Hitchens places hope in Christian scientist's trial cancer treatment

The world renowned philosopher and atheist, Christopher Hitchens, revealed recently that a forming debating opponent, the outspoken Christian scientist Francis Collins, was the brains behind the new experimental cancer treatment that he is using.

Collins is the man made famous by his working on mapping the human genome, and has been involved alongside other scientists in developing a new cancer treatment that maps out the patient’s entire genetic make-up and targets damaged DNA.

Hitchens is the author of “God is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything,” and was diagnosed with esophageal cancer last year. The cancer is at stage 4, and with his typical wry humour Hitchens pointed out in the same interview:

“And the thing to note about stage four is that there is no stage five.”

Before his illness Hitchens had debated Collins over the existence of God. Collins has authored “The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence for Belief.” Hitchens also revealed that despite being on opposite sides of the ‘faith fence,’ he and Collins had become firm friends.

“It is a rather wonderful relationship,” said Hitchens. “I won’t say he doesn’t pray for me, because I think he probably does; but he doesn’t discuss it with me.”

He added, “He agrees that his medical experience does not include anything that could be described as a miracle cure – he’s never come across anything.”

It was partly his trust in Collins that led to him agreeing to being a guinea pig for this new genome sequencing treatment that could possibly cure cancer.

Despite his generally unflattering opinion of most Christians, Hitchens has always been polite about the idea of Christians praying for him during his illness, although he has remained firm that his cancer will not sway him towards belief in God.

Hitchens has previously stated that he will not convert on his deathbed unless he is “very ill” or “half demented, either by drugs or pain where I wouldn’t have control over what I say”.

A few months back, Collins wrote a special piece in The Washington Post for “Everybody Pray for Hitchens Day”.

“My prayer is not so much for a supernatural intervention – as a physician I have not seen evidence for such medical miracle in my own experience," he said.

“Instead I pray for myself and for Christopher along the lines of James 1:5.”

The verse James 1:5 says: “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.”

Opinion: An Idiot’s Guide to the End Times

A lot of fuss has been made recently by the predictions of a pastor named Harold Camping. Camping is claiming that based upon his years of extensive Biblical study, the world will end on May 21. Or more correctly, the rapture will occur on May 21 and then God will destroy the earth on October 21. Camping's comments are excruciatingly embarrassing to many Christians, who are tired of the crazy-eyed minority gaining headlines for all the wrong reasons (like our friend, Fred Phelps, the Koran burner). Frighteningly enough, some people have taken Camping seriously enough to cash in their life savings and spend it, figuring they won't need the money anymore after May 21.

Robert Fitzpatrick, for example, a 60-year-old, retired transit worker from Staten Island has invested his entire life savings of $140,000 into a bus advertisement campaign warning people about the end of the world.

“I’m trying to warn people about what’s coming,” Fitzpatrick told the New York Daily News. “People who have an understanding [of end times] have an obligation to warn everyone.”

Camping's predictions come in a year where there already has been a lot of fuss about the end of the world. The Mayan doom prophecies for 2012 have been pulled out and dusted off, especially in the light of the numerous natural disasters parts of our globe have suffered through. The fact that the Mayans did not actually predict the world would end in 2012, but just ended their calendar there obviously doesn’t sell as many papers, so that point is rarely added to the mix.

The only prediction I feel safe in making is that over the next year or so, we will see an increase in crazy-eyed people who claim to have inside knowledge of the exact date and time. They will receive their headlines and 15 minutes of fame and then quietly slink away when their predicted date comes and goes, and inconveniently no apocalypse has arrived. What really annoys about this is that one day, one of these intense ‘prophets’ will be right (law of averages and all that). If heaven is to hold any joy for me, there will be no one allowed to walk around saying, “See! I told you so!”

I don’t mean to belittle the whole End Times thing - the Bible clearly addresses it (although the bit about “no one knows the time our hour” seems to skip so many by). Christians have been proclaiming Christ’s imminent return ever since there have been Christians - we see evidence of this in the New Testament itself. However, we also see evidence in the New Testament of a growing realisation that there is a difference between “imminent” and “immediate.” Striving to live every day as if Christ is imminent makes complete sense to me.

