Constructive Criticism

Hi Mark,

Good luck on the blog project! There are a couple of blog ideas of my own that I've had that have stalled at the starting line, so it is no small thing to get the ball rolling as you have.

Two observations about the project. Fostering engagement from any audience is a challenge even in topics that are light and fun. Doing so on the topic of religion is that much more of a challenge given the energy required to participate. By its very nature it is likely to turn into a kind of debate. This kind of dialog may be exactly what you are looking for, so no harm in giving it a go. I do think that you may have to populate the blog with entries that you generate on your own (without questions or prompting from others) so that the posts can be there for people to come to when THEY are ready to engage. If you gently promote blog entries through twitter etc. eventually someone will drift over to the site and hopefully get caught up in the subject, presented in your "voice."

This brings me to the second observation. I scratched my head a bit at what appears to be an over reliance on external links and references for someone to check out; links to folks who "say it better than you." As the author of the blog (of any blog) I do believe that you should write with authority. I don't mean that you should come across as having all the answers or being a "know-it-all", rather people will want to read what YOU have to say about the subject. If there is some relevant info in a link, by all means provide it, but you should always synthesize the info from external sources for your reader right in the blog entry itself, and in your voice. I understand that this may be a fine line to walk with regards to religion: speaking your mind and not putting forward the very "belligerent" tone that you are trying to combat in others. This then is the major challenge!

It is likely that you already know about both of these observations. Then my input is more about encouraging you to continue to develop "that voice" that creates content more that it passes content along.

Hope these notes are helpful. Feel free to quote any of this email--using my name if you wish--if there is anything you want to address on the blog itself.

Cheers,

Bob Mills

P.S. Here is a topic/question: As an atheist I don't hold that the bible holds any authority as a "divine" work. I routinely tune-out biblical quotes as "evidence" of the existence or will of God--not to mention the divinity of Jesus. So how does one argue about the existence of God without using a source like the bible to bolster arguments?

Bob,

     Thanks so much for your words of encouragement and honesty. I just had to smile as I read your email because, as you said, I knew exactly what you were talking about. This is really new to me and I know I am putting myself out there in doing this...makes me nervous. However, from the responses I have seen so far, I feel that this will be a great place to bring up topics on Christianity that can be discussed in a civil understanding way from both parties.

  As far as the fear that no one was seeing this blog...I guess I have gotten so used to the instant reply to online posts(especially when religion is involved) that I have been spoiled. Obviously I feel that this is a very important forum for discussion, so I guess I was a little over anxious to see some immediate results. Now that a couple of days have gone by...I see that I will have more than enough to keep me busy.

   I was a little worried about just posting links to info only. I don't want this to be just that. I am a sub-novice writer at best, but I do want to improve and to be able to put these things into my own words the best I can. Emails like yours are and will be great for me to see...I greatly appreciate it! The links are mostly to point to teachings that I think are very good and informative. There is a lot of content in them that I agree with and want to share, but at the same time I do want to do my own research and present my own arguments to the reader. A secondary reason is that I do want to show that there are many other Christians out there that are scholarly, intelligent, and are presenting in a very Christian manner, with love and respect. There is way too much hate from both sides these days and that is one of the things I want to keep well away from this blog.

  I don't know if you had a chance to read my response to Kevin, but I feel that post had a fairly good format(and hopefully some good content) followed by some relevant links.

  The question that you posed at the end really made me smile as well. That topic was one of the main ones I wanted to start looking into because I feel that it is a very important one. It may be a while before I can comment on it because I really want to do my research. There is a ton if info out there from people who have spent years studying the validity of the Bible(so expect more links). I have some more thoughts on this brewing in my head, but they are best left until I can put together a more meaningful post on the subject.

  Again, thanks so much for showing that atheists and Christians can and do have meaningful and respectful discussions. I hope to have many more with you and others in the future.

Mark "ClydeFrog" Ritter