Sorry for the late response, Russ, but thank you for your sanity. In these days of despising The Other, good manners are much appreciated.
A Jesuit wrote a book about interviews he had with silicon valley engineers/scientists about religion and their attitudes towards it. (Talk about the lion's den!) In it he talks about The Litany. Not one used in a mass, but the flood of "I can't believe you believe/did XX". He learned to stay quiet for the several minutes it took for the flood to abate. (As the Vatican Astronomer, he's used to it, 1/2 the year in Flagstaff, the other just south of Rome where pretty good small body astronomy is done) Then at the end, very gently, he had to explain: I really don't care about these things, I only care about what I can control/be and do that the best I can. It was the most liberating realization of its kind for me because it was true for me as well. So thanks again! -- Owen On Thu, Mar 22, 2012 at 11:31 PM, Russ Abbott <russ.abb...@gmail.com> wrote: > Doug, I don't want to pick on you, but your certificate strikes me as > indirect bullying. > > I'm as atheistic as they come, but I know a number of people who (for > reasons that I don't understand) take religion quite seriously. They are > intelligent, pleasant people, not the sort to rub their beliefs in anyone's > face. Most are politically left of center. One has a bumper sticker that > reads "A proud member of the religious left". > > Why pick on them? I'm sure you don't intend to. I'm sure you are making > fun of the Rick Santorums of the world. It's just that by casting as wide a > net as the Flying Spaghetti Monster does, it also makes fun of everyone > with religious feelings. > > The answer someone like Sam Harris would give is that what they say is > either false or without any shred of objective support. But the people I'm > thinking of don't go around proclaiming their beliefs as The Truth. They go > about their business simply wanting to experience the world through a > different lens. The fact that I don't understand it -- and I don't; I'm > completely mystified by their way of thinking about certain things -- > doesn't give me the right to ridicule it. > > Sorry for the rant. > > *-- Russ* >
============================================================ FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv Meets Fridays 9a-11:30 at cafe at St. John's College lectures, archives, unsubscribe, maps at http://www.friam.org
