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"Pertness and ignorance may ask a question in three lines, which it will cost learning and ingenuity thirty pages to answer. When this is done, the same question shall be triumphantly asked again the next year, as if nothing had ever been written upon the subject. "
-George Horne
This article continues a series examining R.E. Pucket's article "Top 50 Questions Christians Can't Answer".
R. E. Pucket was a faithful Christian for much of his life. However, as he began to expand his reading and investigate arguments against faith, he became convinced that faith was irrational. This impression was strengthened by the fact that Christians with which he interacted largely told him that he should believe for belief's sake, and that faith trumped rationality.
Pucket now spends a significant amount of time interacting with born again Christians who he feels are trying to convert him and win his soul. He rebuffs these attempts by presenting arguments that seem to stymie these Christians who in turn make vague appeals to "God's Plan" and blind faith.
In his article, "Top 50 Questions Christians Can't Answer" on Yahoo voices, Pucket lists out some of the arguments he has found that Christians seem to have no rational, logical answers for, and invites the readers to inspect their faith in light of these questions. Says Pucket:
"Don't get me wrong, they will have an answer for them. You will find, however, that their answers have no basis in verifiable fact or evidence whatsoever, and will be largely based in their blind faith forsaking all reason."
This series of articles will examine all fifty of Pucket's questions, five per article, and offer responses to these questions.
One of the important things that the Pucket list teaches is the danger of dogmatism. If a system of belief stands or falls on every minute doctrine or teaching within the system, then disarming one of these causes the whole thing to fall.Christianity has undergone inspection by hosts of intelligent and thoughtful people over its 2000-year history. Some, like Pucket, have come to the conclusion that it was untenable. Many more have explored different ways of thinking about and applying Christian ideas that do not involve abandoning the system. The very fact that Christianity is a system of thought that allows individual thinkers to explore it, rather than to blindly embrace it, at least suggests that it is not a system of intellectual tyranny.
This author suggests that many of things about Christians popularly believe may be found faulty without the entire system being destroyed. For Christianity to be untrue, it would have to be shown beyond a reasonable doubt that either humans do not require some sort of salvation from evil and suffering, or that no such salvation has been provided.
The answers provided to the questions in this series may not always be punchy rejoinders, magic bullets, or truth bombs. They may be far from convincing to a skeptic; however they do show that Christianity is at the very least internally consistent and existentially plausible.
A variety of the Christian views that Pucket attacks in these questions are held by a very specific sect of Christian believers, and by no means characterize the whole of Christian views. The questions also occasionally make broad statements which either mischaracterize Biblical teachings, or are backed up with no supporting evidence. Where these mistakes are made, the responses are largely aimed at correcting these mischaracterizations. This is not to say that the attack has no merit, but the attack would need to be re-worked to fit a proper representation of that belief.
Finally, it is worth noting that the questions are sometimes phrased in highly emotive or sarcastic forms. These articles will attempt to respond to the fundamental objection being raised, rather than the tone in which they are presented, however the questions themselves will be presented in their original form.
26 - If God created everything, why did he create AIDS, influenza, ebola, ecoli and so on and so on? These, as viruses, are living things. You definitely can not use the free will card for this one. Is this another part of 'God's plan'?
Viruses and bacteria mutate and evolve so quickly that a previously harmless or helpful virus/bacteria could easily become harmful over the course of a generation. AIDs mutated so as to spread to humans from monkeys, and mutates so rapidly that any medication that might treat it is ineffective within a day. Every several years influenza breaks out that was passed to humans from birds or pigs. However the harmfulness of a disease is not the real issue. The real issue is the vulnerability of human beings.
Assume for a moment that God eliminated all viral and bacterial disease. This would greatly decrease the amount of suffering and the rapidity of death in all parts of the world. However people would still become injured, suffer from genetic and systemic illnesses, suffer the physical and emotional abuses of fellow human beings, and everyone would eventually die.
