On Campus
The science professor begins his school year with a lecture to the students, "Let me explain the problem science has with religion." The atheist professor of philosophy pauses before his class and then asks one of his new students to stand. "You're a Christian, aren't you, son?" "Yes sir," the student says. "So you believe in God?" "Absolutely." "Is God good?" "Sure! God's good." "Is God all-powerful? Can God do anything?" "Yes." "Are you good or evil?" "The Bible says my heart tends toward evil." The professor grins knowingly. "Aha! The Bible!" He considers for a moment.
"Here's one for you. Let's say there's a sick person over here and you can cure him. You can do it. Would you help him? Would you try?" "Yes sir, I would." "So you're good!" "I wouldn't say that." "But why not say that? You'd help a sick and maimed person if you could. Most of us would if we could. But God doesn't." The student does not answer, so the professor continues. "He doesn't, does he? My brother was a Christian who died of cancer, even though he prayed to Jesus to heal him. How is this Jesus good? Hmmm? Can you answer that one?" The student remains silent. "No, you can't, can you?" the professor says. He takes a sip of water from a glass on his desk to give the student time to relax.
"Let's start again, young fella. Is God good?" "Er....yes," the student says. "Is Satan good?" The student doesn't hesitate on this one, "No." "Then where does Satan come from?" The student falters, "From God" "That's right. God made Satan, didn't he? Tell me, son. Is there evil in this world?" "Yes, sir." "Evil is everywhere, isn't it? And God did make everything, correct?" "Yes." "So who created evil?" The professor continued, "If God created everything, then God created evil, since evil exists, and according to the principle that our works define who we are, then God is evil." Again, the student has no answer. "Is there sickness? Immorality? Hatred? Ugliness? All these terrible things, do they exist in this world?" The student squirms on his feet, "Yes." "So who created them?" The student does not answer again, so the professor repeats his question, "Who created them?" There is still no answer. Suddenly the lecturer breaks away to pace in front of the classroom. The class is mesmerized.
"Tell me," he continues onto another student, "Do you believe in Jesus Christ, son?" The student's voice betrays him and cracks, "Yes, professor, I do." The old man stops pacing. "Science says you have five senses you use to identify and observe the world around you. Have you ever seen Jesus?" "No sir. I've never seen Him." "Then tell us if you've ever heard your Jesus?" "No, sir, I have not." "Have you ever felt your Jesus, tasted your Jesus or smelled your Jesus? Have you ever had any sensory perception of Jesus Christ, or God for that matter?" "No, sir, I'm afraid I haven't." "Yet you still believe in him?" "Yes." "According to the rules of empirical, testable, demonstrable protocol, science says your God doesn't exist. What do you say to that, son?" "Nothing," the student replies, "I only have my faith." "Yes, faith," the professor repeats, "And that is the problem science has with God. There is no evidence, only faith."
The student stands quietly for a moment, before asking a question of his own. "Professor, is there such thing as heat?" "Yes," the professor replies, "There is heat." "And is there such a thing as cold?" "Yes, son, there's cold too." "No sir, there isn't." The professor turns to face the student, obviously interested. The room suddenly becomes very quiet. The student begins to explain, "You can have lots of heat, even more heat, super-heat, mega-heat, unlimited heat, white heat, a little heat or no heat, but we don't have anything called 'cold.' We can reach up to 458 degrees below zero, which is no heat, but we can't go any further after that. There is no such thing as cold; otherwise we would be able to go colder than the lowest -458 degrees. Everybody or object is susceptible to study when it has or transmits energy, and heat is what makes a body or matter have or transmit energy. Absolute zero (-458 F) is the total absence of heat. You see, sir, cold is only a word we use to describe the absence of heat. We cannot measure cold. Heat we can measure in thermal units because heat is energy. Cold is not the opposite of heat, sir, just the absence of it." Silence across the room. A pen drops somewhere in the classroom, sounding like a hammer.
"What about darkness, professor. Is there such a thing as darkness?" "Yes," the professor replies without hesitation "What is night if it isn't darkness?" "You're wrong again, sir," the student replied, "Darkness is not something; it is the absence of something. You can have low light, normal light, bright light, flashing light, but if you have no light constantly you have nothing and it's called darkness, isn't it? That's the meaning we use to define the word. In reality, darkness doesn't exist. If it did, you would be able to make darkness darker, wouldn't you?"
