“A New Theology of Celebration”, by Francis S. Collins

F. Collins in his persuasive article is trying to argue that the faith and science can cooperate and happily co-exist. I think the fact that the author tells about his conversion into Christian at 27 years old, makes his argument even stronger because he was able to look at things from two different perspectives. I respect the decision of F. Collins about becoming a convert as I believe that people along with getting older become wiser. Most likely the author’s disbelief in God until 27 was influenced and imposed by his parents, peers or specific literature, but later in life the scientist: “became convinced through reading the logical arguments of C.S. Lewis and the words of the Bible that belief in God was more plausible than atheism” (622). Throughout his entire article F. Collins was trying to make a point that uncovering details about God’s creations with the help of science can become a form of worship.  In conclusion the author calls the readers upon for the belief in cooperation between faith and science and affirms that that it the right way to live. I can’t say that the article “A new theology of celebrations” made a great influence on me, but I definitely enjoyed reading it as I share the same opinion about peaceful coexistence of science and fait as the author does. I happened to be a friendly audience of the article and every thought that I was reading just expressed my own views and beliefs. But for those who do not share the opinion of F. Collins, I think that the argument is very well written and is able to persuade or at least make readers meditate upon the idea of connection between faith and science.

“What Happy Holidays?” by Cathy Young

 “What happy holidays?” is an argumentative article that, I believe, was written by the really professional columnist, Cathy Young. I liked the structure of the article that the author used. She started with the introduction of the issue to the audience, clearly identifying the two opposing viewpoints of the argument concerning Christmas decorations. Later in the text she gave some more detailed reasons and explanations that people from the different sides gave to support their ideas. The author also presented some facts about Christmas decorations in her home town and in some other cities of the United States.  In the middle of the article Cathy Young made it clear for the readers that her attitude towards the displays of religious celebrations and oppression of the citizens who are from different religions was negative. In the two following paragraphs the columnist supported her thesis very expressively and thoughtfully. In the conclusion of her article, Cathy Young doesn’t give a solution to the problem but assumes why this conflict hasn’t been successfully resolved yet.  And I absolutely agree with her assumption and find myself on the same side of the arguments. I believe, Cathy Young’s article makes a very strong and supportive argument. The article was written in a beautiful way, introducing the readers with some background information, clear thesis, proper examples, peoples’ viewpoints and a thoughtful conclusion.