tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-193564012012-01-21T16:22:57.365-05:00"Breaking News on God and Other Higher Beings in this World and the World to Come" (Edited by Cliff Pickover, www.pickover.com, author of "The Math Book."Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.comBlogger1191100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-67681051898385713792010-04-24T19:14:00.002-04:002010-04-24T19:18:03.086-04:00

In an interview entitled "Aliens Are My Brother", granted to L'Osservatore Romano, the Vatican newspaper, Father Gabriel Funes, director of the Vatican Observatory, stated: "In my opinion this possibility (of life on other planets) exists"; "intelligent beings, created by God may exist in outer space" and "some aliens could even be free from original sin" concluding "there could be (other

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-86728931942913591642009-09-30T16:33:00.002-04:002009-09-30T16:35:56.762-04:00

Evolution tee shirts banned for violating religious neutrality. Tee shirts showing a sequence of human evolution that culminated in a trumpet player -- banned.

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-64297879023679567472009-08-31T22:37:00.002-04:002009-08-31T22:41:01.133-04:00

Man creates fractal temples to commune with fractal gods.

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-75715888056197530032009-07-21T21:52:00.001-04:002009-07-21T21:56:17.815-04:00

Is There a Hell? Surprising Observations About the Near-Death Experience.

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-49391507233027201762009-06-11T10:27:00.001-04:002009-06-11T10:29:04.446-04:00

OCD, religion, Martin Luther, St. Ignatius, God.

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-72903013459761664012009-05-24T20:21:00.001-04:002009-05-24T20:24:17.941-04:00

Parallel Universes, Alien Religions and Carl Jung: An Interview With Clifford Pickover

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-88843450608209331322009-04-26T20:31:00.002-04:002009-04-26T20:34:05.998-04:00

Mathematics is the loom upon which God weaves the fabric of the universe. Book information here.

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-76940570246973326602009-03-19T19:49:00.001-04:002009-03-19T19:51:37.598-04:00

Fun With the Bible Code. Homemade Biblical prophecies made easy.

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-7605416255685040032009-02-21T14:07:00.001-05:002009-02-21T14:11:44.576-05:00

"It is the final proof of God's omnipotence that he need not exist in order to save us." - Peter De Vries, The Mackerel Plaza

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-66658728008521070782009-01-17T20:00:00.001-05:002009-01-17T20:02:59.931-05:00

"People afflicted with certain eye diseases give similar reports of beings from parallel universes."

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-71062810118571389192008-12-16T11:24:00.000-05:002008-12-16T11:25:14.387-05:00

Some historians say that if there was no St. Paul, there would be no Christianity today. Do you agree?

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-55813410651102413502008-11-10T16:32:00.000-05:002008-11-10T16:33:49.825-05:00

If archeologists discovered the bones of Jesus, thereby disproving the notion of physical Ascension to heaven, what percentage of Church authorities might prefer to suppress this information rather than have it become widely known?

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-63569172846746743462008-10-03T13:46:00.000-04:002008-10-03T13:51:21.095-04:00

In Judaism, to show the sacredness of the names of God, and as a means of showing respect and reverence for them, the scribes of sacred texts took pause before copying them, and used terms of reverence so as to keep the true name of God concealed. The numerous names of God have been a source of debate amongst biblical scholars. More information here:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-73095384893404174032008-09-12T21:39:00.000-04:002008-09-12T21:42:51.290-04:00

Judith Hayes wonders, "Who wrote the Bible?"

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-6594200031022922102008-08-15T16:42:00.000-04:002008-08-15T16:45:18.677-04:00

Judith Hayes says that there are no "Ten Commandments" anywhere in the Bible.

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-25407483507065679322008-07-14T20:38:00.001-04:002008-07-14T20:38:57.957-04:00

If you could change places with God for a day, what would be your first act as God?

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-87060662233581831152008-06-16T09:08:00.000-04:002008-06-16T09:17:57.166-04:00

"I read a few years ago in The Atlantic of an impending 'death shortage,' an unfortunate consequence of technological advancements that would turn 70 year olds into early-career professionals. These people—we people—would still die; it was just going to take a lot longer to happen. But leafing through back issues of Wired last night, I came across an article about a technology prodigy trying to

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-2893974374009225152008-05-16T14:20:00.000-04:002008-05-16T14:26:18.401-04:00

"People want to be religious, says scholar Karen Armstrong; we should act to help make religion a force for harmony. She asks us to help her build a Charter for Compassion -- to help restore the Golden Rule. See the TED video.

