psalm123

A fellow student incorporated this quote into a presentation he gave on the Church and its role in mission and evangelization.

Great quote. It spoke to me on several levels.
  
"If you give to the people a broken Christ, a lame Christ, a crooked Christ-deformed by you, that is all they will have, If you want them to love Him, they must know Him first. Therefore, give the whole Christ - to the Sisters, first, then to the people in the slums. Do I give the Christ who is full of zeal, love, joy and sunshine? Do I come up to the mark? Or am I a dim light, a false light, a bulb without connection, having no current and therefore shedding no radiance? Put your heart into being a bright light...let the poor seeing you be drawn to Christ...Draw them to God but never, never to yourself."

   -Mother Teresa

"Am I killing?" Boyd said. "Yes, I am. I know that."

At least he's honest and there is no ridiculous denial of the obvious. The question remains why do we allow this in our country?  I have yet to hear a convincing argument. There is no argument that can justify the killing of innocent children. Notice the twisted 'religion' the abortionist subscribes to " He said he prays often. "I'll ask that the spirit of this pregnancy be returned to God with love and understanding,"  Here ya go God, I murdered another of your innocent children, please accept them into your kingdom with love and understanding. Yikes. Pray for this mans conversion of heart and mind. 

Dallas, Texas, Nov 8, 2009 / 07:12 pm (CNA).- An abortionist who says he know he is “killing” has opened a late-term abortion clinic in North Texas, prompting local pro-lifers to express their dismay that such a clinic was absent for only 14 months. However, they also affirmed their resolve to peacefully end the “grave evil” in their community. Dr. Curtis Boyd, who opened the first abortion clinic in Texas in 1973, is the only doctor in North Texas who will perform abortions on women up to six months pregnant.

"We see patients from Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana and across Texas," he said, according to WFAA TV.

"Am I killing?" Boyd said. "Yes, I am. I know that."

Boyd reported that he was ordained a Baptist minister and is now Unitarian. He said he prays often.

"I'll ask that the spirit of this pregnancy be returned to God with love and understanding," he said.

A group called the Catholic Pro-Life Committee gathers outside his office to try to persuade women away from abortion.

"Well, we're certainly disappointed to hear any unborn child will be killed by abortion,” said Karen Garnett of the Catholic Pro-Life Committee. “But, to hear it's a late-term abortion in Dallas, once again, it's particularly devastating."

Boyd opened the Southwestern Women’s Surgery Center last week. By law, he must have a surgery center in order to abort an unborn child more than 16 weeks after conception.

He told WFAA TV that he has been troubled because of the torment he says drives patients to seek his services.

"The hardest ones are the young girls," he said, reporting that girls as young as nine and ten have come to his clinic.

( Read more... )

I had a little debate a few weeks ago on this topic. There are those who believe that the natural world is all there is and that we should only believe what can be scientifically proven. Can a person with this type of worldview bear the necessary burden of proof to validate their beliefs? Is this a coherent worldview? Here is a debate I found from 1998-99 with Christian philosopher and apologist, Dr. William Lane Craig. I have heard various clips from the debate but not the whole thing.

I'm getting so tired of this topic but I know the fight is long from being over. People consistently vote 'gay marriage' down while politicians and activist judges bring it back to life again and again. When engaging in discussions with 'gay marriage' activists it's a lot of the same rhetoric I hear when engaging those who support abortion. That's not very productive.

http://americanpapist.com/blog.html

Alert: Gov. Patterson plans to push gay marriage in NY next tuesday

No less than one week after the American people, for the 31st time, clearly rejected homosexual marriage when given a chance to vote on the issue, the highly-unpopular governor of New York is attempting to force it on his state before he leaves office:I'm trying to figure out a clear action item in response to this story, so papists can get involved, and when I find it, I'll post it.

Here is a look back at a video RealCatholicTV produced six months ago about Obama and the Catholic Church that has reportedly gotten a million hits on youtube.  I remember hearing something during the election about Obama being one to unite the country. Really? I don't see it.  Pushing radical social agendas on the American people is his way of uniting?

