Science On What Happened Before the Big Bang?

They are the biggest questions that science can possibly ask: where did everything in our universe come from? How did it all begin? For nearly a hundred years, we thought we had the answer: a big bang some 14 billion years ago.

But now some scientists believe that was not really the beginning. Our universe may have had a life before this violent moment of creation.

Horizon takes the ultimate trip into the unknown, to explore a dizzying world of cosmic bounces, rips and multiple universes, and finds out what happened before the big bang.

How About Some Self-Promotional Blus[h]ter Too?

I’m a John Loftus junkie. I go to his blog almost daily. Every once in a while a blogger catches my fancy, and Debunking Christianity got me hooked. At least a couple of times a week I read something on his blog I think of reproducing here...His blog is a one stop blog for current atheist news and thoughts on-line.... Blush.

The Problem of Belief

Here's something that calls out for an explanation and no amount of Bible verses will help. What is the content of salvific faith (i.e. the kind of belief that saves a person)? What must someone believe to be saved? Simple? Not so fast. A child who confesses Jesus is lord is saved, right? I dare anyone to ask a ten year old what she thinks of Jesus, what it means to say he is lord, whether she thinks he is God, God-in-the-flesh, the 2nd person of the trinity, or a really really big guy, and so on and so forth. Ask her to define each of her words. Anyone can say "Jesus is lord" then. Does doing so save a person unless said person has the correct detailed theology that goes with it? There is no doubt in my mind that a child holds to heretical ideas when asked about them. OR, she's expressing words she has no clue as to their meaning. But if so, then there are surely professing Christians of all ages, probably most of them, who think they are saved but are not, and this could be........YOU! Since this must be the case if one is saved by faith, this is a barbaric way to base a person's salvation upon--that not only must believers express the right words but also have the proper understanding of them.

The “evidence” for Jesus’ resurrection, debunked in one page

That's what Chris Hallquist has done. See what you think.

Dr. Avalos' Radio Interview

Dr. Avalos comments on his chapters in The Christian Delusion and much more in an interview with the Minnesota Atheists. Dr. Avalos podcast

I'll be in South Bend, Indiana, Thursday Night

I'm speaking at 7 PM on the Outsider Test for Faith, so come on out if you live nearby to the River Park Library, located at 2022 Mishawaka Avenue, South Bend, Indiana.

The Delusionary Thinking of Both Matt Flannagan and Paul Copan

[Written by John W. Loftus] According to Thom Stark, both Matt Flannagan and Paul Copan have backed themselves into a corner in order to defend their faith. "According to the Bible, Yahweh killed children, and ordered others to kill children. There's no way to get around that fact," but watch them try. As I have said before, defending the Christian faith makes smart people look stupid. Check it out.

PBS Program, God in America

I watched the first two episodes last night. The other episodes will air tonight and tomorrow. Watch them if you have the time. This program is excellent. I highly recommend it. What aired last night is now online. Don't miss this. There's a lot it doesn't deal with of course, but it's really good. If this program is correct then I now understand perfectly why a deist/skeptic like Thomas Jefferson was elected President!

God as an Explanation vs. a God Who Acts in the World

This is a distinction that makes a difference. It also makes a great deal of sense. Believers think that if their concept of God can explain the cosmos then automatically ipso facto they have arrived at the God they believe in, who acted in the world. Nope. Not by a long shot. For a god might explain the cosmos and yet not be Yahweh. And even if Yahweh is that god, he might not have raised Jesus from the dead. And even if Yahweh raised Jesus from the dead, he might not be the classical theistic God of Anselm.

I'm Headed to the Texas Freethought Convention

I'm making final preparations today to fly to Texas to speak on the Outsider Test for Faith. I'll get to connect with some good people on the schedule, so this will be good. Come out if you can or wish me luck. Next week I'm giving the same talk Thursday night near South Bend, Indiana (more later). If you need a speaker consider me. Link.

God Cannot Exist if Yahweh Didn't.

Yahweh did not exist. He is much too tribal of a god, created the world in conflict with the sea God Rahab, married to Asherah, accepted child sacrifice, commanded genocide, forbid worship of all other gods (didn't deny their existence), and chose Israel like the others gods did to other nations.

Bayesian Background Priors

[Written by John W. Loftus] A lot is made by Christian philosophers about their background "priors" when assessing the truth of Christian theism. Their claim is that with their particular "priors" they are warranted in concluding from those "priors" the evidence leads them to their faith. My claim is that they have the cart before the horse, big time, bad time.

Thom Stark's Book, "The Human Faces of God" is Available

Thom Stark's book is The Human Faces of God: What Scripture Reveals When It Gets God Wrong (and Why Inerrancy Tries to Hide It). To read some glowing blurbs see below. I heartily recommend it as well, having seen a digital pre-pub copy. A must read book!

Quote of the Day, by Robert and Ken Pulliam

Robert: "I think that without Internet access, I would still be a believer today. I might have wondered why the Bible gives permission to beat slaves, and I might have asked my preacher about it, but I don't think I would have searched the local libraries to find atheist authors and see what they had to say!...but entering 'Yahweh genocide' in a search engine (with the intent of finding a Christian response) can easily land us upon a site like this." Ken: "The printing press was instrumental in bringing about the Reformation in the 16th century, and I think the internet will have an even greater impact." Link

Ed Babinski Responds to "The Infidel Delusion"

Check it out!

The Irrational Christian: The John Loftus Trinity Argument

Some things are hard to explain in a video, but Rhetorical Bullshit gives it a try:

My Thoughts on Sam Harris's New Book, "The Moral Landscape"

There truly is something new about the New Atheism now. See what I wrote about this new book on Amazon.com. You'll have to scroll down to it.

Quote of the Day, by Biblical Scholar Michael Coogan

The point I’m trying to make is...that everyone, whether they are aware of it or not, uses the Bible selectively. Link.

This was said in an interview about his new book God and Sex: What the Bible Really Says.

High Stakes Intelligent Designing

This is both an entertaining and informative video:

Bill O'Reilly vs. Bill Maher On Religion - 09/30/10

See what you think below:

Dan Barker's Email

Ever get an email also addressed to several others and the discussion goes on an on between the people involved? Dan and I were tagged in one of them recently. I had written a response earlier that basically said this. After a Christian responded Dan wrote:

Praise God for the Candiru Parasite! Isn't God Good?

When did God create the Candiru parasite? And why didn't he tell us how to avoid it? Seems to me a good God who cared for us would at least tell us, don't you?

The Outsider Test Resonates With Many People

If it's so blatantly misguided I wonder why it resonates with so many people?

A Proposed Scientific Test For the Truth of Christianity

Ask some non-believing outsiders what they think of the so-called evidence for Christianity. Ask, oh, let's see where should I start, Muslims, Hindu's, Buddhists, Christian Scientists, witch doctors...

Calculate the conversion rates and get back to me. But there's more to it:

Defending the Christian Faith Makes Brilliant People Look Stupid...

Yep, just click and read through this. As you can see they don't like me. I entered the fray a bit later. Be sure to read my links. "Tim" is professor Timothy McGrew.