Love Your God With All Your Mind

J. P Moreland

I started reading this in the 1997 edition, but gave that edition to Ashleigh. Replaced it with the 2012 edition, which is revised and expanded. Notes on first two chapters are from first edition except for revisions which are in red .

Introduction by Dallas Willard

The Christian and the Well Formed Mind by David Hazard

p15 Nice 2pg defense of a disciplining the mind.

1. How we lost the Christian mind and why we must recover it

p22 Loss of mind in American Christianity

p23 George Marsden, historian "anti-intellectualism was a feature of American revivalism" mid 1800s

p23 "Burned Over District" of New York birthed Mormonism(1830) and Jehovah's Witness(1884)

p23 Discusses evangelical withdrawal of late 1800s, David Hume (1711-1776) and Immanuel Kant (1724-1804).

p24 German higher criticism led to reaction against historical study of Bible and scholarship, then Darwinian evolution and the fundamentalist withdrawal.

p27 Discussion of "privatization" of religion

p28 Few Christian intellectuals writing university level material

p28 Quotes Carl Henry "Training the mind is an essential responsibility of the home, the church, and the school. Unless evangelicals prod young people to disciplined thinking, they waste - even undermine one of Christianity's most precious resources."

p28 His response "But if faith and reason are polar opposites, and if discipleship is private and sacred but college studies are public and secular, then training the intellect will not be valued as a part of teenage mentoring. That is why our discipleship materials often leave Christian young people vulnerable to atheistic college professors with an ax to grind. For such professors, shredding an intellectually unprepared undergraduate's faith is like shooting fish in a barrel."

p29 Fairly shocking section about North American missionaries contributing by default to Marxist-leaning groups.

2. Sketching a Biblical Portrait of the Life of the Mind

p31 Boats vs sharing - powerful story

p32 "In the aftermath of the Scopes trial in 1925, conservative Christians largely dismissed as an embarrassment among intellectual and movers and shakers."

p39 What should I do

p41 Noll quote

p42 Augustine

p43 scripture reference for "God of Reason"

p47-48 Argues against a view that the Spirit will act to reveal the meaning of Scripture to us without any diligent study.

p49 Specific attention to Rom 12:1-2, Matt 22:37-39, 1Pet 3:15

p50 Interesting discussion of Matt 22:23-33 directing Jesus' response to Sadducees as an intelligent basis for debate. "God is worthy of being loved with every single facet of human personality."

p51 1 Peter 3:15 "always be ready..."

p54 Recounts John Wesley's encouragement in 1756 address to study widely. Encouraged learning even from unbelievers. Brings Augustine in for reinforcement.

p55 Natural moral law invoked. Job 31:13-15, Romans 1-2

p56 (p66)Bill Bright approached by Ronald Reagan to recommend qualified Christians for cabinet level posts. He polled evangelistic leaders across the country, and only one they came up with was J Everett Koop, who served well as Surgeon General.

p58 Good discussion of 1 Cor 1-2, the "persuasive words of wisdom" passage. Very good discussion

p58 Col 2:8 considered by some a "command to avoid secular studies" - good counter discussion

3. The Mind's Role in Spiritual Transformation

4.Harassing the Hobgoblins of the Christian Mind

5. Clearing the Cobwebs from my Mental Attic

6. Evangelism and the Christian Mine

7. Apologetic Reasoning and the Christian Mind

8. Worship, Fellowship and the Christian Mind

9. Vocation and an Integrated Christian Worldview

10. Recapturing the Intellectual Life in the Church

Windows of Creation

Evidence from nature

Is the universe designed?

Reading Reference

Reasonable Faith

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