Facts & Faith
1993 Quarter 1
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He Is Risen, Indeed!
You may wonder how someone trained as a physical scientist can mentally, as well as emotionally, embrace the truth of the resurrection--or for that matter, of any other miracle recorded in the Bible. That's a question I asked of two physicists and an astronomer many years ago, and their answer surprised me. They agreed that it may be easier for them to believe than it is for a non-scientist.
Why? They based their answer on this premise: If the first verse of the Bible is true, and science has resoundingly affirmed that it is, then what on Earth could possibly be too hard for God? The Power causing and controlling the creation, radiating from a quasar, bursting from a supernova, sparking life into chemical compounds, breathing spirit into man can easily accomplish any of the other supernatural wonders described in the pages of Scripture, not to mention the pages of our own lives. No problem.
The scientific evidence for what the Bible demonstrates and describes as God's transcendence, His existence and operation in dimensions beyond the space and time dimensions of the universe, makes belief in miracles easier yet.
Imagine with me for a moment what took place in a dark tomb outside Jerusalem sometime before the dawn of the first Easter morning.
The body of Jesus of Nazareth lay doubly buried within a heavy linen cast (strips of linen saturated in 75 pounds of myrrh and aloes) within a sealed-tight cave, guarded by the toughest of the tough Roman soldiers.
Did He break His way out? No. Did He have to be unwrapped, like Lazarus? No. I believe He stepped right out through the body cast and through the stone in a physical body, just as He walked right into the roomful of incredulous disciples without waiting for them to unlock the door (Luke 24 and John 20). They thought they were seeing a ghost, of course, but He showed them otherwise as He ate with them and invited them to touch Him.
Though we cannot picture it, we can understand that Jesus had suddenly regained the physical dimensions He relinquished at His incarnation (see Philippians 2:6-11). With these extra dimensions, such things as walls--and even gravity--would no longer be barriers. Wow!
If you want to stretch your imagination and your faith, ask a friendly mathematician to describe what you could do if you were to gain even one extra dimension. And if you can't find a mathematician, think about what your life would be like if you were to lose just one of your three dimensions and become Mr. or Mrs. or Miss Flat.
Since we're trying to form mental pictures, consider what John and Peter must have seen when they entered the tomb. (I think the stone was rolled away for their sake.) There lay the neatly folded burial cloth that had been around Jesus' head, outside the perfectly intact, but now empty, linen body cast. They were baffled, but they believed.
Perhaps this Easter season God will bring you an opportunity to give someone reasons for your belief that the resurrection really happened and to tell what the resurrection means to you, personally. If you'd like some help in preparing, we recommend J. N. D. Anderson's booklet, Evidence for the Resurrection. You may order it via the response panel on p. 15 or by phone. Happy Easter.
--Kathy Ross
Galaxy Evolution Supports Creation
For decades physicists and other researchers into the origin of the universe looked for evidence that the universe had no perceptible origin, that it is everywhere and eternally the same-an infinite reality, or rather, Reality. But that is not what they found. To the dismay of those committed to keeping a beginning, thus of course a Beginner, out of the picture, change through time (in a word, "evolution") kept proving to be the inescapable reality.
The first observational support for an explosive and relatively recent beginning of the universe (the big bang model) came from a research study by Sir Martin Ryle and his team of radio astronomers at Cambridge University in the 1950s and early '60s.1 Voluminous evidence has been accumulating since then.2
In recent weeks, thanks to the Hubble Space Telescope, astronomers have discovered yet another indicator of a cosmic birthdate just 15 to 20 billion years ago.
A team headed by Alan Dressler, an astronomer with the Carnegie Observatories in Pasadena, California, produced the highest resolution photographs ever taken of distant clusters of galaxies. For the first time, we can see the actual shapes of the galaxies in clusters as distant as four billion light years. Dressler reports that thirty percent of the galaxies observed in the four-billion-light-year range are spirals.3 This number compares with just five percent spirals in galaxy clusters in our immediate vicinity. Apparently, as the universe has aged over the last four billion years, the number of spiral galaxies has dropped dramatically.
What caused this drop? Dressler suggests two possibilities, both developed through other researchers' computer simulations: 1) A galaxy's spiral structure is maintained only as long as star formation is proceeding within that galaxy. But the rate of star formation diminishes with age and eventually declines so sharply that the spiral structure falls apart. 2) When two or more spiral galaxies collide (and they often do), their shapes can be altered. The merging spirals' flattened disks sometimes are transformed into ellipsoidal balls. My guess is that both phenomena have worked together to produce the change. Neither one, working alone, is sufficient to account for such a substantial loss of spirals.
