Re: petition to amend ASA Constitutional Objectives?

Joe, Dick, and all:

I don't quite understand why we're all so afraid of "knowing God's
will" language. Whenever we ask the question "What should I do?" or
"What should we as an organization do?", we're asking that question
in the form that I think Joe means. Nothing more nothing less. We use
our knowledge of scripture, our circumstances, the need around us,
our abilities, our desires, etc. to discern what we ought to be
about. As we individually and corporately reflect on such things and
do it prayerfully, seeking God's guidance, I believe that He guides
us. That doesn't mean that we're infallibly perceiving His will or
that we have some kind of indisputable Divine Mandate that blasts
through all alternate opinion, but it does mean that we can have some
humble confidence that we're doing what God wants us to do
individually and corporately.

I don't think it hurts to evaluate this from time to time. I'm
actually confident that the Executive Council together with Randy,
especially in the course of selecting a new Executive Director, went
through this process to some degree. If the membership, at Joe's
encouragement, pushes for a more radical re-evaluation, so be it.

TG

On Dec 2, 2005, at 9:22 AM, Dick Fischer wrote:

> Hi Joe, you wrote:
>
>
>
> So it's futile for Christian engineers, scientists, theologians, and
>
> others to collectively and intentionally seek God's will for the
>
> engineering and science professions and their Christian
>
> members? It's established that God is too inscrutable for such an
>
> exercise to be anything but a presumptuous waste of time?
>
>
>
> There is certainly some question as to whether the will of God is
> knowable or not. You could see that from the responses on this
> list. Your suggested amendment seems to imply that we know it.
> That's all.
>
>
>
> ~Dick Fischer~ Genesis Proclaimed Association
>
> Finding Harmony in Bible, Science, and History
>
> www.genesisproclaimed.org
>
>
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Joe Carson [mailto:jpcarson@tds.net]
> Sent: Thursday, December 01, 2005 2:43 PM
> To: Dick Fischer
> Subject: RE: petition to amend ASA Constitutional Objectives?
>
>
>
> So it's futile for Christian engineers, scientists, theologians, and
>
> others to collectively and intentionally seek God's will for the
>
> engineering and science professions and their Christian
>
> members? It's established that God is too inscrutable for such an
>
> exercise to be anything but a presumptuous waste of time?
>
>
>
> Please respond to the points I make, not your recasted ones.
>
>
>
> thanks,
>
>
>
> Joe
>
>
>
> At 01:21 PM 12/1/2005, you wrote:
>
> >Hi Joe, you wrote:
>
> >
>
> >In other words, "ascertain God's will"?
>
> >
>
> >So Churches, Councils, etc are presumptuous? Is ASA presumptuous to
>
> >exist? If you wish to be irrelevant, that is a formula for being so,
>
> >that it would be presumptuous to be otherwise. Is God that
>
> >inscrutable, random, and capricious? Or is that just your
> presumption?
>
> >
>
> >Testy. Joe, I wish I knew God's will for my life, and for the ASA
> for
>
> >that matter. It would be real easy if the handwriting was written
>
> >neatly on the wall, in English. It isn't and won't be. But theology
>
> >isn't normally a strong suit for scientists and engineers, and
> here is a
>
> >good opportunity to weigh input from someone a little theologically
>
> >grounded.
>
> >
>
> >~Dick Fischer~ Genesis Proclaimed Association
>
> >Finding Harmony in Bible, Science, and History
>
> >www.genesisproclaimed.org
>
>
>
>

________________
Terry M. Gray, Ph.D.
Computer Support Scientist
Chemistry Department
Colorado State University
Fort Collins, CO 80523
(o) 970-491-7003 (f) 970-491-1801
Received on Fri Dec 2 13:32:48 2005