“Is There Prayer on Mars?” is an essay on Andy Weir’s book, The Martian, that considers the positivist worldview of the book (and perhaps the movie). Students can consider this example as a representation of an outlook distinctly different from the sort of narrative that would be informed by the Bible. There is no traditional religious significance in […]
Researcher, author, and professor Allan Carlson maintains that the U.S. culture never stays in a moral morass for more than a few generations. He cites four distinct periods of family strength and renewal and four distinct periods of family decline since 1630. “There’s going to be another renewal because we human beings—not just we Americans, but […]
The Institute of Religious Studies at Baylor University, hosted by The National Press Club, examines the statistics and survey reports about religion in the U.S. and what some critics are calling “the secularization myth.” Although surveys have found a decline in membership for Mainline denominations, many actually changed to other denominations from which they grew up in. Yet […]
The NYT piece covers a current sexting case, “Hundreds of Nude Photos Jolt Colorado School,” and the Mercator article offers some commentary: “Lessons from a sexting scandal.” This case is one of several over the past few years that perplex authorities and may serve as an exemplar for how the culture is now at a […]
From the NYT, “As Transgender Students Make Gains, Schools Hesitate at Bathrooms,” and from the ADF, “The Pressure to Unlock Restroom Doors” — these two pieces will assist with an assessment of the issue and different perspectives on this example of the culture shifts.
The Geo Grooup, Inc., a private prison and detention business, has been hired by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to hold Central American immigrant families seeking asylum. The work involves electronic monitoring, explaining immigrants’ legal rights and the asylum process, and helping enroll their kids in school. This role traditionally has been filled by […]
Mathematicians agree that we’ve only just begun to scratch the surface of understanding fractal geometry. You don’t have to look hard to notice aspects of nature that clearly don’t fit the Euclidean framework. Rivers, mountains, coastlines, lightning, our circulatory system: Where’s the symmetry and structure? Where’s the order? The answer, as mathematicians are discovering more and more […]
Luther scholar and microbiologist Alister McGrath writes, “Like It Or Not, We May Be ‘Meaning Junkies.’” Any philosophy of life or way of thinking about the questions that really matter will end up going beyond science. Why? Not because there is anything wrong with science. The point is that science works so well because it […]
This basic overview, “From Newton to Einstein: the origins of general relativity,” can introduce the non-science student to themes that every educated Christian should know. “To grasp the meaning and significance of general relativity, it is worth reflecting on the state of physics in the 19th century to see how Einstein came to realize that […]
A current example of schooling in church and state: America Magazine (from the Jesuits) presents this article on the dispute about vouchers, religious schools in Nevada, and the Blaine amendment. The voucher program is being challenged by American Civil Liberties Union and Americans United for Separation of Church and State “on behalf of a group of […]