To find out how much credit goes to declining star formation rates and how much to galaxy collisions will require that we obtain many more of these high resolution photographs, especially photographs of galaxy clusters even more distant than four billion light years. That will be difficult to accomplish as long as the optics of the Hubble Space Telescope remain impaired.
Despite optical problems, however, Dressler's team managed to detect one of the most distant galaxy clusters ever observed, perhaps as far away as ten billion light years.3 The galaxies in this cluster are too distant for their shapes to be resolved. But their colors were very blue compared to typical galaxies near our own. The very blue color suggests a much higher population of star-forming systems.
The world is waiting to hear more from a group of English astronomers who a few weeks ago observed some galaxies at even greater distances than ten billion light years.4 These galaxies are fainter than expected, which has led the English team to consider that they may be observing galaxies so distant (that is, so far back in time) that star formation has barely begun.
As optical technology improves, and as computer simulations are refined to fit more closely the physical conditions of a few billion to several billion years ago,5 we will have the chance to learn even more about the way God shaped the universe from the moment of creation onward. Our reasons to believe and to stand in awe of His majesty can only increase. So will our tools for building faith and breaking through walls of skepticism.
--Hugh Ross
References
- Silk, Joseph, The Big Bang, revised and updated edition,(New York: W. H. Freeman, 1989), pp. 77-81.
- Ross, Hugh, The Fingerprint of God, second edition (Orange, Calif.: Promise Publishing, 1991), pp. 81-82.
- Cowen, Ron, "Were Spiral Galaxies Once More Common?" Science News, volume 142 (1992), P. 390.
- Cowen, Ron, "Tracking the Evolution of Galaxies," Science News, volume 143 (1993), p. 15.
- Mamon, Gary A., "Are Cluster Ellipticals the Products of Mergers?" Astrophysical Journal Letters, volume 401 (1992), pp. L3-L6.
Late-breaking Science News
As this newsletter goes to press, science publications are announcing four more discoveries related to the creation event. I will be preparing a report on these stunning breakthroughs for our summer edition. For now, here is a preview of each:
1) A balloon experiment confirmed in every way the findings reported last April by the COBE (Cosmic Background Explorer) satellite team. The few lingering skeptics can no longer say that the COBE discovery of fluctuations in the radiation left over from the big bang was just random noise or the result of some instrumental flaw.
2) A new measurement from the COBE satellite itself demonstrates that the cosmic background radiation matches the characteristics of a perfect radiator thirty times more precisely than previous data indicated. The importance of this discovery is that it rules out the multiple big bang theory and solidifies the case for a single, hot, big-bang beginning.
3) Exotic matter has been detected for the second time, and with much greater precision. We can now conclude that exotic matter comprises between 85 and 96 percent of the total mass of the universe. This measurement is important in refining our model of the creation event.
4) A more accurate and more generally applicable measure of the total mass of the universe has been made. This information is important not only to our understanding of the beginning of the universe but also to theories about the prospects for an eventual collapse.
Look for more details in June.
--HR
Field Report
First's are always exciting, and this past quarter included several. One was a visit to the Navigators' beautiful headquarters at Glen Eyrie, near Colorado Springs, where Hugh gave a special seminar during the Nav's annual President's Conference. The topic, "Reaching Secular Rationalists for Christ," articulates a key link between the Navigators and Reasons To Believe, for it was an article on this subject published in Navlog in 1986 (vol. 47, no. 3) that gave impetus to the launching of RTB.
That article reported research findings that nearly half of all Americans (at the time) could be described as "highly secularized," those whose opinions and decisions are shaped by what they see as rational, scientific considerations and not by any practical consideration of God or the Bible. The article challenged the Christian community to develop new communication tools and strategies to reach these people with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Left alone, the article suggested, their number would grow rapidly and eventually dominate the culture--as has already happened in Europe and Canada. The Navigators acted quickly, organizing a special consultation for their leaders. Sierra Madre Congregational Church, along with friends and family of the Rosses, said, "God has uniquely equipped you for this kind of outreach, and now is the time." They prayed, pooled resources, and founded Reasons To Believe in the summer of that year.
Since then, the Navigators and RTB have teamed up in campus outreach, ministry to internationals, equipping of business and professional people, and in publications. Our prayer is for lasting fruit from these endeavors.
Another first was an opportunity to speak on the campus of Simon Fraser University in Hugh's home city, Vancouver, British Columbia. The first event, a two-hour symposium on creation and evolution, drew nearly twice as many people as the 350-seat lecture hall could hold. Many stood outside the doors to hear the main address and the three faculty rebuttals. One, a botanist, gave evidence for the antiquity of plant life and for its changes through several millenia; a physicist offered some worn-out "higher criticism" of the Bible, also mentioning (without specifics) that it contains contradictions and errors; an historian of the philosophy of science defended the idea that science loses its purity if it is mixed with theology. The Q-and-A session allowed Hugh at least some reply to these responses. From this event and two more lectures the next day, Campus Crusade for Christ staff gathered the names of nearly 200 students requesting further information and contact. Hugh also had the joy of meeting some Christian professors at a faculty reception, professors ready and willing to share their faith with colleagues and students and to use apologetics tools. They ask for our prayers.
