I am a new member.  Last night I watched the YouTube debate with Peter Williams, and decided to join today.  I find a deep resonance with Bart’s approach.  Also, I am a “survivor” of Fundamentalism – I was raised Baptist and attended Moody Bible Institute from 1966 to 1969 (a most interesting time to be in Chicago!).

Bart’s comments regarding confirmation bias caught my attention.  For some time now I have thought that the essential, or foundational problem with fundamentalism (whether religious, political, or .  .  .) is that it gets the cart before the horse.  It starts with “we have the Truth” as a premise, and then finds evidence to support it’s Truth.  I sensed this was Peter Williams’ position.  And, I postulate, this tendency is mostly, if not entirely, driven by unidentified or unnamed fears (the fear of “being wrong”, for example).  I think Jesus might have said to the religious leaders of his day, “You are all wrong, because you insist you are right.”  I wonder if his invitation to become as little children is essentially saying we have to start over, discard everything we think we know, and inquire with open minds and hearts.  Starting with the assertion “we know the Truth” is what I have dubbed “believe-ism.”  As Simon and Garfunkel said, “A man hears what he wants to hear, and disregards the rest.”