Posts

Showing posts with the label presuppositions

DNA, Ancient Humans, and the Lineage of Noah

Image
The article featured below is from a creationist peer-reviewed technical journal, so it is primarily by and for scientists. However, there are several parts that non-scientists can understand. We can skim through the details (mostly in the middle) and still learn some important things; let the scientists have the rest. Biblical creationists have long pointed out that everyone has the same facts, and the interpretation of the facts are vital. In addition, scientists are human: They start with assumptions and presuppositions which heavily influence the results of their research. The DNA of Neanderthals and Denisovans was used by members of the secular science industry to supposedly support evolution from apelike ancestors. Data were selected that should support their views. Drawing from work by  Dr. Nathaniel Jeanson , creation scientists were able to use much of the data to show how it relates to the sons of Noah. This supports recent creation. Causes of Neanderthal extinction are also

The Origins Controversy and Religious Motivation

Image
by Cowboy Bob Sorensen  Evolution News and Science Today  is run by the Discovery Institute, the leading proponents of Intelligent Design. Despite what propagandists for universal common descent evolution claim, ID is not  creation science in disguise. An article on that site, " Are Proponents of ID Religiously Motivated, and Does It Matter? " inspired this one. The author, Dr. Jonathan McLatchie, made some excellent points in his response to a critic, especially noting that logical fallacies were utilized — which is typical of advocates of evolutionism. Image by Cowboy Bob Sorensen, modified with FotoSketcher Dr. McLatchie pointed out that when the critic of ID claimed that they were religiously motivated, it was a genetic fallacy (also, it poisons the well) . What is too often ignored is the fact that secularists are religiously motivated themselves, as many have religions without deities. This screenshot from X (formerly Twitter) shows a religious attitude toward Dragon Ba

Biblical Knowledge and Creation Science

Image
At one time, Christians were the main people doing science. (It was called natural philosophy  until the name was changed to science .) Christians and creationists were right at home here. Science operates by laws, and those were given by the Creator. They provide consistency. See how that works out? Eventually, Christians yielded to materialists. Much of that was through compromise on the authority of the Bible. Secular scientists reject the Bible in favor of naturalism. Both kinds of scientists have worldviews based on their presuppositions. Universe and Bible, Pixabay / Alex Myers and Maicon Fonseca Zanco What follows is going to be difficult for some people to accept, even creationists. Bible-believing Christians actually have an advantage in doing science. Indeed, Psalm 119:130 tells us that God's Word brings understanding. Not only does the biblical worldview rule out time, chance, errors as explanations for observed data, but Christians also have a basis for logic and scie

Bad Presuppositions and Wrong Questions in Science

Image
This is a repost, as the original disappeared after a day or so. Blogger has its own formatting ideas that I can't control. Centuries ago, I applied for a data entry job, but was hired to be a production supervisor. I knew nothing about the industry. My supervisor went out sick and my trainer quit, so I ended up discussing things with foremen and production workers. I did not ask the right questions, nor did I even know what questions to ask. Fortunately, I brought few assumptions to impede my learning. By the grace of God and with the help of other people, I was able to have reasonable success in the job. Jigsaw GRAPHIC, Freeimages /  Andronicus Riyono Imagine if I had been full of bravado and made wrong assumptions based on my presuppositions. It would not have gone well. We have seen in a similar way that many secular scientists presuppose evolution, then are puzzled when the evidence doesn't line up with expectations. Their research is often befouled at the get-go. Secular

Dancing with Space Aliens in the Pale Moonlight

Image
The other day, Lisa Myworries, the Winkie Guards supervisor from the Darwin Ranch, stopped by my place to discuss some Darwin doubts that she dared not say at work. At one point, she blurted that there were so many stars, there just had to be other planets with life on them. Then she suddenly asked, "So where are they?" Darwin's disciples are dancing with space aliens in the pale moonlight, it is important to prop up Charlie's Victorian myth. All of alien speculation is based on naturalistic presuppositions and assumptions. Darwin dancing with space alien in pale moonlight, made at Bing AI , edited at cleanup.pictures What Lisa was doing was expressing a common thought: Space is so big, it simply must have intelligent life out yonder. (Many Christians think the Creator did not stop with us, but that idea is theologically unsound.) In addition, she indirectly brought in the Fermi Paradox. One big reason for secularists to want to find extraterrestrials is that they thi

