Religion
Humor in Religion
To false religion, humor remains one of the most dreaded adversaries. Humor punctures the pomposities of theological arrogance with an efficacy wondrous to behold. — Vern Bennom Grimsley (1964)
The Nativity Scene
In a small Southern town there was a nativity scene that indicated great skill and talent in its creation. One small feature bothered me though. The three wise men were wearing firemen’s helmets. Totally unable to come up with a reason or explanation, I left. At a “Quik Stop” on the edge of town, I … Read more
Paradise Lost . . . and Found?
Sumerian legends locate the land of Paradise, where the gods first blessed mankind with manners of civilized life, in Dilmun on the shore of the Persian Gulf. —Harold Peake & Herbert John Fleure (1927)
Actuals v. Potentials
The gist of the matter is this: God, as conceived by Jesus, receives and forgives the sinner, not for the purity of heart and life he has actually attained, but for that which he penitently and faithfully strives to attain. —A. Campbell Garnett (1942)
Divine Leading
The religion of the spirit leaves you free to follow truth whithersoever it may take you. —Ernest Fremont Tittle (1928)
Loyalty to Christ
A great many of the educated youth of [the United States and Canada] … find it difficult to understand how a Church founded by Christ can show such feeble loyalty to the principles of truth, the way of life and the spirit of love to which His life was dedicated. Their very loyalty to the … Read more
Just the Facts
The value of science lies in its generalization and relation of fact to fact by means of which the mind builds a universe of sequences and connections, applying these generalizations to the needs of life…. The scientist, indeed, has no more right to be a materialist than an idealist. Neither of the foregoing presuppositions is … Read more
Perfect but Worthless
[I]n life there are so many factors involved that mathematical enumeration is the smallest and often the least important element involved. No illustration is more apt than the time-worn example of the logics, wherein it is presumed that if one man could dig a well in ten days, ten men could dig it in one. … Read more
Modern Civilization
It has been said that modern civilization could not have been built upon any such foundation as the words of Jesus. That may be true. Quite imaginably it is also true that what could be built upon his words would be a better thing than modern civilization is. —W. R. Bowie (1928)