Friday, December 03, 2010

Bodenhamer is probaby a creationist!

I have been taken to task by several people, the followers of Bodenhamer and people who agree with my arguments, with me mixing in religion. Some even talk about an ad ad hominem attack.

First of all, I have not committed an ad ad hominem fallacy, because I did not say that Bodehamer's statements on stuttering are wrong because he is what he is. I actually presented counterarguments.

Second, I have started to move from looking at his arguments to the person himself. I mention religion, because I want to understand his and his follower's inability to engage in an intellectual debate, and actually change their views based on arguments and empirical facts. And, he reminded me of the mindset I have experienced in my personal talks with creationists some months ago. He and they exhibit religious beliefs.

And guess what! Bob Bodenhamer is mostly likely a creationist, and he certainly works for such a church. He writes in his biography:
Dr. Bodenhamer has served four Southern Baptist churches as pastor. He is presently serving as pastor of a mission church called Christ Fellowship Community Church. His time in the pastorate spans 44 years.
Southern Baptist is infamous for its inability to absorb scientific knowledge and rationality into religion, unlike the Catholic or European Protestant churches. So I found a FAQ on creation on the website of Christ Fellowship Community (note he is pastor in a small church in North Carolina). And here is what they write:
If one takes the Bible at face value, Genesis 1:1-31 seems to suggest that God created everything in six literal days. There is no reason to think that a being as great as God could not accomplish such a feat within this time frame.
People need to know where Bodenhamer comes from. He can believe what he wants to believe. But people, and the BSA who invite him for conference calls, need to understand that they cannot trust him to change his views based on science. In fact, he is an enemy to science.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

You may be right about Bodenhamer's view of stuttering, but you are wrong to attack him based on his religious beliefs.

Its difficult for me to imagine that you find it scandalous that people that consider themselves Christians would literally believe the Bible and worship the Lord. What a outrage!

They are not called believers for nothing. Most Christians may not be experts on the scientific method, but their message calls for the humble and thirsty to repent, believe the gospel (good news) and be saved.

I wonder how your mind is able to process the fact that many of the famous scientists of the past such as Nicholas Copernicus, Sir Francis Bacon, Johannes Kepler, Galileo Galilei, Rene Descartes, Robert Boyle, Michael Faraday, Gregor Mendel, William Thomson Kelvin, Max Planck and Isaac Newton were believers and in fact gave us the scientific method. You are debasing the foundation you are standing on.

Satyendra said...

The debate here is about discussing the facts made available to us by science. If the same science offers different evidence tomorrow, we should have the humility to change our views. Religion is something else.
In any case, religion is a double edged sword; Re anon above- what would you say about countless lives lost during crusades in medieval ages, lost generations of aborigines in Australia and elsewhere and other atrocities on people of other faiths?
So, even in religion (not just stammering), certain amount of rationality and common sense is called for.
Tom is not attacking anybody's faith. He is just giving a comparison between being open to logic - and being "faithful" to a rigid intellectual position.. That is all.

Anonymous said...

Tom,

I get what you're saying, but the fact is most people have the mental capacity to understand the difference between challenging someones views and attacking someone. The first anonymous is an example of this. They likely know nothing about religious history and the how damaging these types of views have been historically.

1. He's not attacking anyone.
2. Literally believing in the bible is something a minority of religions do, as a result of scientific evidence.

3. The idea that people believe in things that have no basis but an incentive that also has no basis, over something that has a basis is very scary.

4. I can name drop too. This is what Dirac says about religion.

"I cannot understand why we idle discussing religion. If we are honest—and scientists have to be—we must admit that religion is a jumble of false assertions, with no basis in reality."

Tom Weidig said...

@Anonym:

>> I wonder how your mind is able to process the fact that many of the famous scientists of the past such as Nicholas Copernicus, Sir Francis Bacon, Johannes Kepler, Galileo Galilei, Rene Descartes, Robert Boyle, Michael Faraday, Gregor Mendel, William Thomson Kelvin, Max Planck and Isaac Newton were believers and in fact gave us the scientific method. You are debasing the foundation you are standing on.

>> All these people were led by the principle that empirical observation and science must be taken into account. And as I write most main stream churches accept this, too.

Moreover, they lived in a time where much empirical knowledge was unknown.

@Thanks Sachin for your excellent summary of my thoughts!

Anonymous said...

Bodenhamer also uses religion in therapy.

http://www.renewingyourmind.com/Articles/Stuttering-to-Stability.htm

Anonymous said...

I think that any way to educate others on stuttering is good. We all have our own beliefs, but people who stutter share the need to support one another, educate others on the subject as well as work to improve the lives of people who stutter.

As a person who stutters, I find that emotional support is just as important as therapy for our stuttering (if not more important). To meet other people who stutter who can relate to what we go through with our stuttering helps us accept our stuttering more than anything else. For 35 years the National Stuttering Association (NSA) has connected kids and adults who stutter to other kids and adults who stutter through local chapter meetings, workshops and annual conferences in which over 600 people who stutter attend each year! Conferences in recent years have included such keynote speakers as VP Joe Biden, Arthur Blank (Owner, Atlanta Falcons), Adrian Peterson (Chicago Bears), Annie Glenn, John Melendez and John Stossel. They all shared truly amazing stories. To learn more, pls contact them at: www.westutter.org, info@westutter.org or 1-800-937-8888