In the publications arena, Janet Kobobel brought together all the pieces of a special edition New Testament for Thomas Nelson Publishers. Nelson asked RTB to prepare select New Testament commentary that would assist skeptical inquirers and new Christians to understand and apply the Word. Look for announcement of the release date in our next issue of Facts & Faith.
Here are more details on events mentioned above and others:
Churches - A dinner outreach, "The Discovery of the Century," at Covenant Presbyterian, Orange, California, was highlighted by the pastor's introduction, in which he described how he came to faith in Christ (and later chose full-time ministry) through listening to RTB tapes. Three Sunday morning services and an evening event at Westside Church, Bend, Oregon, drew large attendance and an enthusiastic response. More than twenty people indicated that the message gave them the final nudge they needed to make a life commitment to Jesus Christ. Mark Clark spoke to the Salt and Light Bible class at Lake Avenue Congregational Church in Pasadena, California. His half-hour presentation on "Resolving the Paradox of War and Pacifism" turned into a one-and-a-half-hour discussion.
Campuses - The arts and sciences faculty, assisted by Campus Crusade for Christ, brought Hugh to Simon University for a symposium on creation and evolution. He was invited to meet with faculty and to give two additional talks, one explaining the theological significance of recent cosmological discoveries and another telling how he came to faith in Christ.
Radio - Interviews on KWOX, Woodward, Oklahoma, and KBRT, Costa Mesa, California, discussed recent discoveries about the origin of the universe and how these findings relate to our confidence in the Bible and our faith in Christ.
Television - Fred Hunter, former mayor of Anaheim, California, had Hugh as one of his guests on 'Praise the Lord" (Trinity Broadcasting Network), February 5. The topics ranged from Hugh's personal testimony to the discoveries about cosmology announced in January and February.
Business and Professional Groups - Open Forum for skeptics continued (and still continues) to meet monthly at the University Club in Pasadena. Each meeting draws one or more newcomers with questions about Christian beliefs and values.
Conferences - Hugh gave a special seminar on "Reaching Secular Rationalists for Christ" as part of the annual President's Conference of the Navigators, held on two consecutive weekends in January at Glen Eyrie, in Colorado Springs.
Internationals - Mark Clark gave students and professionals from ten or more nations some evidences for the God of the Bible and described how to establish a personal relationship with Him at a Valentine's dinner event sponsored by Friends of Internationals Locally (F.O.I.L.) in Pasadena, California.
Others - The U.S. Center for World Missions, located in Pasadena, California, tape-recorded a segment on science apologetics for its new missionary training course. The center will also be distributing a selection of RTB materials to its constituency of missionaries, missions scholars, students, and trainees.
From Africa
Congratulations to Aaron Block on reaching a special milestone, his first birthday, December 28, 1992. He celebrated the occasion with his mother and father, Liz and David (RTB leaders in South Africa), not at home but in Germany, where David has been doing some astronomy research and writing this winter. For information about ministry events in Africa and resource materials, contact Dr. David Block at P. 0. Box 60, University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg 2050, Republic of South Africa. The FAX number is 011-27-339-7965.
From Australia
Bruce Ogden, RTB representative in Australia, visited our office in January to discuss plans for future outreach ventures in his country and to help us plan and develop some new publications which he believes would have significant spiritual impact there. Bruce also picked up more materials for distribution. For materials and information, contact him at P. 0. Box 110, Wahroonga, NSW 2076, Australia. The RTB telephone number there is 02-484-5610.
Letters
"...I work with a community church youth group, and the young people are very open to the ideas and concepts of Reasons To Believe. Many of the youth come for the games and fun and not for the 'message.' I find that those who resist the traditional message usually respond when I bring up your concepts and beliefs. These kids usually have accepted the teachings of secularism and public school science curriculum. When they see that there is some middle ground and that science can give credence to Biblical teachings, you can almost see the wheels turning in their heads..."
--Tony, Galloway, Ohio
"...One day in biology we started to study evolution. I felt impressed to go home and read the first chapter of Genesis. As I read it, the similarity between the order in the Genesis One account, written thousands of years ago, and the order the evolutionists are 'discovering' became apparent. My first thought was, 'What proof to the scientists!' My whole attitude was changed from that moment....