Yet the fringe lunatics of our faith family still persist in casting predictions of the exact time and hour, and coming out with all sorts of theories based on a very narrow and limited reading of Scripture. I know I might ruffle a few feathers here because of its popularity, but I would include the “Left Behind” book series in this lunatic fringe. Writing for the Huffington Post, the Associate Professor of New Testament at Luther Seminary, Dr. Matthew Skinner, argues this point far better than I could.

“Witness the Left Behind franchise, which has made millions promulgating a theology based on the notion of a "Rapture," in which living Christians are snatched away to an otherworldly existence while the rest of earth slides fearfully into political and moral chaos. This theology comes from a very idiosyncratic view of the Bible that is popular in fundamentalist circles but has also infiltrated wider Christian discourse. Yet it represents a way of thinking about God and history that possesses, at best, dubious biblical support. Its retribution fantasies hardly align with notions of divine love and justice found in many other parts of the Bible.”

Since there are so many New Testament passages which describe the dawn of a new era, begun in Jesus’ first coming, but to be fulfilled in his second “appearing,” it would be silly to ignore the whole topic. We need more sensible, thoughtful opinion otherwise the fringe theorists will inevitably fill the void. This is why Skinner gives advice (see below) as to how we can read these many texts in a way that will not distort them to fit into our own conspiracy theories. Skinner’s advice on reading the Bible is long, but well worth working your way through.

“First, we have to note how context matters. Future hopes are given greatest attention in the New Testament usually when two other things are in view: the corrosive effects of religious hypocrisy and early Christians' experience of persecution. Biblical passages about Jesus' return therefore reiterate that God's commitment to the world is not warmly embraced by the world's business-as-usual religious, social, and political routines.

Next, "symbolic language" does not mean "not to be taken seriously." These texts are important in their ability to communicate that we don't live in the best of all possible worlds. They point toward the promise of a better future. New Testament scholar Dale Allison likens the Bible's visions of the end to its visions of the beginning:

"Genesis is no historical record of the primordial past, and the New Testament offers no precognitive history of the eschatological future ... We must interpret them not literally but as religious poetry, which means with our theologically-informed imaginations." (page 97).

Therefore, these passages prompt us to let the dimensions of our "longed-for future" be creatively informed by our "present religious experience and faith and theological reflection" (page 98). What Christians say, then, is the state of affairs Jesus promised the world has yet to come to full fruition. New Testament talks about the future issues vivid reminders that God still has work to do among us. The specifics about the future remain wholly mysterious. Still, the dominant emphasis is on promoting hope, not inciting fear.

All this could leave Christianity vulnerable to charges of escapism, but only if it leads people to ethical and social passivity. Or to paint motor homes like this.

A fourth observation pushes against passivity, however. Biblical images about Jesus' return evoke the sights and sounds of Roman propaganda. For example, caution expressed in 1 Thessalonians 5:3 concerning seductive reassurances spoken about "peace and security" in the world refers to an imperial slogan. Also, as one might expect given Christians' occasional status as a marginalized group in the first century, these images sometimes also imitate Roman propaganda. The description of Jesus' return in 1 Thessalonians 4 depicts him with language recalling Roman dignitaries' official visits to cities.

These passages' subtle connections to imperial rhetoric allow them to subvert it, too. They thus can commit Christians to an unwillingness to rest content with the status quo of human political existence. They portray the future that God will inaugurate as showing up our inferior ideals -- exposing all that humankind settles for (and gets oppressed by) as false substitutes for true peace and true security. They speak about a world that is sick, about people who abuse power. At the same time, they call people of faith not to shun or denigrate human society but to work for the world's redemption.”

Latest archaeological discovery could be more important than even the Dead Sea Scrolls

Biblical scholars are excited by a collection of ancient texts recently found in a Jordanian cave that they believe may shed new light on early Christianity.

If the books are confirmed as authentic, they will constitute the earliest known Christian writings. The thrilling discovery was only made after a flash flood broke away the back wall of a cave exposing two previously hidden niches.

Early estimates are that the credit-card sized books could date back to the first decades after Jesus’s Crucifixion and Resurrection.