The professor begins to smile at the student in front of him. (This will be a good semester.) "So what point are you making, young man?" "Yes, professor. My point is, your philosophical premise is flawed to start with, and so your conclusion must also be flawed." The professor's face cannot hide his surprise this time. "Flawed? Can you explain how?" "You are working on the premise of duality," the student explains, "You argue that there is life and then there's death; a good God and a bad God. You are viewing the concept of God as something finite, something we can measure. Sir, science can't even explain a thought. It uses electricity and magnetism, but has never seen, much less fully understood either one. To view death as the opposite of life is to be ignorant of the fact that death cannot exist as a substantive thing. Death is not the opposite of life, just the absence of it."
"Now tell me, professor. Do you teach your students that they evolved from apes?" "If you are referring to the natural evolutionary process, young man, yes, of course I do." "Have you ever observed evolution with your own eyes, sir?" The professor begins to shake his head, still smiling, as he realizes where the argument is going. (A very good semester, indeed.) "Since no one has ever observed the process of evolution at work and cannot even prove that this process is an on-going endeavor, are you not teaching your opinion, sir? Are you now not a scientist, but a preacher? How does evolution explain the Cambrian explosion?" The class is in uproar. The student remains silent until the commotion has subsided.
"To continue the point you were making earlier to the other student, let me give you an example of what I mean." The student looks around the room. "Is there anyone in the class who has ever seen the professor's brain?" The class breaks out into laughter. The student proceeds to ask, "Is there anyone here who has ever heard the professor's brain, felt the professor's brain, touched or smelled the professor's brain? No one appears to have done so. So, according to the established rules of empirical, stable, demonstrable protocol, science says that you have no brain; with all due respect, sir. So if science says you have no brain, how can we trust your lectures, sir?"
Now the room is silent. The professor just stares at the student, his face unreadable. Finally, after what seems an eternity, the old man answers, "I guess you'll have to take them on faith." "Now, you accept that there is faith, and, in fact, faith exists with life," the student continues, "Now, sir, is there such a thing as evil?" Now uncertain, the professor responds, "Of course, there is. We see it every day. It is in the daily example of man's inhumanity to man. It is in the multitude of crime and violence everywhere in the world. These manifestations are nothing else but evil."
To this the student replied, "Evil does not exist sir, or at least it does not exist unto itself. Evil is simply the absence of God. It is just like darkness and cold, a word that man has created to describe the absence of God. God did not create evil. Evil is the result of what happens when man does not have God's love present in his heart. It's like the cold that comes when there is no heat, or the darkness that comes when there is no light." The professor sat down. (Author Unknown)
This discussion was emailed to me by a good friend. It's one of those chain emails floating around in cyberspace designed to be read and passed on to other friends. I found it worthy to publish because it reveals two things that need to be addressed. One) This discussion happens daily on campus in many colleges, including colleges founded by Christian church groups like Harvard and Yale. Second) It reveals that most believers are really ill equipped to respond to the challenge of their faith in God. In this discussion, there was one student who could. When I was in college, I was the only one of 35 students in my class who stood up in defense of the Gospel. How many classrooms are void of even one voice? Too many! That is why I strongly encourage believers (and non-believers) to read the works of Christian intellectuals such as Alister McGrath and other Christian authors.
Capitalism And The Love Of Money
Ayn Rand quotes, "Capitalism is the only system where such men are free to function and where progress is accompanied, not by forced privations, but by a constant rise in the general level of prosperity, of consumption and of enjoyment of life." Though I believe capitalism over communism is the best economic basis for any society, as did the founding fathers of this country, it is also vulnerable to abuse by the rich and powerful. Money in itself is not evil. It is merely a bartering tool. It also empowers the individual to care for his/her needs, enjoy life and help with the needs of others. It cannot, in itself, meet our spiritual needs. It simply makes you more of what you already are.
