It was on a cool October evening in 2005 when I logged onto Blogger for the first time and created an account that would eventually lead to the birth of this blog. I was going through much contemplation and reflection at the time regarding my loss of faith, and I decided that a blog would be the best platform on which to capture and express my thoughts. On October 16 of that year I posted up my first article, Complexity of Mind. You can’t imagine how excited I was when my posts started soliciting comments; I was quite surprised that people actually took my writing seriously enough to respond. Well, it’s taken some time, but this post is my 100’th.
Memoirs of an ex-Christian has provided me with the opportunity to share my ideas on philosophy, religion, atheism, and evolution with a variety of people from different backgrounds and beliefs. And ‘people’ is the key word here: without your participation – without all your comments, thoughts, emails and ideas related to my articles – this blog would have been a useless endevour. Each one of you, through all the discussion and debate, has left a positive impact on my thinking.
Although I want to thank all of you who have either written on this blog or taken the time to email me, I would like to thank the following individuals in particular for their willingness to challenge my thinking:
Brian from Estonia; Brock; Casey Kochmer; CyberKitten; Dar; Don from Canada; eddie; ercatli; Jason Hughes; KenC; Kevin Cadman; Kyaroko; Laughing Boy; Lui; marc; Mark Fouche; Mike; Noell; P3T3RK3Y5; paul; r10b; Rodolfo; Roger Saner; Shmanky; Skywolf; Stardust1954; Steve Hayes; Sze Zeng; Tichius; Tin Soldier; and Zoe.
If your name appears above but is not linked to your site, please email me with the address so I can acknowledge your blog as well. And please let me know if I've linked you incorrectly.
Not only do I want to thank these individuals who I’ve interacted with through cyberspace, but I also want to thank personal friends who have also provided insight into my journey, either through reading this blog, the Bordlerlands discussion group, or through personal discussions. I want to thank Cori, my wife; Jono and Candice Smith; Rutger Wielenga; Andrew (Drew) Davies; Anne-Marie Smith; James Roger; Jacomein van Niekerk; Geertje and Bob Wielenga; Ian Stuart and Debbie Garner.
It is only through constructive dialogue with all of you that my thinking has been enriched, and it is through you that I’ve realized the truth of what Socrates said when he proclaimed that an unexamined life is not worth living.
Thank you to you all. look forward to another 100 posts of discussion, debate and dialogue.
All the best
Kevin
Some of you might be wondering what the jumble of words are at the top of the post. These words represent a word cloud of this site, and it highlights the most common words that have been used in all my articles – the larger the word, the more often it has appeared on this blog. I think it gives a very nice overview of the main topics covered in these 100 posts.
10 comments:
Congratulations.
Though your blog is primarily a way to express (and test) your own thoughts and ideas, it has given many of us a means to express (and test) our own. I hope that the next 100 posts will continue to map your personal growth and that those of us who take the counter-point will imitate your graciousness and thoughtfulness.
All the best to you.
Congratulations on your *first* 100 posts. I really enjoy the debates here which is why I keep coming back. They have helped to shape my understanding of things too.
Keep up the good work and thanks for the link back to my place.
It's been a pleasure interacting with you Kevin - enjoyed the ride, and sorry it's slacked off recently :( Congratulations on your 100 posts!
Congrats. I've only actually just discovered this blog. It's looks REALLY interesting. I'll be spending some time here reading through your past stories I'm sure. I always like seeing people's personal thoughts on their conversion either to or from religion. I find it fascinating. Good luck with your next 100 posts.
Well yes, the primary purpose of having a public blog is to be able to share thoughts and test ideas by getting comments from others, some of which help and some don't.
Without the response, you might as well just write the stuff on your own computer, but that can be a bit like talking to yourself.
Hi Kevin,
It's Don from Canada. Sorry for the silence on my side but believe it or not I have finally registered as a Blogger. If you visit Cori's site today you'll see my post there under my new Blogger name and where it comes from.
100 posts eh? Well done. I continue to be amazed at the amount of effort you put into your blog site.
Incidentally, I have now completed my course with RTB and so am now a Certified Apologist. What that means is that I better understand what I don't know!!
Look forward to talking with you.
All the best,
Don
Well Kevin, when I found your blog (I can't remember how) it was like finding a fresh body of water. Ah, this guy knows. This guy has been on the journey. He's a great writer and he's a respectful and kind young man. (Yes, compared to me, you are young!) *wink*
Even when I wasn't blogging I tried to remember to check in and see if you were still here.
Commenting isn't my strong suit. Being a loyal reader is more my thing. I'm more like a silent witness.
Continued blogging success! Well done. :-)
Hello Kevin,
congratulations on your 100th post. A remarkable achievement and one that I hope to emulate.
I am aware of your loss of FAITH which of course worries me but is something that I simply have to acknowledge.
Thanks all for your comments and well wishes! And Don: congrats on your achievement. Let me know when you start writing for RFB.
All the best
Kevin
Congratulations Kevin!
I count you a friend in the journey - and am surprised by the proximity of our paths on our respective journeys.
you make atheists (and humanity?) look good bro, by the way that you dialogue - you challenge me in that.
i read because you ask us to really examine why we believe what we believe... you get to the root questions. I'd invite you to my church as guest speaker if I could (seriously!!! if you and Cori ever travel to Washington DC – you’re on!).
grace & peace
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