Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.

  • The Cafe Culture

    He arrived at the cafe at 11, and made his way to a table. Today it was the turn of the top-right-hand table. It always amused him that people, in general, were creatures of habit, and because of this, it was amazing what you could get away with in plain site. He undid the top…

  • Prophetic Voices from Renewed Ancient Traditions

    I was at a lecture today at the Baptist College of South Wales in Cardiff, curteusy of my training. The interesting thing that came to light (amongst the learning about the Celtic Tradition (which I’m very interested in), the Anabaptists, and the New Monastic Movement), was this idea that prophetic voices have not been lost…

  • Paul Tillich and Intellectual Criticism

    I enjoy spending time debating; though you could have worked that out from the numerous posts on the subject on this blog. During one of these debates in an attempt to defend the Religious point of view, I made the standard appeal to experience. It was pointed out to me that the experience is often…

  • Thinking on Prayer

    Originally written: 02.07.2010 while in Lesotho. I think I should stop reading St. Thomas Aquinus, he’s giving me ideas above my station. The thought was as follows: Prayer transforms God’s power in potentia into God’s action in the world This is hardly, I would guess, a new thought, but it is a new one for…

  • Robots and Gods : Thinking about Robots thinking about the existance of God.

    While thinking about the nature of belief, it occurred to me that most people see the movement of God in their life through a high level of coincidence-type actions. When people see that their life fortuitously comes together, or improves despite some calamity, it is easy to see how this could be the action of…

  • Re-Mythologising Christianity

    Recently, I was reading “Stubborn Theological Questions”, by John Macquarrie. An interesting book which I found myself thoroughly disagreeing with. The problem, for me, was the current thrust to “De-Mythologise” Christianity. Denial of things like the Incarnation, and of explaining away Miracles as happenstance, or with other logical answers seems to be the way of…

  • Comic Con vs. WestBorough Baptist Church

    ….. Westborough Baptist Church looses. Which is not very surprising, at all. The usual madness that is the Fred Phelp’s clan descended onto Comic Con, USA, only to be faced by a protest held in response. With people holding signs like “Is this thing on?”, and “Odin is God”. The article doesn’t record the response…

  • …. and I’m back.

    Yes indeed. I have travelled back from the distant land of Lesotho back to good old Blighty. I have to say, I’m very glad to be back. I did indeed have a good time in Lesotho, the people, by and large, were varied and interesting, but like a lot of placements, there were a few…

  • To Lesotho!

    So, dear and gentle reader, This is it. This is me getting ready for Lesotho. I can’t guarantee that there’ll be any updates while I’m away, but if I do get a change, I will put them here. So, for now, for the next four weeks, I shall be in Lesotho, seeing how the other…

  • Birch 0.5.5.1 Beta Released (and new web site)

    The new version of the Java IRC client, BIRCH (written by yours truly) has been released. It’s only a point release, but don’t let that fool you, there’s many new additions, updates, and changes that make it well worth checking out. You can find it at http://birch.jara23.co.uk Tell your Friends! ~BX

  • Writing and Drawing

    Martha let her hands dance over the white piece of paper. She liked blank pieces of paper, they made her happy. It wasn’t long, however, before the pen in her hand began leaving ugly trails all over it. Her hand was trying to capture the images in her head, the noise and the voices. None…

  • Send Me To Lesotho!

    Hello Friends, Romans, Netizens! I have come not to praise Black Xanthus, but to ask politely for your money! I have been accepted by USPG to go to Lesotho on Mission. This will be a wonderful way to expand my horizons (which is probably why USPG call it the Expanding Horizons Program), but it’s very…

  • The Search

    James crawled his way through the old metal tube, and stopped at the metal grill that looked down into the dark room below him. From the smell that rose up he was sure he was in the right place. The rank smell of rotting flesh and drying blood. As his eyes adjusted to the gloom…

  • A Trip to Section 23

    He looked around the dingy train. The seats worn and ripped, the carpet threadbare, the train apparently unable to to travel any great distance without jerking. He let his eyes be drawn out of the window at the grey countryside around him. It was drizzling with rain. Drizzling with rain was what this part of…

  • And I Saw Her

    She was there, I know, but I ignored it. She walked by, but I didn’t look at her. She glanced at me; and I at her, She walked on by. She was there, I know, but I looked the other way, She walked by, like yesterday, She smiled at me, and I at her, I…

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