{"id":6180,"date":"2020-07-27T18:47:35","date_gmt":"2020-07-28T02:47:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/?p=6180"},"modified":"2020-07-27T18:47:37","modified_gmt":"2020-07-28T02:47:37","slug":"christianity-for-modern-pagans-alienation-death-and-selfishness","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/archives\/2020\/07\/27\/christianity-for-modern-pagans-alienation-death-and-selfishness","title":{"rendered":"Christianity For Modern Pagans: Alienation, Death, and Selfishness"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Blog read\u00aders: Chi Alpha @ Stan\u00adford is engag\u00ading in our annu\u00adal sum\u00admer read\u00ading project. As we read through an anno\u00adtat\u00aded trans\u00adla\u00adtion of Pascal\u2019s Pensees called Chris\u00adtian\u00adi\u00adty For Mod\u00adern Pagans<\/a>, I\u2019ll post the thoughts I\u2019m email\u00ading the stu\u00addents here (which will large\u00adly con\u00adsist of excerpts I found insight\u00adful). They are all tagged sum\u00admer-read\u00ading-project-2020<\/a>. The read\u00ading sched\u00adule is online<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

My sum\u00adma\u00adry of this week\u2019s read\u00ading is a bit of a rant. Buck\u00adle up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I was caught off-guard by this tweet yes\u00adter\u00adday from ABC News<\/a>: \u201cPro\u00adtest\u00aders in Cal\u00adi\u00adfor\u00adnia set fire to a cour\u00adt\u00adhouse, dam\u00adaged a police sta\u00adtion and assault\u00aded offi\u00adcers after a peace\u00adful demon\u00adstra\u00adtion inten\u00adsi\u00adfied.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was those last few words that caught my eye: \u201ca peace\u00adful demon\u00adstra\u00adtion inten\u00adsi\u00adfied.\u201d I would have thought the inten\u00adsi\u00adfi\u00adca\u00adtion of peace was some\u00adthing akin to heav\u00aden, but appar\u00adent\u00adly inten\u00adsi\u00adfy\u00ading peace leads to a place full of flames.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I sup\u00adpose it is pos\u00adsi\u00adble that the per\u00adson who wrote the tweet sim\u00adply meant that the peace\u00adful protest changed into some\u00adthing vio\u00adlent, but it\u2019s so in line with oth\u00ader lan\u00adguage that\u2019s float\u00ading around that I sus\u00adpect it reflects the author\u2019s per\u00adspec\u00adtive: peace\u00adful demon\u00adstra\u00adtions are some\u00adtimes accom\u00adpa\u00adnied by fire and vio\u00adlence. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Per\u00adhaps the tweet was noth\u00ading more than poor\u00adly-word\u00aded. Even if so, it illus\u00adtrates the schism in our cul\u00adture. Go read the com\u00adments on the tweet<\/a>. It\u2019s like we\u2019re all watch\u00ading the same for\u00adeign-lan\u00adguage movie with sub\u00adti\u00adtles for dif\u00adfer\u00adent films. We\u2019re see\u00ading the same things and can\u2019t under\u00adstand why we dis\u00adagree about the plot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Exam\u00adples abound. Is the 1619 Project is a nec\u00ades\u00adsary cor\u00adrec\u00adtion of the stan\u00addard Amer\u00adi\u00adcan nar\u00adra\u00adtive or is it a mali\u00adcious dis\u00adtor\u00adtion of our his\u00adto\u00adry? Is can\u00adcel cul\u00adture even a thing? Is free speech a real val\u00adue to cel\u00ade\u00adbrate in all areas of life, a nec\u00ades\u00adsary legal stan\u00addard which we should con\u00adstrue as nar\u00adrow\u00adly as pos\u00adsi\u00adble, or a hyp\u00ado\u00adcrit\u00adi\u00adcal tool used to mar\u00adgin\u00adal\u00adize peo\u00adple? How do you feel about Black Lives Mat\u00adter? Does it mat\u00adter whether we are talk\u00ading about Black Lives Mat\u00adter as an orga\u00adni\u00adza\u00adtion, as a slo\u00adgan, or as a grass\u00adroots upris\u00ading? Is reli\u00adgious lib\u00ader\u00adty the cor\u00adner\u00adstone of human rights or does it deserve scare quotes because \u201creli\u00adgious lib\u00ader\u00adty\u201d is real\u00adly a pre\u00adtext for priv\u00adi\u00adlege? Who should be pres\u00adi\u00addent? How many gen\u00adders are there? Is the envi\u00adron\u00adment on the brink of col\u00adlapse? Is social\u00adism one of the most ruinous mis\u00adtakes in his\u00adto\u00adry or a hope\u00adful inevitabil\u00adi\u00adty we should embrace? Can a well-informed and decent per\u00adson be a con\u00adser\u00adv\u00ada\u00adtive? Can a well-informed and decent per\u00adson be a lib\u00ader\u00adal?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Peo\u00adple strong\u00adly (and even vio\u00adlent\u00adly) dif\u00adfer about each of these ques\u00adtions. With that on my mind, two pas\u00adsages from the read\u00ading stood out to me. The first is a reminder that the bro\u00adken\u00adness we see out there is an aggre\u00adgate of the bro\u00adken\u00adness that is in each of us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The prob\u00adlem is not in our sys\u00adtems but in our selves. This is the rea\u00adson all soci\u00adeties col\u00adlapse, why the dams of good\u00adness nev\u00ader hold out long against the floods of evil, why the bad peo\u00adple always some\u00adhow seem to come to the top. Soci\u00adety is only us. There is no \u201cthem\u201d. If there were no such thing as Orig\u00adi\u00adnal Sin, why else couldn\u2019t we ever attain the good\u00adness and jus\u00adtice and joy and peace that the major\u00adi\u00adty of sane peo\u00adple always want and have always want\u00aded? Orig\u00adi\u00adnal Sin is the only key that opens the mys\u00adtery of his\u00adto\u00adry.<\/p>Kreeft com\u00adment\u00ading on Pensee 211 (page 155)<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

