First Conceived: 24/02/20, 2340
Welcome back my DAWK council. I wanna know what your thoughts are on this whole god situation. Real or conceptual? Useful or harmful? Worthy of further investigation? Hit me, no holding back.
The King was quick to respond “Ahh, and so the boy has finally asked THE question. God, a cloud of ambiguity. I’m sure you are in for a mixed bag of views today son. Nevertheless, I will lend you my wisdom. I take a somewhat practical view on the matter. Who, or what, is this element that has governed our lands for many millennia? Society has been constructed around deities for as long as we know, even though it seems to becoming of less importance in our times. Nevertheless, it has built our moral systems; it knows both good and evil. It is timeless; the traditions are passed on from generation to generation, evolving where need be. It is omnipresent; you cannot escape it. It is limitless; as opposed to humans, the limited. Why has this idea survived then? You could pose that it is mere chance, or the stupidity of our ancestors whom blindly passed on information they did not fully understand. However, you could also argue there was something worth saving, something of conservation necessity. I stand in arms for the latter. I truly believe if we were to rid ourselves of God, with all of its associated horrors, then something even more horrendous would step in to take the crown. In saying that, those who are fundamentalists on the matter, those who only see the way of God, are stuck in the past. They are a threat to the human regime, as are those who long for the death of God. Therefore, we are best situated somewhere in the middle, somewhere between the two extremes (as is usually the case). Let us look at some of your questions. Real or conceptual? If you mean is God a great man living in the clouds with a mighty beard, sporting a white robe, I would have to say I do not know. It really depends on what you mean by “God”. To me, a conceptual view of God is the most practical and to act as though there is a God serves as a compass for reality. Useful or harmful? Well, both. God brings with it both the most horrible events of the past, and the most amazing ideas to come from humans. Worthy of further investigation? I believe so, for I operate under the axiom that our ancestors were not stupid and they preserved these books for an eternity with purpose. I shall finish by sharing the way in which I use God. I like to conceive of God as a metaphysical representation of my values. He is my ideal, real or conceptual; it matters not. Everything I consider a requirement in life and everything I consider to be of importance in character; that is God. For example, I am an advocate for order, respect, diligence, honesty and loyalty (among a many other virtues and values). This is what God represents, symbolically, for myself. As I pray to God, I am consulting these ideals, something that I strive to be every day, something to aspire towards. God is a judge in this sense, for said God is the epitome of being. We need this judge, for if we lack one, who will stop us down the path of evil? A judge keeps us on track and pushes us to be better. Therefore, God is an ideal, and an ideal is always a judge.”
The Witch had heard enough. “Schmuck. Absolute schmuck! Fuck God. Fuck the whole idea of some dude living in the sky that made the law of the land. Fuck the guy that decides what is right and what is wrong; it’s all bullshit! We have been fed this lie forever. What, we just believe a book written by an old person? A book that says people lived till 600 years old, that a man turned water into wine, a man that split the ocean in two. Fuck off! It’s laughable, how in the world do these gullible pricks buy into this shit? The sooner we dispose of this religious shit the better, ALL OF IT. Surely you can see that boy? This system needs to be challenged! Burn it to the ground and we can start fresh. Seize the day! You can’t sit here and tell me that you believe any of the nonsense this so call wise one just splurted out. Metaphysical? What the even is that! It’s just a way for someone to complicate what God is. The fact is, people believe that a man in the sky made everything and that we have to listen to him. Simple. Do you really believe that? Do you? Didn’t think so. We don’t need this word ‘God’ so people will follow. People are real, God is not. People should be able to do what people can do; they will decide what works from trial and error. It’s just horse shit, people going to a random building on a Sunday (a god dam Sunday!) to give them their hard earnt money. Fuckin schemers, trying to convert people all the time so they can eat out their pockets. Scumbags! Real or conceptual? Well, if you haven’t figured, it’s neither. He is fake, a way for people to exploit others and judge them. Useful or harmful? Just read a fuckin history book foolish boy, harm is all through it signed off by Mr. God. Pretty much every single war was a consequence of this God guy. Disgusting. Worthy of further investigation? I’m not even going to answer that question. Break the system boyo! Don’t buy into their shit for a second because they are nothing but great salesmen!”
The Devil burst out in a fit of laughter, “Hahahahaha oh, that is priceless. Easy you old hag, easy, you’ll pop a blood vessel. The boy will not even have the chance to break the system. So you finally ask about my old friend eh? Interesting. Look, I believe there needs to be a system of sorts. However, “God’s” system is sub-optimal. God does not care about you, he doesn’t care about anyone. If he did, he would answer their preys. Literally answer. Where has he been? If this omnipresent being is real, then he certainly does not want us to know. Why does he let innocent children die every day? Why is cancer a reality? Why the horrors of life? How are we meant to respond to such catastrophe all around us? Well he expects our kind to follow him blindly. And if we don’t? Punishment. Eternal pain you could not even imagine. Why does this being have the power to do that? Because this book told us that is the way it is. I mean, I do side with the Witch here and think it sounds a bit like “horse shit.” Now if God were present on this earth, it might be a different story. Someone tangible, a leader that could make the world.. all the better. One man, who had the power to make everything, everyone, ok. In this sense, I like the idea of a God; I just do not think we have found the correct God figure as of yet, or the correct system for that matter. Think of a man with significant power who did play the role of God in his nation; Hitler. What if that God was the God we read about in the bible? It is not as ridiculous question as you may think boy, no no no, not by any means of the imagination. Are there similarities between the two? Well, I think you will find God successfully wiped out several stages of humanity during his reign, and Hitler almost did. So the two shared a desire for destruction in some way. Maybe the right God hasn’t been found yet? And that is where I.. I mean, we step in my friend. We could set it all right. We could reinvent the word ‘God’! Why not? The word has evolved into different meaning over the course of humanity; it needs a new meaning now more than ever. In this sense, I believe God to be a conceptual tool. He is the figure a top of the hierarchy, the one who has the power, the one who makes the decisions, the one who chooses what is right and what is wrong. Conceptually malleable I would say however, in that God is a multi-purpose word, a word that is defined in a different manner by the kid down the block than the girl in the hills. Useful or harmful? A bit of both. In the right hands it could be the remedy to our world of suffering, think about what you could do with it, as the purely good person you are my boy! But in the wrong hands… destruction, chaos. Is he worthy of further investigation? Well, no. That is absurd. If we were to investigate him further, we would only further align with his incorrect system. No no, we already know what is right; we don’t need god, not when we can be him!”
