Friday, May 18, 2018

Fridays with the Answer Man

Let's begin with some aphorisms that go to this idea of Christianity disclosing the universal metaphysic, i.e., What's Really Going On Underneath It All.

This is good: Genuine atheism is to man’s reason what the ten-thousand-sided polygon is to his imagination (Dávila).

In other words, a genuine and self-consistent atheism literally cannot be imagined. I was tempted to say that it can only be imagined, but that's giving it too much credit. Bear in mind that this doesn't imply that theism is the case, although it certainly points in that direction.

I suppose all rationalists believe they are being reasonable, but the moment you stop to think about it, you realize that reason cannot even function in the absence of something -- or, more to the point, someone -- transcending it. Restricted to pure reason, the mind would be enclosed in tautology. See Gödel for details.

In truth there is only one way out, and that is up. What is remarkable is that all people with adequate intelligence don't nod their heads in agreement instead of lifting their legs and leaving inane drive-by comments.

You know the old meme, "It is what it is." Well, yes and no. Remove human beings from the picture, and it is indeed what it is, nothing more and nothing less.

But humans introduce several new perspectives to existence, including the I (subjective depth and personhood), Am (being), and Ought (virtue), not to mention past and future. While we're at it let's toss in Beauty as well.

For example, right now I'm looking out my window and it is... beautiful. How did that get in and contaminate the tidy world of pure reason? For that matter, I am looking out. But from where? From inside, i.e., from the perspective of a subject. Now how did that get here? Some people say that life is just a parasite on matter, and mind a queer side effect of life. We have a better idea.

Better how? Again, who sees the most wins, and materialists do not see, precisely. In a remarkable case of auto-castration, they render their minds infertile, using spirit to deny spirit, or in other words, painting themselves into a coroner and spinning into obit.

Militant irreligion gradually transforms the one possessed into a simple imbecile convulsed by hatred. Simple imbeciles convulsed by hatred. Truly, what is the left?

He who speaks of the farthest regions of the soul soon needs a theological vocabulary. True, but so too does he speaks of the soul, full stop. Or maybe you've never met a soulless person. I get it, but if you ever do decide to purchase a television or attend college, you'll see what I mean.

Each one sees in the world only what he deserves to see. And The simplistic ideas in which the unbeliever ends up believing are his punishment.

So if someone tells me he is an atheist, I say "good. You deserve nothing less!" The world has no depth except insofar as it is perceived from the perspective of depth. Is this not obvious, even self-evident? This is the approach I take to my son's home schooling, in which we are instituting a new class called Fridays with the Answer Man. That would be me.

For example, the other day I was telling him about my primary education. I went to school like anyone else -- even in an "elite" school district -- and learned all that stuff.

Now, as it so happens, we have a hoarder living across the street. I told the boy that upon graduation my head was very much like her backyard: just a pile of indiscriminate junk that I had accumulated along the way. There was no organizing principle, nor did I have any idea what to keep or throw away. I didn't know why it was in my head, but there it was.

I want my son to avoid that fate, which will be one of the primary purposes of F's with the A. M.: to discriminate between the essential and the inessential, to discern the inner unity and coherence, and to see beyond appearances to the transcendent reality. That is indeed what the mind is for: ultimately for apprehending the One Cosmos.

Nor can it be accomplished without religion, although religion too must be subject to the same discrimination, discernment, unity, and coherence. You can't just superimpose religious dogma on the pile of junk and call it a collection of treasures.

Returning to my miseducation, you could say that my head was like a dictionary, which is to say, a collection of words. But what is a word without a sentence, a sentence without a paragraph, and paragraph without a Total Narrative and Universal Metaphysic? Indeed, The universe is a useless dictionary for someone who does not provide its proper syntax.

In short, things must be placed in order. But -- and this is critical -- there is a horizontal order and a vertical order. A materialist "orders" things by collapsing the upper into the lower.

You might compare this approach to the manner in which the terrorists on 9-11-01 brought order to the Twin Towers. Pure simplicity! And the tenured do to the humanities what Islamists do to tall buildings.

I am a clinical psychologist -- in California no less -- so I have first hand knowledge of the destruction of the mind to rubble. Psychologists are to the soul what the the Criminal Lawyers Association is to the law. Psychology is just one more malignant tentacle of the totalitarian left.

Just for fun and nausea, let's look up the California Psychological Association website. I don't know whether to vomit or projectile vomit:

In 2003, APA [American Psychological Association] put forth guidelines that reframed the role of psychologists as leaders and advocates of social justice and multiculturalism in all realms of their professional identity.

Specifically, APA Multicultural Guidelines identified foundational principles that “articulate respect and inclusiveness for the national heritage of all groups, recognition of cultural contexts as defining forces for individuals’ and groups’ lived experiences, and the role of external forces such as historical, economic, and socio-political events.”

In 2017, APA updated these guidelines, reconsidering diversity and multiculturalism by adopting intersectionality as it main purview and using a layered ecological model. An external force laden with oppression is immigration documentation status, and how it intersects with individuals’ many identities and aspects of diversity.

Liberation psychology suggests that these providers are overwhelmed with the tasks of actively working to decolonize their own political consciousness given their awareness of the limitations of western individualistic ideologies that favor the privileged, and concomitantly seeking new ways of working with marginalized communities and immigrant families.

Projectile vomit it is! In any event, if you want to be a psychologist in California, your brain will be washed. I'm only permitted because I've been licensed since 1991, so I'm grandfascisted in.

20 comments:

julie said...

Notably, a 10,000 sided polygon would in all likelihood resemble something circular, until closer inspection revealed otherwise. That is, not only can we not imagine it, but even if we were to look right at one, we would likely not grasp the reality of what we were seeing.

julie said...