Copied from  http://americanpapist.com/blog.html

Thursday, November 05, 2009

Action: Stop PelosiCare before it gets voted on this Saturday

The latest in the increasingly confusing health care reform package. One side says taxpayer funded abortion is not part of the deal while the other side says it is part of the deal. Seems to me that killing babies is extremely important for some. They duck and dodge and try to implement abortion into the plan by stealth and deception.  That's my perception.

Washington D.C., Nov 5, 2009 / 09:17 pm (CNA).- House Republican Leader John Boehner said today the House health care bill, which was backed today by the AARP and the American Medical Association, includes a monthly abortion premium that all subscribers in the government-run plan would have to pay.

In a blog post on Thursday, Boehner says that “Speaker Pelosi’s 2,032-page government takeover of health care” is using “federal funds to pay for elective abortions.”

The House Republican Leader explains that on line 17, p. 110, section 222 under the title “Abortions for which Public Funding is Allowed,” the Health and Human Services Secretary “is given the authority to determine when abortion is allowed under the government-run plan.” 

“The Speaker’s plan also requires that at least one insurance plan offered in the Exchange covers abortions,” he adds.

According to Boehner, “what is even more alarming is that a monthly abortion premium will be charged of all enrollees in the government-run plan.  It’s right there on line 16, page 96, section 213, under ‘Insurance Rating Rules.’  The premium will be paid into a U.S. Treasury account - and these federal funds will be used to pay for the abortion services.”

Section 213, in fact, describes the process by which the Health Benefits Commissioner is to assess the monthly premiums that will be used to pay for elective abortions under the government-run plan.  The Commissioner must charge at a minimum $1 per enrollee per month.

“A majority of Americans believe that health care plans should not be mandated to provide elective abortion coverage, and a majority of Americans do not believe government health care plans should include abortion coverage,” Boehner writes.

“Speaker Pelosi’s 2,032-page health care monstrosity is an affront to the American people and drastically moves away from current policy.  The American people deserve more from their government than being forced to pay for abortion.”

“Health reform should be an opportunity to protect human life - not end it,” Boehner says.

Read House Republican Leader’s post: http://republicanleader.house.gov/blog/?p=666

Here we go.  Here is a dose of the bad medicine that may be coming to a state near you.

"Human Resources buddy. You keep your opinions to yourself!'"---That is if you are Christian or are in any way against so called same sex marriage.  If people will only think about some of the consequences that "gay marriage"  brings. If I as a Christian express my opinion that same sex marriage is wrong in a state that has given same sex marriage legal status, I am necessarily doing something wrong. To what extent my actions would be seen as wrong is still unclear as this is still an issue in its infancy.  Giving my (reasoned) opinion on gay marriage would suddenly be an action that could jeopardize my job? What?  Where is this "tolerance" that the gay rights activists always scream about?  This is what could be coming to your state.  Add to this the recent trend towards an expanding "hate crimes" legislation, and we are headed for some trying times in the realms of free speech and religious freedom. Agree with homosexuality or else......?  But wait.. Isn't this a case of "don't try and force your morals on me"? I get that a lot when discussing issues like abortion. See how that (fallacious) argument is conveniently forgotten in this case? Why is it ok to punish the Christian for not accepting the homosexual's morality? Think about it for awhile. It's a fair question.

Man fired after saying homosexuality wrong
Accused of 'harassment' even though lesbian approached him

A Massachusetts man has been fired from his sales position at the Logan Airport branch in Boston of Brookstone allegedly for telling a female manager that his Christian faith says homosexuality is wrong.

Peter Vadala was fired, and the company says he violated a tolerance policy. But Vadala reports his dismissal came because he expressed his Christian view of homosexuality after a female manager made repeated references, as she approached him four times during work hours, to her plans to marry her lesbian partner.

"At the start of the day, she told me she was getting married. I told her 'Congratulations,' and asked, 'Where's he taking you on your honeymoon?'" Vadala said.

"She replied that her partner was a 'she,'" he continued, "So I immediately tried to change the subject.

"I think she knew I was uncomfortable talking about it," he continued. "But, she brought it up to me three more times during the day

"After the fourth time she told me about her plan to marry her partner, I told her, 'I think homosexuality is bad stuff,'" Vadala said.