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-34817403385563392272008-04-09T21:21:00.000-04:002008-04-09T21:24:00.324-04:00

God creating the universe via computer

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-84147232475153890192008-03-07T10:17:00.000-05:002008-03-07T10:21:11.156-05:00

Jean E. Rosenfeld writes: "Scientology is a new religion, and unlike most, it may become an established religion whether the rest of us like it or not. All religions have origin myths, and all religions keep secrets from the uninitiated. If a nonbeliever were to tell the origin myth of Christianity, it would sound no less fantastic than the Thetan myth of L. Ron Hubbard." More information here.

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-70237093748151253852008-02-06T10:50:00.000-05:002008-02-06T16:16:55.928-05:00

The ReligionFacts "Big Religion Chart" summarizes all the complexities of religions and belief systems into tiny little boxes on a single, quick-reference comparison chart!

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-10802237007598973992008-01-06T10:55:00.000-05:002008-01-06T10:58:43.637-05:00

"Those who call the King James Version of the Bible the unerring word of God have a slight problem. The New Testament of the KJV (as the King James Version is usually referred) was translated into English from a version of the Greek New Testament that had been collected from twelfth-century copies by Erasmus. Where Erasmus couldn't find Greek manuscripts, he translated to Greek from the Latin

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-61416097138401169032007-12-09T16:01:00.000-05:002007-12-09T16:03:16.000-05:00

"Most religions have one or two unusual practices or devices but occasionally you find one which is just completely weird. This list contains ten of the more unusual things found in modern religions"

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-7832198047647681992007-11-11T09:31:00.000-05:002007-11-11T09:35:54.619-05:00

The "War on Christmas" is an absurd fantasy of the Religious Right. But it doesn’t have to be. If Brian Flemming has his way, we’ll get a real War on Christmas, complete with atheistic shock troops (called “Rational Responders”) confronting believers with the non-logic of their dearest religious beliefs. His “Rational Response Squad” is encouraging young people to take The Blasphemy Challenge —

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-80151693563207900492007-10-11T22:08:00.000-04:002007-10-11T22:11:06.349-04:00

Sam Harris speaks on atheism, mysticism, and the quest for transcendence.

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-19250210911885310092007-09-11T16:27:00.000-04:002007-09-11T16:33:04.239-04:00

Is DNA the word of God? More info here:http://www.futurehi.net/archives/000851.html

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-91146657732644018692007-08-12T17:43:00.000-04:002007-08-12T17:46:21.227-04:00

Construct Noah's Ark now.

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-83942727374426294282007-07-07T22:07:00.000-04:002007-07-07T22:09:23.558-04:00

Penn and Teller discuss Biblical truth, as they see it.

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-8639774298012105802007-06-07T09:55:00.000-04:002007-06-07T10:04:03.025-04:00

In this new look at atheism, the viewer is asked to consdier if atheisim is really so bad for American and the world.

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-83675588220037406302007-05-12T09:11:00.000-04:002007-05-12T09:14:31.687-04:00

Michael, God’s warrior angel from the Bible and Koran, floats with feathered wings into your home and asks, "What is the most important question I can ask humanity and what is the best possible answer you can give?" What is the safest reply you can give? Be careful -- your everlasting life hangs in the balance.

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1176397115973797762007-04-12T12:54:00.000-04:002007-04-12T12:58:40.406-04:00

A collection of statistics showing the religious affiliation of every U.S. president, of the 100 most influential people in history, of the U.S congress.... and much more.

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1173323237101945282007-03-07T21:59:00.000-05:002007-03-07T23:35:53.493-05:00

The biblical Hebrews, given God's commandment to "be fruitful and multiply" (Gen. 1:28), had what Drorah O'Donnell Setel has alliteratively called a "preoccupation with procreation." That's why many of the stories and other passages in the Bible involve sex, and why many of these, unheard of in sermons and Sunday school lessons, remain little known among laity. The purpose of And Adam Knew Eve is

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1171396753247523352007-02-13T14:56:00.000-05:002007-03-17T13:54:17.486-04:00

In this web page, a young woman discuss the Evidence for God.

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1168813453239082952007-01-14T17:20:00.000-05:002007-02-15T23:10:23.893-05:00

See five thousand years of faith in 90 seconds.

