

10. If you are going to take people to task, rarely do this in a public forum. Contact them personally and try to resolve the situation. Don’t use people as a public punching bag. (Matt. 18:15)

Technorati Tags: argumentation, blogging, faith

Tags: argumentation, blogging, faith

The UK Times Online posts a collection of twenty events of ‘militant religious outrage’ over the years.  Each event is rated according to its religious impact, political impact, vulgarity, criminality and the number of deaths (if any) that result from the event.  What’s interesting is the death toll.  Why does blasphemy against islam always result in rioting and death?  Follow this link for the complete list, but here’s a sampling:

Jesus Christ Superstar
Crowds gathered in protest outside the Broadway theatre where this musical about Jesus and Judas was first staged. Some Christians took offence at the portrayal of Jesus as a man rather than as God and the sympathetic rendering of Judas Iscariot. The omission of the Resurrection was also a point of controversy. Some Jewish groups counted the performance as anti-Semitic in its depiction of Jewish crowds calling for Jesus’ death.
Vulgarity: 0 Criminality: 0 Religious impact: 4 Political Impact: 0 Deaths: 0

Chocolate Christ
Cosimo Cavallaro’s My Sweet Lord, a rendering of the crucifixion in chocolate was pulled from a New York art gallery during Holy Week this year under pressure from the Catholic League.  
The 200lb sculpture, which exposed the genitals of the dying Christian saviour, incensed the Catholic League who bombarded the Lab gallery in Manhattan with protest emails.
Vulgarity: 5 Criminality: 0  Religious impact: 4 Political Impact:0   Deaths: 0

The Life of Brian  [My personal favorite...]
Arguably, Monty Python’s finest hour.  Life of Brian is a comic biopic of Brian Cohen, born at the same time as Jesus and mistaken for the Messiah. A satire on excessive religiosity the film was banned in many towns in the UK for its alleged blasphemous content. Particular offence was taken at the crucifixion scene where those being executed burst into song with the theme tune “Always look on the bright side of life”. In New York Nuns and Rabbis picketed screenings of the film, which was completely banned in some states. In Ireland Life of Brian wasn’t shown for eight years after it was made and not for 11 years in Italy. Just this year, a screening of the film in a church in Newcastle Upon Tyne caused uproar from conservative Christian group Christian Voice.
Vulgarity: 4 Criminality: 0  Religious impact: 5 Political Impact: 2   Deaths: 0

Quran on toilet paper
Manfred van H. was sentenced to one year in prison on probation in Germany for posting toilet paper stamped with verses from the Quran to mosques and the media. He was charged for defaming religious convictions in a manner that would disturb public peace.
Vulgarity: 8 Criminality: 6  Religious impact: 5 Political Impact: 0   Deaths: 0

Submission directed by Theo van Gogh
A 10-minute film about violence against women in Islamic countries, Submission depicted four Muslim women telling Allah the offences against them, while partially covered. Quranic texts, inciting women to submit, were projected on their bodies. The creator, Theo van Gogh and writer Hirsi Ali received death threats in Holland as a result of the film. In 2004 van Gogh was shot dead by a man who was caught fleeing the scene. Aftermath protests saw 174 incidents of violence against mosques, churches, and Islamic schools following the murder.
Holland’s Minister for Justice called for the country’s blasphemy laws to be implemented more stringently with counter calls for them to be abolished all together. An Independent Dutch MP called for a five-year ban on all non-Western immigration following the murder.
Vulgarity: 6 Criminality: 2  Religious impact: 8 Political Impact: 5   Deaths: 1

P1ss Christ
Christ hanging on the Cross and suspended in a jar of the artist’s urine won the Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art’s award in 1989 - a prize part-sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts, a US government agency. Debate about the photo went as far as the US Senate.
Vulgarity: 8 Criminality: 0 Religious impact: 4 Political Impact:10 Deaths: 0

