Tuesday, January 13, 2004
“Intellellectual pride is not…a pretense at omniscience or infallibility. On the contrary, precisely because man must struggle for knowledge, precisely because the pursuit of knowledge requires an effort, the men who assume this responsibility properly feel pride.” Rand, "The Virtue of Selfishness"
What to believe in? I am having a hard time reconciling my beliefs with a specific religion, or even calling what I feel religious beliefs. I think that my beliefs will change over time, and I think that is the only healthy way for me to be. These are some of my favorite religion quotes:
“I believe in God, only I spell it Nature.” Frank Lloyd Wright
“I like to live in the sound of water, in the feel of the mountain air. A sharp reminder hits me: this world still is alive; it stretches out there shivering toward its own creation, and I’m part of it. Even my breathing enters into this elaborate give-and-take, this bowing to sun and moon, day or night, winter, summer, storm, still-this tranquil chaos that seems to be going somewhere. This wilderness with a great peacefulness in it. This motionless turmoil, this everything dance.” William Stafford
“My gratitude for good writing is unbounded; I’m grateful for it the way I’m grateful for the ocean.” Anne Lamott
“Sometimes our light goes out but is blown again into flame by an encounter with another human being. Each of us owes the deepest thanks to those who have rekindled this inner light.” Albert Schweitzer
“I love living. I have some problems with my life, but living is the best thing they’ve come up with so far.” Neil Simon
“The universe is one great kindergarten for man. Everything that exists has brought with it its own peculiar lesson. The mountain teaches stability and grandeur; the ocean immensity and change. Forests, lakes, and rivers, clouds and winds, stars and flowers, stupendous glaciers and crystal snowflakes—every form of animate or inanimate existence, leaves its impress upon the soul of man. Even the bee and ant have brought their little lessons of industry and economy.” Orison Swett Marden
“Never hesitate to hold out your hand; never hesitate to accept the outstretched hand of another.” Pope John XXIII
"Their myth declares that he ate the fruit of the tree of knowledge--he acquired a mind and became a rational being. It was the knowledge of good and evil--he became a moral being. He was sentenced to earn his bread by his labor--he became a productive being. He was sentenced to experience desire--he acquired the capacity of sexual enjoyment. The evils for which they damn him are reason, morality, creativeness, joy--all the cardinal values of his existence. Whatever he was--that robot in the Garden of Eden, who existed without mind, without values, without labor, without love--he was not man." Ayn Rand, “Atlas Shrugged,“ Galt's speech
“Laughter and tears are both responses to frustration and exhaustion. I myself prefer to laugh, since there is less cleaning up to do afterward.” Kurt Vonnegut
Those are a very few of the quotes I believe in about life. These are not necessarily religious ideas, but they are for me. They express very personally a very small part of the complicated whole. I don’t need to sit in a church; in fact being outside is almost always a more “religious” experience for me than church is anyway. It’s not necessary for us to be sure now, is it? And the worst thing would be to be close-minded, right? Well, anyone who’s reading this knows why this is on my mind…I’m having a really hard time with being dismissed over my views, especially without a fair hearing. It’s never happened to me before—I guess I’ve just been blessed with open-minded friends, and I don’t think what I believe is offensive or wrong to anyone I’ve ever had a rational, intelligent conversation with. No, I’m not sure about anything except trying to be a good person, working as hard as I can to make myself strong and smart and interesting, and loving the people close to me. I will never believe that that is wrong.
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What to believe in? I am having a hard time reconciling my beliefs with a specific religion, or even calling what I feel religious beliefs. I think that my beliefs will change over time, and I think that is the only healthy way for me to be. These are some of my favorite religion quotes:
“I believe in God, only I spell it Nature.” Frank Lloyd Wright
“I like to live in the sound of water, in the feel of the mountain air. A sharp reminder hits me: this world still is alive; it stretches out there shivering toward its own creation, and I’m part of it. Even my breathing enters into this elaborate give-and-take, this bowing to sun and moon, day or night, winter, summer, storm, still-this tranquil chaos that seems to be going somewhere. This wilderness with a great peacefulness in it. This motionless turmoil, this everything dance.” William Stafford
“My gratitude for good writing is unbounded; I’m grateful for it the way I’m grateful for the ocean.” Anne Lamott
“Sometimes our light goes out but is blown again into flame by an encounter with another human being. Each of us owes the deepest thanks to those who have rekindled this inner light.” Albert Schweitzer
“I love living. I have some problems with my life, but living is the best thing they’ve come up with so far.” Neil Simon
“The universe is one great kindergarten for man. Everything that exists has brought with it its own peculiar lesson. The mountain teaches stability and grandeur; the ocean immensity and change. Forests, lakes, and rivers, clouds and winds, stars and flowers, stupendous glaciers and crystal snowflakes—every form of animate or inanimate existence, leaves its impress upon the soul of man. Even the bee and ant have brought their little lessons of industry and economy.” Orison Swett Marden
“Never hesitate to hold out your hand; never hesitate to accept the outstretched hand of another.” Pope John XXIII
"Their myth declares that he ate the fruit of the tree of knowledge--he acquired a mind and became a rational being. It was the knowledge of good and evil--he became a moral being. He was sentenced to earn his bread by his labor--he became a productive being. He was sentenced to experience desire--he acquired the capacity of sexual enjoyment. The evils for which they damn him are reason, morality, creativeness, joy--all the cardinal values of his existence. Whatever he was--that robot in the Garden of Eden, who existed without mind, without values, without labor, without love--he was not man." Ayn Rand, “Atlas Shrugged,“ Galt's speech
“Laughter and tears are both responses to frustration and exhaustion. I myself prefer to laugh, since there is less cleaning up to do afterward.” Kurt Vonnegut
Those are a very few of the quotes I believe in about life. These are not necessarily religious ideas, but they are for me. They express very personally a very small part of the complicated whole. I don’t need to sit in a church; in fact being outside is almost always a more “religious” experience for me than church is anyway. It’s not necessary for us to be sure now, is it? And the worst thing would be to be close-minded, right? Well, anyone who’s reading this knows why this is on my mind…I’m having a really hard time with being dismissed over my views, especially without a fair hearing. It’s never happened to me before—I guess I’ve just been blessed with open-minded friends, and I don’t think what I believe is offensive or wrong to anyone I’ve ever had a rational, intelligent conversation with. No, I’m not sure about anything except trying to be a good person, working as hard as I can to make myself strong and smart and interesting, and loving the people close to me. I will never believe that that is wrong.