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1165585031792047502006-12-08T08:30:00.000-05:002007-02-06T21:15:26.080-05:00

Have you ever wondered what were the religious beliefs and affiliations of History's 100 Most Influential People?On this web page, we find a list of influential figures from Michael H. Hart's book, "The 100: A Ranking of the Most Influential Persons in History." We also see people's religions.

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1163023585389382012006-11-08T17:06:00.000-05:002007-01-26T21:41:42.280-05:00

According to Seth Godin, The New York Times recently had a piece about Zoroastrians. The religion is fading, almost certainly to extinction. After more than 3,000 years, one of the most important monotheistic religions is going to go away. We can learn an important lesson about ideaviruses from religions, because they are in many ways the original (and longest-lasting) examples of the genre.

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1160774241192088152006-10-13T17:16:00.000-04:002007-02-21T15:04:22.530-05:00

Which of these 300 Proofs of God’s Existence do you like best?

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1159391440283993142006-09-27T17:04:00.000-04:002007-02-21T15:35:44.956-05:00

Clinton Richard Dawkins is an eminent British ethologist, evolutionary theorist, and popular science writer at Oxford University. Dawkins first came to prominence with his 1976 book The Selfish Gene which popularised the gene-centric view of evolution and introduced the term meme into the lexicon, thereby helping to found the field of memetics. What do you think of this video in which he talks

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1156090239245633502006-08-20T12:10:00.000-04:002006-12-10T19:05:08.163-05:00

In this essay, the bestselling secularist author of The End of Faith delivers a scathing review of The Language of God, a new book by Human Genome Project head Francis Collins that attempts to demonstrate a harmony between science and evangelical Christianity. Sam Harris says: "Francis Collins—physical chemist, medical geneticist and head of the Human Genome Project—has written a book entitled

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1154457356281508922006-08-01T14:35:00.000-04:002007-01-26T21:59:38.690-05:00

The Wikipedia has an entire entry on killing God (deicide) in both religion and fiction. Do you like it?The question of who is responsible for the execution of Jesus has both historical and theological components. Historical analyses of Jesus' death have generally assigned responsibility to either the Jewish leadership in Palestine or the Roman government in Palestine. Theological analyses of who

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1152913416386738302006-07-14T17:41:00.000-04:002006-10-03T00:47:04.380-04:00

The folks at the Wikipedia are starting to create a chronological list of appearances of God in fiction, where "appearance" is defined as a physical or mental manifestation either clearly identified as God (that is, not merely a miraculous or supernatural phenomenon) or for which independent claims have been made that God is depicted (excluding metaphor).

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1151347562722071172006-06-26T14:39:00.000-04:002006-10-07T14:52:30.890-04:00

This paper suggests that "one can predict everything in the universe solely from physical laws. Thus, the long-standing 'first cause' problem in cosmology has been dispelled." This cosmology has eliminated the need to postulate an originating cause of the universe's beginning. Stephen Hawking has famously said "there is no place for a Creator." The author shows that the very explanation of the

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1149258501009209142006-06-02T10:21:00.000-04:002006-09-28T14:49:35.076-04:00

In this article, a famous biologist makes the bold assertion that "God hates squid." Some creationists go so far as to say that octopuses and even giant squid could be considered "nonliving" creatures, and their articles explain why.

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1147371424233114272006-05-11T14:13:00.000-04:002007-03-06T11:14:38.000-05:00

A guide to kosher machines. Sabbath law prohibits Jews from performing actions that cause a direct reaction; that would qualify as forbidden work. But indirect reactions are kosher. In Hebrew, this concept is called the gramma. There are two types of grammas. Say you hit a light switch, but it doesn't come on immediately - that's a time delay, a time gramma. There's also a gramma of mechanical

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1146312688695837852006-04-29T08:09:00.000-04:002007-03-24T15:01:35.810-04:00

Ecclesiastes 9:5 precludes an afterlife: "For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not any thing, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten." Another translation: "For the living know that they shall die: but the dead are not conscious, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten."

