Thinking to Believe
A mental trip into Christian theology, apologetics, morality, and culture, with a dash of politics.
Episodes
I tackle five objections to the pro-life POV, including (1) the right to choose and bodily autonomy objection, (2) the "abortion is a woman's issue" objection, (3) the "forced into back alley abortions" objection, (4) the "poor women can't afford children" objection, and (5) the "what are we going to do with all these unwanted children" objection.
I provide some helpful tips for ministering to women who are contemplating an abortion, as well as those who have already had an abortion. I also kick off our objections and responses segment, noting six problems with the "nobody knows when life begins" objection.
Does “the Pill” have both a contraceptive and abortifacient function? I explore the evidence for and against the “hostile endometrium” theory.
There are a number of moral concerns with IVF that Christians should be aware of. In some cases, doctors recommend aborting one or more babies if too many babies implanted in the uterus. There are also concerns with freezing unused embroys. As for contraception, some forms of contraception are clearly acceptable while others are questionable. In this episode, I explore whether or not IUDs and emergency contraceptives can have an ab...
It's one thing to know the truth about abortion, but another thing to present our case to others. We need more than knowledge. We need tactics. I discuss seven tactics for dialoguing with pro-abortion advocates and making the case for life.
I also discuss the use of graphic imagery in making our case. I argue that the use of images of both fetal development and aborted babies is an important supplement to the pro-life argument ...
I continued my critique of personhood theory/functionalism, offering three more reasons to reject this philosophy of human value: (1) It involves circular reasoning; (2) It cannot be consistently applied; (3) It cannot ground equal rights and equal value.
I explore personhood theory, which holds that there is a distinction between being human and being a person - and only personhood has moral value. I provided three reasons to reject this theory: (1) The Law of Identity; (2) It is subjective and arbitrary; (3) It values the exemplification of certain functions rather than the being who has the capacity for such functions.
Having determined what the unborn is, we turn to the question of value. Do the unborn have moral value? What gives humans value? Is value objective and intrinsic, or subjective and intrinsic. Theists argue for the former, whereas non-theists the latter. Theists believe value is inherent to being human, whereas non-theists argue that it is based on humans' ability to exhibit certain functions.
Virtually everyone agrees that born...
In philosophy, the Law of Identity holds that something is what it is. It's identity remains the same over time despite changing properties. I show how this argues for the humanity of the unborn. I also explore the liability of defining humans in terms of their properties rather than their kind, and correct a misunderstanding of human development that sees humans as being constructed rather than built. Humans are not the kinds ...
I continued quoting various medical experts that human beings come into existence at fertilization, followed by exploring the reasons the scientific community makes this claim. The Law of Biogenesis as well as genetics make it clear that the unborn are human beings.
I offer a syllogistic argument for the pro-life view, fol...
While the morality of abortion does not depend on religious presuppositions, as Christians, the Biblical perspective on abortion should be determinative. While the Bible does not directly address the issue of abortion, it does so indirectly in that it prohibits the murder of human beings, and considers the unborn to be human beings.
In my intro, I talk about the objectives I hope to accomplish through this series and share the topics to be covered. I begin with an examination of abortion statistics: Who gets abortions? When are they performed? How many abortions are there? What do Americans believe about abortion?
My take on Dinesh D'Souza's new documentary film, 2000 Mules, regarding new evidence of voter fraud in the 2020 presidential election.
In this one-and-done episode, I lay out a high-level argument for the pro-life point of view, showing how both science and philosophy demonstrate that the unborn are valuable human beings from conception. I finish the episode by addressing five major objections to the pro-life view.
SCOTUS appears poised to overturn Roe. I talk about the legal and practical ramifications of this decision, and how the fight against abortion is just beginning. I also address the "personally opposed, but" view, which holds that while abortion is morally wrong, it should nevertheless be legal. I show that such a view either misunderstands the relationship between church and state, misunderstands the purpose of law, or misu...
Freedom of speech is on the decline in America. Fewer Americans value free speech, while more are calling for government and corporate censorship. In light of this trend, I talk about a 2021 Pew Research poll, the government's new Disinformation Governance Board, and Twitter. Freedom of speech is central to a free democracy, so we must fight for it in every generation. I also talk about the power of boycotting et al. If we wan...
In this final episode in the series, I address various objections that are (or could be) raised against the view of forgiveness I outlined in parts one and two.
Fox News jumps the shark by hiring Bruce Jenner as a contributor. They are on the journey toward the Left and away from conservatism. This also raised the issue of preferred pronouns. I make the case that while conservatives can use someone's preferred name, we must not capitulate to using their preferred pronouns. Pronouns are gendered and ought to match one's sex. Finally, I talk about the phenomenon of theological anger....
Forgiveness is a misunderstood virtue. This episode covers the third and final misunderstanding of forgiveness: (3) Forgiveness is unconditional. I argue that the Biblical data as well as God's example demonstrate that we are only obligated to forgive those who have repented, and that forgiveness without repentance is morally wrong.
Visit the TTB blog at thinkingtobelieve.com
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