"For the church's sake, I checked out the Hebrew in my Strong's concordance and found that the words for 'morning' and 'evening' could mean 'beginning' and 'ending' and that the word for 'day' could stand for a certain period of time. I realized that God is a patient God, which His sending a Savior and still waiting attests to. Zapping things into existence tickles our human fancy, but God can enjoy growing and guiding the earth along, preparing it for humans. I also realized all His creation is wonderful....
"I have felt a tremendous burden for
- God's Word and emphasis. The main requirement is to believe He made everything, not to get hung up on how, also that He is still in control and that Jesus is our Savior.
- For scientists. The churches have been putting a stumbling block before scientists in this area, and God is not happy about this. He wants people drawn to Him (not turned away) and Jesus preached.
"Wherever I have gone I have shared this with people and pastors .... I have been argued with, insulted, ignored, and blown off. Yet I felt it was God's heart and couldn't stop.
"Again, I pray these [TBN] programs can help people get back to the basics. Whether or not they personally hold other opinions, I pray they will realize the true basis of salvation and calling of God."
--Norma, Madison, Wisconsin
"...I am guilty of prejudice in viewing the scientific community as 'left-brain' beings united in evolutionism. I could never understand how 'they' could be such stubborn atheists when so much scientific evidence points toward the Creator. After listening to you, my views have changed...."
--Kent, Kissimmee, Florida
"I recently received as a Christmas gift from my husband an audiotape of the Focus on the Family program 'Origins of the Universe' where you [Hugh Ross] and Dr. Duane Gish discussed the issues surrounding this topic. I also saw you on the Trinity Broadcasting Network's 'Praise the Lord' program, and have unfortunately seen only one of your weekly programs. "I am a 33-year-old mother and homemaker who has been very interested in physics, astronomy, and mathematics since high school. I accepted Jesus as Savior when I was a very young child and have grown up in good Bible-believing churches. I have taken a number of college-level courses in mathematics, computer science, physics, astronomy, and engineering, and I tend to think logically and analytically. I found your mathematical and scientific analogies and interpretations of Biblical, spiritual, and scientific issues to be clear, comprehensible, and refreshing. The 'language' you are speaking is one which the intellectual and scientific community can relate to much more easily than they can to traditional theological terms....
"I am writing both to encourage you in your ministry and to request information ...."
--Cheryl, Cincinnati, Ohio
Special Announcement: Plan for Tomorrow
Estate planning isn't just for multimillionaires. It's for everyone--everyone who wants to be a wise manager of his or her material resources. Whether your wealth is great or small, we at Reasons To Believe would like to assist you by providing a special workshop in which you can learn about and prepare for the future.
This "plan for tomorrow" workshop is designed to help you accomplish four goals:
- Preserve and protect your assets for the beneficiaries you choose.
- Avoid expenses that could shrink your estate unnecessarily.
- Keep your estate a matter of private (rather than public) record.
- Transfer your estate assets quickly and efficiently without the delays of the court system.
For most people, the simplest and best way to achieve these goals is to set up a certain type of trust and will. The names and advantages of these will be clearly explained at the workshop.
We have state-approved, attorney-reviewed sample documents to show you and an experienced instructor to guide you. Dr. John Rowe, RTB's Vice President for Development, has successfully led estate planning workshops for a local Christian college for more than a decade.
By registering in advance and completing the worksheets we provide, you can actually complete your estate-plan documents during the seminar and return home with a lighter heart, knowing that you have giyen appropriate thought to the morrow.
Please join us at the RTB offices in Glendora on Saturday, May 1, from 9A.M. to noon. There will be no charge for this event. Please reserve your place as soon as possible by phoning John or Ofelia at (626) 335-1480, or you may use the response panel at the back of this newsletter.
--the RTB Board of Directors
Pray-ers' Closet
A Faith Booster Shot
Telling Yourself the Truth and other books have helped popularize the psychotherapeutic technique of "self-talk," but I see evidence that it is neither a recent invention nor a hollow gimmick. Consider the old hymn "Be Still My Soul." Through a conversation with the self, its lyricist simultaneously exalts God and fortifies personal faith in Him.
I remember hearing it, singing it, and being deeply moved by it in my childhood. On a recent evening, however, as I contemplated with deep distress, sorrow, and concern, the awful changes I see in the world, the increasingly anti-Christian world in which I must try to raise my sons and communicate the Gospel, I was even more profoundly struck-and strengthened-by its timely words. It speaks truth worth telling ourselves over and over again till it sinks deep into our soul, where the Holy Spirit can se it to stabilize us through whatever difficulties time brings.
The archaic pronoun forms I have altered to bring the lyrics into the context of readers of all ages. Please forgive my tampering with. poetic beauty. May these words raise our perspective and guard our hearts.
Be still my soul-the Lord is on your side!
