Apostate

For the record: a Muslim student whom I admire says this is funny no matter who you are. I say it's funny if you don't take yourself, your faith (or no-faith) , or your species too seriously. Religion and philosophy are so much more fun when we can all laugh at ourselves.

I guess that's an invitation: hit me with your best atheist joke.

The problem of good

Jesus and Mo are right: there is a lot of good in the world, along with the pain and suffering highlighted by the philosophical problem of evil.

"Whatever." That's not usually regarded, in philosophy, as a conclusive refutation.

But at some point you have to stop arguing and consult your heart, on this question of how much human suffering is too much to lay at the feet of Divine Perfection.

Bertrand Russell's heart, head, and wit led him to this incredulous question:

Do you think that, if you were granted omnipotence and omniscience and millions of years in which to perfect your world, you could produce nothing better than the Ku Klux Klan or the Fascists?

What do you think?

a perfect pint

Platonic Perfection: always elusive, but sometimes worth chasing.

ineffable

1. Mysticism is the deliberate transformation of consciousness in an attempt to gain access to a higher  ________, on the assumption that ordinary thought and language cannot express it.

2. Jewish mysticism is called ________ , or "tradition". ______ is an Islamic mystical tradition related to neo-Platonism which aims to eliminate ___ .

3. "What is the sound of one hand clapping?" is an example of a ___ ____, which attempts to subvert our usual habits of thought and break down everyday logical thinking.

4. Zen Buddhism says all things depend on their relations to everything else, implying the ____________ of everything.

5. Admirers of Aristotle who walked around with him as he lectured were called ____________. They were strongly influenced by ________.

6. _________ rejected Neoplatonism and said literalism was good enough for ordinary people but that educated people required persuasive, reasoned argument.

7. _________ attempted to reconcile religion with reason and science.

8. _______, whose motto was "Faith seeking to understand," advanced his ontological argument for the existence of God in order to ___________. (persuade nonbelievers, clarify "God" for believers)

9. _______ was a nominalist, contending that only individuals exist. Those who say that universals exist are ________. Abelard's view was that they are tricked by _____.

10. Aquinas agreed with Aristotle: an ______________ makes no sense and should not be accepted in philosophy or theology.

free willy

Much talk in class yesterday of free will as an explanation of evil and suffering in the world. Jesus and Mo need to be heard, on this:

And Colin McGinn, too:



And Bart Ehrman. We'll hear from him on our campus in Murfreesboro, TN on Feb. 18, 2011... God willing.

Muslim hippies?

Like I said in class, "Jesus and Mo" are equal-opportunity offenders.

I happen to like Muesli, myself. And some of my best students are Sufi.

this

"This" is why theists and atheists will never finally resolve their differences, based on the appearances of things, and ought to resolve to let them stand. "Respect one another's mental freedom," as WJ would say.

no mystery

narrative validity

Let a thousand narratives bloom. But which side are you on?

mirrors

People who live in straw houses...

The barmaid had a lot more to say in the previous installment, about affirmative atheist values.

playing Craig

Everyone needs a role-model.

spiritually drained

J&M would like to leave the worldly world behind, too. They're like, y'know, balefully influenced by terse text/netspeak...

But they're not the only ones who need to unplug and reconnect. At least on Sunday. (Beginning next week?)

BTW: here's what urbandictionary.com says "FTW" means...

shrill?

Like J&M's, the Scientologists' ears ring too when I tell my students I don't respect anyone's belief in "dianetics" and Xenu the inter-galactic volcano-smasher. Sorry.

But thanks to the local chapter of the C of S for the set of L. Ron Hubbard's writings they sent over to my colleagues and me last week. I'll do my best to keep them out of general circulation.

quaking quacks

Speaking of pagan holidays: some events just totally defy rational explanation, J&M know.

Henceforth the creation of Boobquake: A day of action that calls on women worldwide to dress scandalously and prove wrong the Iranian cleric who blames natural disasters on immodest cleavage. Led by US's Purdue University student Jennifer McCreight, a 24-hour protest was staged, codenamed Boobquake on Monday. -"Boobquake Protest"

new commandments

In case this wasn't covered in your Sunday School either, Hitch explains...

shift happens

I met Thomas Kuhn once, as an undergrad, when he came to speak at our school. I didn't block my ears, but I really don't recall a word he said. Something about paradigms shifting.

moderation

J&M have a point. But so does Sam Harris when he says moderates are extremists' enablers.

compatible

This isn't a great analogy, since religious scientists aren't breaking any laws, assaulting any minors, or-- in the strict sense of the word-- committing any perversions. But J & M make the point in spite of themselves: the mere fact that there are such persons does not in itself reconcile their underlying goals and motivations.

humble

Humility is a virtue. Jesus and Mo think they know that... but this is not exactly what Carl Sagan had in mind when he wrote that "the best way to engage the religious sensibility, the sense of awe, is to look up on a clear night."

"secular fundamentalism"

That may be a label I can live with, J & M.