The real problem is not a type of disease, a specific kind of suffering, or any particular manner of death. The real problem is death and suffering in general.
Fortunately God has provided an avenue through which humans may be made morally perfect and physically immortal.
27 - How can God answer a prayer giving a working-class man in the United States a raise at his place of employment so that he can move his family into a larger house...
(continued)...but he does not answer the prayers to stop the starvation and disease of millions upon millions of children around the world? This must be another infinitely wise part of 'God's plan'.
Again, in order to attack God's plan, one would first have to define it and then show how it fails. Comfort and prosperity, if it yields no existential fulfillment, is ultimately futile. Suffering and poverty, if it leads a person to purpose and existential fulfillment, has served a very important purpose.
There are two accounts in scripture that may illustrate this. In one account found in Mark 10, a wealthy young man asks Jesus "What must I do to have eternal life?" Jesus' response to him was to "…go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me." The man decided that this would be too great a sacrifice and left Jesus. Jesus then said:
"How difficult it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!"
In the second account, found in John 9, Jesus and his disciples come across a beggar who had been blind since birth. His disciples asked him "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" Jesus answered, "It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him."
Jesus then used the man's condition as an opportunity to minister, leading to the conversion of the man, his parents, and a number of people who witnessed it.
Jesus said: "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners." A person's suffering always causes them to seek relief. In searching, they frequently find God. A better salary does no one any good once they are dead. Equally, suffering ceases at the point of death. But if Christians are right, and there is eternal life beyond death, then a person's alignment with God is far more important than their temporary physical circumstances on earth.
28 - If God's word is supposed to be the accurate word of God himself, how are we supposed to trust it enough to model our lives after it 100% when hundreds of books were excluded from the original text throughout so many translations and revisions?
The 27 books that form the New Testament also happen to be the earliest Christian writings still in existence, meaning that, of all the letters in circulation that early, only those 27 were considered important enough to be copied and passed on. Any other books that contended for a spot in the New Testament were written centuries later.
Throughout the New Testament, the authors confirm one another as scriptural. Peter, in his second epistles, confirms Paul's teachings as scripture:
2 Peter 3:15-16
English Standard Version (ESV)
15 And count the patience of our Lord as salvation, just as our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you according to the wisdom given him, 16 as he does in all his letters when he speaks in them of these matters. There are some things in them that are hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other Scriptures.
Paul confirms Luke's writings to be scripture in two accounts: In 1 Timothy 5:17-18, Paul quotes Luke 10:7 and refers to it as "scripture." In 1 Corinthians 11:23-25 Paul says "For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you," and then goes on to quote Luke 22:19-20. Note that Paul introduces his quotation as "from the Lord." The passages assume that the audience is familiar with and accepts the scriptural authority of the cited text.
Luke, in turn, uses the gospels of Matthew and Mark as source material for his Gospel, copying a number of passages verbatim from these Gospels.
Thus the New Testament support for each other's documents goes something like this:
Peter confirms Paul's epistles, Paul confirms Luke's, and Luke confirms Matthew and Mark.
This alone indicates the majority of the New Testament documents, including three of the four gospels, Acts, and all of Paul's epistles.
In his book Our Legacy (2001), Dr. John Hannah says that during the "Church Father" period (the early second century) there was general agreement on doctrines. While they cited as many as 19 out of the 27 currently accepted New Testament books in the available writings of the time period, they lived in an age of vast illiteracy, and so the oral tradition was held as equally authoritative to scripture.
The next period of the Church that Hannah describes he calls the age of "The Apologists" (late second and third century) During this time overt hostility toward Christianity from the culture and governing powers was on the rise. Worse, disagreements and challenges were coming from within the Church itself.
These challenges forced the Church leaders of the time to have to define what their source of authority was so that they could address the many conflicting opinions regarding doctrine and beliefs. In defining their authority, the oral tradition became marginalized largely because the Gnostic sect was claiming a different oral tradition to support their views. Church Fathers began to look to the writings of the Apostles as alone being authoritative and the idea of a canon of scripture began to emerge.