Surprisingly Christian Material on Intelligent Design Site

Image
by Cowboy Bob Sorensen  When perusing Evolution News , the primary website of the Discovery Institute, there seems to be a great deal of self promotion. There is also quite a bit of science and philosophy. There are scientists involved, and it is reasonable to think that they publish in secular scientific journals just like creationists. My problems with the ID movement are that while they show unguided  evolutionary processes are not possible, it has a big tent. That is, there are agnostics, biblical creationists, what appear to be theistic evolutionists, and others involved. Sometimes Christians there seemed to be reluctant to mention the Creator. Also, I am a biblical creationist and presuppositionalist. Neon question mark, Unsplash / Emily Morter Everyone has presuppositions, things we assume to be true, that comprise our worldviews . Biblical presuppositionalists presuppose that the Bible is true  and the final standard of truth. "Ya think, Cowboy Bob?" Yes, I had to be

Assumed Atheism Harming Religious Students

Image
by Cowboy Bob Sorensen  Internet atheists express their hatred of God and bigotry toward Christians quite freely from the safety of their keyboards, and they insist on asserting false facts. One of these is that creationists believe "God did it" is a sufficient scientific explanation for something. They are unable to meet the challenge to produce a creation scientist who uses that idea. Another false fact is that if someone is not an atheist, he or she is not a real scientist. Although ridiculous, it shows their bigotry. It is also a way to control science itself to fit their own naturalistic beliefs. Train waiting on tracks, Unsplash / Cowboy Bob Sorensen Something I read long ago in a UFO publication is that they first seek natural and rational explanations before appealing to UFOs. I have seen a similar view used by paranormal researchers (never mind whether or not experiences were genuine). In simple terms, science uses methodological naturalism . While Christians presupp

Raising a Child with his Chimpanzee Cousin

Image
by Cowboy Bob Sorensen There is a line in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy   that states , "Earthmen are not proud of their ancestors and never invite them round to dinner." Well, I never have my ancestors round to dinner either because they are dead. In context, Douglas Adams was referring to our alleged evolutionary cousins . No, you will not find it in the book. Adams was an atheist and an evolutionist, and he probably wrote the sequence showing a chimpanzee at a formal dinner party for the BBC series . So he probably meant cousins . Formal dining with a chimpanzee, made with Bing AI image generator , modified at PhotoFunia In " When a Child and a Chimp Were Raised Together ," Denyse O'Leary wrote about an experiment in 1931. A couple of married psychologists decided to raise their ten-month-old son and a seven-month-old female chimpanzee together. Whoa there a minute, Pard. Back in 1931, Sigmund Freud was held in high esteem and the field of psycholo

Racial Brain Collecting and Evolution

Image
Everyone has presuppositions and worldviews, and these things drive science. Secular science assumes that the universe is billions of years old and that cosmic, chemical, biological, and other evolutions happened. Biblical creation science affirms recent creation, and modifications are not evolution. Evolution extends beyond academic and scientific discussions and influences the lives of people. While people disliked other ethnic groups different from their own, Darwinian evolution (and modifications) gave rise to "scientific racism" and greatly increased the problem. Smithsonian Building, Wikimedia Commons / Noclip (modified at Fotosketcher ).jpg Evolutionists often become incensed when it is pointed out that Charles Darwin was a blatant racist. Some try to improve history , but the facts cannot be changed. In the Victorian era and later, scientists attempted to justify racism and eugenics. They insisted that darker people were physically and mentally inferior to white folk

