In Part 1 of this post, we reviewed recent examples of Islamic-inspired violence (see another example of that here), looked at statements made in Quran and hadith material that appeared to prescribe violence, and proposed a couple of questions that help understand what any religion or worldview really teaches:
Are the practices in question a reflection of the worldview/religion’s explicit and prescriptive teachings and/or a logical outworking of the worldview’s philosophical conclusions?
Are the particular teachings/instructions in question properly taken from the religious text’s context and is the historical milieu considered?
What happens when we apply our two questions above to Islam? In short, it’s difficult to do and former Muslim Nabeel Qureshi tells us why. FULL POST
Current news headlines are filled with examples of Islamic-inspired violence and terror, with CNN recently reporting that the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) killed 270 in an attack in central Syria. Moreover, ISIS is also moving through Iraq with a “convert or die” campaign, which is forcing Christians and other faiths to flee their homes.
In addition, the world community raised its voice a few months ago to protest Sudan’s death sentence on Meriam Ibrahim, a pregnant Christian woman who refused to renounce her faith and convert to Islam. Though she suffered many hardships, thankfully she has recently become free, unlike many of the 200+ girls kidnapped by the Islamic militant group Boko Haram (whose name means “Western or non-Islamic education is a sin”). FULL POST
Don’t misunderstand that minimal statement; there’s actually quite a lot of theology packed in there. FULL POST
For all Christians, the New Testament is cherished, trusted, and rightly viewed as the Word of God. The 27 books of the New Testament are combined with the 39 books of the Old and stand as a work that is the #1 bestselling book of all time, even becoming the bestseller for 2013 in very secular countries like Norway.[1]
But there’s something that used to bother me about the New Testament, even into my Master’s and Ph.D. studies in seminary. The issue wasn’t one of the usual and customary criticisms about the New Testament that skeptics present; those can be fielded without much bother at all.
Rather, the question that floated into and out of my mind can be summed up this way: Why should we consider the New Testament on par with the Old Testament where Scripture is concerned?
While this may seem like a strange question for a Christian to ask at first, stop for a moment and think about something. There’s little question that Judaism considered the Old Testament to be God’s Word and that statements made by Jesus and others in the New Testament affirmed such a position: FULL POST
Although in different disciplines, all have very strong intellects and all admit that the reason they either reject God entirely or are agnostic about His existence is because they can’t square the evil they’ve experienced in their own lives or seen played out on the world’s stage and the idea of a supreme Deity. FULL POST
The Huffington Post[1] reported on a new religious survey conducted by Ashley Madison (a website devoted to connecting married people who want to have affairs, with the website’s registered tagline being: “Life is short. Have an affair”) that found the vast majority of its users claimed to be Christian. The full results were:
Why the inordinately high number of supposed Christians involved in affairs? Dr. Eric Anderson, a sociologist at the University of Winchester in England who is quoted in the article, offered this explanation: "People who have faith often use it as an outlet for forgiveness so they're more likely to cheat and less likely to feel guilty." FULL POST
A number of news agencies[1] recently reported the releasing of a “Pastoral Letter to Patients” by Planned Parenthood, part of which contained the following claim: “The truth is that abortion is not even mentioned in the Scriptures – Jewish or Christian – and there are clergy and people of faith from all denominations who support women making this complex decision.”
If Planned Parenthood means that the word “abortion” is never used in the Bible, they are correct. However, if they mean the Word of God is silent from a moral condemnation standpoint on the taking of a baby’s life inside the womb, they are quite wrong, and prompt us to ask them the same question Jesus did others on one occasion: "Aren't you deceived for this reason, because you don't know the scriptures or the power of God?” (Mark 12:24). FULL POST
The appalling incident has sparked another outcry for stronger gun controls and similar restrictions. However, while the intentions of those demanding such things are certainly good, I believe they miss the mark and don’t target the actual efficient cause of tragedies like those that were carried out by Elliot Rodger. FULL POST
A favorite tactic of various atheists and skeptics who struggle to supply valid rebuttals against the arguments that a creator God exists is to ask the question, “OK, so tell me which god exists? Odin? Thor? Allah? There are countless gods to choose from so why I should I believe in the one you’re talking about?”
