Re: [asa] Fear and Loathing on this list

Preston, thank you for having the guts to post this. I admit I often cross
the line between debate and snarkiness, here and elsewhere, and that this is
wrong. And I think you are absolutely right. I enjoy being part of the
ASA. I like strong debate. I've learned a ton by participating on this
list and my views about some things have changed significantly. But ... at
the same time, with some really great exceptions, this has not been a
faith-affirming experience.

Of course, faith-"affirming" shouldn't just mean glossing over serious
problems with settled views. But it should mean the freedom to wrestle with
hard questions in the fellowship of other followers of Christ whose *primary
motivation* is that we would all grow together in Christ-likeness.

David W. Opderbeck
Associate Professor of Law
Seton Hall University Law School
Director, Gibbons Institute of Law, Science & Technology

On Mon, Feb 16, 2009 at 3:58 AM, Preston Garrison <pngarrison@att.net>wrote:

> All,
>
> I have been lurking on this list more in recent weeks than I have for
> several years. As always there are brilliant people discussing deep topics.
> But there is something else that is consistent. There is a constant current
> of sarcasm, declarations of war against this group or that, expressions of
> fear and despair about what is supposedly befalling the church, and
> declarations from on high of what God thinks about this or that.
>
> In the same period I have been meeting with two separate groups of people
> locally. Both are composed of mixes of believers and atheists and agnostics,
> with a preponderance of unbelievers. In both of those groups, serious topics
> are discussed, scientific, political, religious and philosophical, but
> everyone is treated with mutual respect, there is humor, self-deprecation
> and even love. Even the servers who bring the coffee are known and time is
> taken for them by both believers and unbelievers.
>
> I recently recommended this list indirectly to a young man who is very
> intelligent and troubled about theological and scientific issues. I have to
> say at this point that I think I made a mistake in doing so. If he looks
> here, he will find much more education and brilliance than in the average
> church, but too much savagery for him to get much out of the intelligence.
>
> I just opened my Bible "randomly" to the following verse:
>
> If any man thinks himself religious, but does not bridle his tongue, but
> deceives his own heart, this man's religion is WORTHLESS. - James 1:26
>
> Enough. Stop it. Repent. Consider that that none of us is right about
> everything. It isn't all of you. It is the same subset over and over and
> over again. You know who you are. Ask our Lord and the people you are
> insulting to forgive you and start praying for your intellectual enemies.
> Don't respond to me. It isn't me you have offended.
>
> Preston Garrison
>
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Received on Mon Feb 16 10:13:55 2009