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Thursday, 27 August 2009

Currently
The Evolution of God
By Robert Wright
see related
The Trinity, The Three Jewels, and William James

This post started as a response to a comment by galthouse on this post by SirNickDon (who's posts I recommend highly).

To give a quick summary: SirNickDon asked whether or not the Trinity was necessary as an absolute indicator of doctrinal fitness to be considered a Christian. The responses overwhelmingly said yes. I myself responded to some these comments asking for clarification and substantiation. However my response to first part what galthouse wrote became so bloated I decided to make it into a full post. For context I'll quote the first part to which I directed my response directly:

The trinity is essential for God to be who He says He is. Without a triune God, love could not exist until man was created. Until man was created this lone god, would not know love, because there was no one else to love. So then, love could not have been a part of God from the beginning, but a created thing. Love, friendship, and community are only possible because of a triune God.

My response:

I have to admit I'm confused on what you mean by your argument. If you mean that there was no love, friendship, or community before we discovered the concept of the Trinity, this statement is so obviously false it hardly needs refutation. If you mean that the Trinity has ALWAYS been the base of all love, friendship, and community even when people didn't know it, this means that it isn't necessary for the Trinity to be explicitly stated for people to get its benefits, as love, friendship, and community existed before the doctrine of the Trinity was consciously formulated by human minds. So all you've done at most is prove the doctrine of the Trinity is sufficient for love, friendship, and community, not that it's necessary.

I would take the argument against your conclusions further however. There are several world religions out there which say that certain doctrines are essential for love, friendship, and community to exist. To offer just one example, the Buddhists have their Three Jewels: The Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha. So anytime a Buddhist sees love, friendship, and community they will go "Ah-ha! Further proof that the Three Jewels are necessary!" Not only that, the exceptionally devout will reflect on the Three Jewels and try to integrate the implications of these ideas into their every day life. And my guess is, if they take it seriously, they most likely WILL become more loving, better friends, and more aware of their community. I also have no doubt that if you spend time meditating on the Trinity and how God is foundationally relational, you too will start to become more focused on relating better to those around you, seeing others as separate and yet unified with yourself. The key here is that two separate justifications produce exactly the same results. There's a lovely phrase of William James which I have recently become quite fond of: "The difference that makes no difference is no difference." If we see no difference between believing "x" or "y" to get "z" then "x" and "y" are equally up to the task of getting the job done and arguing over them is not going to accomplish much. To me it seems that the Trinity is a convenient place holder for the believer, providing a cosmological promissory note that gives a means for justifying their hope that working for such values will not be in vain. There's nothing wrong with that, but there's also nothing essential.

Pragmatically Yours,
A. Rust

Friday, 13 February 2009

A random geek idea for a bumper sticker on a lazy Friday at the office.

Yea for Spinoza Jokes

Friday, 19 December 2008

Currently
The Denial of Death
By Ernest Becker
see related
Messy Lessons

Killing time before I head to my train. I'm at a Starbucks in Chicago. The snow is thick and soupy with large piles along the side of the street blocking the sidewalk from the road. My stalwart Chicagoans, however, will not be deterred. Out they walk into the world. What's interesting is to watch how each of them deal with the snow pile that divides the street from the sidewalk when they cross the street. Some walk forward with conviction blasting through the pile, others try to figure out a way to optimally avoid snow contact and usually wind up wobbling as they contort their body to make sure that they accumluate the smallest amount of mush on their person.

To move forward sometimes a person just has to take the mush.

I think there's a lesson for me here.

Observationally yours,
A. Rust

Wednesday, 05 November 2008

Now to work

I watched Barack Hussein Obama accept his countries nomination as President-Elect of the United States of America. I was there in Chicago, in Grant Park, when CNN called the election.

The audience roared.

In the aftermath one of the pundits on CNN's panel read a section from the last speech Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered before being shot:

I don't know what will happen now. We've got some difficult days ahead. But it doesn't matter with me now. Because I've been to the mountaintop. And I don't mind. Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I'm not concerned about that now. I just want to do God's will. And He's allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I've looked over. And I've seen the promised land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people, will get to the promised land. And I'm happy, tonight. I'm not worried about anything. I'm not fearing any man. Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord.

When the pundit read these words, I realized for the first time what having a black president meant. Ludacris hadn't been ludicrous enough. Painting the White House black was nothing. Barack Hussein Obama had painted America black. When King said, "we, as a people, will get to the promised land" he had meant black Americans. In this strange new world however, the words are made fresh. "We as a people" has become "We the people."

Nobody knows whether President-Elect Obama will be successful in tackling the problems facing our country. If he is, it won't be because of him alone, it will be because his rhetoric will inspire ordinary citizens to do what Americans do best, get out, get to work, and do the impossible one step at a time. A sea change has happened in America already though. In one of those strange paradoxes that leads to the start of psychic healing, because of the color of his skin, Americans will now be better able to judge each other by the content of their character.

Yours,
A. Rust

"They still call it the White House, but that's a temporary condition."
-Parliament
"Chocolate City"

Sunday, 24 August 2008

Currently Listening
The Velvet Underground & Nico
By The Velvet Underground, Nico
Venus in Furs
see related
Things Learned in Rockford So Far

-It's nice not knowing anyone.

-School created my ADD learning style, as opposed to revealing it.

-Slowly working on making a monastic life for myself. Minus the intensely Christian undertones and with more sex.

-Freud never had a shrink, he just didn't let himself off the hook. I think I'm going to model myself on him for awhile.

-Few things are more rewarding than sustained, focused reading on one topic.