tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8989613902205547683.post4451663064516778099..comments2023-10-30T10:45:45.193+01:00Comments on Sort of San Francisco Fan Club: Lord, what fools these mortals beFram Actualhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01540773153894050197noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8989613902205547683.post-74952162067757725272009-05-31T03:05:18.207+02:002009-05-31T03:05:18.207+02:00You have given me an idea for travel, Kelly. I pro...You have given me an idea for travel, Kelly. I probably could put together a list of 20 people in 20 seconds who have crossed over the River Styx (or wherever) that I really would like to have interviewed. Why not put together a list of 20 who are still among us, and see if they are amenable to an interview? Such a "list of the living" I might want to interview would not be so easy for me to compile, but it is worth considering.<br /><br />As for your religious beliefs, I admire you and envy you for them, and believe that you practice Christian principals in your daily life. As I have said here before, I departed from organized religion when I was 14, and eventually came to define myself as an agnostic. <br /><br />The fact that I am in that position and value the church to the degree that I do is because of the Durants. Their wisdom convinced me that organized religion might be the only glue which holds the fabric of society in a unified form. <br /><br />It is fine for an individual to proclaim himself to be free of religion, but when an entire society does it, the result is an ever increasing growth in chaos and disorder and destruction, and an inevitable end to that society.Fram Actualhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01540773153894050197noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8989613902205547683.post-53374693134320725932009-05-30T22:11:49.311+02:002009-05-30T22:11:49.311+02:00Fram, I am awake from the dead and I believe my mi...Fram, I am awake from the dead and I believe my mind is once again in working order, although, I suppose some may find that debatable...LOL A good night's sleep did me well :D <br />The Durants were very fascinating people. Too bad they're not on this earth anymore. It would be lovely to spend an evening socializing with them. You're lucky to have met Will :)<br /><br />History, once recorded, will last for centuries but eventually artifacts may crumble or be forgotten. Understanding the past helps us to make better choices for our future. Thankfully, in my view, God is eternal. I believe God loves all his creation just as they are, even the slugs on the earth. It is not through what we do that makes God love us, it is simply because we are his creation. Organized religion and a personal relationship with the God of the Universe are two entirely separate things. <br /><br />Trusting in God, of course, is an act of faith, a choice to believe in the unbelievable, what you cannot physically see or touch on this earth. That, for me, is the magic and mystery and strength in my life. <br />You have given me much to think about today :)<br />Thank you!<br />Have a Happy Day!<br />xoxTheChicGeekhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10781656678543589662noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8989613902205547683.post-72786637873700988042009-05-30T04:43:43.464+02:002009-05-30T04:43:43.464+02:00Then, there was Katy.
Certainly, you are on solid...Then, there was Katy.<br /><br />Certainly, you are on solid ground, I think, in suggesting religion is born from other elements as well as simply fear. Ego had to be an ingredient in terms of "better than" or even in coming from the opposite direction, a desire to become a "favorite of" some greater power, as a means to inflate self-perception.<br /><br />I do not know if you have read any of Joseph Campbell's work, for example, but his concepts about the foundations of religion go back even beyond the origins of rational thought, and he theorizes that innate instincts are the basic building blocks of mythology. He asks, ".... does not [man] possess any innate tendencies to respond, in strictly patterned racial ways, to certain signals flashed by his environment and his own kind." By this means, reactions go on to evolve into rituals.<br /><br />In the area of religion, I think the Durants begin at the dawn of history in forming their conclusions, while Campbell begins even before there is a glow of light on the horizon.Fram Actualhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01540773153894050197noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8989613902205547683.post-47089946213697254102009-05-30T02:25:34.033+02:002009-05-30T02:25:34.033+02:00Fascinating stuff, Fram, thank you - and it seems ...Fascinating stuff, Fram, thank you - and it seems as if I've another book to add to my 'must read' list. I think your idea of an international book exchange is a good one, by the way...<br /><br />It's funny you should mention this - "it was fear that first made the gods" - today because I was thinking about the origins of religion in between looking at the rooks and the magpies on my way home from work. Like you do :-) <br /><br />Anyway, the thought that I had was that religion was at least partly born out of ego - our human desire to give ourselves a purpose beyond 'just being'. After all, birds and slugs and grass 'just be' and we thought ourselves somehow to be different from / better than that. And at the same time as a manifestation of our need to create definites where none exist (by coincidence what I've written about today). But fear of the power of nature is probably a much more likely explanation - it might even partly be the same thing?<br /><br />Anyway, looking forward to the next part of the tale on Sunday or whenever...Katyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15333746085472824454noreply@blogger.com