Tag: God (Page 2 of 5)

A Reason to Live? How Euthanasia Has Erased Hope and Purpose.

November 19, 2016 / Greg Garda

What comes to mind when you think of “mercy.”

Mercy, like many other human virtues, cannot be comprehended without an objective moral law which gives objective meaning to mercy. Therefore, it follows that moral law must have a moral law giver.

The problem in our aggressively, and dare I say, ideologically secular society is that the moral “law giver” has has become the human person. As a result we have seen misguided and erroneous approach to mercy. An approach that has a seeming obsession with death. The latest example being an aggressive push for “assisted suicide.”

Courtesy of Unsplash.com by Matthew Henry

By What Authority? Determining the Objectivity of Secular Values.

October 28, 2016 / Greg Garda

I remember visiting a person and discussing the moral implications of abortion. My interlocutor held the position that abortion ought to be legal because a child is not considered to be living until the child is outside the mother’s womb.

So I proceeded to ask who has the authority to decide when a human person is to be considered a human person. Thinking for a moment he responded by saying it’s simply the secular law. “So, who is the lawgiver or law creator then? And by what authority does the lawgiver decide that a law is objectively just?” I asked. He responded “It just is?” What an odd answer.

The Crux of the Matter

I wish to discuss 2 questions in brief:

What is secularity?
Are secular values objectively always true and what is the standard by which we decide if they’re true?

Let’s start with the first question.

Coutesy of Unsplash.com by Claire Anderson

Manly Conversations and Measuring Sticks: Walking the Fine Line of Pride and Humility

October 21, 2016 / Greg Garda

Is it possible to be a proud and humble at the same time? I think so. But in order to understand how we can balance pride and humility we need to turn to scripture (the Bible).

“Manly” Conversations

This past Thanksgiving weekend our family was invited to a baby shower. As I was speaking with someone in the kitchen, in the living room area sat most of the husbands of the wives of whom were invited speaking about “manly” things.

Courtesy of Unsplash.com by Jonathan Pendleton

August 5, 2016 / Greg Garda

July 23, 2016 / Greg Garda

July 12, 2016 / Greg Garda

July 6, 2016 / Greg Garda

Who Are You? How To Recognize Your Identity

Death, Where is Your Sting? Why Assisted Suicide is Anything But Compassionate

June 11, 2016 / Greg Garda

Since being exposed to the reality suffering on my first visit to the slums of Rio de Janeiro and serving the homeless and drug addicted in Toronto I have learned one important lesson: We can’t start to understand people’s suffering until we enter into it with them.

In the past two years two instances of suffering stand out in my life. The death of Jennine’s (my wife) grandmother and Jennine giving birth to our baby. Accompanying people in their suffering has taught me an important lesson about compassion and human dignity.

Courtesy of Unsplash.com by Ryan Moreno

Do Christians Have Blind Faith?

June 3, 2016 / Greg Garda

Following the Easter weekend I wrote a post on evidence for the resurrection of Jesus. In the post I looked at various historical evidences in and outside the Bible. On Twitter someone tweeted at me, “clearly not by faith.” Was he implying that I choose not to base my belief in Jesus on faith? I can’t say for sure. But if that is the case then his understanding of “faith” in the Christian sense is misunderstood.

Blind Faith?

The Christian faith is not blind. Blind faith borders on the edge of superstition and ought to be questioned. The Christian faith is one that is based on evidence. In fact, the study of theology is defined as faith informed by reason. I go as far as to say if the things that I as a Christian profess by faith, including the resurrection of Jesus is not supported by evidence or reason then it is not worth believing in.

Courtesy of Unsplash.com by Oscar Keys

Why Doesn’t God Always Stop Suffering?

May 14, 2016 / Greg Garda

If God is all powerful and all good why doesn’t he intervene to stop suffering? This is a question on the mind of many in the developed West.

“Better than I deserve!”

On a daily basis I come across several people in my job. When I greet them I typically ask, “How are you doing?” or “How is your day so far?” The typical response I get is, “Busy!” followed by a string of negative things. Even things that seem to be positive and self imposed such as taking children to recreational activities, seem to be infused with negativity and suffering.

I contrast this with my experience in working in developing countries and with the homeless. The first favela I entered on a trip to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, I encountered a young woman who was paralyzed from the neck down. She had no wheel chair or any effective means of transportation. I remember walking into a room where she laid on a sleeping cot placed on the ground. She smiled, laughed, told jokes and was so thankful to be alive with her family. She may never know this, but she was the first to force me to question what it means to be fully alive.

Courtesy of Flickr.com by mclolumnasana