Again, who sees the most wins, and materialists do not see, precisely. In a remarkable case of auto-castration, they render their minds infertile, using spirit to deny spirit, or in other words, painting themselves into a coroner and spinning into obit.

Not only their minds, but according to the latest fertility numbers their bodies as well. In a purely material world, there's no compelling reason to want to take on the responsibility of raising children when there's so much more "fun" to be had without them.

dant said...

Thank you for that dictionary metaphor. I believe it especially relevant to the way history is presented in schools. Little structure, context, or purpose. Save perhaps a critical disposition towards the West. But mostly just loosely connected events.

Jim said...

Bob, you're being grandfascisted in as a California-flatland psychologist reminds me of the Gary Larson cartoon, showing hordes of blank-eyed lemmings rushing headlong toward the cliff. In the middle of the pack is one with a red life preserver, knowingly smiling up at the viewer. May your life preserver serve you well! It is certainly helpful to me - thanks for sharing depth daily

cara pemupukan bawang merah said...

I guess it wont easy

ted said...

Bob: I came across this paper from someone who studied Eastern mysticism for many years, and eventually came back to Christianity. Makes a good case for salvation over enlightenment. Very compelling read.

julie said...

Ted, that was an excellent read. Thanks.

Gagdad Bob said...

Reminds me of what Schuon says about "realizationism":

"A pernicious error that must be pointed out here -- one which seems to be axiomatic with the false gurus of East and West -- is what could be designated by the term 'Realizationism': it is claimed that only 'realization' counts and that 'theory' is nothing, as if man were not a thinking being and as if he could undertake anything whatsoever without knowing where he was going.

"False masters speak readily of 'developing latent energies'; now one can go to hell with all the developments and all the energies one pleases; it is in any case better to die with a good theory than with a false 'realization.' What the pseudo-spiritualists lose sight of only too easily is that, according to the maxim of the maharajahs of Benares, 'there is no right superior to that of the truth.'”

ted said...

Great quote, Bob! You're welcome Julie!

Anonymous said...

Great Post, Dr. Godwin. Your choice of topics is rich. I have, as usual, my brand of degraded filth to throw after your pearls. Sorry about that; I despair of my own ugliness.

Atheism: The atheist does not recognize God, does not love or serve God. They are not surrendered, thereby lacking one of the four pillars of Yoga. I think the lack of surrender is what the God-lover finds most worrisome in the atheist, because we all lack perfect surrender and that bothers us about ourselves as well.

The APA: Concerns about multiculturalism and diversity are an extension of the Women's Suffrage movement and all of the other human rights stuff kicked off in the 20th century. I'm surprised you haven't recognized this as the natural progression of things. Psychologists are key people who deal with damaged minds, and I don't think you can help people by telling them they have no place in society. The dark, the gay, the mentally-ill, etc. The APA is trying to bring solace, so I think concern over universal truths had better take a back-seat, hmmmm? Unity, one of the four pillars. Forget thee not.

Discontent with others: Do you find yourself discontented with other people? You are then perturbed, which is not to be done by the Yogin (of which, you Dr. Godwin are a Yogin). Equality (equanimity, tranquility, serenity) in the face of all, one of the four pillars. Many try, few achieve. If you are perturbed, then try to quell it.

There, I've vomited up my liberal poison, now I go to collapse on brocaded pillows within the harem. Here comes Najiba, bringing my Hookah. A day of dissipation stretches ahead.

Dougman said...

If the atheist serves truth, than God is served.

Anonymous said...

Doug, that is very insightful. Seen in that light, an atheist might not be so bad after all, depending on her grasp of truth.

Dougman said...

To me, it comes down to a relationship with truth.

Dougman said...

John 1:1 - In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

That word would be,...Truth

Anonymous said...

I wonder though if truth morphs over time.

Does God tinker with the settings, perhaps increasing the spin rate of this particle by a titch, edging the constant of gravity back a little, engaging in some creative DNA projects, or the like? Did God merely set it up and let it rip, or is it an ongoing project in which He performs experiments by playing with the controls?

The confirmed existence of miracles indicates there are ongoing interventions, or at the very least, a mechanism for such that sees some usage.

In the beginning was the Word, and then it underwent some editing? The Word 1.0, then 1.1, etc?

Just an thought.

Dougman said...

I'm pretty sure it's been edited, by man.

Van Harvey said...

"Indeed, The universe is a useless dictionary for someone who does not provide its proper syntax."

Indeed, One Word! Salad, coming up!


"In short, things must be placed in order. But -- and this is critical -- there is a horizontal order and a vertical order. A materialist "orders" things by collapsing the upper into the lower."

The collapsing power of the equivocation - unless you bring your hierarchy with you, your own words can be turned into salad.

Van Harvey said...

"Just for fun and nausea, let's look up the California Psychological Association website. I don't know whether to vomit or projectile vomit:"

O yeah, that's projectile... all the way down.

Anonymous said...

In any case I have to excuse God for any/all imbroglios; because, I don't know what is an imbroglio and what isn't.

The California Psychological Association will have to be pardoned for being a powerful emetic; they follow their best lights and they are off course.

The blog author tries hard, but he doesn't know what's an imbroglio and what isn't. How could he know? How could he even know if he knew or not?

There is simply piss-poor communication all around, scriptures non-withstanding. You can celebrate the Mystery and call it that, but you'll have to let go pretending to know anything, and that's hard.

Dougman said...

To experience a life changing event is to know a little of Mystery.
To testify is evidence to a truth loving atheist.

If anyone does not accept testimony as evidence, I don't waste my time.

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