The apocryphal documents that might possibly have competed for a spot in the canon did not appear on the scene until the late second century. Once again, it is more than just coincidence that the earliest documents were accepted and the later documents were rejected.
The cannons of the day varied. The entire Old Testament, and all 27 books of the currently accepted New Testament were held as sacred in one or another of the churches, but few if any had access to all of them.
While the Gospels and all of Paul's epistles were accepted universally, there was some dispute over a few books like Jude and Hebrews. However, even if all of the books that were disputed at the time were removed, the core doctrines of the Gospel are still affirmed by the remaining.
The Muratorian Fragment is a document that lists and provides an introduction to a number of New Testament documents. While the earliest copy of this fragment currently in existence is from the 7th or 8th century, the original can be dated as early as 180 AD. This fragment lists 22 of the 27 New Testament books (the four Gospels, Acts, all 13 epistles of Paul, Jude, 1 John, 2 John, arguably 3rd John, and Revelation).
In his article on early Christian writings, Michael Kruger (2013) states that early Christians did frequently reference non-canonical works, but stresses that, as a whole, they did not reference them as scriptural or authoritative; merely helpful or illuminating.
The canon of scripture was never actually determined in an official capacity. At best, it was increasingly recognized by churches for having been what it always was. In many ways, the formation of the canon was never officiated by any human or group of people. It just happened.
Even Bart Ehrman, who has authored a number of books attempting to discredit the New Testament, admits this when he says:
"The canon of the New Testament was ratified by widespread consensus rather than by official proclamation" (Ehrman, Lost Christianities (2005), p. 231)
29 - Why is there no evidence of any of the miracles performed by God? None whatsoever.
This depends on what you consider a miracle and what you consider evidence. While science can explain everything about how the physics that govern the observable universe, there is no reasonable explanation about how a vast, complex, beautiful and functional universe emerged from nothing. From nothing, nothing comes. Since time and space are finite and require a point of origin and an explanation for their existence, that explanation must be timeless, spaceless, eternal, and powerful, and intelligent enough to create everything.
The emergence of life from non-living matter is also something science has failed to explain. DNA requires proteins as part of its structure, but protein is only produced by DNA. There are no experiments that have been run to successfully create proteins.
Another miracle for which there is a significant amount of evidence is the resurrection of Christ.
Space does not allow to trot out the entire line of evidence, so a brief summary must suffice:
• The Gospel accounts and the book of 1 Corinthians all harmonize on the specifics of Christ's crucifixion and resurrection, giving multiple attestations.
• Cold Case Homicide Detective J. Warner Wallace notes that the Gospels bear all the hallmarks of eyewitness testimony, including telling the same accounts from different perspectives and unintentionally supporting each others accounts by filling in minor details that clarify one another's account. Scholar J.J. Blunt has noted hundreds of these details in his book Undesigned Coincidences.
• External first century writings such as the writings of Josephus, the Talmud, Thalus, Phlegon, Tacitus, and Mara Bar-Serapion all confirm that Jesus lived, was credited with miraculous works, died, and was reported by his persecuted followers to have risen. None of these sources were, themselves, Christians.
• Dr. Gary Habermas has done a survey of hundreds of prominent non-Christian historians and scholars as to the basic facts regarding Jesus' life and death that they believe to be true based on historical evidence. These scholars overwhelmingly agree that Jesus was buried in the tomb of a well-known Sanhedrin, that the tomb was found to be empty some three days later, that a variety of people believe that they saw a resurrected Jesus, and that Jesus brother James and the Apostle Paul both underwent drastic conversion experiences. While scholars are divided on the explanation for these facts, the most obvious explanation is that Jesus did, in fact, rise.
• There are a number of Old Testament prophecies – verified to have been written prior to the New Testament – that only make sense in the light of Christ's resurrection. Most obviously Isaiah 53.