Putting aside the normal acerbic tone that typically accompanies the question, it’s actually a very valid matter to discuss. Is there a reasonable way to determine what kind of supernatural deity or deities really exist?
The reason that you and I along with everything else that we know exists is simply because something has always existed. In the end, the believer in God and the atheist are really just arguing over the identity of that ‘something’. Whatever it is, it is eternal (it has always existed) and necessary (if it didn’t exist, nothing else would). FULL POST
Atheist philosopher Peter Boghossian is fond of asking Christians that and other similar questions, such as how do you know that Jonah was swallowed by a large fish?[1] When met with the reply, “Because the Bible says so”, Boghossian reminds his Christian audience that Muslims believe Muhammad flew to Heaven on a winged horse because of the “night journey” chapter contained within the Koran.
Back in late 2013, Boghossian released his book entitled, “A Manual for Creating Atheists” where he redefines faith to be “pretending to know things that you don’t know” and “belief without evidence”.[2] He calls faith “an unreliable epistemology”[3], a “virus”, and calls for a process and agenda that will “ultimately eradicate faith”.[4] FULL POST
The BABEL Working Group is a non-hierarchical scholarly collective and post-institutional desiring-assemblage with no leaders or followers, no top and no bottom, and only a middle. Membership in the BWG carries with it no fees, no obligations, and no hassles, and accrues to its members all the symbolic capital they need for whatever meanings they require. BABEL’s chief commitment is the cultivation of a more mindful being-together with others who work alongside us in the ruined towers of the post-historical university. BABEL roams and stalks these ruins as a multiplicity, a pack, not of subjects but of singularities without identity or unity, looking for other roaming packs and multiplicities with which to cohabit and build glittering misfit heterotopias.
More conventionally, the BABEL Working Group, founded in 2004, is a collective and desiring-assemblage of scholars (primarily medievalists, but also persons working in other areas, such as early modern and Victorian studies, critical and cultural theory, film and women’s studies, new media studies, critical sexuality studies, and so on) in North America, the U.K., Australia, and beyond who are working to develop new cross-disciplinary alliances between the humanities, sciences, social sciences, and the fine arts in order to formulate and practice new critical humanisms, as well as to develop a more present-minded medieval studies, a more historically-minded cultural studies, and a new misfit multiversity.
Deborah Cramer will be discussing her work on the world’s ocean systems and how these issues relate to our concerns. Snacks and Drinks will be provided, but bringing a lunch is encouraged. Please email any questions to sustainability@cofc.edu
And don’t forget! Deborah Cramer will be presenting “The Sea Around You: What Does the Health of the Sea Have to Do with Us?” at 7:00 pm Thursday evening:
The Charleston community depends on the ocean – economically, recreationally, gastronomically. Ever wonder how the health of the ocean will impact you? The College of Charleston will host author and scientific thought leader Deborah Cramer on Thursday, November 17, 2011 at 7:00 p.m. in room 129 of the School of Sciences and Mathematics building. This lecture is free and open to the public.
Cramer is a visiting scholar at MIT’s Earth System Initiative. She will be presenting some of the world’s finest marine photography from her book Smithsonian Ocean: Our Water Our World (Smithsonian Books/HarperCollins) and will discuss the many ways all life, including ours, depends on the ocean; how we, a single species are altering the nature of the ocean itself, and why that matters. This book shines new light on the meaning of the sea in our lives, inviting people to consider how all life, including ours, depends on the sea.
Two-time Pulitzer prize-winning biologist E.O. Wilson calls this book, “best in its class.” It was published to coincide with the opening of the new, permanent Sant Ocean Hall at the National Museum of Natural History, the country’s most visited museum. Ideas and themes from Smithsonian Ocean: Our Water Our World are now being adapted in school science curricula. More information is available at a website emerging from the book and recommended for teachers, www.seaaroundyou.com
“The MES program is honored to host Deborah Cramer at the College of Charleston,” says Tim Callahan, MES program director. “She speaks about her writing and the sea on both sides of the Atlantic, at science and maritime museums, and at major environmental and teachers’ organizations. We hope her lecture will provide the opportunity for a larger discussion, both on campus and in the community, about the issues she raises.”
