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Twentieth Century Fire-Sale

PARTS:

ECOLOGY SOCIOGRAMS PLACES IDENTITY INTIMACIES
VIOLENCE DEATH GODS WORLD

Twentieth Century Fire-Sale

Part Eight

GODS


God is Good


There is no god but good.

There is no good but truth.

There is no truth but practice.

There is no practice but will.

There is no will but being.

There is no being but hope.

There is no hope but wonder.

God is wonder.

 

To wonder makes one hope.

And hope gives one being.

And being prods the will.

While will inspires practice.

And practice extrudes the truth.

And truth implies what is good.

And who is good has god.


A Quantavolution


When the Earth was one and broke apart

and waters of the sky and land fell

steeply into molten crude basements,

a new race gaped and shrilled the calls

of a mind created mad.

 

"Here I am, now, what shall I do,

ought I kill myself and my kind,

or devise and rule a novel world,

there to persist until the day

when all will be well again,

 

as it was on days unremembered,

yet still proved, in the honest faces

of beasts, intimidated and tamed,

while we rave fearful, hence feared,

their masters, served by gods."

 

Not so long ago it was, figured

by the memorial generations

of him and her, the sixty years of

tales from old to young, two hundred

times from then to nowadays.

 

A story ten-score told, false for want

and dread of the truth, so what can I,

untrusting the favors of any god

of bloody sagas, culling hard science

that leaks vile gall for kernels of fact,

but digging out rot, say?


More Gods


To think of gods is only human

I've yet to see the gods of the beasts

though I've seen many a beast worthy of such.

Once it was discovered that homo

was so smart that gods must therefore

not exist, they became furthermore expendable.

 

But whoever gods were or are and

if they are, why do they refuse

to go away? Just to make an obvious point

about the human order?

How vain of them.


Bon Noël, A.M.


The eagle is nesting

the world's a bower of clover

the Pacific spreads pacifically

Atlantis shines from its placid bed.

 

No one goes questing

to see what metamorphoses;

our god honorifically reposes,

time has come to say

you love me and

I love you.


Entropy and Theotropy


Hope not.

The universe is dying down,

suicided Wiener said.

It is entropic

and do not fret

my fret is madness

from my crazy home,

I know better and

tell you so.

Relax and die

gracefully with the world.

 

However,

probability is mute on the point,

and so is material experience.

So is immaterial experience,

which goes unregistered

by our few weak senses.

 

A vision has more heat

than the xN atoms burnt

meanwhile by the Sun.

 

Every brain has a trillion images.

And gods are myriad,

And are created all the time.


Catechism of the Divine Succession


(in 79 Verses)

 

I.

Knowledge

 

1.

When was the universe created?

The world has always existed, in some of

its infinitely possible manifestations,

and is being created in some others today,

and so it will go on and on.

2.

How long will this Earth endure?

The Earth will endure

for inestimable time,

depending upon now unpredictable

natural, divine, even human events.

3.

How much can a person know about the world?

One can know more

than one can learn,

yet infinitely less

than all existence.

4.

Can one know oneself?

One can know oneself

within the limits of one's abilities

to know oneself.

5.

Are the limits of these abilities known and achievable?

The limits of the abilities to know oneself

are unknown,

but more extensive

than the abilities that anyone has shown.

6.

What should a person know of oneself?

One should appreciate

one's own operative complex

of self-controls.

7.

Does a person have free will?

One acts in accordance with

one's nature and circumstances;

free will as action in ignorance

of one's nature and circumstances

can exist, but is not characteristic of

an autonomous rational person.

8.

What is known absolutely?

Nothing that matters.

The absolute should be ignored,

because its main function

is to promote absolute fear.

9.

What is absolutely clear?

Nothing, and

tolerance of ambiguity

should be a religious principle,

both to combat fear

and to express the supernatural.

10.

What is science?

Science may be usefully defined

as the method of choosing the largest chance

of certainty in solving problems

whose conditions and objectives are known.

11.

How should science relate to religion?

Science should solve an increasing number of

the indefinitely large number of problems of religion,

while religion expresses some of

the directives and limits of science.

12.

How should we express our relation to the cosmos?

We should relate to the cosmos

by understanding it and celebrating it.

