One of the most powerful tools in persuasion, irrespective of the credibility of what you are saying, is confidence. Assertions delivered with certainty and rhetorical force can often sound very convincing to an untrained audience. For the uninitiated, confidence is very easily, and subconsciously, taken as a proxy for competence.
On Undesigned Coincidences: A Reply to Dan McClellan Read More »
Careful scholarly critique is often very valuable in helping one to refine and better nuance arguments and discover potential vulnerabilities. In the present case, however, the attempted rebuttals offered by John Nelson illuminate the robustness of the arguments rather than their weaknesses.
On the Historicity of the Feeding of the Five Thousand: A Reply to John Nelson Read More »
An argument for Christianity that seldom receives adequate attention is the conversion of Saul of Tarsus (also known as Paul) on the road to Damascus. There exist three accounts of Paul’s conversion in the book of Acts — in chapters 9, 22, and 26. In this essay, I shall lay out in detail why Paul’s Damascus road conversion constitutes powerful evidence of the truth of Christianity.
The Conversion of Saul of Tarsus, and its Evidential Value (Revised & Expanded) Read More »
To avoid begging the question, Coyne must provide a justification, independent of the predictions of evolutionary theory, for believing that (a) an organism much simpler than M. genitalium is viable; (b) that complex enzymes could have evolved gradually from simpler proteins; and (c) that enzymes and coenzymes could have coevolved via rudimentary precursors.
To a Pro-Intelligent Design Paper, Biologist Jerry Coyne Reacts with Question-Begging Read More »
The cumulative force of the incidental agreements between Acts and these four epistles strongly supports the conclusion that Acts is high-resolution historical reportage. Taken cumulatively, undesigned coincidences provide powerful evidence for the reliability of Acts as an historical account and confirm that its author, Luke, was well informed, close up to the facts, and habitually scrupulous. This profile comports well with Luke’s own claim to have been Paul’s travelling companion for much of his journeys.
The Book of Acts is High-Resolution Reportage Read More »
An argument for Christianity that seldom receives adequate attention is the Christological Trilemma, most popularly associated with C.S. Lewis, though also developed by other authors preceding him such as G.K. Chesterton. In this essay, I shall give a survey of the Christological Trilemma, while supplying additional nuances to the argument as traditionally formulated.
Liar, Lunatic, or Lord? Reviving C.S. Lewis’ Trilemma Read More »
The justification for the Scriptural canon does not depend on circular reasoning nor on some arbitrary ecclesiastical decree. Rather, it rests on the person of Christ himself , and his commissioning of the apostles as Spirit-guided witnesses of his teaching. This framework provides a coherent epistemic justification of the canon that is consistent with the Protestant affirmation of sola scriptura.
From Christ to Scripture: A Coherent Framework Read More »
This is the sort of recurring pattern that one might expect to see in designed systems, but it is more surprising in stochastically evolved systems. It therefore suggests that operon regulation is best understood as the product of engineering rather than blind, unguided processes.
Recurring Design Logic in Attenuation Mechanisms Read More »
The design logic is the same. And yet, these two systems are not evolutionarily related to one another — as evidenced by the fact that the enzymes encoded by these two operons do not share sequence homology, indicating distinct evolutionary origins.
Recurring Design Logic in Operon Regulation Read More »
The headline that prompted me to read this paper claimed that the study “shows how bacteria evolved powered-up propellers.” But the paper does not do this at all. All it shows is another example of a flagellar protein that bears homology to a non-flagellar protein.
Fact Check: Has a Study Shown “How Bacteria Evolved Powered-Up Propellers”? Read More »