"That's what I said. I wasn't rude about it and I didn't act disrespectfully to her," he said. "All the woman said to me as she left the store was, 'Human Resources buddy. You keep your opinions to yourself!'"

Vadala said when he was hired he went through the company's training program

, including a requirement to watch a video.

"In the video, there was a homosexual man who said he overheard two workers talking. One man in the outsourced video tells the other, 'If a homosexual man hits on me, he better watch out.'

“The homosexual man in the video said he was offended, but I'm not allowed to be offended by a homosexual ... I was told that since homosexual marriage is supposedly legal in Massachusetts, that I was wrong for being offended," Vadala said.

A Brookstone human resources staffer called a few days after the incident and Vadala said he told the caller he wanted to resolve the matter.

"I spoke to (the human resources staff member) and I wanted to resolve it. I said that for his sake, the matter needed be resolved because this manager will be around customers

who, chances are, will be offended by the types of things she is saying," Vadala said

But during the course of the conversation Vadala said it became clear the call wasn't about resolving the issue.

It was a few days later Vadala received a termination letter from Brookstone.

The letter accused Vadala of "harassment" and described his comments as "inappropriate and unprofessional." Further, the letter charged, he was "imposing" his beliefs upon others.

Vadala said the letter from Brookstone, signed by Susan McGrath, contained numerous false accusations.

In a copy made available to WND, the letter reads, “You acknowledge that you then expressed to Ms. (name blacked out) that you disagreed strongly with her homosexual lifestyle and that [you] believe it is wrong. You describe it in your statement, as you did when speaking with me, as 'deviant.'"

But Vadala said he didn't use that word.

McGrath's letter further asserts that a sales associate "who was working with you at the time … provided a written statement indicating that while she did not witness the conversation … you did tell her later that you 'knew (she) is marrying another woman' and that you 'hate people like that.'"

Vadala reports he also did not say that.

McGrath refused WND's request to comment on the dispute. Instead she suggested Brookstone’s legal department be contacted. That department did not respond.

When contacted about the firing, store manager Katelyn Woodard said, "You need to speak to human resources about this and if you call this number again, I'll file harassment charges."

Vadala said it's clear to him he was fired for his faith.

"Absolutely," he confirmed.

Can anyone else sense a complete meltdown at some point? Someone who feels the need to attack Mother Teresa (going as far as writing a book attacking her) can only be headed for some dark times. How far gone do you have to be to want to beat up on Mother Teresa? Way to go tough guy.  I mean.... its Mother Teresa!  I do sense a meltdown in Mr. Hitchens future. I think PZ Meyers might be next.


On October 30, atheist author Christopher Hitchens appeared on Dennis Miller’s Internet radio show condemning Mother Teresa. The UK born author and commentator referred to the Nobel Prize winner, saying “The woman was a fanatic and a fundamentalist and a fraud, and millions of people are much worse off because of her life, and it’s a shame there is no hell for your bitch to go to.”

Catholic League president Bill Donohue responded, "I once told Hitchens that one of the real reasons he hates Mother Teresa has to do with his socialist ideology: he believes the state should care for the poor, not voluntary organizations, and he especially loathes the idea of religious ones servicing the dispossessed. Indeed, he sees in Mother Teresa the very embodiment of altruism, a virtue he cannot—with good reason—fully comprehend."

The fact of the matter is that socialism is the greatest generator of poverty known to mankind, and Mother Teresa did more to heal and rescue its victims than anyone in the modern era. This explains why she is adored by the people who knew her best—the men and women of India (she is second only to Gandhi as the nation’s most revered person). "

Hitchens is positively obsessed by Mother Teresa, and that is a very telling commentary on his psyche. She is a constant reminder that reason without faith is a dark hole."

The truth can creep up on you and smack you upside the head any place and at any time.


BRYAN, Texas, November 2, 2009 (LifeSiteNews.com) - The director of the Texas Planned Parenthood abortion mill where the 40 Days for Life campaign began has resigned, saying she experienced a conversion after watching an ultrasound video of a child being killed by abortion.

I just thought I can't do this anymore, and it was just like a flash that hit me and I thought that's it," said Abby Johnson in an interview with local news network KBTX 3. 