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com23tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1146017228737433292006-04-25T21:58:00.000-04:002007-02-03T12:17:09.173-05:00

In this interesting article, an atheist suggest that the "Self" is part of all mobile organisms: it is rudimentary in most, consisting of the ability of the organism to orient itself in its environment and usually to distinguish itself from what is not itself and friend from foe. More complex organisms evolved a full array of senses and balance. The conscious awareness evolved from the

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1144806011590158552006-04-11T21:38:00.000-04:002006-10-04T17:32:53.686-04:00

Meditation alters brain patterns in ways that are likely permanent, and key parts of the brain actually get thicker through the meditative practice. Most likely, contemplation of the Bible, angels, and heaven sculpt our brains in profound ways. Sir John Marks Templeton said, "All that we have learned is still tiny compared to what is still yet to be discovered if we search for it." What will

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1143944193746674242006-04-01T21:15:00.000-05:002006-12-22T22:53:36.970-05:00

If Jesus had wanted his message to spread in an undistorted fashion, why did he not write down his message?In other words, if one reason he had come was to reveal the will of God, why did Jesus seemingly fail to commit his revelations to writing during his lifetime, and with his own hand. Instead, it appears that he left this important task to "anonymous writers" (and later redactors) who may

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com26tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1143652692384416612006-03-29T12:15:00.000-05:002006-10-08T00:08:56.463-04:00

Of what aspects of the life of Jesus may we be certain? Stephen Spignesi's "The Odd Index" lists sixteen crucified saviors other than Jesus Christ. Examples of Christ legends appear to predate Christianity. Note that:There are many mythological heroes and gods -- such as Hercules, Osiris, Bacchus, Mithra, Hermes, Prometheus, Perseus, and Horus -- that have much in common with Jesus. All were said

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1143147094553999572006-03-23T15:49:00.000-05:002006-12-10T19:33:44.256-05:00

Famous astronmer Dr. Sandage was born of Jewish background, but at age 60 became a Christian. He responded to the question, "Can a person be a scientist and a Christian?", with "Yes. As I said before, the world is too complicated in all its parts and interconnections to be due to chance alone." Read his essay here.

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1142522130752641972006-03-16T10:15:00.000-05:002006-10-02T19:39:41.566-04:00

Most Christian and Islamic sects believe in an omniscient God who knows every future event. If this is true, can our will be truly free? And if we do not have free will, then how could we be morally responsible? Why would God punish us if we were bad, as he does throughout the Old Testament.Theologians like Maimonides (Moses ben Maimon, 1135-1204), St. Augustine of Hippo (354-430) and St. Thomas

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1141691386857384392006-03-06T19:27:00.000-05:002006-09-29T13:08:26.996-04:00

I typed Heaven into Google and found this image by Sven Geier. He calls it "Heaven 2005." Can you find other images of heaven that you prefer?

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1140877952871659162006-02-25T09:27:00.000-05:002006-08-08T18:45:33.586-04:00

Martin Gardner (born 1914, Tulsa, Oklahoma) is an American recreational mathematician, magician, skeptic, and author of the long-running but now discontinued "Mathematical Games" column in Scientific American.While critical of organized religions, Gardner believes in God, claiming that this belief cannot be confirmed or disconfirmed by reason. At the same time, he is skeptical of claims that God

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1140577386221235922006-02-21T21:57:00.000-05:002006-12-15T15:22:08.440-05:00

Many of you may picture the devil as ruler of hell, inflicting physical and mental pain on others. But this portrayal of the devil is nowhere in the Bible. In the Bible, the devil is just another captive. Jews and Christians refer to the devil as Satan, a fallen and arrogant angel. In parts of the Old Testament, Satan is not God’s enemy but rather a challenger or accuser. The word devil comes

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1140143764760774572006-02-16T21:29:00.000-05:002006-10-05T14:59:32.996-04:00

Could Noah have placed all the animals on the ark? In this article, the authors note that it is "important to take the size of animals into account when considering how much space they would occupy because the greatest number of species occurs in the smallest animals. Woodmorappe performed such an analysis and came to the conclusion that the animals would take up 47% of the ark. In addition, he

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1139666741816066822006-02-11T09:04:00.000-05:002006-09-18T14:06:01.830-04:00

"Many orthodox people speak as though it were the business of sceptics to disprove received dogmas rather than of dogmatists to prove them. This is, of course, a mistake.If I were to suggest that between the Earth and Mars there is a china teapot revolving about the sun in an elliptical orbit, nobody would be able to disprove my assertion provided I were careful to add that the teapot is too

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1139666616537074062006-02-11T09:01:00.000-05:002006-12-21T12:32:50.970-05:00

