Coach Z (my junior high P.E. teacher) somehow inspired hundreds of junior high kids to fall in love with fitness. The end of every semester brought a “fitness test,” and there were all kinds of awards for progress and achievement. … Continue reading How’s Your Epistemic Health?
One of my favorite lines from the film, “As Good As It Gets,” is when Jack Nicholson turns to the other people in the waiting room at his psychiatrist’s office as says, “What if this is as good as it … Continue reading Does Free Will Lead To Evil?
One thing I hear frequently is, “Well, God is beyond logic.” This move helps struggling Christians who don’t like where the logic is headed in a conversation. But it is a bad move to make. One reason Christians say this … Continue reading Stuff Christians Say . . .
I’ve played the lottery once in my life. I was living in California, and a friend thought it would be fun if we all bought a ticket for the next drawing. And guess what? I didn’t win. This came as no surprise, because I expected not to win. In fact, any rational person who buys a lottery ticket should believe that her ticket is a loser. But oddly, this rational belief leads us into believing a contradiction. Maybe this tells us something about the limits of rationality. Winner, Winner? Here’s principle of rationality #1:If something is 99.99% probable to be … Continue reading Lotteries and the Limits of Rationality
The Problem of Evil causes me more trouble in my faith than any other atheistic argument. It’s the best case against God. When I see children with cancer, or hear of vulnerable people being abused, I wonder how God could … Continue reading Negativity Bias and the Problem of Evil
Summer, 1998. I traveled to Europe (Hungary, to be precise) and sat down in a little restaurant one day for a bite. I ordered the “Greek salad.” I love Greek salad! I’ve eaten many Greek salads growing up in Florida: … Continue reading Is There Evidence for God?
I love Legos. My wife says I only wanted kids so that I could buy Legos “for the kids” and play with them. That’s false, of course. I also wanted to buy video games. But Legos were truly my favorite childhood toy. Nowadays, one fun game I play with the kids is when we each grab a handful of Legos from the box and see what we can build. We may end up with some of the same pieces–a 2×4 brick, a 6×10 plate–but our “sets” will be unique. Thus, our creations turn out unique. There’s an interesting parallel when … Continue reading Evidence Is Relative