 

II.

Morals

 

13.

What needs has one?

One's needs are fearlessly

to subsist decently,

to experience genially,

and to be treated justly.

14.

What duties has one?

One's duties are to help others

to be fearless,

to subsist decently,

to genially experience life,

and to be justly treated.

15.

Who is divine among people?

Whoever studies

and expresses

the divine

is divine.

16.

What differences exist between means and ends?

A means is a process of action

that contributes to

a more general process of action;

it is rational according to how it works;

it is deemed good or bad in its own effects,

and therefore contributes more or less

good or bad to the end process.

17.

Is good rewarded?

Insofar as

the religious and secular realms are consonant,

good action is rewarded in both;

the rewards of religion

would be in its practice

and in a health of character that it fosters.

18.

Should evil be punished?

Evil should be compensated for,

personally and socially,

not punished;

it should be treated as a problem of

coping with natural forces.

19.

Do right and wrong belong in the realm of the gods?

Yes, they belong where

the human and divine realms interact.

20.

Can a person distinguish right and wrong?

Yes, by exercising himself

in the fringe-realm of the supernatural

where the mundane

fashions its judgements.

21.

What is right or wrong?

Right is a determination that

the consequences of an action

are consistent with

the divine aspect of a person.

22.

By what rules should a person act?

A person should act

by the rules of one's nature

adjusted to the related ordinances of

a consensus of like-minded others.

23.

How should a person behave toward oneself?

One should accomodate consistently one’s divine and mundane character.

24.

How should a person behave towards others?

One should act towards others as to

a differently shaped development of oneself,

hence part of oneself,

hence considerately,

hence helpfully.

25.

How should a person behave towards plants and animals?

One should behave towards plants and animals

as toward others,

while recognizing in them an acute differentiation

from oneself

in the tragic divine need of humans

to derive instinctive gratification

from their exploitation.

26.

How should a person behave toward natural objects?

As towards animals and plants,

in descending series of

their divinity.

27.

How should a person behave toward the supernatural?

One should practice

an understanding

of its potential.

28.

What morality is devoid of religious significance?

All morality has religious significance.

29.

What morality should be religiously and politically promoted?

Morality should be promoted which

comes from a constitution that

is based upon consensus and

offering procedures that

(among other effects)

tend to establish the dominion of

divinity in humans.

30.

Is a person without religion bound to be wrong and evil?

His views are narrow and

he may not understand

his own religiousness, but

his actions may neither err

nor have bad consequences.

31.

What function does a person serve in the world?

One engages in

and represents

universal manifestations.

 

III.

The Supernatural and Divine

 

32.

Is there a supernatural part of the world?

What one cannot perceive and

what one cannot understand, even

if he learns something about it,

is the supernatural.

33.

Is the supernatural divine?

The supernatural is divine

insofar as it is meaningfully integrated

into human mentation, but

divinity implies no superiority over

the pragmatically knowable.

34.

What is divine on Earth?

The divine on Earth

is a uniquely human way of

looking upon oneself and

the world.

35.

How does one worship the divine?

The rituals for

worshipping the divine are

whatever exercises are useful to achieve it.

36.

What is sacred?

Everything

viewed in its supernatural

and divine manifestations

is sacred.

37.

What is faith?

Faith is positive morale,

a conviction of meaningfulness about

what one is thinking and doing, which

when related to the divine is

religious faith.

38.

What is revelation?

Revelation is the recognition

induced by an internal

or external stimulus, of

an important pattern to existence,

not previously experienced, to which,

if a divine element is present,

the term "religious" can be attached.

39.

What is discovery?

Discovery is a revelation

purposefully brought about,

whose applications are readily apparent and

available to others.

40.

What should authority be?

Authority should be the legitimate power of

one person over another,

which may be religious;

it should receive its legitimacy

by the consensus of those ruled and

should lose its legitimacy

to the extent to which

it is physically and mentally coercive.

41.

How should we behave towards the sacred?

As toward the mundane, although,

as with mundane varieties,

we should act toward the sacred

appropriately

in accord with its distinctions.

42.

How much of our energies should be given to the divine?

As much as necessary to receive

divine energies in return,

from ourselves,

others,

the world and

gods.

43.

What is divine energy?