Bear patiently the cross of grief or pain:
Leave to your God to order and provide--
In every change He faithful will remain.
Be still, my soul--your best, your heav'nly Friend
Through thorny ways leads to a joyful end.Be still, my soul--your God does undertake
To guide the future as He has the past;
Your hope, your confidence let nothing shake--
All now mysterious will be bright at last.
Be still, my soul--the waves and winds still know
His voice who ruled them while He dwelt below.Be still, my soul--the hour is hast'ning on
When we will be forever with the Lord,
When disappointment, grief, and fear are gone,
Sorrow forgot, love's purest joys restored
Be still, my soul--when change and tears are past,
All safe and blessed we will meet at last.
Written by Katharina von Schlegel, an outstanding woman of the German revival movement, (including a singing and song-writing revival), of the late 17th and early 18th century, "Be Still, My Soul" was published in 1752. About one hundred years later it was translated into English by Jane L. Borthwick. Eventually it was linked with a stirring melody from Jean Sibelius's "Finlandia," composed in 1899, and that is how it comes to us in hymnals and recordings today.*
--Kathy Ross
* Kenneth W. Osbeck, 101 Hymn Stories (Grand Rapids: Kregel Publications, 1982), p. 38.
Let us Reason - The Unsinkable Search for Noah's Ark
On February 12, 1993, the CBS television network aired another of its recent series of "religious interest" specials, this one entitled "The Remarkable Discovery of Noah's Ark." While I am pleased that a major network is acknowledging people's interest in Biblical subject matter, I cannot say I am thrilled with the material presented.
Since the end of World War II, nearly a dozen Christian organizations have mounted serious expeditions to Mt. Ararat in search of the remains of Noah's ark. I know of no attempts to find it in earlier years.
Why this sudden surge of interest? The credit may go to the invention of what has been termed "flood geology."
Flood geology, the idea that virtually all of the geologic features of planet Earth were formed during the Genesis flood, was first proposed by George McCready Price, an amateur geologist who in 1923 published the book, The New Geology. Many Christians latched onto Price's work as a tool for countering the evil of Darwinism. But not until publication of The Genesis Flood, in 1961, by Drs. Henry Morris and John Whitcomb, did flood geology become the favored flood doctrine of fundamentalist Christians.
A key problem with these two books and most other discourses on the flood is their failure to properly distinguish between "universal" and "global." As long as the Genesis flood destroyed the entire human race (except Noah's family) and all the birds and mammals associated with mankind, it could be a universal event without being global, and neither the text nor the scientific data would be violated or "stretched." For a more detailed discussion of this perspective, see Facts & Faith, vol. 5, no. 2 (1991), pp. 4-5.
In a global flood scenario, the obvious landing spot for Noah's ark would be somewhere near the top of Mt. Ararat. But Genesis 8:4 says that the ark came to rest on the "mountains" of Ararat- plural, not singular. The Hebrew word for mountains, bar, is a general term referring to any geologic relief, from a small hill up to a towering peak.
According to Armenian scholars, "the mountains of Ararat" cover an area of about 100,000 square miles of eastern Turkey, northern Iraq, western Iran, and southern Russia. Since the focal point of the flood is Mesopotamia, it seems likely that the ark came to rest in the foothills of Ararat, just north of Nineveh, rather than atop Mt. Ararat itself.
I am not suggesting, however, that search parties start hunting in the region north of Ninevah. Not at all. I believe that the remains of the ark will never be found simply because the timbers of the ark would have been too valuable for the ancients to leave lying around.
The Bible says the ark was made of "gopher" wood, a type of wood that no scholar has yet been able to identify. It must have had great structural strength, given the dimensions of the ark. The Bible also tells us that it took Noah, his family, and their helpers a hundred years to fashion the timbers and build the ark. Such lumber would have been far too valuable a building material for Noah's descendants to ignore. Consider the ambitious construction projects post-flood people attempted, according to the Genesis narrative.
Genesis 10:10-12 mentions eight cities built shortly after the flood. These cities might make a more likely search site for the remains of the ark if it weren't for the devastating destruction they suffered. The likelihood of finding even a trace there is extremely remote.
As to all the claims that artifacts of the ark have been uncovered, I am sorry to say they are bogus. In fact, some such reports are blatantly deceptive.
One popular book tells of some wood that was found in a glacier high on Mt. Ararat. The authors claim that a coal-dating measure used on the wood indicates an age of 5500 years, a date they deem consistent with the Genesis flood. In the fine print, however, one discovers that the error bar on the measurement was ±5000 years and that another measurement, a carbon-14 study, yielded an age of 1700 years ±2 years.
Archeology is a wonderful and worthwhile endeavor, but in the case of the search for the ark, I believe Christians could invest their resources much more wisely and fruitfully.