"For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs." 1 Timothy 6:10 NIV
Money lovers not only empower themselves, but use money as power over others to gain more wealth. John D. Rockefeller, when asked once, "How much money is enough money?" He replied, "Just a little bit more." Though he considered himself to be a philanthropist, for many of his competitors, Rockefeller merely had to show them his books so they could see what they were up against and then made them a decent offer. If they refused his offer, he told them he would run them into bankruptcy, then cheaply buy up their assets at auction. Most capitulated.
Cultural Revolution
The 60's was a time of great cultural revolution in America. It wasn't the first, however. The Great Depression was also a time of massive social and economic upheaval. As in the movie, The Secret, the wealthy elites in this country were building their wealth on the backs of the poor while hiding "the secret" from them. The stock market crash of 1929 may very well have been orchestrated by these elites for their own financial gain. Any time there is an economic recession or depression, the wealthy will buy up businesses and property at a fraction of their value. This is likely why the economy fluctuates as it does.
During The Great Depression in this country, Joseph Stalin was in power over the Soviet Union. Stalin had a plan to take the United States without a shot as a prize for it's wealth and resources. The plan was to infiltrate and influence one or both political parties, our pulpits, our classrooms, our news sources, art, music and began with the opportunity to influence the Labor Movement. The problem with Communism is that it is just another system of the wealthy to control the poor. It is atheist in nature which then allows it to violate human rights, since people (in the atheist mind) are just animals to be exploited their way. Where ever communism has had free reign, it has resulted in the emergence of four classes of people. 1) The Oligarchy, who control the wealth and power. 2) The Ruling class, likely from or endorsed by the oligarchy who control the political power. 3) The Intellectual class, considered part of the working class (as a white-collar worker in the USA) who advance science, medicine and education. They live just a little better than the rest of the working class. 4) The Working class, (as a blue-collar worker in the USA) who live in poverty.
The Cold War 50's
Beginning in 1950, Senator Joseph McCarthy became the most visible public face of a period in which Cold War tensions fueled fears of widespread Communist subversion. Though he was blown off as a witch hunter, he was right. The problem McCarthy had was the way he went about trying to solve the problem. Isn't it interesting how we become like that which we hate? Given free reign, McCarthy would have likely rounded up communists as political prisoners the same as communists round up dissidents. The way to defeat communist propaganda is to factually emphasize the truth. But the truth is we had our own glaring hypocrisies, such as racial segregation and the military/industrial complex Dwight D. Eisenhower warned us about. The subversion continued.
As it progressed, the Soviets became bolder in their predictions. Nikita Khrushchev was General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964, following the death of Joseph Stalin. He declared, "We can't expect the American People to jump from Capitalism to Communism, but we can assist their elected leaders in giving them small doses of Socialism, until they awaken one day to find that they have Communism." and "I once said, 'We will bury you,' and I got into trouble with it. Of course we will not bury you with a shovel. Your own working class will bury you."
The Hippie Dippy 60's
The "Leave It To Beaver" kids grow up! Having been taught wholesome family values, they begin to see the evils in our society and try to right them. They begin to support the Civil Rights Movement. They question authority. They begin to fight against the military/industrial complex that profits from war and environmental pollution while the Cold War threat of annihilation hangs over them. They get taken in by communist Utopian propaganda. Advised by Harvard psychology professor, Dr. Timothy Leary, they begin to tune in, turn on, and drop out. They create the Counterculture Revolution. They see western religious institutions as corrupt failures and begin to follow eastern religions or humanism. With events in the United States crashing against the American population faster and faster, 1968 quickly developed into a year of rage. All across America emotions ran high.
Tensions peaked when two leaders, ones who had brought the promise of hope to a generation, were assassinated. A harsh blow came to the Civil Rights movement when Martin Luther King, Jr., was assassinated on April 4, 1968, followed by the assassination of one of the anti-war movement's hopefuls, Robert F. Kennedy on June 5th. SDS leader, Tom Hayden of the Chicago Seven, advised Counterculture participants to go "mainstream" and influence the Democrat Party from within after the riots he helped orchestrate at the Chicago Democrat Convention failed to produce results. The Counterculture began to take his advice and exchanged their wine and pot for a martini and a three piece suit. They began to attain positions of authority. You may now find a large number of radical leftists in the fields of politics, theology and education.
