Assumptions, Biases and Evidence…Oh My! (Recent Reads)

What assumptions and biases do you bring with you as you approach evidence? I got to thinking about that question as I read a few articles recently by Stanley Fish.  These articles were on the place of evidence and trust in our belief systems. First was “Citing Chapter and Verse: Which Scripture is the Right [...]

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The Mind Matters (or, not everyone leaves Christianity because Christians are jerks)

Why do people leave the Christian faith?  The answer often given is that there is some fault in the Christian community: Christians are judgmental. Christians are old-fashioned.   Christians are not nice. Christians are anti-everything Certainly it is true that many people become disillusioned with faith because of bad experiences with Christians. But not everybody. [...]

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Recent Reads

This semester our theme for Thursday nights is “God Questions?”  We are looking at questions people on campus have about God, religion, the Bible and so on.  Last night we discussed the Bible and slavery.  Modern-day slavery, human trafficking, is an issue that more and more Christians are learning about and taking steps to end. [...]

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On Campus at Penn State Berks – God Questions?

This semester at CSF our theme for Thursday nights is going to be “God Questions?”  Rather than me just thinking of the questions I have been trying to get questions from students on campus.  When we handed out the care packages we gave students the opportunity to write questions down on a poster.  The same [...]

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Recent Reads – Articles

Here are some thoughtful, fun and random things I have come across over the last week. What the Internet Killed – a list of some things that the growth of the Internet has made obsolete.  My favorite is the video store.  I love Netflix and despise Blockbuster.  I disagree that the internet has killed phone [...]

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On Campus at PSU Berks

Last week was question and answer week.  First on Monday I was the guest on Get Some, an on campus television show focused on issues of health and human sexuality.  The theme last week was sexuality and spirituality.  About thirty people showed up, most of whom did so to fulfill a requirement for class.  Alice, [...]

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When Atheists sound like Prophets…and Jesus?

I just finished a book called Suspicion and Faith: The Religious Uses of Modern Atheism by Merold Westphal. The author argues that rather than simply seeking to refute the atheistic criticisms of religion of Freud, Marx and Nietzsche, Christians should realize that much of what they say may ring true. If we know our scripture, [...]

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What Motivates?

Last fall CSF had a “Human-Trafficking Awareness Day” during which we sold t-shirts, handed out information about modern-day slavery, and at night had a guest speaker who has worked with a group in Cambodia to save women from slavery. From this CSF ended up partnering with the Step Dance Team for a benefit show, all [...]

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Questions…

Way back in December, then again just a few weeks ago, CSF hosted a “Question” night.  We never really settled on a title (the most recent one was “Question and Response”, the one back in December had a more creative name).  The one in December we worked really hard on promoting on campus as well [...]

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