What must be understood about miracles is that they are not random whims of God. Miracles are Biblically only performed in order to indicate that a message or messenger is from God. Moses performed miracles confirming that the law he brought was from God. Subsequent prophets performed miracles to show that they were, indeed, God's messengers. Every miracle that Jesus performed was done to confirm his message. Thus, he helped Peter, James, and John catch an overabundance of fish right before calling them to follow him. He healed the paralytic man only after the crowds questioned his power to forgive sin. A significant number of theologians believe that miracles did, indeed, cease after the Bible was completely written. No further messages were needed, thus no further miracles occurred.
If modern-day accounts of miracles seem dubious, this could be because they are fake. But the two most important miracles - creation and the resurrection of Christ – still resonate to this day.
30 - If God and Jesus are the same, having the same mind, knowledge and power, then why would Jesus beg himself in the garden of Gethsemane, to spare himself from having to be crucified?
(continued) Furthermore, why would Jesus ask himself why he has forsaken himself by allowing himself to be crucified?
If God and Jesus were the same, having the same mind, knowledge, and power, then there is no reason to distinguish between the two. God's name would be Yeshua, or Jesus' name would be Yahweh. The doctrine of the Trinity is that they are "three persons, one essence." This means that, while God and Jesus share the same basic power and values, that they operate from distinct perspectives. When Jesus voices his suffering to God, God may be aware of the suffering Jesus is undergoing, but he is not experiencing it in the same way. Just so, when Jesus intercedes for sinful humans with God, he may do so because he has uniquely experienced the fragility and temptations that humans must undergo in a way that the Father has not. The value of love that Jesus expresses in doing so may be identical to the value of love that the Father holds, but Jesus expresses this love in a way that only his human experiences may allow.


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The Central Brunswick 3.5 star Bedroom Apartments offers travellers comfort and convenience.
At Central Brunswick Apartment Hotel our Studio rooms are more akin to your traditional hotel room however they still provide enough space and comfort required to enjoy your stay at the property. For those travellers not requiring the space of a one bedroom apartment these Studio rooms are the perfect choice for that short stay in the River City.

subset: commoncrawl


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I love pretty much all crafts. I really enjoy learning new ones as well. :) It's really fun to make things for my family and friends. It's really nice on Craftsy to see what others are making in class too.
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yEd Graph Editor is an easy-to-use tool for creating and editing diagrams.
The program works much like many similar applications. You'll choose your symbols from a palette (flowchart, UML, ERD, BPNM, network, computer, more), drag and drop them onto the page, and position them as you like. Symbols may then be customised with text, colours, URLs and more, before you join them up with lines to represent your structure or ideas.
The symbols on offer are more visually appealing than some of the free competition, which is an immediate plus. YEd isn't just about creating complicated charts for technical documents: it could be just as useful when designing something simple but attractive for a presentation.
It's easy to pick up the diagramming basics, too. When drawing a line between two symbols, say, you don't have to select a Line tool, look for symbol "handles" or anything else: just left-click somewhere over one symbol, hold the mouse button down and drag to another symbol, release and the line appears.
YEd can import data from GraphML files, XLS/ XLSX spreadsheets, GML/ XGML and more. But the real surprise was support for GEDCOM, the genealogy format. Not only does this allow yEd to import and display your family tree, it even offers some fine control over the process, for example choosing exactly which tags you'd like to import.
Export options are another highlight. You're not just restricted to saving your graphs as regular images (GIF, JPG, PNG), the program can also export EPS, SVG/ SVGX and PDF. There's even an HTML page with a custom Flash viewer, complete with its own chart panning, zoom and print controls.
Version 3.15.02 brings: (Changelog):
- The yEd Windows installers are dual-signed (using SHA-1 and SHA-256 type certificates) so that they are recognized by Windows SmartScreen but still work on older Windows versions.
- The JREs that are installed by the Windows, Mac, and Linux installers have been updated to Java 1.8.0_74.