Divine energy is the morale that comes from

developing relations with the supernatural.

44.

Is there a sacred community?

Yes, the community of those whose

understanding of the divine

is similar in forms,

scope, and

intensity.

45.

Will the cosmos ever be divine?

The theotropic universe

will ultimately dominate

the entropic universe.

46.

Is the divine also god?

Yes, insofar as

its mental integration functions as

a presentation of the human mind,

the divine is godly.

47.

To what futures should a person relate?

A person chooses and lives partially in

whatever futures one wants and is

capable of participating in,

except that upon death

one's future is resolved into

the cosmos

and reconstructed

beyond personal minding and control.

 

IV.

Gods

 

48.

Is it proper to expect gods?

It is proper to expect gods as

it is proper to expect enlightenment.

49.

What is a god?

A god is a generalized and immanent being,

manifesting itself immaterially and through

a demonstrable

external cosmic spirit,

operating in the human mind as

the repository of the supernatural.

50.

Is god material existence?

All material is effective:

insofar as the divine is effective existence, and

existence is all material,

the divine is material and

so is god.

51.

Where is god?

The god is wherever it can be and

acts so as to be.

52.

Is there one god or many?

There are both one and many gods,

depending upon how

the mind assembles the divine facets

in its behavior.

53.

Do gods behave like humans?

Yes, but only as

the human in its universal and

supernatural aspects.

54.

How many gods exist?

We have not discovered how many,

if any,

gods exist on Earth, while

in the universe

myriad gods exist.

55.

What proofs do we have that there exists a supernatural, a divine, and a god?

That divine beings exist is known logically

and by the highly improbable evidence of existence itself

which must in the innumerable worlds

by infinite compounding of our achievements

reach the point where divinities

operate and expand in their own ways.

56.

Do all gods have the same traits and behavior?

Traits and behavior are limited

ideas and actions to which

the gods cannot be bound.

57.

Where is god in relation to the human?

The god is where

the human mind is affected by

the supernatural and the divine, or

may ultimately be in conscious contact with it.

58.

How is a person related to god?

Personally, as to

an aspect of oneself,

socially, as to

a joint aspect of oneself and others.

59.

Does a person elect god?

A person chooses god but

his election is jointly with others

to the extent that the gods of others

permit a joint aspect of oneself and others.

60.

Can I will against gods?

One can will against gods

entropically for self or

universally,

including reductionism to

greater instinctive animality.

61.

Can all historical gods be attributed to catastrophes and other natural causes?

All historical gods are

in at least some of their manifestations

catastrophic.

62.

Are gods historical?

Historical gods have been the outcome of

persons interacting with events, and,

though probably non-existent,

persist in some of their earlier manifestations,

so that all are partly gone and

partly present.

63.

Should a person obey historical gods in their original ascribed apparitions?

The gods of the past are to be treated as

hypothetical models

to avoid and imitate as

they reflect upon the present and future and

satisfy today's conditions of existence.

64.

Are the gods rational and welcome?

Insofar as they are theotropic

rather than entropic,

the gods are rational and welcome, and

are to be preferred.

 

V.

Religion

 

65.

Can society hold together without religion?

Society cannot be conceived

without religion and therefore

cannot hold itself together

without it.

66.

Should two persons have the same religion?

No two persons can have

nor should have the same religion;

all religion is therefore partly personal.

67.

How are persons united by religion?

Persons sharing significant religious perspectives

identify with each other and

constitute a church

if they recognize their mutual identity.

68.

How should we regard existing religions?

We should regard existing religions as

in large part historically invalidated

in terms of the ongoing and future

historical process of religion, and

encourage their voluntary assimilation and development into

current standards of validation.

69.

Should there be priests?

Priesthood as religious leadership

must exist and should be

practiced ideally by all

when they can and,

by the fewest possible full time forever.

70.

What gifts should religion bring?

Religion should bring joy of thought,

wonderful awe,

a divine community, and

freedom from fear.

71.

What gifts should be made to religion?

One should give to others by

devotion,

rituals, and

cooperation

the intelligence afforded by religion.

72.

What does religion offer to human suffering of body and mind?

Religion offers to the suffering body and mind

the knowledge of self,

morale,

scientific pragmatic support, and

a cosmic sense of proportion.

