Faith and Doubt at Ground Zero
Rene Bowen
Colorado Christian University
As I was watching the Frontline Video, Faith and Doubt at Ground Zero, I was immediately faced with the question about evil. It is hard to imagine how someone could do something so horrific in the name of religion. So many lives were forever changed during the events that transpired on Tuesday morning, Sept. 11, 2001. As a believer of God, I could certainly identify with the feelings of the people who lost loved ones during the 9/11 tragedy.
During the initial introduction many of the people recalled how beautiful the day started, the sky was blue, clear and perfect. However, as soon as people realized that an airplane had flown
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We do not have the authority to deem that someone deserves to die or suffer.
Agnostics, on the other hand, are neither, believers or non-believers. An agnostic believes that truth is synonymous with science. In Making Sense of Your World, a Biblical Worldview, Huxley termed the coin agnosticism to describe a tentative, uncertain attitude toward any question about God and the meaning of life. (Phillips, Brown, Stonestreet, 2008). Whether agnostic or atheistic, naturalism sets forth a worldview in which God is not necessary. My belief is that humanity cannot be scientifically explained. We are not mere products of DNA. I believe and will always believe in the existence of a higher being.
The problem for Christians who try to deal with the presence of evil is that many people believe that God is powerful and knowing and good and should prevent evil and suffering before it happens. As a Christian, I also believe that God is the creator of the world. However, after 9/11, most people were asking where was God? Many of the people interviewed during the making of the video wanted answers from God they felt that they could no longer count on God. Also, since the 9/11 event was so barbaric, was God also barbaric for letting it happen. Additionally, since the suicide terrorists had committed such an atrocity in the name of God had our majestic God been killed as well?
While our assumptions about evil may be different, I have to
Faith in Christ has given me a unique life filled with optimism and purpose. From a young age, I have been raised in a home where I was taught about the love of Christ. Not only at home did I learn about Christ, but at school and at church. Thus, my life has been filled with experiences that have amplified my faith. For example, when my mother was diagnosed with breast cancer, I found that my relationship with Christ grew. Through all of the difficult circumstances that I have faced, faith in Christ has given me the encouragement that I need to persevere through any situation. Additionally, faith has influenced my decision making, which is why I strive to make all my decisions and live my life according to faith-based principles. This means
Naturalism or atheism is based on the belief that there is no God or any supreme being, and the world just evolved from nothingness. The ultimate reality of Naturalism is that the eternal existence and everything that exists was created from nothing. Carl Sagan said, “Atheism is more than just the knowledge that gods do not exist, and that religion is either a mistake or a fraud. Atheism is an attitude, a frame of mind that looks at the world objectively, fearlessly, always trying to understand all things as a part of nature, c 1985.” With this train of thought the realty is looked at from a scientific point of view. Naturalism teaches that the world came about by chance, and life evolved from a simple organism to man’s life today. The theory has been debated from the Darwinism era to today. This is a theory that is presented as a fact, the science of Man.
No one has the authority to decide when another person's life ends. To breech this law of humanity and then go unpunished
Faith and reason can be viewed as opposites. Faith is an element of belief, something an individual does not necessarily require a reason for accepting without reason. For example, an individual’s reason for believing in God may not seem too rational when they are trying to explain them. They may not even stand up to criticism. On the other hand, reason is constructed as a formula. Faith is basically something we believe in, like something we learn in church. Reason is something we learn in school, such as a math formula.
One argues that today we have a crisis of belief, not a crisis of faith. To explain this crisis, I will briefly examine the relationship between faith and belief, explain why cultural shift is important to note when trying to understand religious issues, go into detail on the three hallmarks of each of the two cultures by showing how they compare to each other, show how Tillich’s notion of correlation deals with this idea of culture and a crisis of belief, and explain how Marsh’s notion of a “theology of negotiation” (33) fits with Lonergan’s definition and allows him to argue that film can help us raise theological questions.