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Kill Reality Links
This page will direct you to the latest news and best sites about E! Network's Kill Reality show
About Kill Reality on E! Network
A group shares a house while making a low budget thriller movie :The Scorned". The series follows the movie cast as they are killed off one by one. In the cast are former reality stars Ethan Zohn, Jenna Lewis, Jon "Jonny Fairplay" Dalton and Jenna Morasca from various "Survivor" seasons; Trishelle Cannatella, Tonya Cooley and Steven Hill from "The Real World"; "Bachelor" Bob Guiney and "Bachelorette" Trish Schneider; "Amazing Race 4" winner Reichen Lehmkuhl; and "Apprentice" contestant Stacie J. Upchurch.
News Articles about E! Networks Kill Reality show and "The Scorned"
The Trades 4/23/06 The Scorned
Reality TV Magazine 11/8/05 The Scorned Is The Best Horror Movie Starring All Reality Stars Ever Made
Reality TV Magazine 10/31/05 The Scorned Premieres On Halloween
TV Guide 10/31/05 Bachelor's Trish Is a Woman Scorned
NY Post 10/31/05 Reality Bites
Reality TV Magazine 10/25/05 Survivor's Rob Cesternino Talks About The Scorned, Premiering On E! On Halloween
Radar Magazine 10/12/05 Kill Reality: Vol. 2 (Director's Cut)
Cinema Spider 10/10/05 From Kill Reality Comes The Supernatural Film "The Scorned"
Celebrity Spider 9/20/05 E!'s Kill Reality Superstar Toni Ferrari Shops Her Own Television Series
Reality TV Magazine 9/13/05 Kill Reality – Jonny Fairplay Gets Thrown Out Of The House
Reality Reel 9/10/05 Kill Reality: Episode 8 Preview
Wireless Flash News Service 9/8/05 Jonny Fairplay: `I Raped Reality TV'
Reality TV Magazine 9/6/05 Kill Reality – A Little Game of Why And Because
Reality Reel 9/2/05 Kill Reality: Episode 7 Preview
Reality News Online 9/2/05 Kill Reality, Episode 6: The Saving Grace
Wireless Flash News Service 9/2/05 Tears Don't Come Easy For `Scorned' Reality TV Alum
Reality TV Magazine 8/30/05 Kill Reality Starring Jonny Fairplay as The Bachelor
Radar Online 8/29/05 Sex, Lines, and Videotape
NAMC Newswire 8/29/05 Kill Reality Superstar Toni Ferrari reveals the torture she has endured
Reality Reel 8/26/05 Kill Reality: Episode 6 Preview
Reality News Online 8/25/05 Kill Reality, Episode 5: The Relationship from Hell
After Elton 8/24/05 Interview with Reichen Lehmkuhl
Orwell Project 8/22/05 Exclusive Interview With Scott Zakarin, Executive Producer Of "Kill Reality"
Reality News Online 8/22/05 Kill Reality, Episode 4: Trishelle's Here! Run!
Reality News Online 8/17/05 Kill Reality, Episode 3: The Villain with a Case of the Giggles
Click here for previous news articles
Websites - Kill Reality and "The Scorned"
Reality TV Links - Kill Reality
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The History channel says it has set a U.S. air date for its new miniseries "Vikings," starring Travis Fimmel and Gabriel Byrne.
"The drama portrays the world of these Dark Age raiders, traders, explorers -- not from an outsider's view, but through the eyes of Viking society," the cable network said in a synopsis.
"While 'Vikings' is filled with conflict, warfare and bloodshed -- for these were extreme times -- it is a family saga at heart. It follows the adventures of Ragnar Lothbrok, a curious, compelling man who is always looking to break through barriers and discover new worlds to conquer.
"A young farmer and family man, Ragnar is deeply frustrated by the unadventurous policies of his local chieftain, Earl Haraldson, who continues to send his Vikings raiders east every summer, to the Baltic states and Russia, whose populations are as materially poor as themselves."