And then, as a cau\u00adtion\u00adary note, this one:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Stag\u00adger\u00ading\u00adly enor\u00admous mis\u00aderies have been the fruit of modernity\u2019s five great rev\u00ado\u00adlu\u00adtions: the Indus\u00adtri\u00adal Rev\u00ado\u00adlu\u00adtion, the French Rev\u00ado\u00adlu\u00adtion, the Bol\u00adshe\u00advik Rev\u00ado\u00adlu\u00adtion, the Nation\u00adal Social\u00adist Rev\u00ado\u00adlu\u00adtion and the Sex\u00adu\u00adal Rev\u00ado\u00adlu\u00adtion. These five rev\u00ado\u00adlu\u00adtions are one rev\u00ado\u00adlu\u00adtion: five vis\u00adi\u00adble out-crop\u00adpings of the same invis\u00adi\u00adble under\u00adsea con\u00adti\u00adnent. Each stems from the same root: the idol\u00ada\u00adtrous search for a new absolute, the diviniza\u00adtion of pow\u00ader or free\u00addom or equal\u00adi\u00adty or pride or plea\u00adsure, respec\u00adtive\u00adly.<\/p>Kreeft com\u00adment\u00ading on Pensee 199 (page 135)<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

I have opin\u00adions about all of the ques\u00adtions I rat\u00adtled off ear\u00adli\u00ader, and I hold this opin\u00adion as strong\u00adly as any of them: words are bet\u00adter than weapons and bal\u00adlots are bet\u00adter than bul\u00adlets. Our dis\u00adagree\u00adments must not dri\u00adve us to destroy one anoth\u00ader or to tear down the soci\u00adety we live in. Peo\u00adple suf\u00adfer when a soci\u00adety col\u00adlaps\u00ades, and those who are already vul\u00adner\u00ada\u00adble suf\u00adfer even more. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I don\u2019t think Amer\u00adi\u00adca is on the cusp of a vio\u00adlent rev\u00ado\u00adlu\u00adtion, but why keep walk\u00ading down this road? Opt out. As fol\u00adlow\u00aders of Christ let us instead become what I\u2019ve heard called \u201ca cre\u00adative coun\u00adter\u00adcul\u00adture for the com\u00admon good.\u201d As our Mas\u00adter said, \u201cLove your ene\u00admies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mis\u00adtreat you\u201d(Luke 6:27\u201328). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let your peace inten\u00adsi\u00adfy. Here endeth the rant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some oth\u00ader quotes from the read\u00ading that stood out to me:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pas\u00adcal, Pensee 165: The last act is bloody, how\u00adev\u00ader fine the rest of the play. They throw earth over your head and it is fin\u00adished for ever. 
<\/p>

Kreeft com\u00adment\u00ading: A sto\u00adry, like a syl\u00adlo\u00adgism, gets its uni\u00adty and point from its con\u00adclu\u00adsion, its end. Life seems wretched and vain because its end, and hence its point, seems to be death, and death seems to be noth\u00ading\u00adness. There\u00adfore the ques\u00adtion of immor\u00adtal\u00adi\u00adty is exis\u00adten\u00adtial\u00adly cru\u00adcial.<\/p>Pas\u00adcal, Pensee 165 (page 144)<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

This may seem abstract to you while you\u2019re in col\u00adlege, but Pas\u00adcal makes an excel\u00adlent point else\u00adwhere:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Any\u00adone with only a week to live will not find it in his inter\u00adest to believe that all this is just a mat\u00adter of chance. Now, if we were not bound by our pas\u00adsions, a week and a hun\u00addred years would come to the same thing.  <\/p>Pas\u00adcal, Pensee 326 (page 141)<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Relat\u00aded:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is not our span of life equal\u00adly infin\u00adi\u00adtes\u00adi\u00admal in eter\u00adni\u00adty, even if it is extend\u00aded by ten years?<\/p>Pas\u00adcal, Pensee 199 (page 125)<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

