The noted Roman Catholic monk and spiritual writer Thomas Merton was standing on a street corner in a busy Kentucky city in the 1960s. Suddenly he was overcome by the awareness that he was deeply in love with all of humanity. Has that ever happened to you? Do you expect it to?

I don't know that I have ever had a realization such as this. I'm not sure that it will; my personality tends to lean more towards the pragmatic and practical. I am more about spread sheets, results, things that I can measure and test. I think I won't be overcome by this awareness like Merton, but I do believe there is something to be said for sharing the great love for all people that God, the creator, shares with his creation. We are called to go out, to change the hearts and lives of the people that we encounter and come into contact with. 

The doctrine of the Trinity is the Christian answer to the old problem in philosophy of “the one and the many.” Think of your own family. How does your family structure reflect and even answer “the one and the many”? Think of other parts of your life where this dynamic of “the one and the many” is evident.

I think for me this argument reveals itself in self versus group. As a member of the family, I have a role as an individual; my role is different from that of my wife or my children. In my extended family, my role changes as my relationships grow and develop, or wither and die. Without me, the family is incomplete in some ways. This dynamic is none to often revealed when a family member reflects on a lost one: " he / she always used to do that". 

We can see the one and the many in a lot of areas. In a car, you have a variety of parts, each with their own role, yet each one is essential for the car to run at peak performance. If one part is lacking, it can cause undue wear on other parts. It won't be long before a car breaks down if a part is not functioning properly. 

For many years the missionary magazine of the Church of the Nazarene was called “The Other Sheep,” based on John 10:16. Read this verse in its context. What is the meaning of “the other sheep” to you personally?

For me, "the other sheep" are those who are not a part of the flock of Christ, but can join the flock. One metaphor that has always stuck out to me in regard to sheep is that the shepherd cannot make sheep; sheep are the ones who make sheep. We, as sheep, have the opportunity to make lone sheep a part of the flock of Christ. We can be out there, sharing his love, showing sheep the dangers in the world, and directing them to his love, mercy, and grace.  We are his sheep, and we must reach out to other sheep!

When I first heard about the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the New York World Trade Center and the USA Pentagon (or personal news) I felt like I was confused. I don't really remember myself truly grasping the impact of what was happening, or how the events of that day would affect so much of the future lives of generations of Americans. I remember feeling sad, confused, wondering what was going to happen, but not really having much of those events truly impact my day-to-day life. I can remember being at Wednesday Bible study, remembering some of my friends lamenting the amount of Television coverage the event was receiving. In retrospect, I wish I would have paid more attention as a teen that week.

Does the average Christian layperson really care about all of these philosophical arguments for the existence of God? Why?

I would say that the average layperson does not give a rip about the philosophical arguments for the existence of God. I would further posit that most of them do not even know these arguments. I would say that for many of them, the existence of God is explained in their personal experience and relationship with him. That, for many, is all the evidence that they need. The problem is that in a lot of circles of unbelief, this is not deemed a measurable quantity to be analyzed. With that said, these philosophical arguments should be a buttress for those things that we already experience as we grow and walk with Jesus, living in us. Evidence to back up the experience is an even greater tool in sharing the love and knowledge of Christ.