Can we get any clues about the existence of God from nature itself? The foundational question about the origin of the universe and of life is whether they are the result of random processes (chance) or intelligent action (design). On a very practical level we all practice this distinction every day of our lives. In driving by the campus of the Pillsbury Company near Minneapolis, MN, we may notice a flower arrangement growing on the grounds that looks just like the “Doughboy™.” Would we say, “Look, those flowers happened to grow up by chance to look like the Doughboy?” No, we would congratulate the groundskeepers on a good job of design. Likewise, try to convince the people gazing at the four presidents’ faces in the granite of Mt. Rushmore that this was the result of a chance process of wind and rain erosion! [Read more…]
Archives for 2013
March-April 2013 teaching trip to Russia. SVO-AMS-MSP
I am home, safe and sound. Thanks for all your prayers. Hope to see many of you tomorrow at https://faithsearch.org/blog/2013/01/coming-soon-2103-friends-of-faithsearch-benefit-dinner/
I am planning my next teaching trip to Russia on mid-July. Anybody knows of an event (pastors’ conference, youth camp, evangelism outreach, etc.) I could plug in Russia at around that time? Please let me know.
March-April 2013 teaching trip to Russia. Moscow. PhD
It is Dr. Voskresensky from now on!
One of the longest days in my life just passed and I can take a deep breath – it is done. Years, months, weeks, days and hours of preparation actually paid off – I felt confident, calm and focused. I prayed all the way through the three hour long procedure and always knew that many of you were praying for me. Praise the Lord for hearing our hearts and for answering our prayers with love and mercy!
I knew that my thesis was good – but who has time to ready through all those hundred-fifty pages!? I knew that my abstract is OK but is dry and boring! So, I decided to put all the weight into the presentation where I can add my own personality and passion to the lists of facts and numbers. After all, wasn’t it exactly what I have been doing with FaithSearch during the last seven years!?
They only gave me 12 minutes for the presentation. I was told that the Board gets really nervous if somebody dares to go over that limit. Right. That’s what they always say to me when I first come to a secular university, teachers’ conference or even a Bible College: “Our audience usually listens to the lecture for half-an-hour so, please, keep it short and simple”. Well, two or even three hours into the FaithSearch Discovery presentation some of them perhaps get a bit tired and somewhat overwhelmed by all the material we go through and that’s where we turn to the Q&A session. All I needed yesterday was to keep my audience’s attention and interest up for 22 minutes. Piece of cake!
There even was a moment of awkward silence after I finished and the Chair person invited the Board to ask questions. One of them later admitted that she was crossing off her prepared questions one by one as I was actually answering them during my presentation. Thank you, Dr. Don, for teaching me to anticipate the questions and to then lead your audience through the path of logical “discoveries”.
I am happy to admit that I learned and borrowed from so many of you, my dear friends, my mentors, my supporters, my family! I am so proud of you and I praise God for each and every one of you!
The Board voted unanimously and especially emphasized the scientific value of the dissertation! Many of them also noted that it took lots of guts to come with religious topic to a secular university!
Oh, yeah! I probably never told you that my thesis was on the Religious Education in Secular American Schools. Yes, I told them what’s been going on in the field of Christian education in the United States from the foundation of the country and to up to the most recent years. And what Russia can and should learn from that experience.
Thank you again for all your prayers and for your support of me here and my family back in the States! I’ve got two more ministry events (at the Pentecostal Seminary and at my Alma Mater – Moscow State Pedagogical University) and tons of red-tape and PhD formalities to undergo over the remaining four days in Russia. I surely hope the snow in Minnesota will be gone as I have already completely switched to a t-shirt mode here in Moscow!
March-April 2013 teaching trip to Russia. Moscow. PhD
It is Dr. Voskresensky from now on!
One of the longest days in my life just passed and I can take a deep breath – it is done. Years, months, weeks, days and hours of preparation actually paid off – I felt confident, calm and focused. I prayed all the way through the three hour long procedure and always knew that many of you were praying for me. Praise the Lord for hearing our hearts and for answering our prayers with love and mercy!
I knew that my thesis was good – but who has time to ready through all those hundred-fifty pages!? I knew that my abstract is OK but is dry and boring! So, I decided to put all the weight into the presentation where I can add my own personality and passion to the lists of facts and numbers. After all, wasn’t it exactly what I have been doing with FaithSearch during the last seven years!?
They only gave me 12 minutes for the presentation. I was told that the Board gets really nervous if somebody dares to go over that limit. Right. That’s what they always say to me when I first come to a secular university, teachers’ conference or even a Bible College: “Our audience usually listens to the lecture for half-an-hour so, please, keep it short and simple”. Well, two or even three hours into the FaithSearch Discovery presentation some of them perhaps get a bit tired and somewhat overwhelmed by all the material we go through and that’s where we turn to the Q&A session. All I needed yesterday was to keep my audience’s attention and interest up for 22 minutes. Piece of cake!
There even was a moment of awkward silence after I finished and the Chair person invited the Board to ask questions. One of them later admitted that she was crossing off her prepared questions one by one as I was actually answering them during my presentation. Thank you, Dr. Don, for teaching me to anticipate the questions and to then lead your audience through the path of logical “discoveries”.
I am happy to admit that I learned and borrowed from so many of you, my dear friends, my mentors, my supporters, my family! I am so proud of you and I praise God for each and every one of you!
The Board voted unanimously and especially emphasized the scientific value of the dissertation! Many of them also noted that it took lots of guts to come with religious topic to a secular university!
Oh, yeah! I probably never told you that my thesis was on the Religious Education in Secular American Schools. Yes, I told them what’s been going on in the field of Christian education in the United States from the foundation of the country and to up to the most recent years. And what Russia can and should learn from that experience.
Thank you again for all your prayers and for your support of me here and my family back in the States! I’ve got two more ministry events (at the Pentecostal Seminary and at my Alma Mater – Moscow State Pedagogical University) and tons of red-tape and PhD formalities to undergo over the remaining four days in Russia. I surely hope the snow in Minnesota will be gone as I have already completely switched to a t-shirt mode here in Moscow!
What do we mean by “proof” when testing whether something is true?
The scientific method of proof requires phenomena that are testable by being reproducible in a controlled environment. That is, they are repeatable. Historical events, since they occur only once, do not lend themselves to the scientific method of proof. Neither do definitions of beauty, aesthetic values, etc.
In other words, the scientific method is limited and doesn’t apply to all of reality. Therefore, we cannot use the scientific method to test the claim that God came into history—that is, whether the historical Jesus was the incarnation of God. But, then, neither can we use the scientific method to prove that we went shopping yesterday or to determine who is guilty of crimes. [Read more…]
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