Linguistic/Metaphysical Dissonance

There’s a ton that could be said in this section, and a lot of it will of necessity overlap with other sections. As a result, this will be short. Briefly, theology is for the most part the exercise of metaphysics carried out within certain boundaries or upon certain presuppositions. In recent days the emphasis on hermeneutics has played a major role on the realm of epistemology, especially in religious epistemology. One of the troubling things for me has been the seemingly narrow focus of traditional Protestant theology. It attempts to make certain assertions of reality that end up being nothing more than textual interpretations.

Silence of God

As I work through the Reasons for Wandering, I’m not going to go through them in any specific kind of order. There isn’t an inherent hierarchy to the list. The topic of god’s silence is an old and oft stated one. But I have some thoughts and experiences with it.

The full title is “Silence of God In a Causal World.” Leaving aside some debates about chaos theories, let’s walk into a room where three persons are sitting around a table with a bunch of books and a blackboard. On the board are a bunch of mathematical equations and some bible verse references. The three men are from obviously different locales and eras. The first is Sir Isaac Newton.

Ethical Dissonance

The following explications of the 10 reasons for wandering are more like memoirs than hard logical reasonings. While I do hope to engage in dialogue concerning the validity of any reasoning used in the posts, my wanderings are not purely reason based. I don’t think that all of our reasonings are ever purely rational or logical. I am an emotive, historical being with a matrix of epistemological, aesthetic and ethical inheritance. I know I operate out of that, and even rejection of it is delineated by the contours of it.

Ethical dissonance is probably the most difficult and personal issue for me. I’ve heard many times before the debates and discussions concerning the topic, but it still hits me at an existentially deep place. I don’t understand how there can be such a history of difference between the way that christianity has behaved and the teachings of its founder. The most common explanation I’ve heard is that those who behaved in such a way were not acting in accordance with the teachings of Jesus. One apologist has said that the actions of say the Crusades were not the logical outworkings of the teachings of Jesus whereas something like the Holocaust were the logical outworkings of atheism or social Darwinism. If there are other approaches I’d love to hear and discuss them. However, I have a few problems with any such, or similar, approach.

Reasons for Wandering

Maybe at some point I’ll post a bio, but for now I need anonymity. This is however a first step towards a generic bio. The following list are 10 reasons that have participated in my wandering from “the fold.” The fold I grew up in is American Protestant Evangelical Christianity. These reasons will therefore be more applicable to this strain of Christianity than something like Catholicism. However, I think some of them are general enough to engage Christianity in a more ecumenical fashion. I will be posting on these points individually and will make them available for comment, critique and honest inquiry.

Welcome

This place is intended to be an open journal as I make my way through this world and consider its variety, veracity, falsity and reality. I make no pretense as to how often I’ll write, but any one and everyone is welcome to comment. All perspectives and conclusions are also welcome. I only ask that those who do comment keep them civil, respectful and gentle. I have no interest in beating anyone over the head and I certainly don’t want any proselelytizing or evangelizing. This is a place for discussion, not persuasion. Thank you and I hope you enjoy, I know I will.