Articles in this category will focus on the part of being human that separates us from the rest of the creation — our rational ability to ponder things we can only imagine and seek answers to questions about meaning and purpose.
Fifty years ago, at 10:56 PM Eastern time, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin became the first human beings to set foot on another heavenly body. I was a nine-year-old little boy playing Monopoly with my parents. They let me stay up that night. And together we watched what to this day I consider to be…
Where do reason and logic come from? Can your brain explain everything about how you think? Is it just a moist computer or are there differences between the physical brain and the mind? Do we have evidence for the existence of a non-physical soul? Think about it (pun intended). The fact that we can have a…
There are two basic views (and some sub-categories of each) about how to understand the relationship between the brain and the mind. The first, physicalism, says that the mind is nothing more than an extension of the brain. The second, dualism, says that the mind and brain are different things altogether. Physicalism insists that there is no difference between…
Two and a half weeks ago, my dermatologist performed a Moh’s surgery procedure on me to remove a patch of squamous cell skin cancer from the inside of the bridge of my nose. It really is more of a nuisance than a serious threat but the healing process has not been fun. It was painful…
If you’re as old as me, you may remember the annoyingly catchy commercials for Chiffon Margarine that assured us that “If you think it’s butter, but it’s not … it’s Chiffon!” The gist of the ad was that the synthetic Chiffon margarine was even better than nature’s butter. In fact, Chiffon was so good that…
I have been challenged recently (on several fronts — some just internally) about the purpose and usefulness of Christian apologetics. I don’t take the challenge lightly. Some who have challenged me have given me some food for thought about how I approach my Christian convictions and I take their critiques seriously. I know for a…
If you turn your TV on these days, you can’t avoid hearing about the Casey Anthony trial going on down in Florida — the details of which are horrifying and disgusting. The case reminds me of a study I read about and am re-posting here because Casey Anthony is a poster child for this topic…
Moses, the writer of the Genesis creation account, used the word nephesh (Hebrew: soul, self, life, creature, mind, living being, desire, emotion, passion) to describe the creation of the most advanced animal life next to man. These creatures are sometimes described as the “soulish” animals; those that display a mind, will, and emotion. They differ…
We just buried our family’s pet cockatiel, Larry. He was not an extraordinarily bright or talented bird – he thought he had a twin brother who matched his every dance move when he stood in front of a mirror or even in front of the shiny faucet of our kitchen sink. But he could whistle…
What is it that motivates you? What is it that gives your life meaning and purpose? Is it simply the chemicals and biological material that make up your body, or is it more than that? Is it something that makes no sense in a purely physical world? My friend Tim’s story not only defies the…