UFO Claims Without Evidence

Image
There was a time that people who believed in Unidentified Flying Objects and extraterrestrial life were considered to be a part of the kook fringe, but that is the opposite of the way things are today. There are respectable people who believe in UFOs, and they are in the news again. The newer designation of UAP (Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena) came from the US government, and the changing of the middle name to anomalous from arial was because they followed NASA's lead on wording. Seems like a good idea. There are many reasons for the interest in UFOs, and if you follow the money, the funding comes from the secular science industry. Somehow they think if UFOs are found, it will prove that life evolved elsewhere in the universe, with the subtle implication that God does not exist. This is terrible logic. Old train with UFO in background via Pxhere US Air Force veteran David Grusch testified that the government had alien remains in its possession. Problem is, he did not g

Morality and Secular Foundations

Image
When dealing with professing atheists, many make the claim that they can be "good without God." Misotheists can live apparently moral lives for the most part, but they tend to make exceptions for personal benefit. And they cannot explain their foundations. Laws? Laws change. Evolution? Not hardly ! Some atheists accuse creationists of lying about evolution (a ludicrous charge*), but they cannot coherently explain why , if such a charge were true, lying would be wrong in an atheistic worldview! There have been several attempts in secular philosophy to pin down morality without God. Broken foundation, RGBStock / Adrian van Leen Various secular frameworks have been proposed for morality, but they have internal inconsistencies. Some are arbitrary, so good and evil are based on following a set of rules that are incomplete in dealing with human experiences. Some appeal to higher standards outside themselves — when an atheist says that lying about evolution is wrong, they are appeal

Evolutionists Deny Evidence to make Darwin Smile

Image
Added link about altering facts to fit views on 10 July 2023. As we have seen many times, people interpret evidence according to their worldviews. For example, an evolutionist can see a trilobite fossil and say that it is millions of years old, a biblical creationist uses the same evidence and interprets it as representing the Genesis Flood. Nobody is strictly neutral. Secular scientists are thought to be objective, following where the evidence leads, but that does not happen when the narrative is paramount. It is adjusted so Darwin's frown will turn upside down and people continue to be hoodwinked. Darwin Approves of Evoluton Fairy Tales, modified from Favourite French fairy tales / Barbara Douglas , 1921 In The Face of Evil , a 1977 "Dr. Who" story, The Doctor was given these words by writer Chris Boucher: You know, the very powerful and the very stupid have one thing in common, they don't alter their views to fit the facts, they alter the facts to fit their views,

Evolutionary Religion and Mysticism

Image
When dealing with Darwin's disciples on teh interwebz, most are professing atheists who say they are driven by reason , not faith. When informed that atheism is a religion and that evolution has also become a religion , they become incensed. Some say that religious people want to atheists like them. Huh? I had a couple of trolling raids on social(ist) media that were saturated with fallacies and disingenuous questions. "Creation 'science' 🤣" ... "The human eye proves evolution" ... "Lucy is a human ancestor," and more. They ignored or rejected evidence that people presented. Summoning the Spirit of Darwin, made at PhotoFunia When on their secular jihads, these owlhoots are confirming that they do indeed have faith. Evolution cannot even be questioned. Sure, the minutiae, but not the "fact" of universal common ancestry — even though there are secular scientists who doubt evolution . "Where do fanatical evolutionists get their id

Evolution Makes Tongue Article Distasteful

Image
People may take the tongue for granted, but it is more than just a lump of meat that we distend to express disdain or taste food. It is essential for speech (apes have tongues but still cannot articulate sentences) and other purposes. Many critters including mammals, amphibians, reptiles, and whatnot, have tongues. Lizards and some birds use specially-designed tongues to snag insects. Tongues come in many shapes and styles showing that the Creator put variety into his creation. Once again, believers in descent with modifications cannot explain them. Cat showing tongue, RGBStock / Gesine Kuhlmann As usual, Darwinists beg the question by using evolution to prove evolution. They presuppose that life began in the sea, then some life continued on land. One problem is that fish, our assumed ancestors and distant cousins, do not have actual tongues. A prototongue evolved, but there is no evidence of this. Just stories. Tales of the tongue ( Science Magazine, 25 May 2023). “Tales” is right. O

