I will be addressing Liberty’s seven-sentence political statement on the DL in less than an hour, but I was just directed (HT: JD) to one of the most amazing statements I have read so far in response to the demotion of Ergun Caner by Liberty University. There are some folks that we all knew were completely disconnected from the space-time universe in how they handled (or refused to even acknowledge) the overwhelming factual information demonstrating Ergun Caner’s purposeful, and to this point, unrepented of, dishonesty. Some folks are beyond reasonable interaction and thought. But when I read this on Norman Geisler’s Facebook page, I was left without words (briefly, anyway):
Norman Geisler An extensive independent investigation has exonerated Dr. Ergun Caner of all the false charges made against him by extreme Muslims and others and has been retained as a Professor at Liberty University. In spite of a few misstatements (which we all make and he has corrected), nothing has diminished his testimony and orthodoxy as one of the great Christian voices of our time. I totally support him.
If Liberty exonerated Caner, why is he no longer Dean/President of the Seminary? What was he “apologizing” for? We are left to wonder. But the utter disconnect between a man who claims the facts support Christianity and his utter unwillingness to deal with the facts in this case can only be explained by abject cronyism. The “good ol’ boys network” run amuck. What a blight upon evangelicalism that without even a half-hearted attempt to interact with the mountain of documentation, Dr. Geisler would make such an outrageous statement. His willingness to engage in politics (Caner teaches for the seminary he is now promoting) at the expense of integrity and honesty in Christian apologetics is a sad commentary that will only encourage Caner to continue in his refusal to repent and seek restoration. Further, it should be noted that Dr. Geisler had accused those who had spoken the truth about Caner of libel and slander, and yet, when Liberty acknowledges at the very least “self-contradictory” statements, does he offer an apology? No, just as he somehow managed to find “free will” in John 6:44, he can find exoneration in the announcement of Caner’s demotion.
In contrast to this “facts? What facts?” attitude, Tom Chantry has provided another insightful commentary here.
