Replies

Since deadpan doesn't seem to come through I'll say it flat out. If this is typical Christian youth fare, we're in trouble.

I watched as a single video the presentation of successively larger astronomical objects, followed by this. (Youtube has, I think, a 10 minute time limit, so these have to be split.) I was not impressed.

Re the astronomy thing, it's just numbers. With noone living there, it has no meaning. Hugh Ross of Reasons to Believe maintains that the universe we see out there is what it takes to have one planet like Earth. Anybody whose ever done any reading in astronomy (or for that matter, real science fiction (Star Trek doesn't count)) has some motion how deep the universe is, in space and time.

The lamenin thing is the evangelical equivalent of Roman Catholics seeing the BVM in a piece of burnt toast or an oil stain on the driveway. Pattern detection set too high, and a distraction.

Fred Butler says it well: "The Laminin Molecule and the Inadequacies of Evidentialism":

Snopes is one of the few websites I have hit regularly since I have had access to the internet beginning in the mid-90s. Their emphasis is cataloging, and in many cases, debunking popular urban legends floating around the culture, especially the internet. Snopes has been helpful for putting in perspective those impassioned email chain letters pleading with me to sign a petition to defend our free speech against atheist activists or outlawing Democrats. At least twice a week or so I check their "What's New" page for any new legends I should keep an eye out for.
One of the recent entries under the "What's New" page pertains to a sermon illustration utilized by evangelist Louie Giglio. It has to do with the cross shape of the laminin molecule, one of the basic biological building blocks in the cell. Giglio, in his talk (which is available in a clip located at the link), references Colossians 1:15-17 where Paul speaks of how Christ is the creator of all things and in Him and through Him all things consist. He then illustrates this passage by pointing out how the shape of the laminin molecule resembles a cross and then draws the conclusion that in the basic building blocks that holds all life together - the laminin molecule - God has revealed His hand of design by making the molecule appear in the form of a cross.
...
I am utterly unaware of who Louie Giglio is or what his ministry is all about. From the brief biographical information I saw on one of his websites, he is a typical, mega-church Southern Baptist who is a popular youth conference speaker. And though I would imagine his ministry has been a blessing to many folks over the years,he is one of those type of speakers who will tend to sensationalize Christian "evidences," like the laminin molecule, in order to make God appear to be really cool and neat-o.

Spot on.

But this misappropriation of Christian evidence has some hidden dangers that will undo your credibility as a messenger for God.
First, it capitulates to the culture, particularly the teen culture who already think being a Christian is "squaresville." Though there is good intentions with the attempt to show that believing in Jesus doesn't make a person an "L7,"

(Pay special attention right here.)

what happens when surly Devon goes home after one of these Giglio conferences where he opines on the shape of the laminin molecule, does an internet search only to discover that Giglio exaggerated his proof? All that shows is Christians can lie.
Secondly, the illustration merely trivializes the Gospel. Honestly, does the laminin molecule have to look like a cross in order for God to be a perfect creator? How does a cross shaped molecule help God out exactly? How does it make God more real? Isn't the fact that there is a complex, self-replicating molecule to begin with proof enough for God's hand in all of life? This illustration runs along the same lines as Ray Comfort's banana evidence for the existence of God that I wrote about last year when he was going to do a national debate with some atheists on ABC's Nightline.
Honestly, when I see evidences like this being put forward as "proof" for the Christian faith, I see someone ashamed of the power of the Gospel and lacking trust in the sufficiency of God's written Word.