While only fragments of text have been translated so far, the images and symbols on the books indicate they are Christian, and because many of the 70 books are sealed, scholars have surmised that they contain secret writings.

Jordan’s Head of Department of Antiquities, Ziad al-Saad, was quoted by the BBC as saying that the find could be more significant than the Dead Sea Scrolls.

He said: “Maybe it will lead to further interpretation and authenticity checks of the material, but the initial information is very encouraging, and it seems that we are looking at a very important and significant discovery, maybe the most important discovery in the history of archaeology.”

'Facebook Depression' is adversely affecting teenagers, warns report

A report released by the American Academy of Pediatrics, has warned that young people who spend lengthy periods on social media sites are at risk of "Facebook depression," according to The Associated Press.

The AAP has issued a new clinical report, “The Impact of Social Media Use on Children, Adolescents and Families,” which described both the negative and positive effects of social media use on youth and families.

Facebook currently has more than 500 million active users, and 11.1% of these are under 18 years of age. Approximately 22% of teenagers use their favorite social media site more than 10 times a day.

Gwenn O’Keeffe, MD, FAAP, co-author of the clinical report, says that for some youth their social media interaction takes precedence over face-to-face interaction.

“A large part of this generation’s social and emotional development is occurring while on the Internet and on cell phones," she wrote in the report.

"Facebook is where all the teens are hanging out now. It's their corner store."

While there are many benefits of social media participation, the report also highlights some dangers including cyberbullying, social anxiety, severe isolation, and what O'Keeffe identifies as Facebook depression.

"Acceptance by and contact with peers is an important element of adolescent life. The intensity of the online world is thought to be a factor that may trigger depression in some adolescents," the report asserts.

The number of Facebook friends, status updates and photos of happy people are some of the factors contributing to feelings of social isolation and depression - emotions similar to sitting alone in a school playground.

Rhett Smith, a therapist and part-time pastor to youth and families, said that the latest AAP report confirms what he and many others have been thinking.

"One of the glaring paradoxes in my use of technology/social media, is that it has both the ability to make me feel connected and intimate with others, while at the same time feeling isolated, alienated and lonely," he wrote in a blog post.

"Has all the technology relationally disconnected us in a sense, replacing the processes (befriending, getting to know each other, sharing life, etc.), where instead we just value the end results (number of followers, blog traffic, etc.)?"

The AAP cautions that youths who do suffer from Facebook depression could turn to risky Internet sites for help – sites that promote substance abuse, unsafe sexual practices, or aggressive or self-destructive behaviors.

"Parents need to understand these technologies so they can relate to their children’s online world – and comfortably parent in that world," O'Keeffe warned.

Poll finds that most American evangelicals blame disasters on end times

The results of a recent poll done in America were released last week to show that evangelical Christians, more than any other group, tend to believe that natural disasters are a sign from God.

According to the Public Religion Research Institute and Religion News Service news poll, almost six out of ten white evangelical respondents said that natural disasters were a sign from God, compared to only 31% of Catholics and 34% of mainline Protestants.

Furthermore, the PRRI/RNS poll found that 67 percent of evangelicals link these natural disasters to what the Bible describes as the “end times” compared to 58 percent of all respondents who see it as evidence of global climate change.

Daniel Cox, PRRI research director, said of the poll, “Evangelical Protestants and Republicans are much more likely to believe that natural disasters are evidence of what the Bible calls the 'end times' rather than evidence of global climate change.”

Scarily enough, the poll also found that 53% of these white evangelical respondents thought that God punished nations for the sins of its citizens.

This comes on the back of last year’s remarks from controversial televangelist Pat Robertson that Haiti’s earthquake was a curse for its voodoo history. However, none of the leading evangelical leaders in America have publicly interpreted the recent tragedy in Japan as being divine punishment.

In fact, Americans are extremely supportive of financially helping Japan, with 80% of respondents agreeing that providing financial assistance to Japan is either very important or somewhat important despite economic challenges at home.

The PRRI/RNS poll is based on telephone interviews with 1,008 U.S. adults conducted March 17-20, 2011.

PETA call for more animal-friendly Bible

PETA, or the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, have been urging translators for a more animal-friendly update to the Bible.

The group is requesting translators of the New International Version (NIV) to remove what they term "speciesist" language and refer to animals as "he" or "she" instead of "it."