Please do not hesitate to call the RTB hotline at (818) 335-1480, 5 to 7 P.M. (Pacific Time) if you would like to discuss this or other Biblical subjects further.
--Hugh Ross
Suggested Resources
- "Noah and the Ark" video
- "The Universal Flood" video
These are available through the RTB catalog or by phone call to the RTB office.
Note: Those who know that I appeared briefly on an earlier CBS special, one about ancient mysteries of the Bible, may be wondering why I was not included in this latest show. David Balsiger, the producer, did invite me to participate. I said I would, on the condition that a distinction could be made between my views on the flood and the views of other participants. My request was denied.
Meet Our Staff
Kathleen Singleton has handled a wide range of responsibilities in her two years with RTB, from helping organize our move to Glendora, to handling Hugh's speaking schedule, to coordinating staff and volunteers. Now that we have sufficient staff to specialize a little, she wears the hat of data systems manager.
Kathleen, a twin, is a native Californian, raised in a Christian family and attending Pasadena Covenant Church all through her growing up years. She vividly remembers at age five hearing a children's evangelist compare her sins to a pile of dirty rags. After considering his message, she asked Jesus to come into her life, and she has been walking with Him ever since.
UCLA was her college of choice. There Kathleen earned a bachelor's degree in nursing and a master's in public health. She taught nursing for five years before starting a family with her husband, Frank. The Singletons have just celebrated their twenty-third anniversary. They met at Lake Avenue Congregational Church on the recommendation of a suitor who told Kathleen, "If you won't marry me, I think you should consider Frank Singleton." Kathleen and Frank have a daughter, Karin, 18, a student at Pasadena City College, and a son, Eric, 16, a junior at San Gabriel High School.
Kathleen met Hugh Ross about fifteen years ago at Sierra Madre Congregational Church, where they served together on the Missions Commission. She remembers being impressed and helped by his Genesis One booklet.
"I had always lived with my own gap theory--a gap between science and faith--and here was an explanation that bridged the Bible and science." Hugh was impressed by Kathleen's diligence, intelligence, and heart for outreach. So when RTB needed someone who could quickly pick up computer skills and expedite maintenance of the mailing list, he called Kathleen. She started on a part-time, temporary basis in February of 1991 and began working full-time later that year. Since then she has demonstrated all the qualities Hugh remembered.
Kathleen's free time pleasures include trying new recipes, reading mysteries, walking, and solving crossword and logic puzzles.
--Daphne Trager
As I See It - A Sheep in Wolf's Clothing
by Mark Ritter
An old school friend recently invited me to his Baptist church to speak about science and the Bible. Courageously, he gave me the freedom to speak openly as an orthodox Christian who accepts the big bang. Despite the chilly temperature on that Wednesday evening and the announcement that there would be a science lecture (yawn), the young people came. They gave me a warm reception and their full attention as I launched into my talk, "How I Came to Love the Big Bang."
I started with a quotation from a Christian leader who, in no uncertain terms, condemns the big bang and everyone associated with it. Why, I asked these high school students, is this man so adamant? What is it about the big bang that makes many Christians react so emotionally, often with venom?
The answers they gave were straightforward and honest: "The big bang means there is no God," said one. "It proves Christianity is false," said another. "The big bang tramples on the Bible and says evolution is true."
These young men and women showed me a mirror image of myself as a teenager. A couple of decades ago 1, too, had been fed a select diet of "facts" about the universe and its origin from Christian experts and various youth leaders. Unlike most of the students seated before me, I had been trained to see the big bang as a main weapon of attack against the Christian faith, wielded by "those atheistic evolutionists." The people who had led me to believe this way were all sincere Christians, for sure. They were deeply concerned about the youth in the Body of Christ, sincerely wanting to protect us from being led astray; they didn't want us to fall prey to the evils of secular humanism. But sincerity and good intentions do not equal truth.
What I shared with the sixty or so young people gathered that evening was a brief history of the big bang theory and the story of its other enemies. Another team rooting against the big bang, I told them, is comprised of the very people who many Christians say are its main proponents--"those atheistic evolutionists." Some of these individuals have worked vigorously and vehemently during this century to tear down or replace the big bang model, despite the deluge of evidence supporting it. One major reason is that it limits the age of the universe to only about 15 to 20 billion years. Such a recent start date gives their strictly naturalistic processes far too little time to work; their "chance life in a chance universe" doesn't stand a chance, so to speak. Perhaps more to the heart of the matter, "those atheistic evolutionists" have been suggesting one alternative hypothesis after another expressly to avoid the unavoidable fact that the big bang means there was a beginning to "the whole show"; that all the matter, energy, and even the space and time in the universe burst into existence in a single spectacular moment. Therefore--and here is the real coup de grace--this beginning must have had a Beginner, causing and controlling it all. The big bang actually argues in favor of the existence of the God of the Bible. And the more we learn about it, the stronger the argument grows.
