Category Archives: Uncategorized

Heaven and Hell are featureless. Stories set in an unending paradise or unremitting torture are not stories at all. They have no arc, no progress, no ending. We relate to stories, it is hard to relate to Heaven or Hell. … Continue reading →

This post was suggested by a member of our bible study last night. They had heard that the greek form in Acts 19:2 was a little odd, and thought I might like to do some digging. If you’re not interested … Continue reading →

Interesting conversation by email today with a friend*, who was trying to call me out on my insistence there was a historical Jesus. We reached the point that these conversations go, where I realise they thought I meant that the … Continue reading →

I’ve said several times on this blog that the idea of hanging theology off Jesus’s death seems weak to me. There are things that are significant about death (compared to someone, say, being in a coma for a while, or … Continue reading →

I’m reading a lot about story theory at the moment, mostly for work (I love my job). I’m trying to give myself a major crash course in narratology and myth and story and creative writing. Its hard, fun and quite … Continue reading →

Once again there are sparks flying across the blogosphere about mythicism — the idea that there was no historical Jesus at the core of the Christian mythos. Prominent atheists such as PZ Myers have publically backed the anti-scholarship-plus-conspiracy-theory angle, as … Continue reading →

We all know playing the lottery is a mug’s game, right? If I have (say) a one in two million chance of winning a million, with one dollar ticket, then my expected return is 50c. I expect to get 50c, … Continue reading →

Okay, there are actually three sides here: the side that thinks religion and science can be compatible, the side that thinks science shows religion to be false, and the side that thinks religion shows science to be false. I spend … Continue reading →

In my previous post I pointed out that debates and science and religion are often fruitless because both sides argue straw men. They invent positions for the other side (or either quote mine them or cherry pick the most straw … Continue reading →

Forewarning: This is one of those posts where I ramble about something unrelated to religion and then make a tenuous theological point at the end. Today’s topic: math…. no don’t go, it won’t be that bad. I was a counselor … Continue reading →