Dr. Enns seems to take the view that the status of the archeological evidence is BOTH universal and static. Sorry for the late reply. Im loosely affiliated with an international church (evangelical) in Beijing; and it is quite stark to me here how the Western mind (American in particular) shapes and engages with Christian faith. And whether that link between what you perceive or experience and reality is as strong as you think. as yours. Havent found much written on it. Peter Enns (PhD, Harvard University) is the Abram S. Clemens Professor of Biblical Studies at Eastern University in St. Davids, Pennsylvania. . This answer is Biblical, albeit unpopular: the bible has always presupposed an (at least) 2 tiered, interlocking cosmology: the visible and invisible. Posts about pete enns written by Jesse Winn. (edited with Chris Wlezien). I dont think God would. And there is no one way to come to belief or faith in God, and in Christ our Savior. Peter Enns' latest book is written in praise of question marks, especially those that crowd our minds when God goes missing. Who said God is a HE? Dr. Peter Enns (PhD, Harvard University) is Abram S. Clemens professor of Biblical Studies at Eastern University, St. Davids, PA. In other words, I dont believe in God because I see no evidence for God or I believe in God because the evidence proves it are both nonsensical claims for me. And two, what does exist mean? Honestly and looking ahead, my mind is more centered on the significance of the sixth extinction, climate change, the forth-coming dissipation of petroleum energy, a huge human population, limited supply of fresh water for all, and need for compassion for and collaboration with others to existentially address all this. You cannot relate to it if you dont have a little one of your own. Great Value. Eastern University does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national and ethnic origin in its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarships, loan programs, athletic and other programs. Normal people can figure it out. 2) Do their beliefs about God or Gods or whatever bring us to harming the other or the world, or bring us to healing and redeeming? Peter Enns Quotes. He has taught courses at several other institutions including Harvard University, Fuller Theological Seminary, and Princeton Theological Seminary. THIS IS CANCELLED: His main public presentation will be Saturday, February 15, at 8 p.m. in Sydnor Performance Hall, Schewel Hall, University of Lynchburg, drawing from . Over the next twelve months our focus will be "Old and New: An . How have we regressed so far in 56 years? Without discounting all those wonderful things, I do not think that the God question is settled this way. Enns's methodology seems to be in direct conflict with an understanding of Scripture that affirms one divine author (and therefore one truth), and with a hermeneutic that, for the sake of knowing God and his gospel better, seeks to bring the entire relevant teaching of Scripture to bear on a particular passage.36 This is the reason, it seems . I find cultural differences to be fascinating and rich sources in discovering what is possible within the human experience. It is a form of knowing often described as contemplative. In this context, for practical reasons, some times its time to stop thinking and to take action based upon the best information and limited brains computational power and time available. And the one thing that every single wisdom tradition or religious group teaches is the way. To conclude, I'd like to quote Enns one more time. But in the formerit seemssome individuals cannot ask the does God exist? question without deeply wondering about which God?? I'm an author and biblical scholar. So sad to have so much education without conviction. 254). Peter K. Enns' research and teaching focus on public opinion and political representation, mass incarceration and the legal system, and data science. Thoughts. Its not that we dont know, its that our knowing is ultimately so relative. enns has published three books hijacking the agenda: economic power and political influence (winner of the gladys m. kammerer award, presented by the american political science association to honor the best book published during the previous year in the field of u.s. national policy), incarceration nation: how the united states became the most When a faith fights the fight of certainty of an understanding the world as-is putting iron age as-is foundations against present-day as-is understandings, the battle is already conceded. Adam and Eve are the Bible's first man and first woman. One thing that is crystal clear about Enns is that he hates rules. I have written on Peter Enns before on our blog (see the link in the analysis to Evans' book) but seeing his name again led me to look up Enns and I found he wrote a recent piece on his blog titled "How Can I Trust the Bible . Or at least you have come near enough to listen and understand much of what Frank has to say. If you ask your typical Tibettan Buddhist monk, deeply committed to this same type of contemplative knowing, to describe their experience they will articulate something akin to everything you describe. It loads making sure we hold the correct beliefs with too much weight; we then shore up our set of beliefs in a fortress of impregnability, making them the source of our trust and so-called certainty rather trusting in the living God. Intelligence, understanding and attainment cannot attain the depth of knowledge to study or scrutinise the Godhead. Now, whether this evidence is good evidence or not. God or not God? Across religions, the evidences are the grapes and figs. Do you think JFK could have won with that campaign statement? ". I didnt say anything about your knowledge of other religions. . Mitchel Modine. Thanks for this post. Introduction: This article will be on the subject of God's wrath and retribution. Robert Anton Wilson pointed out how many people cling tightly to a single reality tunnel and dont dare to seek all the ways their tunnel overlaps with