So today finishes up the end of the fifth week of classes. It hardly seems that I’ve been here that long. Yet, it also seems like I know the campus well, am adjusted to the broader surrounding area, and don’t have much trouble getting from place to place. I know which grocery stores I like, where to find a movie theater or a coffee house, and have gotten plugged into a solid church. Classes are going well. I’m taking Metaphysics with J.P. Moreland, a theology class, a research methodologies class, and a class on the foundations of ministry. Metaphysics is my favorite, and I’m enjoying getting to know my classmates and trying to figure out what I think about the various views presented in class and in our course readings.

For those who may be wondering, the subject of metaphysics deals with questions like, “What exists?” and “What is the nature of change?” So metaphysics will try to determine whether or not minds, or abstract objects such as numbers, or properties (such as a thing’s “being round”) exist. The claim that there is nothing in the universe other than matter is a metaphysical claim. The claim that a person’s mind is more than just that person’s brain is a metaphysical claim. Those who do work in metaphysics (called metaphysicians) try to think very carefully about how to address these questions and issues. Although it might appear abstract and useless, there are very real implications. For instance, the question of when a human being (the biological entity) becomes a person (someone with moral status) is important in debates surrounding abortion and euthanasia. Science cannot determine whether or not a creature that is biologically human is a person. It can only determine its biological status, not its moral status. But metaphysics can examine what it means to be a person, and the debate can proceed from there. So there’s your introduction to metaphysics.

Now, school isn’t the only thing that’s occupying my time. I’ve also found part-time employment, working at an after-school program as a 6th grade math teacher. We’re staying ahead of the schools, so I’m not tutoring, I’m teaching. That presents quite a challenge, as I’ve got 19 kids who range from 5th grade to advanced 6th grade. Some are bored. Some are confused. And I’ve got them for three straight hours twice a week. They get a ten-minute break. In my three-hour graduate theology class on Wednesdays, we get a twenty-minute break. Poor kids. So it’s a hard job, but I enjoy it more often than not. The kids are great. They get restless, obviously, but I think I would too. So I don’t blame them. Over all, I really like this job. On to housing…

There is a house adjacent to campus called “Philosophy House”. It’s a literal house that the school purchased. It’s reserved for use by the students in my program (M.A. Philosophy). There’s a quality library of books related to our courses and it’s a great place to study, since only grad philosophy students can get in. Its living room and kitchen are common areas that all students in the program can use. But there are also two bedrooms and two residents. One of them moved out a few weeks ago. So there was a vacancy. I spoke with the person who decides who gets to live there, and she said it was mine if I wanted it. I moved in a short time later and am really enjoying it. It’s quiet, is very close to campus, is an ideal place to study, and is reasonably priced for this area.

That’s the latest on what I’ve been up to!

Written at 2:40 pm         ||         3 Comments

“The shared assumption is that, as a society, we have been systematically programmed to think within categories that are essentially racist, sexist, classist, and ‘homophobic.’ The only cure for such is to reprogram or reeducate ourselves. Thus, on many university and college campuses, there is a concerted effort on the part of faculty, administrators, and student groups to establish a new orthodoxy – the orthodoxy of the extreme left – and to silence and shame any and all dissenters.”

This is from Mark Linville’s article in Salvo magazine (No. 5 – 2008) titled “Indoctrination 101″ (pp10-16).

My experiences, even at Abilene Christian University, have been similar. To some extent, I think the professors are right. There are undercurrents of racism, sexism, classism, and homophobia in some areas of American culture. But the proper response is not to be reverse-racist or reverse-sexist, for example, because these just end up being racism and sexism turned toward a different group. The best response is to do what we can to avoid racism or sexism (etc.) altogether, and to confront those unhealthy patterns of thought and behavior when we come across them.

Related:
“Mind Control: Now Occurring at a University Near You” by Herb London
http://www.salvomag.com/new/articles/salvo5/5london.php

Written at 1:21 pm         ||         5 Comments

I don’t often laugh out loud while reading assigned class texts. However, I was finishing up Evangelical Futures: A Conversation on Theological Method when I came across this line on page 161: “Rene Descartes regularly gets singled out for criticism for something or other, so let us also pick on him here.” LOL! Wow. Okay… well, I thought it was funny anyway. ;-)

Written at 10:47 am         ||         Add a Comment

I think this Wired article is fascinating:
“Fun Way to Lose Weight: Turn Dieting Into an RPG”
http://www.wired.com/gaming/virtualworlds/commentary/games/2008/08/gamesfrontiers_0811

Written at 1:09 pm         ||         2 Comments

So last weekend my roommates decided to give me a surprise birthday party. Basically, the short of it is, I was stunned and totally surprised. They had a group of people, including two friends who each live several hours away, waiting at Red Lobster when we showed up. Quite unexpected. And then Jonathan gave me this Biola Survival Kit, which is hilarious. It’s got a table of contents and everything. There are some more pictures on flickr.

Written at 4:07 pm         ||         Add a Comment