Embedded Files
( - previous issue - )
Apologia Report 14:21
June 4, 2009
Subject: Apocalypse 2012? Slate weighs in
In this issue:
CONSPIRACY THEORIES - fear of the Illuminati on the rise thanks to
Angels & Demons
HOMOSEXUALITY - American Psychological Association reverses itself,
finds no support for "gay gene" theory
NEW AGE MOVEMENT - Year 2012 expectations reviewed and debunked
PHILOSOPHY - new book, "one of the best," comes from "one of the
foremost popularizers of current physical cosmology"
RELIGION, AMERICAN - indiscriminate tolerance said to breed unity and
fill churches
---
CONSPIRACY THEORIES
"Angels & Demons from the Book to the Movie FAQ: Do the Illuminati
Really Exist?" by Massimo Introvigne -- once again, a Dan Brown book
to film controversy is heating up. Last time it was The Da Vinci Code
and now it is Angels & Demons. This time the evil force is the
Illuminati, a group that has long been the stuff of conspiracy
theories. Introvigne, a social scientist who has often been accused of
being a "cult-apologist," provides a substantial historical overview
and writes that "The Order of the Illuminati was established on May 1,
1776 at the University of Ingolstadt, then part of the Kingdom of
Bavaria, in Germany, by a professor of law called Adam Weishaupt
(1748-1830). The Illuminati were an interesting organization, with
both esoteric rituals and a political aim, based on the Enlightenment
philosophy and ultimately aimed at overthrowing the Roman Catholic and
politically conservative Kingdom of Bavaria and replacing it with a
liberal republic."
Brown connects the Great Seal of the United States (the pyramid and
eye symbol on the dollar bill) with the Illuminati. However,
Introvigne explains that "The pyramid and eye symbol is never found
among the Illuminati. Actually it is not even a Masonic symbol,
although there are similar symbols in Freemasonry, where a fascination
with Egypt was widespread in the 18th and 19th century. The particular
pyramid used in the Great Seal was derived from Pyramidographia, a
book published in 1646 in London by John Greaves (1602-1652), based on
his trip to Egypt. The eye was introduced by Congress Secretary
Charles Thomson (1729-1824) - who was not a Freemason - in his 1792
speech prior to the Seal’s Congressional acceptance as a very
Christian “eye of the Providence”, presiding over the destiny of the
United States. As such, it is featured in a number of Christian
churches and symbols, quite apart from, and well before, its use
within the frame of Masonic rituals." For Introvigne's entire essay,
dated May 18 '09, see <www.tinyurl.com/ltxp63>.
---
HOMOSEXUALITY
"APA revises 'gay gene' theory" by Charlie Butts -- announces that the
American Psychological Association has reversed itself on the subject
of sexual orientation and homosexuality. Butts refers to the APA's
position in 1998: "There is considerable recent evidence to suggest
that biology, including genetic or inborn hormonal factors, play a
significant role in a person's sexuality."
Now however, the APA has just come out with the statement that
"There is no consensus among scientists about the exact reasons that
an individual develops a heterosexual, bisexual, gay or lesbian
orientation. Although much research has examined the possible genetic,
hormonal, developmental, social, and cultural influences on sexual
orientation, no findings have emerged that permit scientists to
conclude that sexual orientation is determined by any particular
factor or factors."
Butts adds that "Peter LaBarbera, who heads Americans for Truth
About Homosexuality, believes the more recent statement is an
important admission because it undermines a popular theory.
"'People need to understand that the "gay gene" theory has been one
of the biggest propaganda boons of the homosexual movement over the
last 10 [or] 15 years,' he points out. 'Studies show that if people
think that people are born homosexual they're much less likely to
resist the gay agenda.'" OneNewsNow, May 14 '09.
For the entire APA statement, see <www.tinyurl.com/nsu6bz>.
