"MANY, IF NOT MOST, PEOPLE assume that certain aspects of nature's workings are absolutely known. Outside of intelligent design circles, no modern biologist doubts the theory of evolution by natural selection; it is too well established by harmonious data across a multiplicity of fields. ... And, one might think, no serious cosmologist disagrees with the standard cosmological model.

"The SCM is the official designation of what is informally called 'the big bang': that relatively recent but almost universally accepted notion that the present universe is the result of a primordial fireball that occurred some 13 billion years ago in which time, space, and matter were born. While significant details remain to be worked out—witness the surprise insertion of a superluminal inflationary period by cosmologist Alant Guth in the 1980s—common wisdom is that we already know, in basic form, how the universe began.

"Not so, says Geoffrey Burbidge. Burbidge is one of only a tiny handful of researchers who resolutely disputes the SCM more than half a century after it has reached general acceptance. As such, he is pitted against the whole of contemporary cosmological orthodoxy.

"'People like a beginning,' Burbidge said, citing what he sees as an intellectual prejudice in favor of the bang that has prevented other ideas from gaining traction. ...

"Though philosophically familiar, Burbidge contends, the SCM has always been observationally forced. And fealty to observation, he argues, is the cosmologist's primary duty. 'I believe that cosmology is an observational science; it is not a theoretical science,' he said.

"The alternative he posits is at once simpler and stranger. For Burbidge, we live in a universe with no beginning at all.

"The widespread use of 'big bang' is an irony, originally intended as a put-down. The term was coined by noted astronomer Fred Hoyle when describing the theory—the notion that the universe was born from a primeval atom. The idea of an exploding atom at the beginning of time was originally proposed by astronomer ... Georges LemaÎtre. While LemaÎtre based his work on Einstein's equations, the primeval atom was certainly not an idea Einstein embraced, and Hoyle thought the whole thing an unreasonable extrapolation. ...

"Though commonly assumed by textbooks and professionals alike, the idea of an expanding universe with a discrete beginning in time but not space is by no means intuitive. The popular image of things starting off small and exploding outward is a weak metaphor, as it almost invariably suggests a pre-existent space into which a three-dimensional object swells. ...

"If the big bang never happened, what are the alternatives? ...

"And therein lies the rub. As long as the data fit multiple theories, as long as no critical prediction is disconfirmed, there can be no definitive judgment on alternative cosmologies. ... Indeed, like the timeless cosmos some posit, anti-bang theories may continue indefinitely, hovering in the background of mainstream cosmology and serving, if nothing else, as a reminder of the provisional nature of discovery."

William Orem
"Questioning the big bang;
Could we be living in a universe that had no beginning?
Science & Theology News. www.stnews.com. July/August 2006

RELIGIOUS DIVERSITY FLOURISHING IN UKRAINE

"PASTOR SUNDAY ADELAJA, a Nigerian preacher, understands why some in Ukraine are suspicious of him.

"He's black ... and a foreigner whose lively, conversational preaching style ... stands out from the subdued, centuries-old practices of Ukraine's traditional faiths. ...

"By delivering a you-can-do-it message of hope and redemption—along with such direct help as free meals and addiction counseling—The Embassy of The Blessed Kingdom of God for All Nations church has ballooned from a ministry for society's troubled into this ex-Soviet republic's first true megachurch, claiming a membership of 25,000 people.

"The church, informally called God's Embassy, boasts a TV ministry and plans for a $15 million church stadium, and aims to reach five million people—ten percent of Ukraine's population—with its message of salvation....

"Ukraine has long been an important religious center. ... While the Russian Orthodox Church made its base in Moscow, more than half of its registered churches were in Ukraine, including its most sacred monastery. But after the Soviet Union's breakup, the Orthodox church in Ukraine splintered, weakening its influence.

"'I don't think there is the assumption that because you live in Ukraine, you must go to a particular Orthodox church ... that makes it very different from Russia,' said Felix Corley, editor of Forum 18, a group that promotes religious freedom. 'Orthodoxy is very pluralistic in Ukraine. There is not one dominant church overshadowing everybody else.'

"That has given other faiths more confidence, and Ukrainians more choice."

Mara D. Bellaby
"Nigerian Preacher Runs Ukraine's First Megachurch"
© 2006 The Associated Press. August 4, 2006
Reprinted with permission. All rights reserved

TEENS CONNECT WITH THE BIBLE

"IN A RECENT SURVEY conducted by the American Bible Society, 70 percent of 12–15-year-olds surveyed said there are correlations between the messages of the Bible and the way they apply those messages to their lives. African American teens were significantly more likely to agree with this statement than teens of all other races and ethnic groups. More than 1,600 12–18-year-olds participated in a six-question survey conducted by Weekly Reader Research on behalf of the American Bible Society.

"The survey also revealed these newfound statistics: 51 percent surveyed were introduced to the Bible by their parents .... Roughly 56 percent of the respondents were introduced to messages of the Bible before age ten. Children who read the Bible before age ten were more likely to read the Bible regularly as teenagers....

"American Bible Society president Dr. Paul Irwin explained, 'We conducted the survey to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the role the Bible plays in the lives of teens in America. All of us were very excited to see, and have reinforced, the important role parents play in introducing the Bible to children at a young age.'

"Another major finding in the survey is how teens, especially girls, are likely to turn to the Bible in times of crisis."

American Bible Society
July 17, 2006