If you've stumbled upon this blog, welcome. It is run by two friends who met in their undergraduate days and – rather strangely – found out that they grew up within minutes of each other, several hundred miles away from their alma mater. We have been interested in defending the Christian faith for some time, as well as hearing out the objections to that faith. Both of us are engineers by training, and a keen interest in science originally led us to seek an intellectual defense of our beliefs. We gradually came to realize that the battleground between Christianity and its opponents lay in the realm of philosophy, a much maligned and thoroughly misunderstood branch of study. Perhaps you will see through our posts how we came to recognize philosophy's ultimacy as a foundation for all belief systems and world views. This is not to say that we have lost interest in science and its interaction with Christianity; on the contrary, we recognize that there are still many interesting and contentious issues here worth considering. Similarly, in working through the Christian faith itself, there are many facets of theology worth exploring. It should be evident through our writing that these fields are inter-related, and cannot possibly be studied in isolation from one another.
There are three main goals for writing this blog:
1. To edify other Christians through the communication of theologically, philosophically, scientifically, historically, and personally germane ideas.
We believe that the Christian faith is based on a foundation of truth, and thus all veritable knowledge will be found to confirm this faith. As such, it is important that Christians supplement their core beliefs with knowledge of relevant ideas and sound reasoning. Having already engaged a great deal with the intellectual components of the faith, we hope to share our knowledge with other believers in a way that is encouraging and edifying.
2. To offer challenges to non-believers from both a generally theistic and specifically Christian perspective.
We believe the Christian world view is the most intellectually and personally satisfying belief system. Therefore, we intend to offer challenges to non-believers in a way that is both thought-provoking and respectful. We encourage disagreement and debate, provided that it is respectful in turn and relevant to the topic.
3. To have a medium for test-driving and receiving feedback on unfamiliar ideas.
While our background is broadly evangelical, we will often venture onto paths that are theologically and philosophically less amiable to evangelicalism. Our reason for this is not merely to take part in a mental exercise, but to come closer to the truth. This may strike you, dear reader, as a rather lofty-- even presumptuous-- goal. We therefore invite you to partner with us in this endeavor by offering feedback and critique.
Austin was baptized as an infant in an Eastern Orthodox church, and grew up in an ecumenical Christian household. Around the age of thirteen, he began to take his beliefs seriously, and was baptized again in a non-denominational church as a show of personal faith. In high school, Austin began to have doubts about certain tenets of his faith, and has since been engaged in an ongoing intellectual battle for the truth. While the core of his faith has been strengthened immensely through this process, several peripheral
beliefs have changed significantly. As a student of Chemical Engineering at Purdue University, Austin took part in several different research groups, exploring cutting edge fields such as renewable energy and nanotechnology. Since graduating, he has moved to Memphis, Tennessee to work as a Process Engineer at an acrylics plant, and is a member of an Evangelical Presbyterian church.
Steve was born into an evangelical family, though the spiritual traditions of his parents were fairly divergent. Throughout his childhood and into early adulthood, Steve had a deep interest in all things scientific - especially relating to cosmology - and the interplay between faith and science. This interest lead to independent reading of popular-level books on science, such as A Brief History of Time, as well as various books defending the Christian faith.
The book Miracles, by C.S. Lewis, had a profound effect on Steve's thinking. This was his first real foray into the world of philosophy. While attending Purdue, he took a course on logic in which the graduate instructor often presented fascinating conundrums and discoveries in the world of philosophy; this effectively doomed Steve to a life of almost incessant interest in all things philosophical (or almost all).
Steve holds a B.S. in acoustical engineering from Purdue and an M.S. in architectural acoustics (obviously both of these degrees lend themselves well to philosophy). He works independently as an acoustical consultant.
There are three main goals for writing this blog:
1. To edify other Christians through the communication of theologically, philosophically, scientifically, historically, and personally germane ideas.
We believe that the Christian faith is based on a foundation of truth, and thus all veritable knowledge will be found to confirm this faith. As such, it is important that Christians supplement their core beliefs with knowledge of relevant ideas and sound reasoning. Having already engaged a great deal with the intellectual components of the faith, we hope to share our knowledge with other believers in a way that is encouraging and edifying.
2. To offer challenges to non-believers from both a generally theistic and specifically Christian perspective.
We believe the Christian world view is the most intellectually and personally satisfying belief system. Therefore, we intend to offer challenges to non-believers in a way that is both thought-provoking and respectful. We encourage disagreement and debate, provided that it is respectful in turn and relevant to the topic.
3. To have a medium for test-driving and receiving feedback on unfamiliar ideas.
While our background is broadly evangelical, we will often venture onto paths that are theologically and philosophically less amiable to evangelicalism. Our reason for this is not merely to take part in a mental exercise, but to come closer to the truth. This may strike you, dear reader, as a rather lofty-- even presumptuous-- goal. We therefore invite you to partner with us in this endeavor by offering feedback and critique.
About the Authors
Austin was baptized as an infant in an Eastern Orthodox church, and grew up in an ecumenical Christian household. Around the age of thirteen, he began to take his beliefs seriously, and was baptized again in a non-denominational church as a show of personal faith. In high school, Austin began to have doubts about certain tenets of his faith, and has since been engaged in an ongoing intellectual battle for the truth. While the core of his faith has been strengthened immensely through this process, several peripheral
beliefs have changed significantly. As a student of Chemical Engineering at Purdue University, Austin took part in several different research groups, exploring cutting edge fields such as renewable energy and nanotechnology. Since graduating, he has moved to Memphis, Tennessee to work as a Process Engineer at an acrylics plant, and is a member of an Evangelical Presbyterian church.
Steve was born into an evangelical family, though the spiritual traditions of his parents were fairly divergent. Throughout his childhood and into early adulthood, Steve had a deep interest in all things scientific - especially relating to cosmology - and the interplay between faith and science. This interest lead to independent reading of popular-level books on science, such as A Brief History of Time, as well as various books defending the Christian faith.
The book Miracles, by C.S. Lewis, had a profound effect on Steve's thinking. This was his first real foray into the world of philosophy. While attending Purdue, he took a course on logic in which the graduate instructor often presented fascinating conundrums and discoveries in the world of philosophy; this effectively doomed Steve to a life of almost incessant interest in all things philosophical (or almost all).
Steve holds a B.S. in acoustical engineering from Purdue and an M.S. in architectural acoustics (obviously both of these degrees lend themselves well to philosophy). He works independently as an acoustical consultant.
0 comments :
Post a Comment