on Kierkegaardian Faith

I hear this all the time from atheists who are debating the Christian faith, saying that faith is defined as "believing something regardless of the facts."

Here's the thing that bothers me: A lot of Christians seem to live as if faith is just that; a leap in the dark, a Kierkegaardian/PeterPan disconnect between faith and reason.

It sickens me to see well-meaning Christians live this way, because in fact they simply don't have to.

The Christian faith is based on evidence. Jesus is the revelation of God to man. His life, ministry, death, and resurrection are a matter of public record. It's called the Bible. The Bible tells us that God showed us mercy in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us.

We are putting our trust in a God who has actually done something within history to reconcile us to Him.

This trust IS the biblical view of faith.

It has nothing to do with believing something so hard that it becomes real to us. It has everything to do with trusting the promises of a God who has already shown Himself trustworthy.

When Christians give in to the elusive game of make-believe, then they have already lost the battle. Because at that point it really doesn't matter what you believe as long as you believe it hard enough. And this position relativizes ALL beliefs. Then we can no longer weigh any system of belief according to how realistic or all-encompassing it is. We must simply play the game of Tolerance and say "That's nice for you."

Thoughts on Limitless the Movie

First of all, I loved it. It was a thrill ride, and the movie was very well made. I especially liked the cinematography: how the "picture" changes when the "hero" is on the "genius drug"; the "cosmic zoom" where the camera (representing the hero) travels at high speed thru streets, crowds, and scenarios. Also, if I remember right, I like the fact that the character seemed to make his best decisions when he was NOT on the "genius drug."

Secondly, I hated the implications of the movie.

Look at what "being a genius" meant for the "hero": monopolizing discussions at parties, taking advantage of women who thought smart was sexy, capitalizing on stock market trends to rake in loads of cash, etc. To me it seemed like this movie simply reinforced the adage, "educated a sinner and you get an educated sinner." The "genius drug" did absolutely nothing to actually make him a better person. Do we all want to become as megalomaniacal as the "hero" in this film?

Also, if anyone thought this movie was in any way inspirational, I'd like to know on what level. Are we going to fall for some new form of LSD? Remember, Timothy Leary was boasting about LSD the same way this movie was about NZT. Or maybe some folks will decide to take up Trancendental Meditation or go back to college or practice the Law of Attraction, or various other means to an end. Here's the real problem: we don't even use the 20% of our brains well enough, why burn out the full 100%? Our personal computers are a great example in this case: how well do they work and for how long when we jam pack them with data and programs?

I'll preface my next point with the concession that I feel we are all meant to strive for excellence in life. And I do personally feel that we will one day experience using our brains at full potential, and this belief is consistent with my faith as a Christian. Read the biblical passages on the next phase of humanity under the rule of Christ and the restoration of all things, and you will find in this the true expression of which this movie is simply a grasping at the wind. But while we strive to accomplish the premise of this movie outside of the will and purposes of God, we simply set ourselves up as the next Tower of Babel or statue with a head of gold and feet of clay.

The issue of human potentiality MUST be a subset of a society fully surrendered to the biblical God, or else it will simply become the next fad in a long history of mankind's sinfulness and rebellion against its Creator.

And if anyone thinks this idea has never been entertained before, read Flowers For Algernon or watch the movie Charly (1968).