This Blog -
Moved To:
http://professor-howdy.blogspot.com/

Whenever I feel blue, I start breathing again.
  .comment-link {margin-left:.6em;}

Your very own library

http://bible.crosswalk.com/



===============

The first microscope was probably invented in 1595 by Zacharias
Janssen and his father in Middleburg, Holland. Their compound
microscope used two lenses, one convex and one concave. The Janssen
microscope marked the beginning of a period of rapid development of
microscopes throughout Europe.

In 1610, the Italian Galileo Galilei made a microscope by adapting
one of his telescopes, reversing the lenses. After that discovery,
he made more of these "occhialini," sending some of them to other
experimenters.

In 1660, another Dutchman named Anton van Leeuwenhoek developed a
single-lens microscope that magnified up to 270 times. He was
probably the first human to directly observe bacteria.



===============

Are You "Anti-Science"?:
The Christian Origins of Science

Very soon, "the practice of religion must be
regarded as anti-science."

With these words, another salvo was launched in
the war between religion and science. The writer
was John Maddox, editor of "Nature", the world's
most prestigious science journal--the journal
that practically defines what counts as science today.

And now Nature has defined religion as "anti-science."

But that would be a big surprise to the people
who founded modern science. Most of the early
scientists--Copernicus, Isaac Newton, Carl
Linnaeus--were Christians. In fact, historians
tell us that Christianity actually helped inspire
the scientific revolution.

Consider a few examples. Pagan cultures saw the
world as alive with river goddesses, sun gods,
astral deities. But Genesis 1 stands in stark
contrast to all that. Nature is not divine; it is
God's handiwork. The sun and moon are not gods;
they are merely lights placed in the sky to serve
God's purposes.

This teaching provided a crucial assumption for
science, for when nature commanded religious
worship, then digging too closely into her
secrets was deemed irreverent. But in
Christianity, nature was no longer an object of
fear and worship. Then--and only then--could it
become an object of scientific study.

Another crucial assumption for science is that
nature is orderly. This, too, was provided by
Christianity. The belief that God is rational and
trustworthy implies that His creation is rational
and ordered.

The early scientists described that order as
"natural law." Today this phrase is so common, we
may not realize how unique it once was. Yet as
historian A. R. Hall points out, no other culture
has ever used the word law in relation to nature.
The idea of laws in nature came from one source:
the biblical teaching that God is both Creator
and Law-Giver.

Even the experimental method of science has roots
in Christianity. Since it is God's rationality
that orders nature, and not our own, we cannot
sit in an ivory tower and do science by sheer
rational deduction. Instead, we must do
experiments and see what happens.

For example, when Galileo wanted to find out
whether a 10-pound weight falls to the ground
more quickly than a one-pound weight, he did not
argue about the concept of weight, as was typical
among the philosophers of his day. Instead, he
dropped cannonballs off the Leaning Tower of Pisa
and watched what happened.

Some historians suggest that the story of Galileo
is apocryphal, but the point still stands: The
early scientists were acting on their conviction
that God's ways are not necessarily our ways--and
that God's ways in nature have to be discovered
by experiment and observation.

The fact is that people like John Maddox who
portray religion as "anti-science" simply don't
know their history. It's up to you and me to make
sure we do know our history. Your Bible study and
Sunday school groups can use this special
"BreakPoint" series, based on a book by Nancy
Pearcey and Charles Thaxton called "The Soul of
Science".

Christians everywhere must learn how to defend
their faith against irresponsible attacks
launched in the name of science. Chuck Colson

===============

"I believe the Bible is the best gift God has ever given to man.
All the good from the Savior of the world is communicated to
us through this book." --Abraham Lincoln

"For we must consider that we shall be as a City upon a hill.
The eyes of all people are upon us. So that if we shall deal
falsely with our God in this work we have undertaken, and
so cause Him to withdraw his present help from us, we
shall be made a story and a byword throughout the world."
--John Winthrop, Governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, 1630

"America was born a Christian nation. America was born
to exemplify that devotion to the elements of righteousness,
which are derived from the revelations of Holy Scriptures.
Part of the destiny of Americans lies in their daily perusal
of this great book of revelations. That if they would see
America free and pure they will make their own spirits
free and pure by this baptism of the Holy Spirit."
--Woodrow Wilson

"It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often that this
great nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians;
not on religions, but on the gospel of Jesus Christ. For this
very reason peoples of other faiths have been afforded asylum,
prosperity, and freedom of worship here."
--Patrick Henry, original member of the Continental Congress
  .comment-link {margin-left:.6em;}

[TBC: The "religious" nature of such beliefs as evolution and humanism have
long been pointed out. In seeking to eradicate "religion," (i.e., biblical
Christianity) from every facet of university life, so called free-thinkers
have created a religious edifice which is already turning against them. The
following excerpt from The National Association of Scholars shows the
penalty for exchanging allegiance to the Creator to the shifting sands of
science "falsely so-called.]

Outside the classroom, various innovations, including sensitivity training
and speech codes, were introduced to discourage the expression of
non-conforming views, reversing what had, only shortly before, been a
virtually iconic dedication to academic free speech. Ambitious efforts
commenced to reshape student life, through dorm-based counseling, the
regulation or suppression of fraternities and sororities, the creation of
diversity offices with extensive public affairs and advisement functions,
and the institution-wide sponsorship of events and programs "celebrating"
cultures, values, groups, and lifestyles formerly marginalized or censured.
University investment portfolios, purchasing policies, and openness to
military recruitment were also altered to reflect new creedal agendas. All
in all, the temple of science began to resemble something of a postmodern
church. . . . the increasingly creedal nature of the university poses
dangers to the natural sciences, threatening to undermine the meritocratic
protocols on which they depend, while corroding their deeper intellectual
foundations.

(Balch, "More Crises Than One," "Society, May/June 2006).
  .comment-link {margin-left:.6em;}

.

Today at noon, our readers were from:

Country State/Region City ISP

Num ISP City Region Country Name

13 Western Michigan University Kalamazoo Michigan United States
8 North American Stainless Ghent Kentucky United States
8 Michigan State University Lindenhurst New York United States
8 University Of Northern Colorado Greeley Colorado United States
5 Comcast Cable Communications Inc Tallahassee Florida United States
5 University Of Houston Houston Texas United States
4 Covad Communications Co Chicago Illinois United States
4 Pppox Pool - Rback3.emhril Chicago Illinois United States
3 University Of Kansas Lawrence Kansas United States
2 Aol Uk London England United Kingdom
2 Dod Network Information Center Bremerton Washington United States
2 Washtenaw County Romulus Michigan United States
2 Johnson Hickey & Murchison Pc Chattanooga Tennessee United States
2 Verizon Internet Services Inc Dallas Texas United States
2 Sprint Dsl Network Ocala Florida United States
2 Level 3 Communications Inc Soddy Daisy Tennessee United States
2 Road Runner Holdco Llc Lakeland Florida United States
2 Northeastern State University Tahlequah Oklahoma United States
2 Internet Service Provider Melbourne Victoria Australia
2 University Of Delaware Newark Delaware United States
2 University Of Colorado Denver Aurora Colorado United States
2 Northeastern University Boston Massachusetts United States
  .comment-link {margin-left:.6em;}

.

At Midnight:

Num Perc. Country Name

59 62.77% United States
8 8.51% Argentina
6 6.38% Canada
6 6.38% China
5 5.32% Japan
3 3.19% Hong Kong
3 3.19% Saudi Arabia
2 2.13% Syrian Arab Republic
2 2.13% Korea, Republic Of
  .comment-link {margin-left:.6em;}