RE: New Deist user here.
July 17, 2015 at 10:25 am
(This post was last modified: July 17, 2015 at 10:38 am by The Grand Nudger.)
There are plenty of reasons that a person might seek out a terrifying authority, a great many of which are ungenerous. There's one which I particularly like (and it relates to christianity), though.
The notion of "wrestling with god". Perhaps you'd seek out that authority in order to have questions answered, voice your dissent, or generally present visible and palpable opposition to the claims made under color of it's name. You could end up as Israel, on that road, and of course that's what the name israel means...."he who wrestles with god". I suppose it probably doesn't make much sense to a great many christians without the overall context of the literary relationship between the jewish god and the jewish people. They bargained with god, they complained to him, they conversely took up his banner and abandoned it. They did not always see eye to eye, with god. At times the burden was too great, to be the chosen people, and they wished for release. At times they longed to see a return of his grace and favor. They hoped both that god was a god that would protect them from ruin but also that he was a god which would assist them in their own campaigns of annihilation.
So, they had plenty of reasons to seek that god out - regardless of whether or not they agreed with what god was doing or saying, even if they thought it was horrible. Their establishment myths scream out about a complex and dynamic understanding of their place in the world relative to forces they saw as being beyond their control. The christians got silly with it, but that's still part of their tradition and they could easily avail themselves -of it-.....as could you or I. To us, "seeking god" isn't conceptualized as a spiritual quest, it's a fact checking exercise, but, if you "wrestle with god" - herein conceptualized as disagreeing with his thuggish followers conceptions thereof - then this would be a fairly good reason to "seek god out". There are theists here (and atheists) who can, through "seeking god out" state by the authority which those idiots claim to accept.....that threatening people with hell, even passive aggressively, isn't kosher.
I am the Infantry. I am my country’s strength in war, her deterrent in peace. I am the heart of the fight… wherever, whenever. I carry America’s faith and honor against her enemies. I am the Queen of Battle. I am what my country expects me to be, the best trained Soldier in the world. In the race for victory, I am swift, determined, and courageous, armed with a fierce will to win. Never will I fail my country’s trust. Always I fight on…through the foe, to the objective, to triumph overall. If necessary, I will fight to my death. By my steadfast courage, I have won more than 200 years of freedom. I yield not to weakness, to hunger, to cowardice, to fatigue, to superior odds, For I am mentally tough, physically strong, and morally straight. I forsake not, my country, my mission, my comrades, my sacred duty. I am relentless. I am always there, now and forever. I AM THE INFANTRY! FOLLOW ME!
