Category Archives: Religion

Links and Comments: Biblical Literalism; the Manhattan Option; the excessive optimism of 2001; Neil de Grasse Tyson explains everything

Posted on Monday 3 August 2015 by Mark R. Kelly

Adam Lee: So Wrong For So Long: On Liberal Biblical Reinterpretation Lee discusses the cognitive dissonance of those who espouse progressive social views while maintaining fealty to their Biblical-based religions. They rely on relativistic interpretation of scripture, as if the … Continue reading →

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Links and Comments: Steven Weinberg; Trek vs Wars; How the world is getting better; Undermining the Bible

Posted on Monday 13 July 2015 by Mark R. Kelly

Here’s a archival essay by Steven Weinberg, whose new book I just reviewed in previous post: A Designer Universe?. This is the essay in which Weinberg wrote this oft-quoted passage (though usually only its final line, here bolded): Where religion … Continue reading →

Posted in Narrative, Physics, Religion | Comments Off on Links and Comments: Steven Weinberg; Trek vs Wars; How the world is getting better; Undermining the Bible

Links and Comments: Philosophical principles; social programs; narrative; FDS; religious conflict and the gullible

Posted on Wednesday 1 July 2015 by Mark R. Kelly

I’ve belatedly added a link to Adam Lee’s Statement of Principles, a set of philosophical positions that I mostly endorse (I reserve the right to quibble), in the intro to my Provisional Conclusions. \\ And speaking of Adam Lee, this … Continue reading →

Posted in Narrative, Philosophy, Religion | Comments Off on Links and Comments: Philosophical principles; social programs; narrative; FDS; religious conflict and the gullible

The Sixth Extinction and the Pope’s Encyclical

Posted on Monday 22 June 2015 by Mark R. Kelly

Weekend Facebook post, amended: The Sixth Extinction: Curious this topic is in the news suddenly, all over the past couple days, since the idea has been recognized for years and the latest Pulitzer Prize winning nonfiction book, by Elizabeth Kolbert, … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture, Evolution, Religion | Comments Off on The Sixth Extinction and the Pope’s Encyclical

Bible System Updates

Posted on Thursday 18 June 2015 by Mark R. Kelly

From The New Yorker, last November: Bible System Updates VERSION 1.0: Original release. Heavens, Earth, formless void. And so on. 1.6 “Sodom and Gomorrah” N.S.F.W. glitch identified and removed. Bible now free of “Homosexuality” virus. And then VERSION 2.0: “New … Continue reading →

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Links and Comments: Jerry Coyne; Max Planck; Creationism and Education; Human history and progress; and others

Posted on Thursday 11 June 2015 by Mark R. Kelly

Finished reading Jerry Coyne’s new book Faith Vs. Fact, subtitled “Why Science and Religion Are Incompatible”, which I took extensive notes on that at some point I will summarize here on my blog. Meanwhile, Coyne did a Q&A with National … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Notes, Psychology, Religion, Science | Comments Off on Links and Comments: Jerry Coyne; Max Planck; Creationism and Education; Human history and progress; and others

Upon Returning from a Wedding

Posted on Tuesday 2 June 2015 by Mark R. Kelly

I’ve tweaked a few passages in my Provisional Conclusions today, in light of attending a family wedding in a socially conservative state and observing first-hand a community that obviously thrives in the context of a traditional religious narrative. What my … Continue reading →

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Links and Comments: The Duggars, and other Religious Matters

Posted on Friday 22 May 2015 by Mark R. Kelly

I’ve been only vaguely more aware of the Duggar family, who apparently host a reality show to show off their 19 children and their piety, than I was aware of the Duck Dynasty family a year or more ago when … Continue reading →

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Links and Comments: Flip-Flopping Politicians; Jerry Coyne’s new book; Six Basic Storylines; Trigger Events

Posted on Wednesday 20 May 2015 by Mark R. Kelly

Slate: Our Best Presidents Are Flip-Floppers Politicians are attacked for changing their positions due to political expediency — as Louisiana governor Bobby Jindal, a one-time biology major, has done about the teaching of creationism in schools, to appeal to his … Continue reading →

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Links and Comments: Decline of US Religion; Narrative in Science and TV Finales

Posted on Monday 18 May 2015 by Mark R. Kelly

Major news this past week, covered by many sources. NPR: Christians In U.S. On Decline As Number Of ‘Nones’ Grows, Survey Finds Washington Post: Christianity faces sharp decline as Americans are becoming even less affiliated with religion It’s often been … Continue reading →

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