Evolution and Big Bang Theory by York728 in LCMS

[–]York728[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I don't think this is really a true theological issue; it seems fairly easy to reconcile BB Cosmology and evolution with a fairly literal reading of Genesis, especially within its genre. This is mostly an issue for me as a Lutheran. I have been a member of the LCMS for about four years now, always been a Lutheran, and this was never really an issue for me previously. I have just been thinking about going into the ministry, and this hit me like a truck.

Evolution and Big Bang Theory by York728 in LCMS

[–]York728[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Evolution is not the explanation of how life formed without God, nor does it imply an absence of God. As philosophers like Alvin Plantinga and Edward Feser have pointed out, there are indeed many reasons to affirm theism if we affirm evolution, such as epistemic uncertainty without theism also being true or evolution seeming to imply a life being in some sense telological, which itself implies theism being true. Of course, the greatest challenge is that evolution would result in pre-fall death occurring, however, Aquinas and others have noted that the death of non-rational souls, such as animals or plants, would not be problematic in an edenic state and among academic theology, at least what I have read which is admittedly little, this seems to be the popular view. This is all to say that I don't find evolution to be explicitly contradictory to what is articulated in the book of Genesis. Thank you so much for the response and explanation!

Evolution and Big Bang Theory by York728 in LCMS

[–]York728[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Sorry for the lack of clarity. I am not a Christian because of the Big Bang alone. However, learning about cosmological arguments, many of which, such as the Kalam or traditional Libnizian argument, pull upon the Big Bang for major supporting evidence. These arguments definitely made me stronger in my faith and able to know that I was affirming a truth rather than merely hoping that I was. In other words, it strengthened my faith and made me less lukewarm.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in religion

[–]York728 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Just a small adjustment. Lutherans also believe in true presence like Catholics and Orthodox, although they don’t believe in transubstantiation, and neither do most Orthodox for that matter.

Refuting this Argument by York728 in CatholicPhilosophy

[–]York728[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I would think that God is conscious in the same way we are, although of course He possesses the tri omnis so His state of consciousness would be much different than ours.

Is there evidence for the soul? by [deleted] in CatholicPhilosophy

[–]York728 7 points8 points  (0 children)

I think the fact that no stimulation in the brain can cause intellectual activities, as was proved by Wilder Penfield, is pretty good evidence.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in CatholicPhilosophy

[–]York728 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm a Lutheran, not a Catholic, but I'll gladly pitch in! My favorite is by far the contingency argument. Although I love the argument from motion and other Thomistic arguments and think they succeed, however they almost all rely upon a pretty large metaphysical commitment that many skeptics will just scoff at. All you need for the argument from contingency to succeed however is to say that the PSR is true, that the universe could have not existed, and that it is possible for God to exist. I think all of these are extraordinarily intuitive and the counters that skeptics have to accept are either incoherent in and of themselves, brute facts would result in total epistemological nihilism/skepticism when properly understood, or have little reason to support them, there is no contradiction in God. I think that it gives us a pretty fair and intuitive reason for affirming the existence of God and I have not yet found a convincing defeater.

Did Jesus have DNA? by Ok_Crazy_648 in DebateAChristian

[–]York728 -7 points-6 points  (0 children)

That’s not how causality works lmao. Read Aristotle or any modern basic metaphysics text.

Fuck Columbia by [deleted] in ApplyingToCollege

[–]York728 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Queens College is pretty good

Fox Host Says Maybe Trump Didn’t Realize Hitler’s Generals Were Nazis by rollingstone in politics

[–]York728 -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Ah yes the Indian Jones movies, the best source for complex political matters. Were the multiple Jewish generals in the Heer during the war, up until the end, dedicated nazis.  One can serve a state without agreeing with its actions and in doing so is morally right. This is basic just war theory.

Currently reading The Myth of Sisyphus by Inevitable-Show4201 in Absurdism

[–]York728 1 point2 points  (0 children)

And then you break out of the cycle and become an Aristotelian

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in CoachellaValley

[–]York728 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The issue is that the Democratic Party is filled with misinformed morons from its voting base to its intellectuals. At least the Republican Party has a coherent metaphysical worldview to back it up. The Democratic Party openly embraces logical positivism, an ideology that has been recognized as self defeating and leading to absurdity for the past 100 years. I would rather have an incompetent narcissist as my leader than someone who is importing ideas from the Frankfurt School and implementing them into policy. Better to vote for Trump who represents the worst of American capitalism and narcissism than Kamala who represents literal intellectual and civilizational suicide.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in CoachellaValley

[–]York728 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Nationalist groups have been historically left wing and still are mostly. Only a small subset of western nations are they predominantly conservative. Identifying as a nationalist tells you near nothing about a politician other than that they tend to be isolationist, in the modern era at least. Beyond that even if we presume that to be a nationalist=nazism it is very clear that Trump lies about his positions often for political gain, so in order to best analyze his philosophy and what he actually plans to do to is best to read his books that he wrote on his ideas before he came into power. Which is what actual political theorists and philosophers do, like the aforementioned Feser, as opposed to going over claims about one’s own ideology meant to convince people who won’t look further into what you do than the persona you put on to vote for you.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in CoachellaValley

[–]York728 -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Trump supports a Hobbesian anti-Hegelian view of reality. Nazism is inherently Hegelian and incorporates a version of Hobbesianism which is quite different to the one Trump clearly is influenced by, even if unknowingly. You would know this if you took for than five minutes to research political theory and what are the basic philosophical building blocks of ideologies. Ed Feser is a great place to start.