Tag Archive : psychology

The Spaniel and I are pleased to announce the culmination of our work over many years, the release on Amazon of Superbia: The perils of pride. The power of Humility. Andrew Murray wrote that pride lies at the root of every defect and failure. Political polarization? Workplace conflict? Marital discord? Church splits? Pride lies at…

There is a particular narrative, popular among skeptics, that occasionally erupts into the public forum. It happened in 1990 when Ted Turner famously (and clumsily) declared that “Christianity is a religion for losers”. (The muddled nuance of his actual intent was drowned in the ensuing indignation). Or in 1993 when Washington Post writer Michael Weisskopf…

Most of us think we’re smarter than most of us! In a recent large survey, 65% of Americans rated themselves more intelligent than average.[1] [Sounds of unrestrained laughter, barking, and howling – the Spaniel and pals]. Believing we’re very smart, we assume we’re usually right. But is that confidence warranted? “Do you see a man…

“Pride is the first sin that ever entered into the universe, and it’s the last that is rooted out. It is God’s most stubborn enemy.” - Jonathan Edwards Traditionally, Christians have been of the persuasion that sins are bad, and some sins are worse than others. What do you think is the worst sin? Murder?…

The Intelligence Trap: why smart people make dumb mistakes. David Robson, W. W. Norton, 2019 Western society reveres intelligence, or at least pretends to. A leading political figure boasts he's "a very stable genius” - which, presumably, is superior to an unstable one. Yet no one stops to ask, “does it matter?" According to this…

Late in life, atheist philosopher Bertrand Russell received this challenge: if, after death, he found himself face to face with God, what would he say? Russell replied, “I probably would ask, ‘Sir, why did you not give me better evidence?’”¹ Theists contend that though evidence for God is both present and sufficient, bias can fog…

Can you define envy? Is envy bad? Would you know if you had it? The classic “seven deadly sins” were lust, gluttony, sloth, wrath, pride, greed, and envy. According to the proverb, “a sound heart is life to the body, but envy is rottenness to the bones.” Explain to me, if you can, the difference between…

Most of us think we are better than most of us. As a consequence, we are sometimes tempted to advertise our moral superiority through public expression. This is known as “moral grandstanding”. There’s nothing wrong with issuing public moral pronouncements; it’s not merely a right, but sometimes a duty. The issue here is motive. It…