Deborah Cramer writes about science, nature, and the environment. Nobel prize winner Al Gore said of her natural history of the Atlantic, Great Waters, (W.W. Norton), “I urge everyone to read this book, act on its message and pass on its teachings.” Marcia McNutt, head of the United States Geological Survey, wrote in Science, “I would recommend it to anyone who proposes to be an informed citizen of Planet Earth.”
Sponsored by the Environmental Studies Graduate Program, the Environmental Studies Minor Program, the Graduate Program in Marine Biology, and the CofC Office of Sustainability.
How to Engage Young Writers: Be Diverse. Be Authentic. Be Responsive. - Teaching Ahead: A Roundtable - Education Week Teacher
It would be much more convenient if what worked for us as students of writing worked for today's learners, but that's simply not the case. Responding to the differences in how to engage today's youth in writing is crucial in developing not only their writing skills but also their self-perception as writers.
Writing tasks are as diverse as they are plentiful, occurring in various digital platforms. Some may dismiss these demands as too casual or even somewhat inappropriate for an academic setting, but there is complex thinking going on in learners' lives. Consider the inferencing involved in following an exchange of facial expressionless text messages. Or the revising required to hone down a statement to 140 characters to articulate precisely for Twitter. Or the summary and creating a hook skills needed to write a subject for an email. Or the rhetorical appeals made when carefully selecting images and words to create memes, digital posters, or Snapchats.
All of these writing tasks begin with one thing: strong thesis. Including various digital platforms and analyzing for thesis, its development, and its analysis, enables educators to connect writing to what most youth do or will be expected to do in the world outside school walls.
It has never been easier to publish online. Students post every day about feelings and opinions for their friends, friends of friends, and even strangers. If they understand the implications of their digital footprint, writing becomes this process that is constantly being reexamined to best represent who they are. Learners need to know there is a process that occurs prior to "putting it out there" on the internet. And if what they write spurs further discussion or even controversy, learners must have opportunities to wrestle with the discourse.
It is the educator's responsibility to network with organizations and other learners around the world so students understand their writing is being seen by more than "just the teacher." It raises stakes. Learners become more intentional in the revision of their work. Plus, they gain a wider global perspective. English language learners have a chance to see more of their peers' writing. They understand clear expression of thought is needed in every aspect of their lives. The efforts of educators who connect to social media consumption and production indicate to the learners that their contexts matter, their interests matter.
Standards, tests, scope and sequence: just some of the many constraints placed on writing curriculum today. It is counterintuitive to think finding a writing style, voice, and owning it could be fostered with such a restrictive context. Quite honestly, many of the "academic tasks" required by such mandates are at odds with the authentic writing demands placed on today's learners.
Is good writing being able to compose on-demand timed essays with a checklist of criteria for evaluators who are anonymous or inconsequential to our learners who complete such tasks because they have to?
Or is good writing a powerful voice with demonstration of careful research because the learner's agency has been engaged due to the authenticity and relevance of the task?
When asking learners to be bold enough to explore what works for them as writers, we, too, must have the courage to step beyond our comfort zones to remain aware, open, and responsive to what works for each individual writer. It takes time and patience and trust in the process of inviting them to opportunities that speak to them and inspire a genuine response. It is only then when we honor our learners as writers and only then when they value themselves as such.
Janelle Quintans Bence currently facilitates English in a blended Humanities class at New Tech High @ Coppell in Texas. She has over 16 years experience working with English-language ;earners in both urban and suburban school districts. She is an active teacher-leader and has presented at many national conferences such as NCTE, SITE, and the National Writing Project, where she currently serves on the board. Her passion is teaching writing and offering her learners authentic learning experiences where they have opportunities to make meaningful changes in the world.