Sunday, November 4, 2012

Hugh Ross and Reasons to Believe: Embracing a unique set of core values

Hugh Ross Image Credit: patheos.com


“To engage and quip.”

That was the mission Dr. Hugh Ross had in mind in forming Reasons to Believe, a Christian ministry organized to spread the Christian Gospel by demonstrating that sound reason and scientific research support confidence in the truth of the Bible and faith in the transcendent God revealed in both the Scripture and nature.

With this guidepost, he has gathered a team of leaders holding on to a solid set of core values or beliefs that makes them stand among the rest. Some of these features are as follows:

• A creation and ongoing development of a testable creation model for people to have steadfast faith in God;
• Honing apologetics for the sake of evangelization in order to fulfill the completion of the commission Christ assigned to his followers;


Hugh Ross Image Credit: rtbtaketwo.wordpress.com

Dr. Hugh Ross founded Reasons to Believe in 1986.

• An effort in integrating God’s revelation both in the Scripture and nature;
• A high regard for both the Bible and science since the Scripture and nature come from the same source—God himself;
• Willingness and readiness to give logical reasons for people will always have questions and doubts; and
• A belief that intellectual engagement should lead to effective evangelism through a commitment to application of all things right, and not for the sake of winning arguments.


Hugh Ross Image Credit: news.legalexaminer.com

For more information on Dr. Hugh Ross and his ministry, visit this Twitter page.

Tuesday, October 2, 2012

An Astronomer’s Quest: Dr. Hugh Ross to speak at CCV

Hugh Ross Image credit:http://www.reasons.org/about/who-we-are

Reasons To Believe (RTB) President and Founder Dr. Hugh Ross will be sharing his life’s journey to faith at Christ’s Church of the Valley (CCV).
 
Hugh Ross Image credit:www.reasons.org

Dr. Ross will visit CCV San Dimas, California on October 4, 2012 for an outreach event of RTB. Entitled An Astronomer’s Quest, the goal of the event is to share to other people important scientific and biblical facts that aim to develop their faith in Christ as Creator, Lord, and Savior. During the event, Dr. Ross will share his life’s testimony and an account on how the newest scientific discoveries continue to reveal the handiwork of God in His creation, “both at its beginning and in its current state.” 

Hugh Ross Image credit:http://www.reasons.org/about/our-mission

Dr. Hugh Ross founded the science-faith think tank RTB in 1986 with the aim of spreading the Christian Gospel through the demonstration of sound reason and scientific research, which consistently support confidence in the truth of the Bible and faith in the Creator revealed in both Scripture and nature. Over the years, Dr. Ross has authored several books, including The Fingerprint of God, The Creator and the Cosmos, Beyond the Cosmos, A Matter of Days, Creation as Science, Why the Universe Is the Way It is, and More Than a Theory. Registration for the “An Astronomer’s Quest” is free. 

Learn more about the event and its speaker, Dr. Hugh Ross, by visiting RTB’s website at www.reasons.org.

Thursday, September 6, 2012

Dr. Hugh Ross: Understanding Imago Dei

This latest blog on Dr. Hugh Ross will discuss the concept of imago Dei, the “image of God.”


Genesis 1:26-27 shares how God created mankind -- in His own image and likeness. This brought forth the term “imago Dei,” the Latin term for the image of God. Although the term has been mentioned several times in different books -- 1 Corinthians 11:7; Colossians 3:10; and James 3:9 included – the verse in Genesis has the most impact as it proclaims how people are created.


Hugh Ross Image Credit: iStockphoto.com


The terms ‘image’ and ‘likeness’ that are used in the verses should be taken as synonymous terms, according to theology experts, which both mean a representation of a thing or something similar to. Thus, theology experts like Dr. Hugh Ross and the team at Reasons to Believe emphasize that when God said he created male and female in His image and likeness, He did not mean that humans are identical with him. Simply, humans are similar (and dissimilar) to God.


What imago Dei entails

Knowing the meaning of the terms does not answer the question as to what imago Dei entails. Kenneth R. Sample dissects the concept into three points of view, as published on RTB’s website. These are:


Hugh Ross Image Credit: Ucobserver.org


The representative view -- Humans represent God. As Genesis 1:26 states: “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.” God equipped mankind with the natural ability to rule the world, being the highest form among all His creations.



Dr. Hugh Ross is the founder of Reasons to Believe, a ministry that integrates both science and faith in understanding the Scriptures and in discovering Christ.



The relational view -- Samples shares that the perspective means that humans are like God in terms of their unique relational characteristics.


The functional view -- “This viewpoint insists that being made in the image of God is more about what a person does than what a person is,” Samples shares. This means that it is human actions that reflect the image of God.


Hugh Ross Image Credit: Reasons.org


For more information about Dr. Hugh Ross, visit the Reasons to Believe website.

Monday, July 30, 2012

Hugh Ross presents cogent reasons for the convergence of faith and science

Hugh Ross, founder of the influential Christian think-tank Reasons To Believe (RTB), encourages us to at least try to advance a step beyond ourselves as we chase our imaginations to the heavens so we can conceive the truth about God’s existence even in the midst of overwhelming—yet scarce—scientific pieces of evidence on the origin of the universe.

Dr. Hugh Ross. Image credit: Reasons.org


Ross believes that humanity can both marvel at the achievements of science and wonder at the inspirations of faith. He impressively strikes a fine balance between the cogent scientific principles on the cosmic origin of the universe and the lucid biblical accounts on creation. On one hand, Hugh Ross attempts to rationalize our faith on the existence of God through the evidence of science, while on the other hand, he introduces arguments in favor of the need for science’s recognition of a divine creator even through a simple leap of faith.