On a dif\u00adfer\u00adent note:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sec\u00adu\u00adlar moral\u00adi\u00adty is a plan for the ful\u00adfill\u00adment of self\u00adish\u00adness, Chris\u00adtian\u00adi\u00adty is a plan for its destruc\u00adtion. It cuts to the heart. In fact, it is heart surgery. Clear\u00adly, this is going to appear opti\u00admistic only to one who knows he has heart dis\u00adease. No one who thinks he is healthy is going to be hap\u00adpy to be offered a free heart trans\u00adplant.<\/p>Kreeft intro\u00adduc\u00ading chap\u00adter 12 (page 148)<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

And a use\u00adful reminder that peo\u00adple are the same wher\u00adev\u00ader you go, whether 17th<\/sup> cen\u00adtu\u00adry France, con\u00adtem\u00adpo\u00adrary Amer\u00adi\u00adca, or ancient Israel (see Eccle\u00adsi\u00adastes 7:21\u201322):<\/p>\n\n\n\n

No one talks about us in our pres\u00adence as he would in our absence. Human rela\u00adtions are only based on this mutu\u00adal decep\u00adtion; and few friend\u00adships would sur\u00advive if every\u00adone knew what his friend said about him behind his back, even though he spoke sin\u00adcere\u00adly and dis\u00adpas\u00adsion\u00adate\u00adly.<\/p>Pas\u00adcal, from Pensee 978 (page 151)<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

In my expe\u00adri\u00adence this next obser\u00adva\u00adtion is spot-on:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The great\u00adest liar in the world is still out\u00adraged by being lied to. No one is a moral rel\u00ada\u00adtivist, sub\u00adjec\u00adtivist or min\u00adi\u00admal\u00adist when it comes to oth\u00aders\u2019 behav\u00adior to him, only his to oth\u00aders.<\/p>Kreet com\u00adment\u00ading on Pensee 978 (page 153)<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

And I am always amused when some\u00adone pulls the move Kreeft describes here:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Pas\u00adcal, as in the Mid\u00addle Ages, the vast size of the uni\u00adverse is used to show forth the vast\u00adness of God\u2019s pow\u00ader. The very same fact is com\u00admon\u00adly used by the mod\u00adern mind (which igno\u00adrant\u00adly thinks it is the first to dis\u00adcov\u00ader the fact) as evi\u00addence for athe\u00adism! \u201cHow could you believe in a God when Man is but a lost speck in an infi\u00adnite abyss?\u201d Why the size of the uni\u00adverse should count against the\u00adism is nev\u00ader argued for, only assumed. For the argu\u00adment is worth\u00adless or nonex\u00adis\u00adtent, but the feel\u00ading is strong. That\u2019s where the change takes place: in feel\u00ading, in sen\u00adsi\u00adbil\u00adi\u00adty.<\/p>Kreeft com\u00adment\u00ading on Pensee 199 (page 128)<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Sim\u00adi\u00adlar\u00adly:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sci\u00adence no more proves that nature is not a moth\u00ader but only mat\u00adter than an X\u2011ray proves that a woman is not a moth\u00ader but only a bag of bones.<\/p>Kreeft, intro\u00adduc\u00adtion to chap\u00adter 10 (page 120)<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

And this last one seems to me to be most\u00adly true. It\u2019s true enough to think about. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

How nat\u00adur\u00adal and nor\u00admal is our unnat\u00adur\u00adal injus\u00adtice! Of course we are annoyed at crit\u00adi\u00adcism, even true crit\u00adi\u00adcism. Espe\u00adcial\u00adly true crit\u00adi\u00adcism. A man will for\u00adgive you for unjust crit\u00adi\u00adcism but not for just crit\u00adi\u00adcism. A bul\u00adly will for\u00adgive you if you call him a cow\u00adard but not if you call him a bul\u00adly. A cow\u00adard will for\u00adgive you if you call him a bul\u00adly but not if you call him a cow\u00adard.<\/p>Kreeft com\u00adment\u00ading on Pensee 978 (page 153)<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

It reminds me of the say\u00ading, \u201cwhen you throw a stone into a pack of dogs, the dog that yelps is the one that got hit.\u201d What makes you yelp? It\u2019s worth pon\u00adder\u00ading.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For this week we\u2019re read\u00ading chap\u00adters 13 (Diver\u00adsion) & 14 (Indif\u00adfer\u00adence). I think you\u2019ll be shocked at how con\u00adtem\u00adpo\u00adrary they seem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s like we\u2019re all watch\u00ading the same for\u00adeign-lan\u00adguage movie with sub\u00adti\u00adtles for dif\u00adfer\u00adent films. We\u2019re see\u00ading the same things and can\u2019t under\u00adstand why we dis\u00adagree about the plot. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wp_typography_post_enhancements_disabled":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"It's like we're all watching the same foreign-language movie with subtitles for different films. We're seeing the same things and can't understand why we disagree about the plot. ","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[8],"tags":[140,283,282],"class_list":["post-6180","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-resources-reviews","tag-culture","tag-pascal","tag-summer-reading-project-2020"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p6Ded-1BG","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6180","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6180"}],"version-history":[{"count":18,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6180\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6198,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6180\/revisions\/6198"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6180"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6180"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6180"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}