The NY Times has an interesting article about a study which purports to show that literacy may have been far more prevalent in pre-Babylonian exile Judah than many had thought. The implication, it's believed, is that Biblical minimalist scholars who thought that no part of the Bible was composed until after the exile, are wrong. But … Continue reading When were the earliest parts of the Bible written?
Tag: Bible
Why the Exodus, as commonly understood, probably never happened
At the urging of one of my relatives, I watched Ridley Scott's 'Exodus: Gods and Kings'. This relative, knowing my skeptical nature, thought I might enjoy Scott's naturalistic (mostly) take on the events in the story. I'm sorry to say that I didn't really enjoy the movie, which is unusual for me because I usually do enjoy … Continue reading Why the Exodus, as commonly understood, probably never happened
Michael Dowd on the personification of reality
Michael Dowd is one of the few people with the title of "Reverend" whose views on reality I find interesting. His motto is, "reality is my God, evidence is my scripture." http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1QeTWVw9Fm4 The other day, I did a post asking what religion is, and wondering whether science wasn't itself a religion. It's hard to listen to … Continue reading Michael Dowd on the personification of reality
On atheism and agnosticism
Bart Ehrman has a post up featuring an interview on his agnosticism. (If you're short on time, the most relevant part is at the 2:12 point.) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BeFdhyuVyzI As someone who myself isn't a religious believer, but who also strives to be honest on what the limitations of knowledge are in this area, I find a lot … Continue reading On atheism and agnosticism
To any still in doubt, Noah is not history
Kyle Hill at But Not Simpler on the Discover Magazine site, has a post up debunking the Noah story. I almost didn't read it, because debunking Noah feels a bit like debunking the Easter Bunny, but then I looked at the comments there, and remembered that somewhere between 33 and 46 percent of Americans believe … Continue reading To any still in doubt, Noah is not history
Thoughts on the Nye-Ham creationism debate
The Bill Nye and Ken Ham debate happened, and by all accounts Nye wiped the floor with Ham. (I watched a few minutes of it, but I've been racing against deadlines all week and had to content myself with the post game write ups.) This doesn't really come as too much of a surprise to … Continue reading Thoughts on the Nye-Ham creationism debate
The End of the World: Science or Religion? | Seth Shostak
Harold Camping died last month. In case you don't remember, Camping, the president of evangelical Family Radio, predicted that the world would end in 2011. Twice. He made these prognostications on the basis of numerology, which sounds like it might be a sophomore-level math subject, but isn't. The data for the calculations Camping used to … Continue reading The End of the World: Science or Religion? | Seth Shostak
Evaluating God scientifically
Victor Stenger has a post up at Huffington Post on how science disproves God. He goes through many of the attributes of the popular conceptions of God and shows how scientific evidence contradicts them. And he's right, to a degree. But he then concludes with: The hypothesis of God is not confirmed by the evidence. … Continue reading Evaluating God scientifically
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