It's the Internet . . . or is it?
Evangelist Josh McDowell
is blaming the Net for a decrease in faith and morality among the younger generation:
“The Internet has given atheists, agnostics, skeptics, the people who like to destroy everything that you and I believe, the almost equal access to your kids as your youth pastor and you have... whether you like it or not,” said McDowell, who is author of two books on Christian apologetics, More than a Carpenter and New Evidence that Demands [a] Verdict.
“Now here is the problem,” said McDowell, “going all the way back, when Al Gore invented the Internet [he said jokingly], I made the statement off and on for 10-11 years that the abundance of knowledge, the abundance of information, will not lead to certainty; it will lead to pervasive skepticism. And, folks, that’s exactly what has happened. It’s like this. How do you really know, there is so much out there… This abundance [of information] has led to skepticism. And then the Internet has leveled the playing field [giving equal access to skeptics].”
McDowell, who lives in southern California with his wife Dottie and four children, said atheists, agnostics and skeptics didn’t have access to kids earlier. “If they wrote books, not many people read it. If they gave a talk, not many people went. They would normally get to kids maybe in the last couple of years of the university.” But that has changed now.
How would you respond to McDowell's argument? Is the Internet the problem? Part of the problem? Or is the problem something else entirely?
Comments:
I can picture the Devil rejoicing that the Internet is turning people away from God on a scale and pace perhaps never before witnessed in the history of humankind.
But there have been dramatic reversals before. Think of Haman.
Our resident historian can document, I am sure, that the most critical battles are often the riskiest and costliest to wage. Which could explain the God-permitted phenomenon which is the Internet -- that nigh-uncensorable, instant, universal distribution of information – information that can be unutterably obscene and diabolical, but also gloriously good.
In the drama of world redemption I am intrigued by Dostoyevsky’s rumination that “beauty will save the world.” I believe his intuition will prove prophetic.
According to the Song of Solomon God is “altogether lovely” and desirable, and according to John “there is no darkness in Him at all”. Yet the most seductive arguments against God claim to demonstrate He is anything but. The world almost gleefully amasses evidence that He is aloof, cold, uncaring, unresponsive, self-centered, self-serving, imperious, heartless, a divine tyrant unworthy of worship and love; in a word – ugly.
But a viral counterargument, elegantly and powerfully portraying the unspeakable beauty of the God who, in Christ, loved us more than life, could, with the quickness of a thief in the night, put the lie to that false image almost instantaneously the world over.
It would be poetic justice on a cosmic scale.
And since, probably not by accident, God’s workmanship is called a poem (Ephesians 2:10), I find it natural to pray for the day when His poem, in all its glory, is suddenly, clearly understood by all.
The Poem
Here underneath the parabolic air
The angel chiseled out the oracle
In prolix verse on stone, describing there
The Poet’s anapestic canticle.
No sooner had the wondrous words appeared
Than we mistook for narrative His art,
And thinking He sought only to be feared
We overlooked the passion in His heart.
For not until He came Himself and wrote
In crimson ink the serenade sublime
Did we perceive His true intent or note
How He in love made death and life to rhyme;
And fervent that it no more be obscured
He summed the poem in a single Word.
© Rolley Haggard, 2011
http://www.breakpoint.org/features-columns/renews/entry/30/17524
I just read the article "Islamophobia and Mass Murder" by Mark Steyn, which Gina posted on RE: News. I put my two cents in the comments and conclude that Islamophobia is, in fact, behind these abominable acts. What do others here think? Gina, could we have a new Blog post directly related to the horrors in Norway?
I struggle with that constantly. And have blown it more times than I care to count.
So my interest in any of the women at this site is only friendly, or avuncular at best.
That said, I'm reminded about the violinist who was hurrying to his concert, found himself lost, and stopped a passerby with "Sir! Sir! Help - how do I get to Carnegie Hall?"
The passerby, an old, kindly gentleman, smiled benignly, patted the violinist on the arm and said "Practice, my boy - practice!!"
My point is that your best course of action is to practice developing close, friendly relationships with others, irrespective of their age, gender, marital status, and so on, and keep leaving the results to God. Deep relationships often come about when you care more about the other person than you do about yourself.