( Read more... )

Here is a nice collection of ignorant quotes. I don't have time to research the accuracy or context of what was said. Lets just take them as they are. What can be said other than a whole lot of people really don't have a clue about the Church they love to attack. Richard Dawkins.... stick to biology my friend.  When you roam into the realm of Theology or church related issues, it's embarrassing watching someone as bright as you look so ignorant.

MAJOR NEWSPAPERS BLAST CATHOLICISM

October 28, 2009

Catholic League president Bill Donohue comments as follows:

Last Friday on the Washington Post blog, “On Faith,” English atheist Richard Dawkins said the Catholic Church was “surely up there among the leaders” as “the greatest force for evil in the world.” He labeled the Eucharist a “cannibal feast,” adding that “possession of testicles is an essential qualification to perform the rite.” He also blamed the Church for sending missionaries “out to tell deliberate lies to AIDS-weakened Africans” regarding condoms. The Church’s outreach to Anglicans, he said, makes it “a common pimp,” noting that those who convert “will be joining an institution where buggering altar boys pervades the culture.”

On Saturday, a Los Angeles Times editorial said that “church leaders, including popes, have changed their thinking over the years about everything from usury to the culpability of Jews for the Crucifixion….” It concluded, “You don’t have to be Catholic (or Anglican) to realize that society as a whole would be better off if the church’s views of women and gays underwent a similar evolution.”

On Sunday, New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd recalled that when she was in grade school, “Nuns were second-class citizens then and–40 years after feminism utterly changed America—they still are.” She called Pope Benedict XVI the “uber-conservative pope,” a.k.a. “God’s Rottweiler,” who was once “a conscripted member of the Hitler Youth.” She also accused the Church of enabling “rampant pedophilia.”

On Monday, James Carroll in the Boston Globe called the outreach to Anglicans “a cruel assault,” “an insult to loyal Catholic liberals” and “a slap at women and homosexuals.” He characterized the outreach as a “preemptive exploitation of Anglican distress.”

These deranged comments—all voiced in America’s premier newspapers—demonstrate that anti-Catholicism is the most virulent expression of bigotry in the U.S. It also shows why these newspapers, quite unlike the Catholic Church, are dying. As for the writers, they need to go to church. Either that or check into an asylum.

Seems as if some Democrats are at least by appearance on the same page as the Catholic Church.

"I want to be clear, pro-life Democrats want to help pass health care reform but our coalition can in no- way support reform that includes tax payer funded abortions."

The Church says basically the same thing and it is accused of being divisive and one issue centered.  Hmm.

Washington D.C., Oct 29, 2009 / 06:13 pm (CNA).- Democrats for Life of America claims to have 40 congressmen who will vote against the House health care reform legislation if taxpayer funded abortion language is not removed from the bill, the organization announced on Thursday.

The 40 vote coalition concerns the refusal of the House leadership to include language that would prevent abortions from being paid for in any new health care reform scheme. If Hyde Amendment-type language were inserted into the bill, Democrats for Life of America (DFLA) says, taxpayer funded abortions in appropriations bills would be prevented.

Several attempts to insert such language have been unsuccessful in committee.

"I want to be clear, pro-life Democrats want to help pass health care reform but our coalition can in no- way support reform that includes tax payer funded abortions. If the leadership will remove that language, we feel confident that we can deliver enough votes to help put this much needed reform over the top in the House," Kristen Day, DFLA Executive Director, said in a statement.

“We believe in a big-tent Democratic Party, but to not allow Hyde language to be included in health care reform would force some pro-choice and pro-life Democrats to vote against health care reform. If we add this language, we believe we can help Speaker Pelosi get the votes to pass this legislation.”

So let me get this straight. Wearing a pin with words taken directly from our pledge of allegiance is reason to get fired? Give me a break.  It's called religious freedom. I wonder if he would get fired for wearing a button showing U.S. currency  "In God We Trust"? He could walk around with a dollar bill pinned to his chest. This country has Christian roots and some people are just going to have to deal with that reality.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – A former cashier for The Home Depot who has been wearing a "One nation under God" button on his work apron for more than a year has been fired, he says because of the religious reference. The company claims that expressing such personal beliefs is simply not allowed.