"According the United Nations’ Human Development Report (2005), the most atheistic societies--countries like Norway, Iceland, Australia, Canada, Sweden, Switzerland, Belgium, Japan, the Netherlands, Denmark and the United Kingdom—are actually the healthiest, as indicated by measures of life expectancy, adult literacy, per capita income, educational attainment, gender equality, homicide rate and

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1139362846626930162006-02-07T20:39:00.000-05:002006-11-27T02:41:41.566-05:00

Angels are mentioned in the Bible over 270 times. Through history, humans have wondered how these heavenly beings are supposed to be organized. Around 500 A.D., the theologian pseudo-Dionysius developed a hierarchy of nine angelic ranks ordered by their perceived closeness to God and thus to omniscience. The names are all in the Bible:First comes God. Next come:1. Seraphim2. Cherubim3. Thrones4.

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1138914753084498872006-02-02T16:09:00.000-05:002007-02-02T10:19:57.873-05:00

Perhaps the most unusual argument for evidence of God has come from mathematics. Some have suggested that the compact formula ei*pi + 1 = 0 is surely proof of a Creator and have called this formula "God’s formula." Edward Kasner and James Newman in Mathematics and the Imagination note, "We can only reproduce the equation and not stop to inquire into its implications. It appeals equally to the

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com30tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1138659844160567522006-01-30T17:22:00.000-05:002006-10-08T15:02:55.083-04:00

Adam and Eve had Cain and Abel as children. Abel is killed, leaving only Cain. Whom did Cain marry?Biblical apologists have interesting explanations for Cain’s wife. (A biblical "apologist" is one who ardently defends the integrity of the Bible.) They suggest that people in the book of Genesis lived exceptionally long lives -- many hundreds of years. If this is accepted, there could be millions

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com23tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1138399745419723462006-01-27T17:04:00.000-05:002006-09-08T18:03:06.616-04:00

Jonathan Whitman receives patent 6,974,925 for a Jewish Sabbath Switch Cover that prevents Jews from accidentally turning on lights during the Sabbath, when it is forbidden for Jews to do so. The cover mounts with adhesive film. The Sabbath Switch Cover can be used to selectively disable or enable the internal lighting system of most major kitchen appliances in order to assist in keeping the

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1138155919847976492006-01-24T21:22:00.000-05:002006-10-05T15:11:44.756-04:00

In the 1950s, hamster brains were partially frozen and revived by British researcher Audrey Smith. If hamster brains can function after being frozen, why can’t ours? In the 1960s, Japanese researcher Isamu Suda froze cat brains for a month and then thawed them. Some brain activity persisted. But what if there is an afterlife? If we can someday freeze a human brain and then revive the person in a

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1138063427975632282006-01-23T19:42:00.000-05:002007-02-02T10:28:59.920-05:00

On a cool Autumn night, you are gazing up at the sky when a being suddenly appears and asks, "What can I do to make you believe that I am God?" What is your answer? Here are some responses I received. More responses are in my book The Paradox of God.You could ask Him to explain why He believed he was God.You could ask Him to find a rock He can’t lift, and lift it.First, ask the being to define

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1137884958192149432006-01-21T18:08:00.000-05:002006-09-28T15:07:31.206-04:00

What can we mere humans, with our limited three-pound mass of brain truly understand about a being who may be timeless, higher-dimensional, and all-knowing? Followers of the Koran have often suggested that because God has no cause or temporal dimension, there is absolutely nothing we can say about Him. Our brains are not up to the task. The philosopher Bahya ibn Pakudah (d. 1080) believed that

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1137710815497275402006-01-19T17:46:00.000-05:002007-03-04T17:47:31.086-05:00

Do you believe in life after death? Why?

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com24tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1137536264836831232006-01-17T17:16:00.000-05:002006-10-12T16:51:12.066-04:00

Cartoonist shows how the dinosaurs were destroyed by a large asteroid.

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1137370940947255342006-01-15T19:21:00.000-05:002006-10-12T00:58:06.836-04:00

In an attempt to resolve any disagreement surrounding the meaning of the word "God", we assemble a special team of "metaphysical engineers" who have devised a new computer-modelling virtual environment in which to test the plausibility of different conceptions of God.

