According to its website, here’s how Rutherford Institute wants to be known by the public:
Founded in 1982 by constitutional attorney and author John W. Whitehead, The Rutherford Institute is a civil liberties organization that provides free legal services to people whose constitutional and human rights have been threatened or violated.
The Rutherford Institute has emerged as one of the nation’s leading advocates of civil liberties and human rights, litigating in the courts and educating the public on a wide spectrum of issues affecting individual freedom in the United States and around the world.
No surprise–I’d certainly heard of them before. Imagine my surprise when a reader (thanks Tom W.!) sent me the PDF file of the October 1996 issue of their newsletter, Rutherford. The issue was devoted entirely to the subject of aliens and UFOs! Check out the issue at the link above–it has some good sections dealing with religious responses and cultural acclimation (via major media) to UFOs and ETs.
Fascinating article coming from Rutherford…I too have wondered about C.S. Lewis’ SF work, and have aquired all three volumes of the series, but have only read the first (Out Of the Silent Planet). I’m new to all of this (I’m following all of your blogs) so my head spins while trying to catch up. Do you have any comments on Lewis and his work, and how it pertains to your material?
Doug Barnett: I believe Lewis had some knowledge about the divine council and its associated worldview, primarily because of his mastery of comparative literature. For example, Jadis (the white witch) is a giant and has giant lineage in the first book. There’s stuff like that strewn across the Chronicles of Narnia.