"I've worn it for well over a year and I support my country and God," Trevor Keezor said Tuesday. "I was just doing what I think every American should do, just love my country."

The American flag button Keezer wore in the Florida store since March 2008 says "One nation under God, indivisible."

Earlier this month, he began bringing a Bible to read during his lunch break at the store in the rural town of Okeechobee, about 140 miles north of Miami. That's when he says The Home Depot management told him he would have to remove the button.
 

( Read more... )
 

 

I actually heard something intelligent on "The View" !

Can you feel the holiday love? Those militant angry atheists are at it again. In regards to religion, what this particular breed of atheist wants is a country that in no way represents what our founding fathers had in mind.


"Richard Thompson, President and Chief Counsel of the Law Center, said that militant atheists attempt to do through the courts what the Taliban by force had done to Afghanistan: removing all the symbols of the country's national heritage."

WARREN, Michigan, October 26, 2009 (LifeSiteNews.com) - The Christmas culture wars for 2009 have now begun and ground zero is the Detroit suburb of Warren, which for 63 years has hosted a privately maintained nativity scene set at the crossroads of the city.

The Nativity display had been maintained by Warren city resident John Satawa and his family for most of the municipality's history until the Macomb County Road Commission this year ordered the display removed because it "clearly displays a religious message" in violation of the "separation of church and state." 

The Road Commission had informed Satawa of its decision upon receiving a letter in December 2008 from the Freedom from Religion Foundation, which purported to act on behalf of a complainant in the city of 134,000 residents, saying the display violated the Constitution.

However, on Friday the Thomas More Law Center, a national public interest law firm based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of Satawa against the Road Commission, arguing that its decision violates the Establishment Clause by disfavoring religion.

Satawa's legal counsel hopes to obtain a court order permitting the nativity display along with a declaratory judgment that the Road Commission's actions were unconstitutional.

Richard Thompson, President and Chief Counsel of the Law Center, said that militant atheists attempt to do through the courts what the Taliban by force had done to Afghanistan: removing all the symbols of the country's national heritage.

Thompson added that nowhere in the US Constitution appears the phrase "separation of church and state"; nevertheless, every Christmas those words become a "means of intimidating municipalities and schools into removing expressions celebrating Christmas, a National Holiday."

"Their goal is to cleanse our public square of all Christian symbols. However, the grand purpose of our Founding Fathers and the First Amendment was to protect religion, not eliminate it."

( Read more... )

Here is a good video that may be of help when discussing some basic arguments for the existence of God. Here Dr. Craig goes through 3 or 4 basic arguments (there are many others) you can use when discussing the reasonableness of Christianity. How often had you had your faith attacked as being "a blind faith in a cloud god" or something to that affect?  It's important to be able to articulate reasons for your faith using logic and reason. Of course this is only one aspect of the faith but it is important to be able to defend your beliefs reasonably against an increasingly hostile anti-Christian atheist movement.

The reason I like posting Dr. Craig's work is that he can take complicated philosophical principles and articulate them in a way that almost anyone can follow. At the same time you don't lose too much depth of the content.

I can't get my head around a number like a billion. How do you picture a billion in your head? How do you ignore a number like a billion when we are talking about the destruction of innocent human life? This is just sickening. We are truly living in dark times. I only hope that in my lifetime we will see an end to abortion. Yes, I talk about abortion a lot.  After everything I've read, heard first hand, researched, and posted on here, how can I not talk about it?

http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2009/oct/09101604.html

By James Tillman

NEW YORK, NY, October 16, 2009 (LifeSiteNews.com) -- A new report by the pro-abortion Guttmacher Institute, entitled "Abortion Worldwide:  A Decade of Uneven Progress," points to the fact that over a billion abortions have been committed, say pro-life activists.

The report found that the annual number of abortions have declined over the period from 1995 to 2003.  Nevertheless, the Guttmacher Institute said that in 2003 approximately 41.6 million abortions were committed worldwide.

On average, this works out to more than one death by abortion for each second of the year.  Since abortion has been available since before 1970 and very widely available since 1980, pro-life activists are saying that, even by a conservative estimate, the total number of preborn children to have been killed by abortion is likely in excess of one billion.  If 40 million children per year were aborted since 1980 that would already make for 1.12 billion preborn babies killed.