Gradually the light radiated the courtroom and The Angel took her seat. “Hello my child. There have been some very interesting views described today, and there are many more in the world. This is a key component of God. God is different in the eyes of each individual, and so your ears are the best tool in trying to unfold the truth, your truth. Posing the question with an open mind might be the only way to find God, so well done my boy. I will however add another view to the flurry of ideas. It somewhat aligns with my dear Wise King, in that I like to think of God as love. Love is the most powerful tool in our world, resulting in the greater good. From love, we breed strong relationships, from strong relationships comes a great society, and a great society transform the world into a beautiful place. It starts with love, and God is love. Therefore, it starts with God, whatever that may mean for you. God is the one who can instil love within thyself, for we cannot love another until we learn to love ourselves. Love does not just appear however, love is hard work. Love is reciprocal. Alas, if God is the all-loving being, then we must learn to love love itself, or rather, learn to love God. Only then will God love us. Love starts with a conversation. God offers an open ear whenever you please, for he is omnipresent. Talking to God is the first step on the path of love. You will find my dear child, that sometimes all you need is someone to talk to, someone who will listen to you. This is where God never fails. The more you talk, the more you get to know God, the closer you align with love. The closer you align with love, the more love you shall spread across the lands, with all of its joy. This is the ultimate goal in living a truly good life: to share love with those you care for in a way that benefits the world for an extended period of time. I find this poem to sum it all up:
God is love
Wherever you may be, it is always with thee
God is peace
Whenever you are down, an open ear will be
God is good
Whatever you have done, the light will set you free
God is love
Whoever you are, don’t forget and you will see
Real or conceptual? Tell me boy, what is the difference. Are thoughts real? I shall leave you to ponder that yourself. Useful or harmful? Used wisely, most useful. Worthy of further investigation? My child, what isn’t? Have faith in your elders, they have wisdom that will be forgotten if we do not explore their beliefs.
The Judges Response: 09/03/20
“Man this is a fucking flurry of ideas. To me each perspective has a valid claim; you all have a part to play in my beliefs about God. I’d like to state that no matter what my beliefs are right now, they are extremely malleable, because I am very uneducated in the area, and when it comes to the mystical realm, one must always have an open mind. My gut aligns with the Witch. Once I became of thinking age (what like 10?) God seemed like complete bullshit. That was kind of the way it was though, it was ‘cool’ or normal to hate on God, as the fundamentalist position lost its grip on society. There is definitely a part of me that thinks his system is completely fucked too, and I hate the fictional nature of it all, because people try to say it’s all legit; the law of the universe. That’s bullshit. The horror is well pointed out by you too Mr Devil. Why are there so many bad things, why did he impose them on us? But maybe it’s the bad that makes us good, maybe it’s because we cannot escape evil no matter where we go, for it lives within us. This is when I start to see things from that Wise king/Angel side, in that God is best used as a metaphysical tool to symbolise your ideal. It’s a deeper level of analysis, perhaps too deep in ways, maybe it’s just trying to make something fit that isn’t meant to fit. However, the Wise King’s voice was basically my inner JP shining, and I really enjoyed his lecture series on genesis, in fact, that would have been a turning point in me contemplating God and approaching it with an open mind. As for the Angel, I like the emphasis on love, and how talking to and respecting God is simultaneously creating a stronger bond with love itself. Nonetheless, it just doesn’t resonate with me, it feels too farfetched, but on the metaphysical landscape it slides down quite nice. Hmmmm it’s honestly really hard. If I had to pick the one view I align with I think it would be the Wise King, just because it does seem like the wisest use of the term. But it is also a mix of that with the Witch and Devil mostly, which is a fuckin peculiar combo lol. My answer to the questions? God is a conceptual being; I do not believe in a being in the sky that governs us. Useful or Harmful? I go with the Devil/Angel here, if used wisely, in the right hands, then the concept can be very effective in helping one navigate our globe of chaos. At least it’s a compass of sort; some guide is usually better than nothingness. And maybe our species does need God because of our internal tribal nature; if we deny it maybe something worse would step in? I think it probably would (i.e. nihilism). Worthy of further investigation? The fact that I can’t make my mind up suggests that it is worthy. I think there is a secret wisdom to be found in the ancient God texts. I might be wrong, but I won’t know unless I try. I will possibly make things out of words that wasn’t there, that isn’t the correct interpretation, but if I am learning something I believe to be profound, then does it matter? For all I know the search for profundity could be the true essence of God? Conceivably, it is nothing more than a tool to keep our curiosity raging. Whatever it is, there is something there to investigate that’s for sure.”
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