Go to Naut's Thoughts
- Add a comment
- Go to The ‘Non-Existing Existing God’ Revisited – Response to Mneme, Part I
Naut
what can I add? Not a lot, will wait for part two. However ... when we read Proverbs 3.:5-6 there's a little reminder of how we are meant to respond to God: "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will direct your path." It's funny how life hauls one back, time and again, to the collected knowledge of the ages. I love this topic right now, it's making me go back to Thomas Aquinas and the 'five ways' of proving the existence of God. Wonderful - what a mind, whether you agree with him or not.
posted by
mneme
on January 31, 2009 at 5:27 PM
| link to this | reply
it is the chicken and egg dilemma all over again, isn't it?
but because of my currrent state of mind, one part of your piece got me thinking more than the rest (though every bit is as laden as the rest and commands as much thought).
you mentioned that churches are falling vacant. is that the real problem as it is or is it just a result of another problem, many faceted but describable as, quite simply, deviation from civilisation? from another perspective, i find that (and please, i mean no offense to anyone here) empty churches is really not problem at all, as long as the 'purpose' of the church - to me, furthering humane conduct and nurturing healthy emotions and thus productive relationships - is propagating outside it. As far as i am concerned, the church is where good thought ripens into good intent and moves on to positive action - it is not a building, not even a congregation of people. it is a congregation of minds and that can happen anywhere there is opportunity.
my apologies if i have digressed totally.
posted by
bythewindowsill
on January 31, 2009 at 12:35 AM
| link to this | reply
Very intersting, Naut.....very thought provoking
You have my grey matter on overload.
posted by
hazel_st_cricket
on January 30, 2009 at 9:44 PM
| link to this | reply
Hi Naut - great post, looking forward to Part II
"Churches are empty, or closing altogether. Their bells have fallen silent..." - and what a great pity that is, along with the scrapping of 16th-Century language and cadence. Just call me a traditionalist.
posted by
mneme
on January 30, 2009 at 4:03 PM
| link to this | reply
What you write
makes alot of sense. It makes me feel very watered down as far as religion goes. If there were some strong pillar to hold on to, I'd like to. There is something to be said for staunchness! I think I am a wayward soul.
posted by
KaBooM62
on January 28, 2009 at 6:41 PM
| link to this | reply
Interestingly, in reading your post, I was compelled to try to place myself in the part of your writing that I thought described the best, my spot in all of that. Every time I thought I had found it, you made another statement that kicked me out of that place and sent me on a search for another. I decided that I am a misfit if that is all you have. I shall wait for the next chapter of Naut's 'non-existing existing God'.
posted by
TAPS.
on January 28, 2009 at 1:05 AM
| link to this | reply
Yep, religion is a very good way to control the populace, to make the "community" more homogeneous. Just too bad that the women had (still have) to pay the price for it...
posted by
auslander
on January 27, 2009 at 7:14 AM
| link to this | reply
Such a difficult subject! I look forward to the second part! Shelly
posted by
sam444
on January 27, 2009 at 1:56 AM
| link to this | reply
As my kids repeat time and time again; Did God create man or did man create God? They are proclaimed aethists. I have a more personal spiritualism that has nothing to do with prosthletizing. Mal
posted by
gapcohen
on January 26, 2009 at 4:09 PM
| link to this | reply