Having followed your exchanges with several on the list, it seems to me that
there are fundamental disagreements that prevent any progress from being
made. I believe that at least some of these arise from misunderstandings
on your part. I do not intend for what I write to be a personal attack
on you, but I offer the following in an attempt to clarify the ongoing
discussion, especially the recent thread that you and Gene have followed.
Let me explain:
1. In a recent post to Gene, you disputed his assertion that the
statement "There is no absolute truth" is self-refuting. Gene's
point is self-evident to me, and I'm guessing it is self-evident to
the large majority of the people on this list. This is an obvious
problem with a radical relativism. As Gene pointed out, the statement
strongly declares an *absolute truth*, and by doing so, is self-
contradictory. If you don't understand, or have some very subtle
objection to this clear line of reasoning, you should explain it.
2. Your belief that man is basically good is a denial of the strong
consensus of 20 centuries of Christian belief. Christians themselves
may disagree on the extent to which every individual's nature is stained
by sin (pride, selfishness, greed, hatred, etc.), but you will find very
few who believe in the literal death and resurrection of Jesus Christ who
would also agree that man is basically good. This indicates to me that you
are not very well informed about the historic, Biblical Christian faith.
What is the source of your personal information about Christianity?
3. Your statement that you consider yourself to be a Christian is, in light
of the above, puzzling to me. Just what IS a Christian to you? Here I insist
on the objective meaning of words. The word Christian, first applied to the
believers and followers of Jesus in the first century, can be defined fairly
carefully. I think it would be helpful for you to read the preface/introduction
to C. S. Lewis' Mere Christianity before responding. Lewis has some very
helpful things to say about the way the word "Christian" has been abused
and redefined by people who really do not understand the Christian faith.
I really am curious about these things, and I am concerned that YOU are
the one who has erected a mental "straw man" regarding the nature of
Christianity.
Regards,
Stan Zygmunt
Dept. of Physics and Astronomy
Valparaiso University
Valparaiso, IN 46383