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1137113564201244372006-01-12T19:47:00.000-05:002006-09-05T19:57:16.603-04:00

Dr. J. Randall Price says that the most volatile 35 acres on Earth are those comprising a rectangular platform in East Jerusalem, known as the Temple Mount, on which the ancient Jewish Temple once stood. Both the Old Testament and the New Testament togeth­er affirm that a new Temple will once again occupy this platform as part of God's end time program for the Nation of Israel."Do you think The "

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1136942451265969392006-01-10T20:17:00.000-05:002006-09-17T18:02:00.496-04:00

Burger King is recalling its ice-cream cones that have a swirly design that offends some Muslims. The design on the lid apparently looks like the word ‘Allah’ in Arabic. One customer said the design was “sacreligious”. Burger King says, “As a result of feedback our supplier is amending the design.” The Muslim Council of Britain responded: “We commend the sensitive and prompt action to prevent

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1136771197394528322006-01-08T20:45:00.000-05:002006-09-17T18:09:29.010-04:00

What is your favorite alternate religion?

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1136599330938308562006-01-06T20:57:00.000-05:002006-10-09T17:32:58.116-04:00

Sam Harris writes, "Most people believe that the Creator of the universe wrote (or dictated) one of their books. Unfortunately, there are many books that pretend to divine authorship, and each makes incompatible claims about how we all must live. Despite the ecumenical efforts of many well-intentioned people, these irreconcilable religious commitments still inspire an appalling amount of human

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1136422715394940622006-01-04T19:54:00.000-05:002006-09-21T16:36:09.410-04:00

Books and charts by Clarence Larkin have been extremely helpful to Christians since they were first published over 75 years ago. They have passed into the public domain and we are making some of the charts available here as an aid to Bible study. Larkin's mind-shattering charts are well thought out and Scriptually sound. Some of the more detailed are books in themselves. Here is his map of the

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1136225542192683262006-01-02T13:10:00.000-05:002006-08-26T21:04:37.910-04:00

Writer Philip K. Dick says, "God does not see time as we do; i.e. for him there is no past nor present nor future. Let us imagine a situation in which God decides to intervene into our space-time world; i.e. break through from his timeless realm into human history. He can as easily break through into what for us is the past as he can break through into what for us is the present or future. God,

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1136042981687007992005-12-31T10:25:00.000-05:002007-02-03T01:09:40.046-05:00

U.S. 4,866,863. Man receives patent for a religious shrine, in particular a miniature replica of the Garden Tomb in Jerusalem as described in the New Testament of the bible. In a modification, the top cover of the shrine can be raised by a mechanism activated by rolling the round stone at the entrance into an open position.

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1135870085732982162005-12-29T10:23:00.000-05:002006-09-22T14:47:15.366-04:00

The authors of this technical paper argue that the cosmic microwave background (CMB) provides a remarkable opportunity for the Creator of the universe to have sent a message to its occupants, using known physics. The medium for the Godly message is unique. They elaborate on this observation, noting that the message requires careful adjustment of the fundamental Lagrangian, but no direct

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1135710178535467302005-12-27T13:55:00.000-05:002006-06-20T02:34:05.060-04:00

U.S. Patent 6,007,404: A soft-bodied doll bearing a resemblance to a caricature of Jesus. The doll includes a voice simulator for phrases from Jesus' ministry. A responsible adult can use the Jesus doll to teach young children about Jesus' historic life. The doll includes an actuator for the voice simulator contained within a body portion of doll which may be manually activated to speak one or

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1135631479661536032005-12-26T16:08:00.000-05:002006-09-21T16:22:08.526-04:00

William James discusses the notion of human immortality in conjunction with theories of brain dynamics and the transmission of consciousness. James challenges the materialistic position of his day, namely, the positivistic belief that our brains are the source of consciousness. For James, the rays of consciousness infuse all forms of life and matter.An Infinite Mind lies buried in all phenomenal

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1135531890875454472005-12-25T12:31:00.000-05:002006-10-20T16:22:49.936-04:00

Is God is nothing more than an attempt to explain order and good fortune by those who do not understand the mathematics of chance, the principles of self-organizing systems, or the psychology of the human mind? The author recalls asking one of his collaborators, who is a deeply religious man, how he felt about having demonstrated that people can misattribute the products of their own minds to

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1135451415403146842005-12-24T14:08:00.000-05:002006-09-21T16:07:29.250-04:00

Welcome to Godchecker - your Guide to the Gods. We have more Gods than you can shake a stick at. Godchecker's Mythology Encyclopedia currently features almost 2,700 deities.Browse the pantheons of the world, explore ancient myths, and discover Gods of everything from Fertility to Fluff with the fully searchable Holy Database Of All Known Gods. Read more: http://www.godchecker.com/

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1135353825218094432005-12-23T11:03:00.000-05:002007-04-06T18:59:17.053-04:00

Which religion do you feel is "closest to the truth"?