Why James Tour Lost the Origins Debate to Dave Farina

Image
by Cowboy Bob Sorensen  Something that keeps getting slipped over the transom in my study is news about Dr. James Tour. He is a professor of several things including chemistry at Rice University, and friendly with the Discovery Institute, an Intelligent Design organization. He makes Darwin sad by refuting claims of materialists on the origin of life. No, I refuse to accept the claims of Darwin's acolytes on social(ist) media and elsewhere that the OoL has nothing to do with evolution, as that has been handily refuted many times over. Background image by Cowboy Bob Sorensen , photos from James Tour's YouTube post, then modified* Dave Farina considers himself an educator on science topic and has made good use of the popularity of YouTube. His channel is Professor Dave Explains . (People call themselves whatever they want, but in science and academia, claiming titles like doctor or professor is akin to stolen valor in the military .) Like other atheists, he presupposes a materiali

An Evangelist for the Gospel of Darwin

Image
Although they keep it under wraps, the hands at the Darwin Ranch have worship services. Sebastian the latrine digger was talking about new prayer candles on order and select writings from Charles Darwin would be printed up in smaller volumes as gospels. Study on it a spell. Everyone has a worldview. Evolution is religious in nature, with not only the origins mythology, but also salvation and the coming glorious future. They presuppose atheistic naturalism in a way similar to Christians presupposing the truth of the Bible. Evangelism photo Library of Congress , 1939, colorized at Palette , monkey photobomb added  As stated in previous posts and articles, people have their worldviews that use presuppositions. We all interpret things through those lenses. Professing atheists often lean toward Postmodernism , saying there is no absolute truth or moral standard. When atheists assert things are right or wrong, or want to use evolutionary thinking for good in the world, they are inadvertently

Doubt Creation, so Doubt the Resurrection?

Image
Apologists have often encountered people who claim to have lost, or are losing, their faith. One problem is that they are willing to accept the authority of skeptics, so they do not do their homework. This child has seen many instances when someone will claim that they could not get answers to their questions, but they are complaining online , where answers are available — if they sincerely want them. People who are not grounded in the faith should not spend time interacting with or reading material by scoffers. Resurrection, Empty tomb  RGBStock / Alex Bruda Skeptics today are scoffers, unwilling to accept answers, or even consider than answers exist. They corrupt those who are weak in the faith and drag them down. Atheists are good at posturing and ridicule. Those who are weak in the faith may be afraid that if they get misotheists on the prod, they will say mean things to or about them. What they experience is nothing in comparison with what Jesus went through. That's worth thin

Doubts on the Authorship of 2 Peter

Image
Admittedly, this post is a departure from the usual fare of this weblog. It is because Christians need to know about not only evidence that supports the authenticity of the Bible (such as historical records and archaeology), but dealing with attacks on it as well. Taking a critical view of many things is helpful, but when this approach is coupled with a scoffing attitude, almost nothing can penetrate such a mindset. A person like this presumes the worst about possible evidence against the Bible. Apostle Peter statue, Pixabay / Dog Warrior , edited at removebg , then cropped The Second Epistle of Peter was met with suspicion because it did not read like his previous epistle. Liberal scholars who tend to disbelieve the authority and authenticity of the Bible brought several assumptions to the table. Peter was lacking the intelligence that is exhibited in the second epistle, they claimed. There are several explanations to remove both of these doubts. People have different writing styles f

Octopus Evolution Stories Raise Questions

Image
It is interesting to watch how believers in universal common descent promote their speculations (often with the secular science industry's media sensationalizing). Then creationists and the Intelligent Design camp show the flaws in the science and logic of secularists. Hopefully, regular readers have learned how to spot fake science news. This can be done without owning science degrees. Evolutionists make their pronouncements and attempt to bamboozle us, but we can see when they are talking non-science and are full of hooey. Consider the evolution of a certain type of octopus. Octopus image from Hippopx One aspect of presuppositional apologetics is that biblical creationists presuppose that the Bible is true, and we examine other worldviews to see if they are internally consistent. Misotheists frequently misrepresent and ridicule this apologetic, and they deny something very obvious: They are hardcore presuppositionalists themselves, presupposing evolution and naturalism. With this