What Dreams May Come
It seems that mankind has
always needed gods. I'm suggesting that fear of the unknown, even before we
became "intelligent", created the need to pile our anxiety on
something greater than us. At that
time, our fragile world of survival was dominated by a bunch of things that
could and would kill us. Predators,
unexplained illness, accidents and natural disasters all fed the need to be
protected.
The thunder god, shaking
earth god, the sun god, moon god/goddess, the list seems endless.
The advent of society and
the spoken word created the holy man.
Then, with written text, came the first holy books (probably stone or
wood tablets, then paper books later).
Problem is, the gods became more powerful with the written word. Religions could be standardized and whole
countries could be controlled.
I submit that as our
understanding of the cosmos has grown the need for gods has decreased. We now
understand what thunder is and why the earth shakes. We know where the sun goes at night and how our own bodies can
kill us. The god of the gaps is fading
ever so slowly.
Understanding does not
necessarily equate to intelligence and acceptance. Sometimes dreams are sacrosanct and inviolable. Seems it's easier to accept far fetched
ideas than reality. For some, dreams
are harder to kill than reality.
It's high time we started
dreaming of something that actually works.
Walk the Path in Grace
Dreaming of something that actually works sounds pretty good to me. I fear that religion still has plenty of life left in it and that it will not go away quietly. But there is a sense that the tide may finally be shifting a bit.
ReplyDeleteWe only think we are intelligent now. Our understanding of the universe is minuscule. I don't believe that is a strong argument for dismissing God. Every age has thought they were at last THE age of intelligence. Every age has felt superior to the last.
ReplyDeleteWhat makes you feel you,of all peoples that have ever been, possess the decisive knowledge that God is no longer needed?
It sounds as though a lot of people that label themselves as atheists want to make themselves into a god. They are all they need. They have the final knowledge to lead the rest of us idiotic, brainless sheep down the true path of nothingness and random interpretation of inner conscience.
I am not convinced. I don't even wonder "what if there is no God".
Thanks for your thoughts. I enjoy reading your blog.
I appreciate the complement.
DeleteI don't know where you get the idea that atheists think they are gods. How does being self-sufficient make one a god? I'm not dismissing a god because I can't dismiss what never existed.
I'll admit we have a long way to go on intelligence but we no longer have to fear a god to get through our daily lives. I don't believe in Thor or Zeus or Aphrodite and I'll bet you don't either. So, I just go one god further and don't believe in yours. How do you know you've chosen the right one of the 3,000 or so that have existed?