The young people were shocked at first, but they listened. They began to develop a whole new perspective, as I did some time ago, on the most dramatic of all cosmic events. They began to see that the big bang has been working for us, not against us, all these years, forcing people to see a Creator they didn't want to admit was really there, that perhaps they didn't want to deal with personally. At the same time, we Christians of the last few generations have tragically rejected this ancient, magnificent phenomenon, the big bang, treating it as a vile enemy. We have dressed a sheep in wolf s clothing.
I know I'm shifting metaphors, but please bear with me. Let's picture a hammer. Like other tools, it can be used constructively or destructively. Given the skill and motivation, we can use it to build a beautiful edifice with foundations firmly embedded in rock (the Rock). Or we can see it as a dangerous weapon and toss it out, maybe clobbering someone with it in the process. After that evening at the Baptist church, there are, I hope, a few more young people in this next generation of Christians who are prepared to see the big bang for what it is--a marvelously constructive tool. They can use it as one of the greatest single physical evidences of the existence, transcendence, power, wisdom, and care of our Lord. They can use it to support their own faith and to help build the faith of others. My dream is that through the enlightened efforts of these young apologists some of "those atheistic evolutionists" might someday come to accept the facts about our origin and surrender their lives to the living God.
Mark Ritter, one of our RTB hotline volunteers and speakers, teaches Chemistry at Walnut (Calif.) High School. His other outreach activities include being president and writer for the Sword and Spirit ministry. He lives with his wife, Laurie, and three-year-old daughter, Areil, in Ontario, Calif.
Puzzles & Paradoxes
To our puzzle enthusiasts, I present this challenge:
How can it be true that Δ≠Ο and that Δ=Ο?
The question raised in the winter issue of Facts & Faith (vol. 6, no. 4, p. 11) was, "Who is the Angel of the Lord?" This question may be treated as both a puzzle and a paradox. First, the puzzle: Since the Bible nowhere explicitly states, "The Angel of the Lord is _," we must piece together data from all the Biblical references to see what we can discover, both inductively (accumulating particulars to form a general picture) and deductively (applying general truth to this particular case), about his identity.
Michael Swenson, of Arizona, and Joe Banning, of Texas, both took the trouble to write, citing key passages and showing some of the reasoning behind their belief that "the Angel of the Lord" can and sometimes does refer to God the Son.
Mr. Banning cited dozens of passages, some of which my Bible commentaries overlooked in their discussion. Traditionally, pieces of evidence for identification are pulled together from Old Testament narratives, e.g., the stories of Hagar (Genesis 16), Abraham and his visitors (Genesis 18), Abraham and Isaac on Mt. Moriah (Genesis 22), Jacob's talk with his wives (Genesis 31), Moses and the burning bush (Exodus 3), Samson's parents (Judges 13), and Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the fiery furnace (Daniel 3). Some of these stories provide clearer evidence than others.
To these citations Mr. Banning added Psalm 34:7, which says, "The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them." From Genesis to Revelation, the One we are taught to fear is God. Isaiah 59:20, Romans 11: 26, and many other verses tell us that the One who delivers and redeems those who fear God is the Lord Himself, specifically the Son (see Galatians 3:13 and Revelation 5:9).
1 was especially pleased to find both Michael and Joe tackling the paradox which arises from identifying the Angel of the Lord as the Son of God. The paradox may be stated this way: Angels are created beings. God is God, the Creator. How can the Son be both God and an angel?
The solution lies in the flexibility of the word "angel" (mal'ak in Hebrew, aggelos in Greek). We tend to think of the word almost as a "species" identification, whereas the Hebrews and Greeks often used it to identify a role or function, specifically that of a messenger or ambassador. As Mr. Banning points out, Malachi 3:1 refers clearly to the coming Lord (Messiah) as the "messenger of the covenant." Here we find an explicit reference to the Christ as "messenger," and the word is mal'ak.
Mr. Swenson reasons from the New Testament that Jesus can be called an angel if we focus on His role with respect to the Father. Michael's starting point is Revelation 22:16, where Jesus speaks of His "angel" (singular), who testifies of Him in the churches (apparently an angel distinct from the seven angels to the seven churches in Revelation 2 and 3). By cross-referencing Jesus' words to His disciples recorded in John 15:26, also 16:12-16, and an angel's words to John in Revelation 19: 1 0, Michael concludes that this special angel is God the Spirit. Considering the parallels in their roles--the Spirit's role to make known the Son and the Son's to make known the Father--Jesus could reasonably be called "the angel of the Lord" (in the Old Testament, "of YWHW").