"There simply isn't anything close," said Stephen Phelan of Human Life International.  "Over the many years since this has become a practice, even legalized in many countries, you're over a billion."

"There's definitely nothing to compare. The closest thing you'd get to it would be the atheist, socialist dictators of the 20th century; and even they, in their gruesome efficiency, were only able to kill somewhere between a hundred and a hundred-seventy million people. ... There's no comparison."

The Guttmacher Institute report also mentions the "high degree of safety" of abortions in communist China, but neglects to condemn China's one-child policy or the forced abortions that occur there.  It nevertheless refers to the "woman's right to make her own childbearing decisions" and couches the report in the language of "choice."  According to the report, 8.8 million "safe" abortions occur in China each year, approximately 1 in 5 of all abortions worldwide.

Powerful testimony from an abortion provider.  http://americanpapist.com/blog.html

Thomas put a warning before this post but I think everyone who supports abortion or votes for politicians who support abortion should read this. Again, I'm going to ask anyone who supports this killing to ask yourself why? Think beyond the meaningless 'pro-choice' slogans and the radical feminist inspired rhetoric that seems to have conditioned a whole section of society into thinking and acting as if this isn't a top priority issue.

Mature audience: Woman describes performing abortion while pregnant herself

WARNING: this post contains a graphic description of an abortion that may not be appropriate for some individuals. Please read with care.

I think it's important in the debate about abortion to have an honest dialogue about all parties who are involved.

This is a short response to merenaturalism  and the comments he/she left about my last post. My words are in regular type.

First, you didn't answer my questions.

How do we get from 'science alone doesn't have all the answers' to 'only science alone can have all the answers?' What makes the last statement true?

"The last 300 years of shared human experience demonstrates the overwhelming superiority of the various methods of science for answering questions about how the world works."

If anything, the last  300 years have shown us that science alone is not sufficient to answer the greatest questions of mankind. Thus great debates have occurred in the past and continue today. Science properly understood has many answers to explain how things work to be sure. No informed Christian would deny this. There is no need to deny this. Science when understood properly is shown to have limitations. Acknowledging those limitations with intellectual honesty helps you open up to other means of inquiry when empirical science has no say. Science alone can be an adequate way to solve a problem or answer a question but not always. It depends on what problem you are trying to solve and whether or not the question is beyond the scope of empirical science. The last 300 years has also shown us that science is not infallible and can be wrong. 

"As far as I know, WLC has no arguments which hinge on the premise "God did it". Rather, that is his conclusion. But such a move seems to me not any kind of explanation because he is answering one mystery with another mystery."

This is a misrepresentation of how William Lane Craig defends his beliefs. He uses logic and deductive arguments. If the premises of his arguments are true then you cannot deny the conclusions. The conclusions follow with logical necessity from the premises.

"Theologians have been in full retreat from the hammer blows of science."

This assertion makes me laugh every time I hear it. To point out the complete absurdity of this statement first I will ask...what Theologians are you talking about!? You aren't engaged in a discussion right now with a fundamentalist who takes every word of the Bible literally or some new agey practitioner of some self-made feel good 'religion'  that shuns any knowledge that can't be found in some form of 'holy scripture'. Secondly, it's a mere google search to look up the major discoveries/ contributions that Christians both laity and clergy have made in the history of science and continue to make in the present day. The "hammer blows of science"  seem to be more like love taps from God encouraging His faithful to continue on in their exploration of science rather than a reason to retreat from their faith.

Since the tone of your answers have been more civil than what I am used to when engaging atheists, I'll  go off the board a bit and answer the rest a bit differently than what I am usually forced to do.

My Catholic faith is completely in tune with modern science. Scientific inquiry fits in perfectly with the Catholic worldview. We see the world as having reason behind it. The world for a Catholic reflects the nature of the being that created it. Thus we see reason, rationality and order that can be studied. It was this type of Christian worldview that set the stage for scientific endeavors. You really have to be blind to not see the hand-print of design all around us.

You know, as Catholic school kids, we did learn science.  Believe it or not, that education in science continued all the way through Catholic high school!! Interestingly, I don't recall ever running across these "hammer blows of science" that would cause me to retreat from my faith.

