Defending The Faith
Gian Carlo de Leon Torres
Neutrality Myth
Quote: “heard someone say that Christianity.”
What I expect to learn: I expect to learn the Myth of Neutrality.
Review:
Daniel Ellsberg scarf thousands of papers from the Rand Corporation, photocopied them, and gave them to the New York Times, which began publishing them. Ellsberg was prosecuted by the government. So was the Times. The defendants won. Only after the Times broke the story did the mainstream press pick up on it. The Times got its scoop, and the Nixon administration had no way to stop it. This led to Nixon's decision to stop the leaks with the Plumbers squad. That led to his defeat. The Pentagon Papers did not directly undermine Nixon. He was re-elected in 1972 by a landslide. But the papers reinforced seeds of doubt about the war in Vietnam. Four years later, President Ford pulled the plug on the war. What made this possible? Ellsberg's theft, the photocopy machine, and the decision by the Times to publish the papers. Fast-forward a generation. Because of the World Wide Web, the stolen "Climate gate" emails were on-line within hours. The mainstream media did their best not to promote the story, but it could not be stopped. The perpetrators' careers are finished. Jones has left the institute that had flourished as a promoter of global warning. Mann is under investigation by his employer, Penn State University.
What I learned:
- Myth of Neutrality
Integrative Question:
- What is myth?
- What neutrality?
- What is myth of neutrality?
- What is their connection?
- Can they affect each other?
WorldViews Introduction
Quote: “people have a right to do something.”
What I expect to learn: I expect to learn worldviews.
Review:
What is a World View? A diversity of definitions has been vacant by numerous authors. For example, James Sire asserts that "A world view is a set of presuppositions (or assumptions) which we hold (consciously or subconsciously) about the basic makeup of our world." Phillips and Brown state that "A worldview is, first of all, an explanation and interpretation of the world and second, an application of this view to life. In simpler terms, our worldview is a view of the world and a view for the world.” Walsh and Middleton provide what we think is the most succinct and understandable explanation: "A world view provides a model of the world which guides its adherents in the world." With the realization that many subtleties can be added, this will be our working definition.
World views take action somewhat like eye glasses or contact lenses. That is, a world view should provide the correct "prescription" for making sense of the world just as wearing the correct prescription for your eyes brings things into focus. And, in either example, an incorrect prescription can be dangerous, even life-threatening. People who are struggling with world view questions are often despairing and even suicidal. Thus it's important for us to give attention to the formulation of the proper world view. Arthur Holmes states that the need for a world view is fourfold: "the need to unify thought and life; the need to define the good life and find hope and meaning in life; the need to guide thought; the need to guide action.
What I learned:
- Worldview
Integrative Question:
- What is worldview?
- How does it affect the people?
- Is it an advantage to the people?
- What are the negative sides of it?
- Can this really give solutions?
Conflict in WorldViews
Quote: “Christian must answer to their faith”
What I expect to learn: I expect to learn worldviews conflicts.
Review:
Christians have very gradually become disturbed over permissiveness, pornography, the public schools, the breakdown of the family, and finally abortion. But they have not seen this as a totality - each thing being a part, a symptom of a much larger problem. They have failed to see that all of this has come about due to a shift in the world view - that is, through a fundamental change in the overall way people think and view the world and life as a whole. This shift has been away from a world view that was at least vaguely Christian in people's memory (even if they were not individually Christian) toward something completely different - toward a world view based upon the idea that the final reality is impersonal matter or energy shaped into its present form by impersonal chance. As we consider a person's actions, it is helpful to have an understanding of their world view. The beliefs a person holds and the actions they take will make more sense when considered within the boundaries of their world view. Their beliefs and actions will generally be consistent with their world view.
What I learned:
- Worldview conflicts
Integrative Question:
- What is worldview?
- How does it affect the people?
- What are its issues?
- What are the positive sides of it?
- Can this really give solutions?