Carol seemed to want to talk with you; you might start with her. Just make, and keep, a friend. If I can do it with Ben (who thought all creationists were idiots, by definition) and Brian (who thought it's impossible to oppose pro-gay legislation and yet be friends with a gay man), you should have no problem whatsoever. It should be a slam dunk; everyone here knows you're a much nicer guy than I am (although you do have plenty of company in that category - sigh).
You might also read some of the oldest postings on the blog, for an interesting perspective from our opposite gender.
And I know lots of engaging women. The trouble is, none of them seem all that interested in engaging with me.
But I'm told my hide would fetch a good price, at least in some circles. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4idFXeDGzqw
So your husband has nothing about which to be concerned. Women chase me here only to correct my glaring faults, including not having read an Austen novel (check!), dangling participles (see previous sentence), and typing an ellipsis without spaces (still working on that one...).
I have a GPS from Magellan that I call Maggie. She has guided me from many an airport to many a hotel in cities in which I would otherwise have been completely lost. But I've noticed that she doesn't work well if she gets knocked around, and she doesn't work at all unless her battery is at least somewhat charged. (Some might call it "selfish mommy time"; I call it "preventive maintenance".)
I'm very sorry to hear about all your family's medical (and thereby financial) issues, my dear Ellen. But I'm sure God will take care of you. At least you can do your bicycle therapy outdoors.
Jason, you need to let them believe you can be persuaded via their logical arguments, their emotional appeals, and their engaging personalities. And you have to be content with being "chased" virtually, and in an entirely "chaste" manner. Oh, and it really helps if you actually want to do what they're so intent on persuading you to do. Just don't tell 'em it's only a game between friends who otherwise would be segregated into different small groups at church based on age and marital status and even geography and denomination, and on and on, likely to never interact were it not for this Internet thingy. Oh, and don't forget to remember them in prayer, along with their husbands and children (if any) and parents and friends and careers/hopes/dreams. Because it's not really about successfully resisting their attempts to get you to read something that may not be your cup of tea. It's about, as the website's subhead says, changing lives, minds and communities through Jesus Christ, and lots of women (a few of whom have husbands, children, and maybe even a love of sailing) could use some friendly interaction, plus a lot of encouragement to continue doing what they do. The good news is that this works with men, too. You can even practice, making mistakes and learning from them, for free. I can testify that this works. And it's a lot of fun, too.
Besides, I can't even run on my healing knee yet!
Have I mentioned my knee surgery this past January? And our son's TWO visits to the ER in January. Any my husband just had an emergency appendectomy. And the medical bills are rolling in.... And, uh, I'm going off on a tangent.
Well, back to the topic. It appears to my husband and I that God has different plans for us and the $$ we saved than the plans we had to sail the So. Pacific in ministry for him. And here I am on the internet disseminating that information. Yeah, yeah, that's it. The Internet. Great tool, the Internet. People using it and needing their computers fixed are putting $$ in our pockets so we can pay our medical bills.
I think I'd better go now. Say good night, Gracie.
That is, provided you never detour to any Points Of Interest, but only proceed straight to the chosen destination... ;-)
But mine has a new, cutting-edge feature: an encouragement module that offers phrases to keep the traveler focused not only on the desirability of the destination, but on the beauty of the scenery. And it even works in retrospective mode, re-living the trip with you after you've arrived!
I’ll not be traveling north of the border again anytime soon after reading Lee-with-a-capital-Q-Quod’s link:
“According to Ogopogo expert Arlne Gaal, the First Nations' custom of offering *a small animal* to appease the lake demon when travelling near the lair was adopted by fearful European settlers who also patrolled the shoreline, in case the monster attacked.”
Nope. Not gonna do it. Especially since I learned SBK *really* stands for “Settlers, Bring Kevin.”
Quack. With a capital Q.
http://www.psican.org/alpha/index.php?/2008072988/Cryptozoology/Dragons-In-The-Water-Barrie-Ontario-Canada.html
I'd heard of "Barrie the Canadian Loch Ness Monster", but wouldn't have known the name "Kempenfelt Kelly" without (drumroll) the Internet.
So Josh McDowell is wrong, but because he's thinking too small: It's not faith that's threatened, but rationality itself (individual, and corporate) by going online. To save civilization, you-all should immediately shut off all your computers, and send 'em to me. If I'm forced to sell any of them for whatever reason, I promise I'll send at least a small portion of the proceeds to Josh McDowell Ministries.
When you establish the memorial to my noble sacrifice for the good of all, make sure you spell my name with a capital "Q".