As stated in The Historical Context of Atheism, new atheists tend to confuse methodological naturalism and scientific naturalism. Starting with the latter, scientific naturalism states that only things that can be studied by science can exist. Methodological naturalism states that scientist involved are only concerned with testing the physical world. Scientific naturuslism is incompatible
In the first chapter of "The End of Faith," Sam Harris is calling for reason and evidence over religious myths that survive in the modern world. He writes that it is evident that with the grows of science and knowledge of the universe, religious practices have changed. However, despite these changes there are still parts of "Word of God" that are strictly followed by some groups and individuals. Some of the examples are the "extremists" that take the writings of Koran as the single truth and follow its certain passages and the bloody wars between territories that are ruled by the religious teachings, all despite that the modern world disapproves such actions. Harris points out that most of the world is in denial that such bloodsheds are due
I would honestly be grateful to attend PBA and it will be an honor, there can be many schools out there that have a great medical field but why bother if when you have a first opinion you have to work hard to achieve it. I do not easily give up without a fight. I am very hard working and I will not stop until I achieve what I aimed for. What is success without faith if you ask me, it is everything. Many people give up on their goals due to not getting help from their parents or someone else. However, I have the help and love from my family and teachers at my school. I always attended church on Sundays and more important on my birthdays, it is a great way to give thanks.
After reading “Losing Faith”, I have come to the conclusion that managers should not befriend their employees. I currently work at Steak n Shake in Terre Haute, IN. and I was always wondering why my boss never socialized with her workers on a personal level. Mr. Robbins was being way too nice to his employees and they all took his actions as a sign of weakness. He definitely should not have brought cold beers for the consumption of his employees. I believe that may have gave his workers an idea that maybe they could come to work drunk seeing how he brought them beer. I know that he gave the beers away at the end of the shift, but he should not have given them any reason to believe that drinking at the workplace was right in any way. Another
The Epistle of James has an enduring message for the entirety of the Church and for each individual believer. James challenges its readers to live a life pleasing to God. The message of James 2 is vital for Christians to take root into one’s life. In James 2, there are two controversial topics addressed. James 2 addresses how to live out one’s faith by bringing forth action. The previous chapter addresses a phrase in James 1:22, “But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves”, which correlates with James Ch. 2:14-26. Being doers of the word and not hearers only is simply the only suitable response to the word of God. One would not be able to be a doer of the word if he does not fulfill the royal law of love (James
Everyday it is possible to read a newspaper, or turn on TV or radio news and learn about evil going on in our world. Banks are robbed, cars are stolen, violent murders and rapes are committed. Somewhere in the world the aftershock of an earthquake is being felt. Cancer is killing millions of people each year, while other debilitating conditions continue to affect many with no cure to end their suffering. President Bush said that our country is fighting a war against evil. We all agree that evil is real and cannot be ignored; the problem comes when we try and rationalize the concept of God and evil coexisting.
Faith+1 is an organization that creates family orientated Christian music. Faith+1 prides themselves in providing a work atmosphere grounded in family values. Faith+1 was founded on the principals set forth by the New Formation Church. Faith+1 donates 4% of their profits to various religious institutions. Faith+1 produces and edits Christian based music, and they collaborate with various mainstream music artists. Evee recently took six weeks of paid leave due to the birth of her child. Upon returning to work Faith+1 informed her that she must work part-time until her child reaches the age of 5, or until the child starts kindergarten. Faith+1 states,
The Dynamics of Faith is an in-depth look at what faith is from a theological perspective. Tillich seems to be replying to all of the writers we have read thus far and placing their arguments within the context of faith. Nowhere is this more apparent than on page 24, in his discussion of community. He rightly acknowledges that faith is usually seen in its sociologic setting. He then proceeds to sort out the different claims, saying that
Pope John Paul II once said, “Faith and reason are like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth; and God has placed in the human heart a desire to know the truth – in a word, to know himself – so that, by knowing and loving God, men and women may also come to the fullness of truth about themselves.” (Fallible Blogma) Based on this significant and powerful quote, one can infer that faith and reason are directly associated and related. It can also be implied that the combination of faith and reason allows one to seek information and knowledge about truth and God; based on various class discussions and past academic teachings, it is understood that both faith and reason are the instruments that diverse parties
What is faith? Faith is something different to everyone. If you asked a hundred different people, it is possible that you would get many diverse answers. Religious faith and non-religious faith are two very distinct terms. Faith holds an extremely complex meaning when discussing it in the context of religion. Faith is a belief. That holds true to every religious and non-religious person. Every faith involves a decision. It is not about what we claim to believe, but what we actually do believe, that is true faith. Throughout this paper, I am going to discuss Christian faith, how it pertains to daily life and Christianity as a whole. I also intend to delve into George W. Forell's discussion of Christian faith and analyze and