--Kathy Ross
From the President's Desk
Dear friends,
I appreciate the many of you who have called during the last two weeks to express upset, even outrage, at widely broadcast attacks against me (and my message) both in print and on Christian radio. Some of you attempted to defend me and RTB views during the call-in portion of such radio programs, only to be rudely put down. I feel sad about the pain you have suffered on my behalf, and I have carefully considered your requests that I "do something" to respond. I am checked, however, by God's warning in Galatians 5:15, which says, "If you keep on biting and devouring each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other." I want to avoid "biting back" and thus involving myself in a destructive fracas with fellow Christians.
If the comments written and aired came merely from honest misunderstanding, I would gladly clear up the confusion with a phone call, letter, or personal appointment. But my experience with the groups and individuals involved tells me this is not the case. I think this attack comes from a place that can be touched only by the Holy Spirit.
Meanwhile, I am trusting the spiritual and mental strength of the broadcast audience to see that the scientific theory and observations of star formation bear no threat to the cardinal doctrines of the Christian faith. Perhaps I am naive, but I am also trusting the listeners to see the irony in this: Men with little or no formal training in the sciences or theology dogmatically contradict the science and theology of someone who has done postdoctoral research (in astronomy) at Caltech and has served for many years on the pastoral staff of a well-established evangelical church. Why do my attackers never check with people who know me personally?
I am also taking an example from Nehemiah. Sanballat and Tobiah (Nehemiah 6) did their best to distract him from his work, but he resisted their enticements. Opponents of my work who either directly or indirectly challenge me to debate could draw me away from my priority assignments if I let them. It seems to me--and to my board of directors--a more productive use of my time to write articles and books explaining the latest scientific discoveries about the creation event than to reply to the charges of heresy I get for believing that the big bang happened.
Helpful criticism I willingly accept. I value it, for it has helped me immeasurably in my personal and professional growth, and that will continue to be true. If you are among those who have written or phoned me with helpful critique of my teaching content or style and have received no reply, please understand that I have no secretary or correspondence team beyond our volunteers. So, I ask your patience and understanding with my inability to reply quickly and personally.
I also ask you to pray for me and RTB. We want to be wise and godly in all that we undertake. And it is our deep longing to serve the Lord in harmony with our brothers and sisters in Christ. If God motivates you to assist us in some practical way, including the sharing of your insight and perspective with our attackers or with us, your help will be gratefully received.
Sincerely,
Hugh Ross
The Near Side - Recession Nightmare
I told myself that I really ought to turn off the TV and go to bed. I was aware that my eyes had already closed of their own accord at some point. The muffled voices of "Masterpiece Theatre" were coming to me now from a great distance, as if down a corridor of a hundred years' length. Half a moment later my ears perked up. The announcer seemed to be saying something strange. He had a lovely British accent, but he spoke with unfitting haste and agitation.
"We're going out of business! That's right, after 1100 years, Oxford University is closing its doors for good! We've lost our lease, and that means big savings for you!"
The words "LOST OUR LEASE" flashed across the screen in blinking red letters. Without pausing for a breath, the announcer, now superimposed on a view of the Bodleian Library, went on with greater vigor yet.
"Over five million volumes, many of them original doctoral theses by well-known scholars. Some of them rare and hard-to-find volumes, practically priceless. What would you expect to pay for this original Shakespearean folio available nowhere else in the world? Two, maybe three million dollars? How about 250 thousand dollars. That's right, just two hundred fifty grand. We're slashing prices to the bone because everything must sell! "
Faster and faster he spoke, with an energy bordering on mania.
"The values are unbelievable! What would you expect to pay for this early manuscript of the Canterbury Tales with illuminated margins and a dedication in Chaucer's own hand? Five, maybe ten million? But wait. We're throwing in the Codex Bodleianus, the oldest extant manuscript of the Gospel of John. NOW how much would you pay? Twelve, maybe fifteen million? We're letting these priceless classics go for the unbelievable price of just 2,999,999.95!
"Think, friends, how impressive these volumes will look on your coffee table.
"If it's Gutenberg Bibles you're interested in, we've got something for you. In fact, we're going to do something completely crazy. Buy just one of these mint condition Gutenbergs at the already low sale price, and get a second one absolutely free!
"Our entire inventory of academic regalia, gothic, pre-Tudor, and Tudor art, plus our entire selection of endowed chairs must be off the lot by April I to meet the requirements of this court-ordered closure... "
I awoke in a sweat and vowed never to fall asleep in front of the TV again.
--Rob Kroeger
Rob is a post-doctoral research assistant in particle physics for the University of Tennessee, currently working at the Stanford Linear Particle Center. He writes fiction for fun. He is pictured here with his bride, MuWon.
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