Randal Rauser's Blog, page 21

Progressive Christians Love Jesus Too

Here is the back cover promotional description for my forthcoming book Progressive Christians Love Jesus Too. Some Christians want to silence the progressive conversation. Don’t let them.  They’ve been called “progressive Christians.” Their ranks include Brian McLaren, Rob Bell, Peter Enns, Rachel Held Evans, John Pavlovitz, Richard Rohr, and many others. Over the last two […]

The post Progressive Christians Love Jesus Too appeared first on Randal Rauser.

Announcement on My Next Book: Progressive Christians Love Jesus Too

Last year, I read a really bad book: Alisa Childers’ Another Gospel? is an ignorant polemical screed that attacks several Christian thought leaders by name, insisting that these individuals (people like Peter Enns, Brian Zahnd, Rachel Held Evans, Richard Rohr, and so on) are not Christians at all but rather wolves out to destroy God’s church. Sadly, […]

The post Announcement on My Next Book: Progressive Christians Love Jesus Too appeared first on Randal Rauser.

Should Christians Believe Muhammad Rode on a Flying Horse?

I often hear a version of this quip from atheists: “If you accept the Bible’s miracles, why don’t you accept that Muhammad rode a flying horse?” The assumption lying behind the question is this: if you accept one miracle claim, why don’t you accept them all? Sorry to burst your balloon, but that’s like asking “If […]

The post Should Christians Believe Muhammad Rode on a Flying Horse? appeared first on Randal Rauser.

Forgiveness

This is my personal statement that I forgive the individuals who have attacked me in the last week. I forgive the individual who tweeted without evidence “You are a racist!” and subsequently liked a tweet that claimed I use the ‘n’ word. I forgive the person who tweeted the despicable claim that I use the […]

The post Forgiveness appeared first on Randal Rauser.

So I’ve Been Publicly Shamed: Or, Why I Hate Twitter

Yesterday, I posted a critique of Will Smith on Twitter. Personally, given that I do investigatory work into workplace conflict including instances of physical and emotional abuse, harassment, and other breaches of psychological safety, I was especially disturbed by his recourse to violence in hitting Chris Rock coupled with the toxic masculinity encapsulated in modeling […]

The post So I’ve Been Publicly Shamed: Or, Why I Hate Twitter appeared first on Randal Rauser.

Steelmanning, Strawmanning, and Supermanning

We’ve probably all heard of the strawman fallacy. And many of us have also heard of the perceived opposite of strawmanning, namely steelmanning. In this article I want to introduce another informal fallacy. To my knowledge, I am the first to articulate the concept and coin the term supermanning. Check out the analysis and avoid the fallacy! Let’s […]

The post Steelmanning, Strawmanning, and Supermanning appeared first on Randal Rauser.

How to Respond to Someone Wrestling with Solipsism

From time to time, I am asked how I would respond to various skeptical truth claims such as idealism, anti-realism, or solipsism. Just the other day, I received an email asking me the solipsist question. The interesting thing about this questioner is that  they are seriously contemplating that they may be the only mind that […]

The post How to Respond to Someone Wrestling with Solipsism appeared first on Randal Rauser.

The Problem with Young Earth Creationism in One AiG Tweet

There are a lot of problems with young earth creationism. Most people are well versed in the scientific problems. But no less daunting are the hermeneutical problems as helpfully summarized in this AiG tweet: God’s Word makes it clear that he created everything in six literal days (as plainly defined per the Hebrew word for […]

The post The Problem with Young Earth Creationism in One AiG Tweet appeared first on Randal Rauser.

My Statement on Bruxy Cavey’s Sexual Abuse of a Congregant

The results of the investigation into Canadian celebrity pastor Bruxy Cavey are out. According to Bruxy’s statement on his blog, he had an “extramarital affair.” His statement is titled “My Confession” and is ostensibly presented as a raw and honest admission of this “adulterous relationship” which is his “darkest sin” and “greatest failure”. Importantly, he […]

The post My Statement on Bruxy Cavey’s Sexual Abuse of a Congregant appeared first on Randal Rauser.

My Dog Sonny Passed Away February 9. The Legacy Continues With Timbit

Sonny's energy was boundless, his love for all living things unparalleled. He was my running buddy and a faithful sentinel at our front window. Over 18 years old, his health declined rapidly in the last few days. We said goodbye at 5:30 this morning. RIP Dear Furbaby. pic.twitter.com/xXafC0n7dx — The Tentative Apologist (@RandalRauser) February 9, […]

The post My Dog Sonny Passed Away February 9. The Legacy Continues With Timbit appeared first on Randal Rauser.