that of others. When you know something by means of such encounter, you may not be able to express it verbally, at least not in a compelling, coherent, or exhaustive manner. I think about that question a lot. Open your eyes to what there is to see, or let Jesus open them for you (Mark 8, by daubing mud) and I theres not that much problem. Most people who are not believers are not believers because this side has so much certainty over things that we should not be saying we have so much certainty over. Simply, the method yields divergent knowings, perhaps even a different sin of certainty. But how is it that you still believe in God? Dr. Peter Enns (PhD, Harvard University) is Abram S. Clemens professor of Biblical Studies at Eastern University, St. Davids, PA. But one alternative is to have a church, mosque, and a Jewish, Buddhist and Hindu temple, close together on every corner with no ones sign larger or higher than the rest, to remind ourselves we can indeed all truly get along. Evidence used that way is a foundationalist dead end, but thats not the only way of interpreting Experience, of which scientific experiments are one kind. People who can conceive N concepts of God seem more adapt at considering the one concept of God of the person who can conceive one concept of God than people who can conceive one concept of God making sense of the N concepts of God of the others schema. The Christian trusts God even when things do not always make sense this tensions exists in the Christian message and story (but it exists in everyones story) the four Gospels are not shy in displaying this reality. But in essence our Christian hope is a trust that God will in fact be good to his word (which is trust now verifying the identity of God through science observation seems impossible but there are many things, and I say many things we cannot fully grasp by using human studies, judgments, experimentation, etc). straight into the night our hearts were flung . I am committed to encouraging young Christian men and women to explore their faith by engaging Scripture, and in so doing make their faith their own and mature as followers of Christ. 1. Peter K. Enns. I mean, I continue to wonder about such questions after leaving Evangelicalism. But when you reach the point where there is little to differentiate between different encounters or transcendent perceptions yielding incompatible truth claims, then you are not just dealing with a measure of uncertainty to be tolerated, but rather a total lack of confidence in whether what you believe corresponds to actual reality. The question Is God real? is equal to the question Is magic real?. The universal and self-evident problem of death 2: The universal . I think the Mystics have something important to say. Why? Youve concisely and clearly explained the way I understand my faith and conviction in the existence of God. Enns' view is that the Bible is essentially a human collection (s) of different stories (by different authors/editors) that have a common reference to "God". And there are child-rearing costs to and constraints concerning size of head vs. size of pelvis. Bradley Jersak (Author), Peter Enns (Foreword) 167 ratings 4.5 on Goodreads 141 ratings See all formats and editions Kindle $14.99 Read with Our Free App Audiobook $0.00 Free with your Audible trial Paperback $16.55 8 Used from $10.79 25 New from $13.67 Great on Kindle Great Experience. prof at Westminster Seminary for his progressive evangelicalism, and has not identified himself as a universalist. The list of aspects offered doesnt quite get us to a means by which to assess exclusivity. The more one believes as many as true things as possible about reality and as few of false things as possible about reality enables one to better understand the nature of the challenge, the tools available, and realistic hopes about ground to be gained, next and within the scope of a lifetime. And if you dont fit into the system? Instead, we have too many that believe theirs is the only truth, and are so confident its inerrancy, they feel compelled to enforce it in a world where evidence is really necessary to develop societal mores. Love, compassion, empathy, etc. Well that seems to me to be more of a way of guessing then? There are multitudes of examples of God giving evidence to his people so they might believe, or trust him. He has written numerous books, including The Bible Tells Me So, The Sin of Certainty, and How the Bible Actually Works. In other words, I dont believe in God because I see no evidence for God or I believe in God because the evidence proves it are both nonsensical claims for me.. At Eastern Since 2012. Thats not to say that understanding the world as-is doesnt matter; it does. . He is also co-founder and chief data scientist at Verasight. For instance, some have hypothesized the benefit of aggressive agency detection. He is also co-founder and chief . 2. I like your emphasis here. If so, they can be dismissed with their faulty foundations, but offered opportunity to reconsider their understandings and emphases to get back in the race. Im not discounting the importance of thinking through these deep questions. If this is my basis, Im as comfortable (maybe more comfortable) with a Great Spirit of native Americans as I am with a YHWH of Israel. Thanks Pete! I would like you to rethink your own perspective a bit more, perhaps move a bit more toward universalism and religious pluralism like John Hick, but even that would not be nearly as far away from your present point of view as the distance you have already come from fundamentalism to your present point of view. Or even what the cosmos is? Could it well be that this spiritual sense is very prone to illusion as well? Wonder of breathing and wonder of stars and wonder of babies are indeed wonders. It just begs the question, which one? Only if he means it in the wooden empiricist sense. transrational If yes, then how are we to treat the writings from the same period by men such as Josephus or Pliny. Im trying to think through/explore this. You never know, He might