Religion can definitely turn a person's brain into tapioca. A recent post by Roger E. Olson could certainly be used as exhibit A on this assertion. "Reasons for Believing the Bible is God’s Word" is equal parts confusing, contradictory, and delusional. Better than half of the post seems to confirm reasons not accept the Bible as the word of God. The little tid bits that Olson seems to think pass as reasons apply a warped sense of logic that is so tortured it would make the Marquis de Sade blush. Then there is his conclusion:
"Having said all that, I will go on to say that there is a vast difference between the Bible and other so-called “holy books.” The difference between the Bible and others book people claim to be inspired is a difference in kind, not just in degree. The Bible only is supernaturally inspired and authoritative for Christian belief (doctrine). Other books for which people make that (or similar) claim are, in opinion, unworthy of it as they contain not only errors but simple nonsense. Of course, I can’t prove that to their adherents, but to anyone open-minded enough to investigate them objectively, their lacking the normative dignity of the Bible is easy to show. That is the role of apologetics—not to prove the Bible is the Word of God (let alone inerrant) but to show its superiority to competitors. Emil Brunner called this “eristics”—the task of comparing world views with the aim of showing that Christianity (and I would add the Bible) is superior in addressing the human condition and revealing God’s solution."
Wow! So many words and phrases raced through my head as I read this last paragraph I could hardly latch on to any of them. If there were a prize for blatant projections, double standards, faulty logic, delusions, or just being bat-shit crazy Olson would be the top contender. If nothing else, he serves well as a cautionary tale about what can happen to an individual who never questions or scrutinizes what they believe.
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