The NIV has recently made a move towards more gender-inclusive language, and PETA is hoping these moves will also include animals.

“When the Bible moves toward inclusively in one area ... it wasn’t much of a stretch to suggest they move toward inclusively in this area," Bruce Friedrich, PETA's vice president for policy, told CNN.

Friedrich, a practicing Roman Catholic, said, "Language matters. Calling an animal 'it' denies them something. They are beloved by God. They glorify God."

“God’s covenant is with humans and animals. God cares about animals," Friedrich said. "I would think that’s a rather unanimous opinion among biblical scholars today, where that might not have been the case 200 years ago.”

A Hebrew scholar, David Berger, the dean of Yeshiva University’s Bernard Revel graduate school of Jewish studies, reacted cautiously to this call saying these shifts would be complicated because of the nature of ancient Hebrew.

“In Hebrew all nouns are gender-specific. So the noun for chair is masculine and the noun for earth is feminine. There’s simply no such thing as a neutral noun," Berger informed CNN. “It’s unusual to have a noun that would indicate the sex of the animal.”

“In Proverbs it says, 'Look at the ant oh lazy person. See its ways,' " Berger said, quoting the English transition from the book of Proverbs. "In Hebrew it’s 'see her ways.' That's because the word for ant in Hebrew happens to be female. It’s not intended to exclude male ants as far as I know. It’s just an accident the Hebrew word happens to be feminine.

"It’s a little bit misleading given the fact in English the gender of the pronoun means something. It refers to the masculinity of the person or the animal that’s being referred to. In Hebrew in most cases its just sort of an accident of the masculine or feminine of the pronoun to which it referred," Berger added.

Another scholar, David Lyle Jeffrey, the distinguished professor of literature and the humanities at Baylor University, while sympathetic to PETA’s call, was similarly cautious.

“I agree with their contention that God cares for all of creation," Jeffrey stated. "It is true that we have a responsibility to reflect that affection.

"In gender-inclusive Bible translation the generic terms for humankind, let's say, are then replaced with an emphasis on he or she. Instead of the generic he, you say he and she. I don’t quite see how that would work with animals," Jeffery said.

"Do we need to know the gender of the lion Samson slew? What would it give us there?" he continued. "You could try to specify that, but you would be doing so entirely inventively if you did. It's not in the original language. ... Nothing is made of it in the story.

"When you get to the point when you say, 'Don’t say it, say he or she' when the text doesn’t, you’re both screwing up the text and missing the main point you addressed."

There has been no official acknowledgement of PETA's call from the NIV translators yet.

The UN adopts a new resolution on religious intolerance

The UN Human Rights Council has adopted a new resolution on religious intolerance that human rights groups hope is a step forward in eliminating the controversial “blasphemy laws.”

The essence of the resolution is that it protects individuals from discrimination, but does not necessarily protect religions from criticism.

Last week, the inter-governmental body adopted the “Resolution on Combating Intolerance and Violence against Persons Based on Religion or Belief,” that urged UN states to adopt policies that respect and protect the full diversity of human religious expression.

In so doing, the 47-member state body also challenged the “defamation of religions” concept, which some organisations have been lobbying the UN to incorporate into its policies.

“The resolution properly focuses on protecting individuals from discrimination or violence, instead of protecting religions from criticism,” noted the US Commission on International Religious Freedom.

“Unlike the defamation of religions resolution, the new consensus resolution does not call for legal restrictions on peaceful expression, but rather, for positive measures, such as education and awareness-building, to address intolerance, discrimination, and violence based on religion or belief,” the bipartisan federal body added.

In a separate statement last Thursday, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton added, “The United States strongly supports today’s resolution, which rejects the broad prohibitions on speech called for in the former ‘defamation of religions’ resolution, and supports approaches that do not limit freedom of expression or infringe on the freedom of religion."

“Today’s adoption of this resolution by the UN Human Rights Council is an important statement that must be followed by sustained commitment,” stated Clinton.

It was feared that endorsement of the “defamation of religions” would lead to further “blasphemy laws” such as those adopted in Pakistan, and which is used to silence minority religions, both on a community and governmental level.