Tuesday, March 09, 2010

Apoligetica ad finitum

The title feels right, though, it is likely wrong in some way.  If you have a superior post title, please leave it in the comments or email it to me: I'll likely update/change it.

I've been thinking on something ... recently a blog post on some random blog reminded me that there are a huge number of people who believe homosexuals were born that way.  This is fascinating to me - I believe something rather different; but, I realize that without some strong evidence to the contrary, it is easy to "know" or assume that, indeed, homosexual people were indeed born that way.

Which led to: This is one of those topics, among so many others, whereby if you have a biblical basis for your paradigm, you likely pull from one group of opinions and, if you are in the world, you likely pull from another rather different group of opinions.

I added to this that it is easy to draw wrong conclusions: From logic, I have learned that you can have all the right thinking in the world and come up with wonderful and astonishing results; but, if your initial premises are wrong or your evidence is incomplete, you will necessarily draw conclusions and reach results that are either too shallow (and so don't include later evidence) or too deep (do include later evidence but assume inaccurate propositions).  And anyone, regardless of paradigm, without an objective standard by which to judge the results, will necessarily fall to one of these sides.

Certainly, it is easier to prove something true if you already believe it.  Your perceptions, your paradigm, and all your base assumptions, will be brought to bear on what you see - whether you're aware of it or not:
•    Is it plausible that someone who studies geology can look at the evidence and would reasonably conclude something that he might then find corroborated in scripture?
•    Is it plausible that someone who studies genetics can look at the evidence and would reasonably conclude something that is identical to what is found in scripture?
•    Or is it necessary for someone to have studied the bible first, then studied these topics, and *THEN* find that the evidence corroborates the statements in scripture?
•    Is it the case that only the inclusion of scripture will allow for results in a God-honoring conclusion, ever?

  Regardless it is a reminder that
... I live in a world with a paradigm far different than my own.
... paradigms always shift
... I must be mindful of my paradigm
... I must guard against slipping into agreement with the world's.

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