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com30tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1135214686741719842005-12-21T20:24:00.000-05:002006-09-22T14:55:07.023-04:00

The presence of psychedelic mushroom illustrations in an Italian basilica indicates that some early Christian religious rites involved the ingestion of hallucinogenic substances facilitating mystic ecstasy. Were these ecstatic techniques a common heritage of all early Christian churches or were they practiced only within some heretic groups of Christians?Read more: http://people.etnoteam.it/

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1135182494909988692005-12-21T11:20:00.000-05:002006-10-02T15:25:24.590-04:00

"The Bible tells us that God created all of the land animals on the sixth day of creation. As dinosaurs were land animals, they must have been made on this day, alongside Adam and Eve, who were also created on Day Six (Genesis 1:24-31)... The Bible makes it plain that dinosaurs and people must have lived together. Actually, as we will soon see, there is a lot of evidence for this."Read more: http

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1135120944961392982005-12-20T18:20:00.000-05:002006-09-18T15:16:37.090-04:00

Many years ago, I wrote a science-fiction story about an astronomer named Kalinda. While gazing out into space using a powerful telescope, she saw the most startling arrangement of stars beyond the constellation Canis Major. She immediately picked up her phone and called her friend, a Dr. Carl Sagan, for advice and counsel. Both Kalinda and Sagan were stumped by the peculiar arrangement.What

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1135037901179438552005-12-19T19:16:00.000-05:002006-09-21T15:54:31.973-04:00

"A group of children who were tested on death comprehension reflected on what it might be like to be dead with references to 'sleeping,' feeling 'peaceful,' or simply 'being very dizzy....' Younger children are more likely to attribute mental states to a a dead agent than are older children.... It seems that the default cognitive stance is reasoning that human minds are immortal..." -- Jesse

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1134919327620804192005-12-18T10:18:00.000-05:002006-09-28T15:20:03.246-04:00

Does it bother you that both the Jewish and Christian God and his righteous followers sometime seem to have exhibited cruelty from both a historical and Biblical context? For example, God told Saul to attack the Amalekites and destroy them completely -- "men and women, children and infants, cattle and sheep...." God also tells us we must kill the disobedient child or the person who does not

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1134824939187041792005-12-17T08:07:00.000-05:002006-11-08T16:56:58.223-05:00

If God is everywhere, then why is God so hard to perceive? One could imagine a God who would be more like a Chairman Mao or a Comrade Stalin. This God would have designed a universe with photographs of himself hung everywhere in nature. We would be compelled to believe in the existence of this God, because everywhere we turned with our microscopes, telescopes, and other devices, there would be

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1134745582241105682005-12-16T10:01:00.000-05:002006-11-21T20:44:52.283-05:00

The Book of Enoch tells the story of how 200 rebel angels, or Watchers, decided to transgress the heavenly laws and ‘descend’ on to the plains and take wives from among mortal kind. The Watchers realize the implications of their transgressions, for they agree to swear an oath to the effect that their leader Shemyaza would take the blame if the whole ill-fated venture went terribly wrong.One of

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1134693989576258262005-12-15T19:45:00.000-05:002007-02-05T06:06:00.723-05:00

God gives you the ability to change certain physical properties of your bedroom windows. As a result, you are able either to gaze out and watch biblical events as they actually happened, or gaze out and watch the world in the year 3000. Which do you choose?

