----- Original Message -----
From: "M.B.Roberts" <topper@robertschirk.u-net.com>
To: "george murphy" <gmurphy@raex.com>
Sent: Tuesday, January 16, 2001 10:07 PM
Subject: Re: "Thinking God's thoughts after Him"
> The lapdog of dependent natural theology is fine. Ich bin kein Barthian,
>
> Michael
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "george murphy" <gmurphy@raex.com>
> To: "Loren Haarsma" <lhaarsma@calvin.edu>
> Cc: "_American Sci Affil" <asa@calvin.edu>; "Gordon Simons"
> <gsimons@email.unc.edu>
> Sent: Tuesday, January 16, 2001 7:43 PM
> Subject: Re: "Thinking God's thoughts after Him"
>
>
> > Loren Haarsma wrote:
> >
> > > > Does anyone know the source of the phrase "Thinking God's thoughts
> after
> > > > Him?"
> > >
> > > It's commonly attributed to Kepler, but I don't know of any specific
> > > reference.
> > >
> > > > A recent example of "thinking God's thoughts after Him" is described
> in
> > > > today's Science section of the NY Times: "Experiments on Dense
Matter
> > > > Evoke Big Bang"
http://www.nytimes.com/2001/01/16/science/16QUAR.html.
> > > > It seems that scientists working at Brookhaven National Laboratory
> have
> > > > now reproduced the same conditions that "existed a few millionths of
a
> > > > second after the start of the Big Bang."
> > > >
> > > > I wonder whether there is a connection between this latest
scientific
> > > > achievement and the events that took place so long ago in the
Garden.
> > >
> > > I've always been taught that we would disobey God if we _failed_ to
> > > investigate His amazing creation scientifically.
> > >
> > > Numerous Christian theologians, philosophers, and educators have
> > > written at length about this idea. In the interest of time and
> > > brevity, I'll just mention some Bible texts to consider.
> > >
> > > Genesis 1:28 God blessed them and said to them, "Be fruitful and
> > > increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish
of
> > > the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that
> > > moves on the ground."
> > >
> > > Proverbs 19:2 It is not good to have zeal without knowledge, nor to
be
> > > hasty and miss the way.
> > >
> > > Matthew 25:14-30 (The parable of the talents).
> >
> > The enterprise of "thinking God's thoughts after him" becomes a
> > problem when it is assumed that one can do this from nature without
> starting
> > from God's revelation in Christ. Cf. Paul Davies'
> > _The Mind of God_. That is why I continue to be such a Barthian killjoy
> about
> > all the happy remarks of ASAers about "evidence for God" from science,
> > "general revelation", "God's two books" &c. Once the camel of
independent
> > natural theology gets its nose in the tent, you're in trouble.
> >
> > Shalom,
> >
> > George
> >
> > George L. Murphy
> > "Theologia naturalis delenda est!"
> > http://web.raex.com/~gmurphy/
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
>
>
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Tue Jan 16 2001 - 18:08:59 EST