Off to college I went. Yes sir with an interest in a medical career, I took it upon myself to dive into a whole lot of science courses. Oh yeah...lots and lots of Biology and Chemistry. Not to be confined to just two disciplines of science, I studied a bit of just about anything that ended in "ology"  anthropology, psychology, zoology, physiology, sociology.... Surely, having studied all that science in public colleges and universities, I would have eventually been forced to confront these "hammer blows of science" that would cause me to retreat from my faith. It never happened.

It's a curious thing that I never seemed to run into these "hammer blows of science" that would cause me to retreat from my faith. Today I am studying Theology and I still have not been hindered in my studies by these "hammer blows of science" you speak of that would cause me to retreat from my faith. You know why that is? It's because there is no conflict between science and religion for me or any Catholic who knows their faith. You can try all day to push a false dichotomy between faith and reason or science and religion but its complete bunk. The atheist has to push the idea that science and religion are in conflict for many of their arguments to hold any merit. I think that's why a lot of so called 'new atheists' pick on easy targets ( fundamental Bible literalists...)  The more science progresses and explores the extreme complexity of the human body, the planet, the universe, the apparent fine tuning and design found just about everywhere.......the more it leads to what believers have been saying all along. Just ask the former 'pope' of atheism for 40+ years Anthony Flew.

"Philosophers are now overwhelmingly naturalists."

First, this is an appeal to numbers. The number of philosophers who are 'naturalists' has no bearing on whether what they believe is true or not. Secondly, I have no idea how many Christian V Naturalist philosophers there are but Dr. Craig has a take on this (the video). I'm not posting it because he calls out the "new atheists" but because he addresses your contention about naturalist philosophers.

Lastly, your "thought experiment" is quite irrelevant.  I think I know where you want to go with it. I will answer it shortly when I have some free time.

New York, NY (LifeNews.com) -- The New York Times is well-known for its pro-abortion bias, but the Gray Lady is drawing praise from pro-life advocates after a news story and an online pictorial that includes pictures showing babies who are victims of abortions. One prominent pro-life advocate says she believes the Times is the first major mainstream media outlet to show them.

On Saturday, the New York Times included a front-page, above-the-fold news story that presents a strangely fair portrayal of pro-life advocates who engage in street activism.

Meanwhile, the Times' Photography, Video, and Visual Journalism online section features a photo montage showing the pictures of babies who died in abortions.

Monica Migliorino Miller, a Michigan pro-life advocate and professor at Madonna University, has taken so many pictures of babies killed in abortions she is regarded as an expert of sorts.

She told LifeNews.com over the weekend that the Times show and online pictorial is "nearly unprecedented in 37 years of legalized abortion."

"Perhaps for the first time in the history of the pro-life movement a nationally recognized paper -- or any newspaper for that matter -- has deliberately printed photos of actual abortion victims," Miller said.

Miller talked about the genesis of the news report and online photo spread.

"This is a story written by reporter Damien Cave who attended the memorial service for murdered pro-lifer, Jim Pouillon," Miller explained. "After the service, the reporter approached [me] and asked me about the use of graphic images in pro-life work. We later did a two hour interview and this story is the result."

Miller was able to take the photos because members of her pro-life group retrieved the bodies of babies killed in abortion from the dumpster of a local abortion center in April 2008.

"The two photos featured in this on-line edition are of a baby aborted by the saline method of abortion and the other is the foot of an unborn child murdered at the Women's Advisory abortion clinic in Livonia, Michigan," she told LifeNews.com.

The photographs are graphic and detailed, showing the fingers or toes of aborted babies whose entire frames are no bigger than a cell phone.

"This article is a coup," she continues, "and is sure to generate much debate -- but most importantly -- we need to pray that hearts will be changed."

"Our goal is to show and tell the truth about the injustice of abortion. I hope this story helps awaken hearts and minds," Miller concludes.

Miller encourages pro-life advocates to comment on the Times story and to thank the newspaper for running the photos online.

Related web sites:
Story - http://www.nytimes.com/indexes/2009/10/10/pageone/scan/index.html
Photos - http://lens.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/10/09/behind-19