For others in search of Divine Light, God reached them with the Jesus People Movement and the Charismatic Movement. Both movements brought needed renewed life to the Christian faith through a personal relationship with God that was vibrant with the power and love of God's Holy Spirit. At first, members of the Charismatic Movement sought to influence and renew the stagnant mainstream denominations they were in. Later, seeing that the religious leaders within these institutions were corrupt and unmovable, the non-denominational churches began to grow and are flourishing to this day.
Khrushchev's Prediction Fulfilled
It's been over 50 years since Khrushchev's predictions. We now have an African American president, Barack "Barry" Obama, who is also politically far left as a likely result of the influence of his college professors and other left wing radicals like William Ayers. The Republican Party is alienating what conservatives it has left. Both political parties have plans for globalization and a New World Order. Both parties are growing government to an unsustainable level. Both parties are selling out to the interests of the rich, i.e. banks, insurance companies, etc. Congressman Barney Frank wants to pass more legislation he knows would usher in a second mortgage crisis. On July 7th, Pope Benedict XVI called for reforming the United Nations and establishing a "true world political authority" with "real teeth" to manage the global economy with God-centered ethics. I suspect our economic crisis is being created with bad legislation to bring the American people to a point of desperation and willingness to accept this New World Order.
The economy is in shambles. Yet our legislators want to pass legislation, such as Cap And Trade and ObamaCare, that will result in the demise of the middle-class in this country. It is obvious today that the modern Progressive Movement lacks the same moral fiber as the Progressives of the last century. Socialism is their cause and big government is their answer. Who cares that these government programs that are in place allow thousands to fall through the cracks in the system? And who can afford to pay the proposed federal penalty in ObamaCare if they can't afford health care premiums? It would be an obvious coup for the insurance companies as was the shift in auto insurance premium determination from the driving record to the credit score system was for bankers. The Progressives of 100 years ago were middle class reformers who stressed the importance of virtue and efficiency in all areas of government, the economy, and society. Today's Progressive could care less about such things.
Zeitgeist Propaganda
In 2007, Zeitgeist, The Movie appeared on the Internet. It immediately caused a firestorm of popularity on the Internet. It was easily and soundly debunked. I might also call your attention to the fact that Y-Jesus also does a thorough job confirming the history of the real Jesus. The Zeitgeist Movement made a lot of money and following by touting half-truths, conspiracy theory and blatant fabrication. In 2008, they produced Zeitgeist, Addendum. This was also soundly debunked. However, in this sea of 60's style "Tune In, Turn On and Drop Out" pablum was some truth to consider. We are on the precipice of a paradigm shift.
The answer does begin with a change of thinking within ourselves. If they have seen The Secret movie, they should know to be pro-consciousness, not anti-religious. They need to be completely factual to be credible and pro-Venus Project rather than anti-establishment. Perhaps someone should introduce "What The Bleep Do We Know" to them for an understanding of the latest discoveries in quantum physics, psychology and physiology. They definitely need to reconsider the words of Jesus and the Apostles. Love God. Hate sin. The truth is, Zeitgeist appears to be timed precisely to appear when the economy was about to tank for the purpose of enraging Americans to push for their New World Order. They are misleading you.
As Benjamin Franklin once said, "I've lived, Sir, a long time, and the longer I live, the more convincing Proofs I see of this Truth — That God governs in the Affairs of Men. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without his Notice, is it probable that an Empire can rise without his Aid? We have been assured, Sir, in the Sacred Writings, that except the Lord build the House they labor in vain who build it. I firmly believe this, — and I also believe that without his concurring Aid, we shall succeed in this political Building no better than the Builders of Babel: We shall be divided by our little partial local interests; our Projects will be confounded, and we ourselves shall become a Reproach and Bye word down to future Ages."
As believers in Christ Jesus, we are not superstitious mindless twits. We are coworkers with Him in the Body Of Christ. This also means that we are engaged in the creative process as The Secret movie describes. By seeking first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, we are manifesting His abundant life through us out to others. God is love. Is Zeitgeist anti-love? You will know them by the fruit that they bear.
