Meanwhile, over on Facebook . . .

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Author: Jimmy Akin

Jimmy was born in Texas, grew up nominally Protestant, but at age 20 experienced a profound conversion to Christ. Planning on becoming a Protestant seminary professor, he started an intensive study of the Bible. But the more he immersed himself in Scripture the more he found to support the Catholic faith, and in 1992 he entered the Catholic Church. His conversion story, "A Triumph and a Tragedy," is published in Surprised by Truth. Besides being an author, Jimmy is the Senior Apologist at Catholic Answers, a contributing editor to Catholic Answers Magazine, and a weekly guest on "Catholic Answers Live."

17 thoughts on “Meanwhile, over on Facebook . . .”

  1. I haven’t read his book, but what I’ve gathered is that he’s not saying that something indeed came from nothing, but something came from something else. Atheists eventually tire of asking where “something else” came from because it leads them either closer to God (“but there is no God!”) or closer to absurdity (“but we’re the smart rational scientists!”).

  2. Wow…a 45 minute read? Hope you didn’t pay too much for it. Is it really a significant leap from any of his previous books, or is it just a pretty rehashing to make more money?
    I always felt sorry for Hawking. He’s had a rough life, and is one of those folks who–I suspect–couldn’t ever get past the evil they have suffered.

  3. I’m a simpleton. Therefore, it seems that if one “proves” to their own satisfaction that there is no God, then this presumes a kind of god-like quality in and of itself. IOW, one would then have to presume omniscience upon themselves which is certainly one major characteristic of any God that might exist. Thus, any argument that there is no God refutes itself in the end. It’s as if they “prove” there is a God by disproving it. That’s funny! I get being an agnostic. This, at least makes sense because it admits ignorance which is healthy and humble and not to mention true of all of us to one degree or another. But, to claim to be an Atheist is actually a contradiction in terms, it seems,because it requires omniscience which no religious group even claims for itself. Humility is the only proper disposition of any human being from any belief system, it seems- God or no God.

  5. God created the world by His pure Will, He simply willed everything into existence. Like if you want a video game you couldn’t simply have it, make it appear in front of you, by wanting it. Yet God, merely by willing the world to exist for its own sake, created the world. Because God is His Will and God is Goodness Itself, God created the world by His pure Goodness: Thus we find that God willed the world in two ways: Into existence and its existence for its own sake. Like if you want your friend to get well for his own sake, God wills our existence for our greatest good: Eternal, absolute happiness. Because God is Goodness Itself and happiness is good, so God is Happiness Itself. Thus, in creating everything for its own sake, He created everything for Himself. In this way we find that God is Love, for a lover wills the good of the beloved, and we finally come to the pinnacle of the mystery of creation: Love is what created everything, in love everything was created, and by pure love was everything created. This is what baffles so many people, though, because they assume love is just a reaction, a force, an emotion, or a faceless power or mystery, yet love is indeed a mystery but a mystery with a face: Love is God, God is Love. And not just some love but all love, infinite love, unconditional love, Love Itself, Goodness Itself.

  7. “Man Eating Giant Squid Devouring Fish Stocks”? Jimmy, that sort of thing used to be here on the blog, not tucked away in Facebook. Does this mean that this blog isn’t the place to have fun anymore? I feel so sad.

  8. Pach: I definitely want this blog to continue to have the fun elements. You also raise good questions regarding how it relates to these new modes of communication. Hang on and let me address these subjects in a new post or two.

  10. Interesting question: has Facebook overtaken blogs as the personal expression software de jour? I fail to see how they are that much different. Since I have neither a blog nor a Facebook page, what do I know?
    The Chicken

  11. I am not a fan of Facebook in the same sense that I am not a fan of crowds. Does that make sense? I’m not really a social-networker.
    The Chicken

  12. This guy was a guest on a radio program here in Seattle yesterday. He did a really good job of speaking to the bad logic Stephen was using. He has the utmost respect for Mr. Hawking but thought this particular book of his was way off base.
    http://www.signatureinthecell.com/

  13. “Since I have neither a blog nor a Facebook page, what do I know?”
    Have you ever considered getting a blog?

  14. Have you ever considered getting a blog?
    In order to have a blog, one must first have a life. Perhaps I’ll get one of those some day and then I’ll get a blog.
    Seriously, I just can’t think up a good enough name.
    The Chicken

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