Tag: Faith (Page 3 of 4)

Does Believing in God Restrict Your Intellect?

January 6, 2016 / Greg Garda

When I was an undergrad student I was surprised at how many of my professors proudly wore their atheist badges with great pride. With great enthusiasm some even preached personal atheist manifestos with evangelical fervor.

Prior to my acceptance of Christianity I had been convinced that to believe in God is to sacrifice intellect. In other words, if I wanted to be smart (or appear smart) I had to dismiss belief in God as superstition. God has no place in serious academia. Ironically, I soon came to realize how non-intellectual this position is.

Here are THREE REASONS why Christianity can encourage your intellect.

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Being A Man! 3 Characteristics that Joseph taught me about authentic masculinity.

December 30, 2015 / Greg Garda

Have you noticed how men are perceived in pop culture? Homer Simpson, Peter Griffin, or James Bond. Men are often portrayed as goofy, overly sensitive, overly macho, or promiscuous.

Do men have to fit into these categories? What does it mean to be a man today? What is an ideal point of reference for authentic masculinity?

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Does Religion Make People Behave Better?

December 23, 2015 / Greg Garda

A Conversation with Christopher Hitchens

Recently I have been reading the writings of the New Atheist writer Christopher Hitchens.

I would like to take a moment to explore a question that he poses in his book god is Not Great.

God is Not Great…?

In chapter 13 of his book Hitchens asks the question, “Does religion make people behave better?”

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Thank you!

December 19, 2015 / Greg Garda

I would like to express my gratitude for your support by subscribing to and visiting my blog.

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How A Lowly Woman Taught Me Joy

December 16, 2015 / Greg Garda

A friend and I sat at a Tim Hortons catching up over some coffee. Next to us sat two women. They sat quietly, almost as if they were eavesdropping on our conversation. If they were, I didn’t really care. Occasionally they shared a few a comments with each other, but their conversation fizzled out quickly. But one thing struck me about the nature of their conversations.

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What I Learned About God From Starting a Young Family…So Far

December 12, 2015 / Greg Garda

Jennine and I are filled with joy for the arrival of our baby daughter Marian Marguerite Garda. Marian is so precious, gentle and beautiful. We can hold her and stare at her for hours on end.

Courtesy of Amit Kujur from Flickr.com

An Overflow of Joy

Marian is our first child so Jennine and I are experiencing a steep learning curve. She requires attention around the clock. Changing dirty diapers, bathing, and feeding is a cycle that we repeat countless times in one day. This cycle has resulted in a lack of sleep for both of us and some considerable physical discomfort for Jennine.

Yet, Jennine and I, have been filled with overflowing joy. For me, it only takes a look into Marian’s tiny blue eyes, hear her sniffle, or hold her close to me and all the pleasures and comforts I once cherished cease to matter.

Giving From Our Poverty

December 9, 2015 / Greg Garda

What does Jesus teach about giving?

One of my favourite parts about the Christmas season is that people adopt a spirit of giving. Most recently I was overjoyed to see the trending of #GivingTuesday on social media.

But how should we give? What is the standard by which we measure our giving?

Photo courtesy of Marian Chinciusan from Unsplash.com

An Order of Jesus with no Church on the Side…Please

December 3, 2015 / Greg Garda

Is it possible to follow Jesus without the Church and its teachings?

I was helping my mom move into her new home. A friend of her’s who was also lending a hand became intrigued at my profession. I explained to her my role as a youth minister. I also shared with her my conversion to Catholic Christianity.

The gentle conversational tone of the lady changed. She spoke as if she took offence to my story. Later, I found out she was a non-practicing Catholic.

She argued that she doesn’t need a minister, priest, or church telling her how she should live her faith life. Her relationship is between her and Jesus and that’s all that matters.

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The above argument is popular, but it is faulty. Here are THREE reasons why we can’t have an order of Jesus with no Church on the side.

The Summit of Creation: What the Bible actually says about femininity?

December 1, 2015 / Greg Garda

In the final year of my undergraduate degree I took a class on postmodern politics. In this small, but lively class, one of the “hot topics” was the new waves of feminism.

In one class a student posed the question if prostitution can be viewed in a positive light in today’s western culture. A young woman in our class responded, “Yes, if she is a strong woman.”

Photo by Andrea’s Impression Photography

Can Science Replace God?

October 16, 2015 / Greg Garda

Belief in the God of the Bible can easily be dismissed by current scientific observation or future scientific discovery. The God of the Bible is merely a placeholder in a “gap” that has not yet been explained by scientific observation. Whether it be Zeus, Santa Claus, the Flying Spaghetti Monster, or the God of the Bible, they can all be explained away by scientific observation. This is referred to as the “god of the gaps” argument.

I will share with you 3 reasons why I believe the “god of the gaps” argument is falsely used against Christianity.

Science and God do not oppose each other. I will not speak in great length on this as I devoted two posts to this subject, Is God Dead? and God’s Great Canvas. But allow me to leave you with the following question:

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If the God of the Bible can be explained away by scientific observation then why are there leading scientists who are openly and confidently Christian?

If their belief in God is not valid then these men and women of great intelligence are the equivalent of a 6 year old who refuses abandon his belief is Santa Claus. Despite catching his father putting presents under the Christmas tree at 2a.m. in the morning and shamelessly splurging on a plateful of homemade chocolate chip cookies with a 2 litre carton of milk.