December 2018 – HillFaith

No, Jesus And Mithras Weren’t Both Born Of Virgins (Myths About Christianity Debunked)

Unless there is some way to determine if the rock from which sprung Mithras — the ancient mythical god at the heart of the mystery cult known as “Mithraism” — was a virgin, that is.

That Jesus’ virgin birth was stolen from the Mithras myth is one of the many allegations raised by Christianity’s critics, ancient and modern. They contend the New Testament authors borrowed heavily from multiple pagan religions to elevate an obscure itinerant preacher named Jesus to divinity.

Not so, contends Dr. Timothy Paul Jones, an expert on such matters who teaches at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (SBTS). Jones addresses a bunch of the supposed parallels.

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Would You Go To Jail For Your Basic Beliefs, Like This Chinese Pastor?

Pastor Wang Yi of Early Rain Covenant Church in Chengdu, China, is in jail, accused by the Communist government in Beijing of “inciting subversion of state power.”

The pastor absolutely denies the charges, which are based on the fact he preaches the Gospel of Jesus Christ, including His claim to be “the King of Kings” and His injunction to “render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and the things that are God’s to God.”

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Pilate’s Seal Ring Tops Biblical Archeology’s 10 Biggest 2018 Discoveries

A familiar maxim in the conventional secular wisdom of the age is that the Bible is nothing more than a collection of tales and cannot therefore be trusted as a reliable historical source.

The reality is that for decades archeology has been producing mounds of evidence that supports the Bible as not merely a reliable source but quite possibly the most reliable and comprehensive one for the ancient Middle East.

The latest illustration of this fact is found in “Biblical Archeologies Top 10 Discoveries in 2018,” written by ARTIFAX magazine editor Gordon Covier for Christianity Today.

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What Are You Living For?

Not sure of the answer to the question of what are you living your life for? Check your bank account and time sheets. Whatever you think you live for, the truth is your heart is wherever your money and your time are.

If you work on the Hill, maybe it’s status or recognition of some kind. Or becoming influential, an “insider.” Could be having a certain title linked to your name. Or perhaps having as much fun as humanly possible.

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Big Challenges For Christians In Pew’s Latest ‘Nones’ Survey Results

“Religious Nones” are among the fastest growing groups whenever survey research organizations like the Pew Research Center do polls concerning religious issues.

The results of the latest Pew survey of a representative sample of the Nones – which includes those who identify themselves as “atheist,” “agnostic” and “nothing” – finds an important reason (60 percent) these folks give for their views is they “question a lot of religious teachings.”

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Why Is It All We Want For Christmas Is MORE?

Now that the presents are unwrapped, the pretty bows and paper have all been picked up and the kids are out playing with their new delights, take a few minutes of the fleeting quiet time and give some thought to the question posed in the headline above.

Free-Thinking Ministries’ Timothy Fox (a former student of Prof. Sean McDowell at Biola University) cuts to the chase:

“It’s truly the season of More. Kids want to receive more toys than last year. Businesses want to make more money. People want their decorations to be bigger and better than ever.

“We want more holly, more jolly, more rest and relaxation, more, more, More. Of course this can all be attributed to greed, to our culture obsessed with consumption and excess. But I think there’s something deeper going on.”

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Five Reasons Christmas Is All About Jesus Or It’s Just Another Day Off

Have you ever noticed how few people get upset when the names of the various founders of the world’s religions are spoken in public forums and private discussions?

Mention “Mohammed” or “Buddha” or “Confucius” and nobody gets their shorts in an uproar. But say “Jesus” and the reaction will range from quizzical impatience to cold stares, pursed lips to rude retorts, or worse. Why is this? What is it about Jesus that sparks such reactions?

Above photo by Chris Sowder on Unsplash.

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Science & Faith: ‘Quantum Artificial Life’ Ends Origins Debate? Not Yet!

Something cannot be created from nothing. That’s why the material world either is eternal or had a beginning, which requires a beginner, AKA the “First Cause,” or “God.”

Not according to many materialists, however. They might say “quantum processes.” And they may have just gotten a potentially huge boost to their case, thanks to a team led by a Spanish scientist, according to The Daily Galaxy (TDG). Photo above by Greg Rakozy on Unsplash.

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Working On The Hill: Seems Like Just Yesterday But It Was 1977

Check it out. My first job on Capitol Hill was as press secretary for Rep. Robert Bauman (R-MD), who represented the Eastern Shore of Maryland, working from 118 Cannon HOB.

Odds are, this shot was snapped as I was on the telephone talking to Don Baker of the Washington Post Metro Section staff, who covered Bauman during my nearly two-year tenure there. He remains to this day one of the journalists for whom I have the most respect.

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A Book Requires An Author But Does A Moral Code?

Put a Christian philosopher and an atheist philosopher in one room and sooner or later — likely sooner — they will start debating the source of morality, or rather whether morality must have a source.

The atheist will invariably, and accurately, point out that he or she can be or act just as morally as any Christian. Dr. Frank Turek addressed the issue earlier this week in a presentation on cross-examined.org.

Here’s How Football Can ‘Prove’ God Exists

Why do teams play football games? To win, of course. But what if there’s no difference between winning and losing, scoring a touchdown or intercepting the other team’s quarterback?

Cross-examined.org’s Dr. Frank Turek shows in this short video how understanding the purpose of football tells us something about the purpose of life and in turn about God. Check it out. It might be the most important 1:47 of your life!

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No, The Human Mind Does Not ‘Work Just Like A Computer’

It’s a truism that’s often heard among smart people in conversations on Capitol Hill and elsewhere and it goes something like this: “The human mind thinks and processes just like a computer.”

Sounds reasonable, doesn’t it? After all, minds, or our brains, and computers use logic to process information – “inputs” – and then produce “outputs,” typically in words or numbers.

But here’s something to think about: If the human mind “thinks” like a computer, that’s really odd because, according to The Stream’s senior editor, Tom Gilson, computers don’t in fact think. They can’t think.

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Alisa Childers’ Rescue Boat For Hill Aides Adrift In a Sea Of Doubt

There are hundreds of men and women working in Congress who came to town a year ago or maybe a few years ago professing to be followers of the Lord Jesus Christ, but then the realities of life on Capitol Hill hit them square in the face.

Challenges to their faith — intellectual and otherwise — are everywhere on the Hill and doubts can become a huge problem. Some choose to leave their faith behind, others retreat into spiritual ghettos.

Photo by Mishal Ibrahim on Unsplash

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One Solitary Life … At The Center Of All History

It’s Christmas 2018 and it looks so different in so many ways from when this same holiday was celebrated in 1982. Vastly more commercialized, and almost wholly removed in the public realm from what it is meant to be.

President Ronald Reagan offered this Christmas story in 1982. Whether you are a Democrat or Republican, liberal or conservative, or Christian or atheist, this quiet reminder of who the baby in the manger became is why Christmas and Easter are the two most important dates in history.

Here’s Why The Cross Is The Exact Opposite Of ALL Pagan Sacrifices

If in recent decades you’ve been to college or kept up with the public debate about the credibility and reliability of Christianity’s claims about Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection, you’ve likely heard the claims of a variety of skeptics that His death was a sacrifice just like those common among pagan religions.

Stand To Reason’s Alan Shlemon offers three solid reasons why in fact the sacrifice of Christ is the exact opposite of pagan religions, as illustrated in a recently discovered mummified 13-year-old Incan girl found in Argentina, the Llullaillaco Maiden.

Now admit it, your curiosity won’t allow you not to click here to the rest of the story!