73.

What symbols should be sacred?

Symbols that retain the least historical implications and

represent major points of this catechism

should be created and promoted and

become subjects of admiration and stimulation;

present sacred symbols should be reduced

in significance and intensity.

74.

What are sacred scriptures?

All graphic and written material

that was ever sacred

is still sacred and

worthy of wonder and study, but

at a reduced level of psychic investment, while

new contributions intended as sacred scriptures

should be no more sacred than

any other sacrally intended

or scientific or literary work

for which merit is claimed.

75.

Should our rites be simple or elaborate?

Rituals should be as elaborate as

necessary to learn the purpose of the ritual, as

stressed as necessary to enjoy its reassurances, as

simple as the available energies would afford, and should be

productive in other goods aesthetically and otherwise.

76.

What is the educative task of religion?

Religion should educate people

theotropically,

which is the constructive life force.

77.

What is the task of politics?

The task of politics is the same as religion

morally, but

politics contends largely with the pragmatic problems

issuing from theotropism.

78.

To what extent should we be bound by our religion?

We should be bound to our religion

to the extent and so long as

it helps us fulfill our obligations

to ourselves and the world.

79.

How long will it be until humanity becomes religious?

Mankind will become religious when

it discovers the existence of gods

on experiential principles

without delusion.

****************************************************

A UNIVERSAL CATECHISM

(a note on the above work)

A catechism can summarize the fundamental facts and doctrines of religion from our perspective. The word "catechism", which now broadly means an elementary instruction manual in a given field, has for seventeen hundred years meant, more precisely, exercises for instructing Christian neophytes. Before the word achieved popularity in its Latinized Greek form, it may have come from the combined words "tying down", connoting a binding divine covenant. Less religiously, it recalls a metaphorical American usage of the same words, as when we "tie down" a matter so as to put it in form for easy handling. Our catechism here intends to tie down in a well-known format the basic facts and doctrines of religion deriving from our study.

Setting forth a catechism exposes to a pitiless light our beliefs concerning religion. The onus of proselytism comes with it, for a catechism must tell people what they should believe. There are health and strength in such an exercise, quite aside from its validity.

Terming a catachism "universal" seems a contradiction in terms, at least sociologically, inasmuch as many a fractionating sect has developed a new catechism for neophytes smaller in number than used the catechism of their progenitors. At the same time, practically all catachisms present assertions believed to hold universal validity, even if believed in and taught to a very few, like this one.


Gods


step aboard the star light

bound for outer space

fasten tight your mind set

lest it fly away

 

think of all the gods there

each one belching truths

fix upon a goddess,

bright hemispheres of cream.


The Swiss Gift


Coming upon the Switzerman dwelling

in his swamp actually the oceanic womb

of Mother Earth, Grüss Gott

asked him for pity's sake,

wouldn't he wish himself a better world,

 

Oh, yes, My Lord, I would, elevation!

Higher up to live, mountains, even Alps,

and voila' the sweet-pastured slopes

rose with the sun of the next day.

 

He roamed the greens among the flowers

hand-clasping his Swisser-womankind,

but grew thin and hence doleful,

such that even God could so note from afar.

 

With nothing but water, he was heard to say,

I cannot put on weight, and forthwith the Lord

appeared saying you need worry no more, for

two wishes more you have, is it a cow you want?

 

A cow? I suppose so, yes indeed, and oozing

squirting milk soon fattened the Swiss and

made them so contented as to stop wishing,

but God, so impressed by their land and work,

now came a third time and put the question almost

sternly, think now your last wish for all the world,

and while you ponder, pour me some creamy milk to

drink on this warm if pleasant day.

 

As he drank, the eyes of the Swisser brightly

watched, so when God had drunk and put down his cup

and said Well, what will it be, whatever you wish,

but I have a problem with Bengladesh this day,

 

the Swiss was inspired to say, yes, my Lord,

one franc-fifty for the milk, if you please,

and could well imagine now the universe as complete,

explaining to all why God has not been visiting

 

Switzerland of late, while some claim that

the Lord of Hosts or someone resembling him

has been observably -- through the eventually

repaired Hubble telescope -- operative in

a world a safe distance in light years away.



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