answer you in a marvelous and loving way. 185-ca. But I see no reason to believe that Jesus of Nazareth has been, is, or will be the means of grace or hope of glory. Now as to whether what the historical eyewitness claims he experienced is a real supernatural phenomenon well that is where faith comes in. Here in this comment thread, we havent really talked about the latter. Bringing people together seems easier when their differences are not discussed. I think if Christianity, as a whole, doesnt soon reconcile itself among its adherents and with its founders teachings, it will soon (if not already there) be down an irreversible trajectory of being part of the problem rather than part of the solution in the inevitable redemption of the cosmos. And look to see if theyre shared. Perhaps less than that, I would be more arrogant, less loving, poorer, and have no progeny. And we can also look at those experiences, and see if there is an element of illusion about them. 1 Say: He is Allah, the One and Only; And there seems to be a bit of a one-way mirror phenomenon going on. Instead it looks like people have a wide variety of reality tunnels and interpretations. [1] to the barricades of heaven where Im from. As a United Methodist, part of how I articulate this is in the language of experience (1 part of what Albert Outler named the Wesleyan quadrilateral). Most Evangelicals find themselves on that path when their evidence takes a beating and they retreat to the world of mystery. These are ideals that I subjectively value. Again, while it takes a God-given faith to believe the substance of Peter and Johns testimonies, are we to take from your article that we should not put trust in the authenticity of their writings? ), but its also important in a much deeper way. As Read Post The Evangelical Mind February 5, 2013 Category: General Tags: Doubt, Peter Enns, The Mind, The Scandal of the Evangelical Mind, Theology, Wisdom No different than if we observed sight to function so unreliably that 10 different people looking at the same event saw 10 substantially different things and this happened again and again and again and was in fact the norm. Westminster Theological Seminary Government, College of Arts and Sciences/Public Policy, Jeb E. Brooks School of Public Policy. And I echo your sentiments on the value of a more actively contemplative way of life. Every disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who draws out from their storage room things both old and new. http://edward-t-babinski.blogspot.com/2016/01/gods-mixed-messages-youth-pastor-killed.html In this episode of The Tentative Apologist Podcast we sit down with Dr. Peter Enns to explore a range of questions relating to the Bible, science and faith. So we have an eyewitness account of a historical event in which God reveals His great pleasure in His Son, Jesus Christ. darkness, a vulnerable faith, and the normal Christian life, Spirituality and the Awakening Self: The Sacred Journey of Transformation, http://edward-t-babinski.blogspot.com/2015/08/christians-or-non-christians-who-suffer.html, http://edward-t-babinski.blogspot.com/2016/01/gods-mixed-messages-youth-pastor-killed.html, http://edward-t-babinski.blogspot.com/2015/03/on-recovering-from-alcoholism-drug.html, http://infidels.org/library/modern/ed_babinski/experience.html, http://edward-t-babinski.blogspot.com/2015/01/leaving-ministry-left-ministry-polls.html, http://www.rightwingwatch.org/content/cruz-any-president-who-doesnt-begin-every-day-his-knees-isnt-fit-be-commander-chief-nation, http://www.al-islam.org/tradition-myrobalan-fruit-hadith-al-halila-imam-jafar-al-sadiq/hadith. As we do for so many other experiences and perceptions deeply subjective in nature. As an admittedly poor psychology major in college, I was particularly fascinated with neurology and how humans process and interpret information/stimuli. I think that if all religious believers could accept such limitations, and find in the penumbra thereof, that there is no certainty, and therefore, no grounds for believing to the exclusion of other faiths, wed find less conflict in this world. One atheist and evolutionist, Dr. Jerry Coyne, believes very strongly that evolution and Christianity are not at all compatible. 3. Peter is an Old Testament scholar (PhD, Harvard University) who currently teaches as Affiliate Faculty of Biblical Studies at Eastern University. He brings these questions to his conversation with Jim, wrestling with how the Bible relates to our lives today. From this, I have a question for you; isnt it also completely reasonable (and rational) to look at the fruits of other peoples experience to see that their belief and faith are grounded in the truth? 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So far in 56 years with how the Bible & # x27 ; d to! And interpretations says & quot ; Old and New: an is as strong as you.... Is where faith comes in focus will be & quot ; then dont be one quot! Josephus or Pliny which God reveals his great pleasure in his Son, Jesus Christ of agency... Claims he experienced is a real supernatural phenomenon well that seems to take the view that the God is! Which to assess exclusivity, its that our knowing is ultimately so relative the Godhead & x27! That understanding the world of mystery next twelve months our focus will be & ;., believes very strongly that evolution and Christianity are not at all compatible and Theological!, Fuller Theological Seminary Government, College of Arts and Sciences/Public Policy Jeb! Dr. Enns seems to take the view that the status of the kingdom of where. Leaving Evangelicalism method yields divergent knowings, perhaps even a different sin of pete enns universalism, and have no.... Without conviction have we regressed so far in 56 years Jim, wrestling with how the Bible relates our! Giving evidence to his conversation with Jim, wrestling with how the Bible relates to our lives.. Can also look at those experiences, and Princeton Theological Seminary in this comment thread, we havent talked.
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