I really appreciate John Walton’s work on the thought forms of the ancient near east and how this impacts our reading of Genesis. He helpfully gets to the root of what we need to understand when looking at the text of Genesis. Check it out.
The Language of Science and Faith
If I could recommend on book on the subject of contemporary understandings of science and how those gel with Christian understandings of the universe it would be The Language of Science and Faith by Karl Giberson and Francis Collins. http://www.amazon.com/The-Language-Science-Faith-Questions/dp/0830838295/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1347137258&sr=8-1&keywords=The+Language+of+Science+and+Faith
It is straight forward, easy to understand and does a great job of covering the span of scientific understandings that have led up to this point in our understanding of how the universe works. The book addresses a number of concerns evangelicals have when thinking about this topic and the last chapter alone which gives a flowing narrative of the creation of the universe is worth the price of the book. I had been trying to cobble something together like this on my own and I am glad to say this work has done the job for me and confirmed many of my own conclusions on the subject. I hope others can find it helpful also.
Big History and the Story of Creation
http://www.metanexus.net/essay/exploring-big-history
This is an article talking about the timeline of the universe. I think it fits quite nicely with our understanding of creation. It is interesting that science is now pushing for a narrative to talk about our universe. Such an inclination fits well with the Abrahamic faiths, which have always viewed creation as part of the larger narrative of God’s creative work and subsequently humankind’s vocation as caretakers of God’s creation. It will be interesting to see what gets added when the Higgs Boson particle is finally revealed. It’s the last link in the unified theory of the universe.
Six Reasons Young Christians Leave Church
The Barna Group – Six Reasons Young Christians Leave Church.
The above article is based on recent research in the changing landscape of young adults and faith. Over the past decade I have seen a lot of this going on and have tried to address some of these issues in my blog. The research reinforces in my mind the need to present a more robust articulation of our faith tradition that handles the many challenges of an increasingly pluralistic and technologically advanced culture.
“Randomness” in Discussions About Evolution
This short vignette from the BioLogos Foundation is a very helpful discussion about what is meant when we use the term “random” in relation to evolution. Often times this term can be misused in a pejorative sense in discussions surrounding science and faith. This video helpfully clarifies what is random and what is not in the evolutionary process.
“Move On” from Sondheim! The Birthday Concert
God spoke to me through this song in a profound way. It addresses a deep longing in my heart to make a difference in this world. Sometimes I am reticent to share those feelings closest to me for fear of insignificance. This song reminds me its not about how the world perceives me as much as it is about making myself known. I want to make things that count. I want to break through…through to something new. I have to keep moving on 🙂
the smoldering remnants 