Entries Tagged 'Intellectualism' ↓

Wow, this is a really long post, and I didn’t cover everything, but what I did cover is quite considerable. I hope to hear some comments. I decided to update this post on 9/16 with some of Greg Prince’s insights into this topic. These updates are highlighted in orange.

We have had an interesting discussion in a previous blog post on Joshua’s Unholy War. In this discussion, we have discussed the idea as to whether God commanded Joshua (and Moses) to commit genocide in wiping out the Canaanites in various cities, such as Jericho. I am claiming that the command to extinguish the Canaanites in the Book of Joshua was not inspired. As part of the discussion, we have explored two other topics: the priesthood ban, and Abraham’s sacrifice of Isaac. I would like to focus this post on the priesthood ban, and will devote another post to the subject of Abraham.

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When most of us hear the word “jihad” or “holy war”, we immediately know that a jihad is not what God wants.  Most of us feel the same when we hear the word “crusade.”  Really, does anyone think God wants people to fight in his name?

In the book of Joshua, Joshua claims to be commanded by God to destroy everyone and everything in what is now the land of Israel. Continue reading →

I attended my first session of Sunstone today.  I have to say it was really nice to be around people who wanted to talk about some things where I really respected the opinions of the speakers.  It was energizing.  I was able to meet some of my favorite mormons, such as John Dehlin, and D Michael Quinn (a former mormon.)  It was refreshing to be in an environment where intellectualism is embraced, not shunned.

My favorite session was on “ARE WE STILL GODS IN EMBRYO? THE MORMON DOCTRINE OF HUMAN DEIFICATION” by HUGO OLAIZ (probably because I just blogged about it.)  One of the most interesting points to me that Hugo made was Lorenzo Snow’s couplet  “As man now is, God once was; as God now is, man may be.”

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Ok, the title of my post actually comes from two different books.  The first is called “DNA and Tradition:  The Genetic Link to the Ancient Hebrews“, by Rabbi Yaakov Kleiman.  The rabbi looks into DNA evidence concerning the tribe of Levi, as well as the other lost tribes of Israel.

In the introduction to the book, there are several interesting quotes, and he quotes from a book written by Rabbi Moses Maimonides (1135 – 1204 ) called Guide for the Perplexed, which examines the issues of being a religious scientist.

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We all know that science and religion can often be at odds with each other.  Some examples include Evolution vs creation, DNA and the Book of Mormon;  the list could be endless.  In a recent comment, Book1830 makes the claim that Science and Religion (he refers to them as Scholarship and Apologetics) are at odds with each other.  His summarized comments are below:

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This is part 3 of Heresy and Orthodoxy. I’ve been listening to class 5 from the Covenant Theological Seminary on Ancient and Medieval Church History. They have talked about Gnosticism and Marcionism. I’d like to talk about a little known movement in early church history called Montanism and compare this to Mormonism.

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I found a really cool website that offers free downloads from a seminary.  It’s found at Covenant Theological Seminary.  I believe it is a Presbyterian Seminary, and I’ve learned a ton about the Bible, and Jewish and Christian History.  Currently, I’m listening to the course called Ancient and Medieval Church History.  Class 5 deals with Orthodoxy, and Heresy.  It talks about 3 specific heresies:  Gnosticism, Marcionism, and Montanism.

The first thing I learned was that the term “heresy” originally meant “opinion.”  It had no negative connotation.  However, with these 3 movements, the term took on a much more derisive connotation.  Othrodoxy literally means “straight thinking”, just as an orthodontist “straightens teeth.”  These other movements are “heterodoxy”, meaning “other thinking.”

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Ok, this is an email I received, and I thought it sounded quite interesting.  Zelph, I couldn’t help but think of you when I read this.  I think it sounds interesting to read myself, and I think others may find it interesting.

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The Foundation for Apologetic Information and Research (FAIR) would like to announce the publication of Shaken Faith Syndrome (www.ShakenFaithSyndrome.com) by Michael R. Ash.

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I just read this blog post at Project Deseret. You can read more at the link, but I would like to excerpt a few paragraphs out of that blog.

Most likely someone has countered your requests for an intellectually robust gospel (de-baggage the word, please) with the classic image of a penniless, illiterate widow in the slums of Manila. The conclusion is obvious: the gospel is for her. And how could we ask this poor, penniless woman for a sharp-toothed mind? How could we ask her to cut through conceptual meat when she doesn’t have meat to eat? She is barely surviving! She needs the milk of the gospel, and she needs it fast…. Continue reading →