Hearkening Back

When Susan and I move next month, we are planning to leave our televisions behind. Part of that decision is that they are older. Part of it is to reduce the volume of stuff to move. One of the things I am looking forward the most to is not having cable television. Lately I've been sucked in to programming (namely on the SciFi, Animal Planet, History and Comedy Central channels) when I should have been writing, studying or packing. So the move is something like a "practice what I preach" opportunity. (As an adult, I alternate between tolerating and railing against the boob tube.) Find stronger opinions than mine at the Kill your Television web site. Rather than release lead and mercury into whatever space I'd be weilding a sledgehammer, I've turned two old TVs into fish tanks...

So what will I do with my time? I'll try gardening, home improvement, internet ideas and reading... These things I already do and actually enjoy more than commercial programming. For example, I liked this piece in the New York Times by its editorial observer Verlyn Klinkenborg about reading aloud. Reading aloud is fun. I just need to find some people who agree with me. I bet there are a few in New Haven!

And what about other screen entertainment? Movies? Internet? We will still be able to do that, but on my desktop computer. I think the screen is bigger than our TV's anyway. And shows I really want to see? I guess I'll have to try out BitTorrent for size. In the mean time, I've got some packing to do!

American Scientific Association

I'm blogging from Ipswitch, MA today. It's a crisp spring day on the New England coast. I'm here for the executive council meeting for the American Scientific Association. You may have seen their booth at the annual AAAS meeting. I'm the early career representative to this organization of scientists who are Christians. This is a relatively small group (~2000) of folks from around the country who are united in the following beliefs:

As an organization, the ASA does not take a position when there is honest disagreement between Christians on an issue. We are committed to providing an open forum where controversies can be discussed without fear of unjust condemnation. Legitimate differences of opinion among Christians who have studied both the Bible and science are freely expressed within the Affiliation in a context of Christian love and concern for truth.

Our platform of faith has four important planks:

1. We accept the divine inspiration, trustworthiness and authority of the Bible in matters of faith and conduct.
2. We confess the Triune God affirmed in the Nicene and Apostles' creeds which we accept as brief, faithful statements of Christian doctrine based upon Scripture.
3. We believe that in creating and preserving the universe God has endowed it with contingent order and intelligibility, the basis of scientific investigation.
4. We recognize our responsibility, as stewards of God's creation, to use science and technology for the good of humanity and the whole world.

These four statements of faith spell out the distinctive character of the ASA, and we uphold them in every activity and publication of the Affiliation.

The organization's web site aims to provide resources for Christian (especially Evangelicals) who face conflicts between faith and their understanding of science. The executive director also plays a role advising other groups like AAAS's Dialogue on Science Ethics and Religion (DoSER) and other groups. Our latest project is to help produce science materials for home-schoolers that maintain the high level of scientific integrity that the ASA upholds.

If you are interested in learning more, visit the ASA website or feel free to contact me.