Satanic Verses and Salman Rushdie’s Knighthood
Rushdie’s book which was a political satire on Islam led Ayatollah Ali Khamenei Khomeini in Iran to issue a fatwa (a religious ruling) sanctioning Muslims to kill the author for blasphemy. More than 10,000 marched on the British High Commission in India. Three people were shot and two died following the fatwa and 37 were killed in a riot in Turkey. Rushdie was forced into hiding for 10 years and has round the clock protection to this day, but he refused to apologise or recall the book. Robin Cook, then Foreign Secretary brokered a deal with the Iranians ensuring they would do nothing to carry out the fatwa, even though it still stood. When he was awarded a knighthood this year, the coals of the controversy were stoked and protest ignited once again with effigies of the author and The Queen burned on the streets in Pakistan. Al Qaeda threatened terror attacks against the UK in response to the honour. The book remains banned in Muslim countries.
Vulgarity: 6 Criminality: 9 Religious impact: 10 Political Impact: 10  Deaths: 39

Jyllands-Posten Mohammed Cartoons [coming in at #1...]
Protests against the cartoons of Mohammed – one with a bomb in place of a turban – printed in the Danish Newspaper Jyllands-Posten, led to arrests, convictions, and caused over 100 deaths.
The newspaper claims it was contributing to the debate on self-censorship but Muslims across the world took offence at the depiction of their prophet, any image of whom is regarded as blasphemous.
Vulgarity: 4 Criminality: 7 Religious impact: 10 Political Impact: 10 Deaths: 100

Technorati Tags: blasphemy, faith, islam, religion

Tags: blasphemy, faith, islam, religion

From Fox News:

Puppet Show From Hamas TV Shows Child Stabbing Bush

A children’s puppet show featured on Hamas TV shows a child stabbing President Bush to death.

“Who are you to come here and threaten me?” Bush says in the puppet show video. “You are on my own turf, you little child, you. Get out.”

The child tells Bush that he killed his father in the Iraq war, which made him an orphan.

“I have come to take revenge with this sword — revenge for my mother and my sisters,” the child puppet says. “You are a criminal, Bush.”

“I will kill you, Bush, because that is your fate,” the child says before stabbing Bush repeatedly.

The show aired on Al-Aqsa TV on March 30.

As Flynn says in the Fitna post below: “[Fitna suggests that] Islam is not a peaceful religion hijacked by extremists, but an extremist religion that has hijacked otherwise peaceful people.”

And the way they are indoctrinating their children, we’ll be dealing with the bloody aftermath for generations to come.

[ad]

Technorati Tags: Fitna, gwot, Hamas, islam, terrorism

Tags: Fitna, gwot, Hamas, islam, terrorism

UPDATE: LiveLeak video service banned download of Fitna because of death threats to its employees, presumably from adherents of the ‘religion of peace.’ You can download it here via Torrent.

Flynn Files posts this about the release of Dutch conservative Geert Wilders’ film Fitna.  Fitna deals with the reality of the Islamic threat to Europe, and by extension, to the rest of the world.  And if the Islamic cartoon debacle was any indication - and it probably is - death threats will fly and Europe will soon be in flames, thanks to the ‘religion of peace’.

Music by Tchaikovsky, ugly visuals supplied by Islamic terrorists, a script straight from the Koran, Fitna is horrifying and graphic. Please do yourself a favor and don’t watch, if you (as I am) are appalled by unpleasant images of gruesome deaths. It is, as the moving music and too-grisly images suggest, propaganda. But propaganda is not necessarily false.

It’s theme suggests that Islam is not a peaceful religion hijacked by extremists, but an extremist religion that has hijacked otherwise peaceful people. It supports this thesis with copious quotes from the Koran, a book I have not read in its entirety. Thus, I can’t attest to whether the quotes accurately reflect the spirit of Islam, or whether they, like mined quotes from the Old Testament, distort the overall message of the religion.