---
NEW AGE MOVEMENT
"2012: Tsunami of Stupidity" by Ron Rosenbaum -- explains "Why the
latest apocalyptic cult is a silly scam." Provides the summary: "The
cult around the date Dec. 21, 2012 - the supposed apocalyptic final
day on something referred to knowingly as 'The Mayan "Long Count"
Calendar' - has been the subject of fevered fantasies on the net and
the free New Age 'magazines' given away at health-food stores. But
last week Newsweek [1] gave it serious attention, and there's a
metastasizing web of 2012 sites, including at least one anti-2012
site, which has a section devoted to debunking the apparently
limitless number of gullible airheads who have become 2012 believers."
Rosenbaum reviews the different factions that are focused on the
date: "Some believe that Dec. 21, 2012, will mark the end of the world
in some kind of fiery apocalypse, planetary collision, gravitational
reversal, black-hole disappearance, spontaneous combustion, or
planetary rotational reversal of some sort. Then there are those who
believe that the end of the old Mayan calendar will be something to
look forward to: a transformational moment in the history of creation
that will be all good for earth's peeps - a 'harmonic
convergence'-type thing. (Remember that from the '80s, when a bunch of
planets lining up were supposed to work wonders on Earth?) In 2012,
human nature will undergo a rebirth, the beginning of a New Age."
Much of the hype is about "Planet X." Rosenbaum summarizes:
"Apparently, Planet X (aka Nibiru) was spotted by astronomers in the
early 1980s in the outermost reaches of the solar system. It has been
tracked by infrared observatories; seen lurking around in the Kuiper
Belt, and now it is speeding right toward us and will enter the inner
solar system in 2012."
The best response to the controversy that Rosenbaum has discovered
is the essay "The Astronomical Insignificance of Maya date 13.0.0" by
Vincent H. Malmstrom, professor emeritus (geography) at Dartmouth
College. [2] Slate, May 22 '09, <www.slate.com/id/2218841>
---
PHILOSOPHY
Many Worlds in One: The Search for Other Universes, by Alexander
Vilenkin [3] -- this is "one of the best popularizations of current
physical cosmology available from one of its foremost practitioners"
observes William Lane Craig in his review. "It contains provocative
discussions of both the beginning of the universe and of the
fine-tuning of the universe for intelligent life."
As for specifics: "Vilenkin vigorously champions the idea that we
live in a multiverse, that is to say, the causally connected universe
is but one domain in a much vaster cosmos which comprises an infinite
number of such domains." According to Craig, Vilenkin actually
describes three separate levels of infinite complexity in his
presentation.
And, as for criticism: Vilenkin's defense of this hypothesis
"depends in a crucial and interesting way on conflating time and
space. His claim that his theory of the quantum creation of the
universe explains the origin of the universe from nothing trades on a
misunderstanding of 'nothing.'" Philosophia Christi, 11:1 - 2009,
pp231-238. [4]
---
RELIGION, AMERICAN
"Why Americans are devout and diverse but not divided" by Stephen
Bates -- the twisted logic here says that "the United States has
become the most religiously diverse nation the world has ever known."
Add to this, "the US is one of the most peaceful nations when it comes
to religion. That speaks volumes." Thus, "Religious homogeneity boosts
churchgoing." Any questions?
"[S]ociety can try to reclaim the faith by slaughtering the
infidels, or it can make accommodations. Perhaps the most important
accommodation is to quit claiming that your god is the best. In 1924,
Robert and Helen Lynd asked high school students in Muncie, Ind.,
whether Christianity is the one true religion. Yes, said 94 percent.
Asked in 2002 if they practice the one true religion, just 17 percent
of Americans said yes. Monopolies on truth don't go over well in a
religiously multicultural society. Thus, such talk has gone the way of
the walls of Jericho. ...
"'The toleration of all Religions and Persuasions,' Puritan
preacher Increase Mather observed, 'is the way to have no Religion at
all.' Mather got it wrong...." Oh? Christian Science Monitor, May 12
'09, n.p. <www.tinyurl.com/paaksj>
--------
Sources, Digital:
1 - <www.newsweek.com/id/195688>
2 - <www.tinyurl.com/kr69wm>
-------
Sources, Monographs:
3 - Many Worlds in One: The Search for Other Universes, by Alexander
Vilenkin (Hill and Wang, 2007, paperback, 248 pages)
( - next issue - )
Page updated
Google Sites
Report abuse