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1134605594072002662005-12-14T19:11:00.000-05:002006-10-05T15:34:10.713-04:00

What are to make of the God and religion of Gene Roddenberry, the legendary creator of Star Trek? He studied law, then switched to aeronautical engineering and trained as a pilot. In 1941 he volunteered for the US Army Air Corps, and won medals for bombing missions from Guadalcanal. After the war he became a pilot for Pan Am. After seeing television for the first time, he decided to become a TV

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1134498088272505962005-12-13T13:17:00.000-05:002006-09-21T14:57:07.470-04:00

Stephen Jay Gould called science and religion "nonoverlapping magisteria," insisting that some things are properly matters of science and others are only considered as questions of faith. Archie Bunker did say one thing that SF-author Robert Sawyer agrees with: "You want to know what faith is? Faith is when you believe something nobody in their right mind would believe — that's what faith is!" So

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1134420069989054062005-12-12T15:38:00.000-05:002006-11-17T16:42:40.623-05:00

Woman writes paper titled "God and Calculus." In the paper we find: "Calculus is one of the subjects being taught for higher mathematics in high schools and colleges. The purpose of this paper is to show how to use calculus in our relationship with God. I will employ parallelism and contrast to teach the values with the hope that through teaching calculus the teacher can bring his/her students

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1134311298843495302005-12-11T09:27:00.000-05:002006-09-18T16:03:26.470-04:00

Consider two universes. Universe Omega is a universe in which God does not exist, but the inhabitants of the universe believe God exists. Universe Upsilon is a universe in which God does exist, but no inhabitant believes God exists. In which universe would you prefer to live? In which universe do you think most people would prefer to live?

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com44tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1134225363964469812005-12-10T09:21:00.000-05:002006-09-18T16:07:03.343-04:00

Which depiction of Jesus Christ do you find more interesting? Which would you prefer to display on you living room wall?Highway Christ in The Day by Dyala Jankehttp://www.erowid.org/culture/show_image.php?i=art/artists_j/janke_dayla_highwaychristintheday.jpgJesus by Danny Gomezhttp://www.erowid.org/culture/show_image.php?i=art/artists_g/gomez_danny_jesus.jpg

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1134147598230038682005-12-09T11:57:00.000-05:002006-09-19T05:39:40.520-04:00

What was God doing before he created the world? The philosopher and writer (and later saint) Augustine posed the question in his "Confessions" in the fourth century, and then came up with a strikingly modern answer: before God created the world there was no time and thus no "before." To paraphrase Gertrude Stein, there was no "then" then. Until recently no one could attend a lecture on astronomy

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1134054734541871722005-12-08T10:10:00.000-05:002006-09-18T16:22:37.473-04:00

"One of the reasons why religions seem irrelevant today is that many of us no longer have the sense that we are surrounded by the unseen." -- Karen Armstrong, A History of God Do you like this quote and find it to be meaningful?

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1133982752670596162005-12-07T14:07:00.000-05:002006-09-22T15:06:59.670-04:00

The Yezidi people of a small Middle Eastern religion worship a pre-Islamic peacock god with links to Mithraism and Zoroastrianism. Peacock gods are everywhere. Read more:http://www.ziarah.net/peacock.htmlhttp://tinyurl.com/d9hszhttp://www.sohailagallery.com/peacock.html

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1133900719489579952005-12-06T14:48:00.000-05:002006-11-17T16:50:20.096-05:00

Stare at the three dots in the center of the image (below) for 30 seconds then focus on the white space to the right. While staring at the white space, blink a few times. What do you see? Many see a startling, lifelike, and detailed image of Jesus.

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com51tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1133809827319517042005-12-05T14:04:00.000-05:002006-10-09T17:51:56.910-04:00

The Religious Life of an Animated Sitcom. In this article, historian Dr. Gerry Bowler catalogues reference to God and religion in the Simpsons. The Simpsons is a cartoon satire that disarms the viewer and encourages a slightly askew but ultimately clearer look at the world. Despite the show's continued popularity critics have been many, particularly among the religious. Presidents seeking to

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1133706180864276782005-12-04T09:19:00.000-05:002006-10-04T17:59:41.676-04:00

A scientist has calculated that there is a 67% chance that God exists. Dr Stephen Unwin has used a 200-year-old formula to calculate the probability of the existence of an omnipotent being. Bayes' Theory is usually used to work out the likelihood of events, such as nuclear power failure, by balancing the various factors that could affect a situation. http://education.guardian.co.uk/higher/

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19356401.post-1133617452085525992005-12-03T08:42:00.000-05:002006-09-21T14:17:21.836-04:00

In an attempt to resolve any disagreement surrounding the meaning of the word "God," a team of "metaphysical engineers" have devised a new computer-modelling virtual environment in which to test the plausibility of different conceptions of God.Here's how it works. You are invited to select attributes that you believe God must have. Metaphysical engineers will then model this conception of God to

Cliff Pickoverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15658349168482343854noreply@blogger.com4