A second theme seems to be whether tolerance of intolerance is actually the enemy of tolerance. Allowing hordes of Mulsims to invade the Netherlands has led to assassinations, death threats, violence, and the loss of what made the Netherlands the Netherlands. Don’t let this movie come to a country near you is the explicit warning. Is Fitna an alarm bell signaling Europe to “wake up” or the cinematic chronicling of how Europe slept as an intruder murdered it? This is a debatable point, which in itself is amazing given the death threats and censorship the mere idea of this fifteen-minute film unleashed. While the merits of the film are thankfully up for debate, the filmmaker’s courage is not.

You can also see it at Jihad Watch. [UPDATE: The JihadWatch link now goes to the LiveLeak statement explaining why they banned the video.]

Technorati Tags: Europe, Fitna, Geert Wilders, gwot, islam, Islam in Europe

Tags: Europe, Fitna, Geert Wilders, gwot, islam, Islam in Europe

Adoption of Islamic Sharia law in Britain is ‘unavoidable’, says Archbishop of Canterbury

This from the leader of the largest nominally Christian denomination in the UK.

(HT: ThisIsLondon)  The Archbishop of Canterbury has today said that the adoption of Islamic Sharia law in the UK is “unavoidable” and that it would help maintain social cohesion.

Rowan Williams told BBC Radio 4’s World At One that the UK has to “face up to the fact” that some of its citizens do not relate to the British legal system.

He says that Muslims could choose to have marital disputes or financial matters dealt with in a Sharia court. He added Muslims should not have to choose between “the stark alternatives of cultural loyalty or state loyalty”.

Dr Williams said there was a place for finding a “constructive accommodation” in areas such as marriage - allowing Muslim women to avoid Western divorce proceedings.

He said it would also require a change in perception of what Sharia involved beyond the “inhumanity” of extreme punishments and attitudes to women seen in some Islamic states.

Dr Williams said: “It seems unavoidable and, as a matter of fact, certain conditions of Sharia are already recognised in our society and under our law, so it is not as if we are bringing in an alien and rival system.

Maybe this is a good thing.  The Brits never did learn how to make sausage.

Technorati Tags: Britain, dhimmitude, sharia

Tags: Britain, dhimmitude, sharia

Michael Spencer at Internet Monk has a great article on the ongoing demise of evangelicalism.  (This is a follow-on piece to Michael Patton’s the Entertainment Driven Church article at Reclaiming the Mind blog.)

Evangelicalism is over. Long live post-evangelicalism. (Whatever we are/it is.)

The is “the end” of evangelicalism, and it’s not dying with a whimper. Oh no. It’s going out with party hats and noise-makers. And Bratz dolls. And Barbie. And video games. And an elf. And the Word-faith message. And Starbucks.

The end of evangelicalism isn’t the deep vacuum of space. It’s the Borg ship. With pizza, a band and great commercials.

Is this Christianity? If you realize your answer no longer has any basis in reality, consider just being honest: No, it’s not.

<<>>

This isn’t about kickin’ worship bands or big screens. Take them, take them. I don’t care. What I want to know is if we recognize that the disease is overtaking the evangelical body, and the time has come to think like people upon whom an evangelical dark age has come? The barbarians aren’t at the gates. They are running the city. We can’t shut the gates. We have to find places to survive. We can debate how big the hole in the side of the ship is all we want. The fact is: this ship is going down.

Christ’s church will survive and triumph. But in America and the West, the entertainment driven “church” is going to dominate. For those who will not be absorbed, for whom resistance is not futile, there are choices to be made.

This is not an indictment of faith by any stretch, but a realization that western evangelicalism has come off the tracks in a dramatic and dangerous way.

As Michael Patton put it in an earlier piece,

“If Joel Osteen, R.C. Sproul, Benny Hinn, Chuck Swindoll, Oral Roberts, J.P. Moreland, T.D. Jakes, Jimmy Carter, Billy Graham, Brian McLaren, Pat Robertson, and John Piper all distinguish themselves as evangelicals, then we must admit that the designation both means everything and nothing at the same time.”

Technorati Tags: death of evangelicalism, evangelicalism, faith, religion

Tags: death of evangelicalism, evangelicalism, faith, religion