DISCUSS AND COMMENT ON THIS STORYReality TV World now offers Facebook Comments on our stories. To post a comment, log into Facebook and then 'Add' your comment. To report spam or abuse, click the 'X' in the upper right corner of the comment box.


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Railway Allahabad Group C Recruitment 2013 – Scouts and Guides Quota Posts: Railway Recruitment Cell (RRC),Allahabad
Name of the Post: Group C (Scouts and Guides Quota)
Name of the Unit:
1. NCR Hqsr: 02 Posts
2. ALD Divn: 02 Posts
3. JHS Divn: 02 Posts
4. AGC Divn: 02 Posts
Age Limit: Candidates age limit is 18-30 years as on 01-01-2014. Relaxation is applicable as per the rules.
Qualification: Candidates must have passed Matriculation or equivalent with 50% marks from any recognized Board/ University.
Selection Process: Candidates will be selected based on written test and interview.
Examination Fee:
Candidates must pay the fee of Rs.40/- in the form of Indian Postal Order (IPO) drawn in favor of and payable as mentioned in the notification. SC/ ST, Women candidates, Minority candidates and candidates belonging to Economically Backward Classes are exempted from the fee.
How to Apply: Candidates can send applications in the prescribed format along with attested copies of all relevant certificates BY Indian Postal Order
Last Date for Submission of Application: 19-08-2013
Last Date for Submission of Application for Remote Areas: 03-09-2013
Last Date for Submission of Application: 19-08-2013
Last Date for Submission of Application for Remote Areas: 03-09-2013


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The China Bride
August 2001
Historical Romance
Ballantine Books
The China Bride is for all of you who wanted the story of Kyle Renbourne, twin brother of Dominic, hero of The Wild Child. The story begins six years after the end of The Wild Child. Kyle has spent those years in travel, moving ever eastward. Soon it will be time to return to England and his responsibilities as heir to an earldom, but first he will visit China, the last and most desired goal of his long journey.
Born to a Scottish father and a Chinese mother, Troth Montgomery dreamed of someday traveling to Scotland, until the death of her father condemned her to a shadowy life as an interpreter in Canton. Then Kyle Renbourne, viscount and adventurer, discovers Troth's true identity and persuades her to be his guide on a dangerous journey into the heart of the Celestial Kingdom.
A meeting of minds flares into searing passion, an idyll that ends when Kyle is captured and condemned to death. A reckless prison cell marriage the night before his execution sends Troth to England, where she arrives at the estate of Kyle's brother. Though accepted as bride and widow, she is haunted by the memory of her dashing husband. Then the past reaches out to Troth, bringing passion, despair, and danger. Now she must draw on her unique heritage to save all she holds dear—and become the woman she is destined to be.
"Beautifully written, The China Bride is a fitting sequel to The Wild Child. Kyle's story brims with enchantment, the magic of the Orient, passion and stormy romance. East meets west in the most exquisite way. One of the summer's "must reads." (4+ rating and a Top Pick for August 2000.)
--Kathe Robin, Romantic Times
"The always superb Mary Jo Putney has written a beautifully crafted story of love and loss, yin and yang. I would recommend this book to anyone who believes in the power of love and the human spirit in overcoming incredible odds."
--Lenore Howard, Old Book Barn Gazette
"It is no wonder that multi-award winning bestseller Putney is a favorite of romance fans. Only a master storyteller could convincingly start a happily ever after romance with the heroine arriving on the scene to report the death of the hero to his family. Putney's characterizations of two individuals who do not fit comfortably into the worlds in which they were born but through their differences can become soul mates as well as lovers are exquisite in this fast paced historical adventure romance."
--Diana Tixier Herald for Booklist
Read an excerpt


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Find Arnold's Country Kitchen with this handy map to the restaurant. If you don't see a pop-up, click on the map's green arrow to get driving directions to and from Arnold's Country Kitchen.
Sign up to receive the 2016 edition of GAYOT's Annual Restaurant Issue, which will feature the Top 40 Restaurants in the U.S. and more.