Dr. Hugh Ross. Image credit: Reasons.org

Ross is both a serious man of science and an ardent Christian believer who recognizes God’s handiwork in the cosmic origin of the universe. Indeed, for Ross, the problem is not at all complicated and difficult to understand. He simply maintains that the moment we break free from the narrow compass of our understanding, we’ll begin to recognize that there are really certain principles which operate in the world that suggests intelligent design.

Dr. Hugh Ross. Image credit: Reasons.org

For more information on Hugh Ross, visit www.reasons.org.

Sunday, July 1, 2012

Hugh Ross closes divisive gap between faith and science

Amidst the age-old, divisive polemics between faith and science, astronomer Hugh Ross gives us reasons to believe that it is possible to bring these frontiers together and close the gap to create a chance for convergence.


Hugh Ross Image Credit: Reasons.org


Dr. Ross, founder of the influential Christian think-tank Reasons To Believe (RTB), demonstrates that science has the capacity to affirm our faith and confirm the veracity of the Bible.


As a man who values reason and recognizes its power to reveal truths, it’s not hard to understand that Dr. Ross will find God in science and discover scientific truths in the Bible. An astronomer and biblical scholar by profession, he is on a quest to spread the word that the fundamental issues on creation actually complement the scientific theories and principles on the origin of the earth and mankind.


Hugh Ross Image Credit: Reasons.org


Dr. Hugh Ross not only unearthed credible amount of fundamental scientific truths behind the Biblical account of creation but also objectively pointed out the “fingerprints of God” unrecognized in modern cosmological theories.


Although Dr. Ross’ scientific evangelism will understandably be frowned upon both by the fundamentalist Christians and hardcore advocates of Darwinian theory of evolution, it can’t be refuted for its novelty.


Dr. Ross’ theories may not be conventional, but these are uncongenial either. At the least, Ross must be credited for providing us new reasons to break the divisive elements that often tear apart our faith and unfairly criticize our needed dependence on scientific reason.


Hugh Ross Image Credit: Reasons.org


For more information on Dr. Hugh Ross, visit this Facebook page.

Wednesday, June 6, 2012

Hugh Ross and Reasons to Believe: Building personal growth and development through innovative online programs

Reasons to Believe (RTB) is an organization founded by Dr. Hugh Ross. In a time when the number of skeptics is increasing, RTB’s inception is but fitting and timely. The organization tries to explain the different phenomena in the Bible using science. It has powerful reasons to believe that science proves the credibility of the Bible. In achieving this mission, RTB offers online interactive learning through its innovative online programs. These programs are also created to help students to stand firm on their faith and at the same time, work on their personal growth and development.  


Reasons Institute

 

Hugh Ross. Image credit: Reasons.org

This is an innovative online learning program from RTB. This is designed for all Christians including high school and college students, church leaders, teachers, and many more.

Dr. Hugh Ross is both a man of science and faith. He established Reasons to Believe with the aim to enlighten people on the gravity of the Bible as the error-free word of God.
In the comfort of their homes, all participants can have access to the virtual classroom, make use of recent research from top apologists, and interact with RTB instructors and students. Additionally, students enrolled in this program are able to work toward becoming an RTB volunteer apologist. Reasons Academy
Hugh Ross. Image credit: Reasons.org

This is a high school science apologetics program that aims to prepare students in keeping hold of a strong faith in God despite adversities and temptations. This program benefits students who are interested in science or those who are thinking of taking up engineering and medical courses. Students who are skeptics but are seeking answers about the Bible’s validity are also welcome to participate here.


Hugh Ross. Image credit: Reasons.org

Dr. Hugh Ross graduated with a degree in physics from the University of British Columbia and finished his graduate degrees in astronomy at the University of Toronto. For more information about him and Reasons to Believe, log on to www.reasons.org.

Monday, May 7, 2012

Dr. Hugh Ross and Reasons to Believe: Pattern in fossil records supports the creation model

From Dr. Hugh Ross

Most scientists and scholars use fossil records to support claims about the concept of evolution. However, based on an article published by Dr. Hugh Ross’ Reasons to Believe, new fossil records reveal that the natural patterns that Charles Darwin once observed may not accurately match the actual process that is supposed to happen to living organisms, especially if biological evolution accounts for life’s history and diversity. On the other hand, this pattern fits almost accurately within a “creation” model.

In an August 2011 episode of Science News Flash, paleontologists from the United States, Great Britain, and Germany were shown generating 3-D reconstructions of two harvestmen (daddy longlegs) fossil specimens that were 305 million years old already. The researchers discovered that these ancient organisms were surprisingly possessing modern anatomy. This means that they have not undergone evolutionary change for at least 300 million years.


From Dr. Hugh Ross

Dr. Hugh Ross enjoys constructively integrating all 66 books of the Bible with all the science disciplines as a way to discover and apply deeper truths.
The discovery is not an anomaly. It typifies the fossil record. The “hurry up and wait” pattern that the fossils seem to suggest is counter-intuitive from an evolutionary perspective. The scientists surveyed a variety of mathematical models to find one that would generate the same pattern as observed in the specimen. At present, thorough investigation are still undertaken to clarify things out and better explain the “actual” biological characteristics of organisms.

For more articles by Dr. Hugh Ross and his research team at Reasons to Believe, log on to www.reasons.com.


From Dr. Hugh Ross