Writings

I find it interesting that there are four Gospels, four stories of the life of Jesus, instead of a single account. Three of these Gospels, Matthew, Mark (writing for Peter), and John come from people who said they were eyewitnesses to the events and actually knew Jesus personally. The fourth, …

I was an atheist for the first thirty-five years of my life. While I was a committed (and often aggressive) non-believer, most people who knew me would probably have described me as a “nice guy”. My behavior wasn’t all that different than many of my Christian friends. I worked with …

Christians, it seems, are concerned about right and wrong. What are they supposed to do? How should they live? What should they do to please God? One of the most common criticisms I’ve heard from non-believers is that Christians are overbearing with their rules and seem to want to impose …

As a detective, I am impressed with cases when they are evidentially diverse. Two witnesses to the same event are better than one. In a similar way, three witnesses are better than two, especially if they agree on their observations in spite of their individual peculiarities or differences. When I …

The elections are coming up quickly here in the US. I’m sure many of us are still making up our minds about which propositions and leaders we will ultimately choose. I appreciate the fact that I have the opportunity to vote, and I am always concerned about making sure my …

Many Christian pacifists cite the words of Jesus to argue He would never condone any kind of deadly force (in spite of the obvious justifications for killing allowed by the Old Testament Law). They typically cite the following passage (from the Sermon on the Mount) to make their case: Luke …

At a time when the world is still divided by war and conflict, Christians have a duty and responsibility to examine our position related to the use of deadly force. As a homicide detective, this issue has been at the center of my professional life for over twenty-five years. In …

I recently sat down for an interview with a host who expressed his concern about the problem of evil in our world: If there is an all-powerful, all-loving God, why would he allow evil to exist in His creation? Is He unable to stop it? If so, He isn’t all-powerful. …

I’ve been part of a first responder family my entire life. I was born while my father was in the police academy and grew up during his law enforcement career. Prior to his retirement, I entered the academy and my son was born. He watched me serve as a first …

For many, the fact Mormonism has a history of polygamy as an accepted practice is reason enough to reject the theology of Joseph Smith. But other supporters of Mormonism will point to the lives of the ancient patriarchs of Judaism, (like Abraham, David and Solomon), and argue for plural marriages. …