Divine Amusement

We are created for God’s amusement.

One of the biggest barriers to human understanding of religion and spirituality is arrogance. As previously noted here, the fundamental element in the Fall was the decision to place reason on the throne as an avatar for the self. Those most loudly and vociferously appealing to reason are also the most arrogant about what they will accept as reasonable.

My memories are as fresh as yesterday, watching the faith of preacher boys destroyed by the rationalist professors at the college I attended. Their faith was destroyed by reason. That is, once they had tasted the powers of logic, they felt the universe was under their control. While few would have said it in those words, it was painfully obvious how empowering it was against their own faith. Thus, they forced their beliefs to bow the knee to their reason.

They then adopted the same arrogance as the professors who taught them. It came in all flavors, but the unmistakable common thread was the sense of power and privilege over those poor benighted souls who simply could not so readily rise to rationality. That is, they perceived folks as struggling to rise to their level of rationality. Because it was so easy for them to embrace, and so obviously the truth of things, anyone who didn’t tumble down that hill so quickly as they were somehow less able, less intelligent.

An attack on organized religion itself, and the vilification of the associated schlock merchandising of religious stuff, is fine with me. I do that. But attacking faith itself is another matter. Those who insist on a debate over faith are typically engaging in some form of penis-waving. It’s the same vulgar bullshit you expect from any other exhibitionist. “I just know you want to see this because I’m soooooo awesome!” Of course, they project that back on you if you reject their demands; you are somehow arrogant if you don’t admire their greatness.

This is precisely why God slammed Nebuchadnezzar to the ground in Daniel’s prophecy. It wasn’t because Nebs was pagan or committing atrocities in war, but because he was arrogant, and it was totally wrong in that culture. It just so happens it was wrong in that culture because it has always been morally wrong, and that culture was still rather close to God’s revelation. The Lord saw in Nebs something worthy of redemption, so he gave the man a chance to learn. Not to force him to become a Jew, but God taught him something about arrogance. God still had use for him at that point. Had Nebuchadnezzar merely gloried in his own place on his own throne, it would not have to come to that. He was claiming some part of God’s throne, and that’s how Lucifer got into trouble.

It’s pretty hard to teach that lesson these days. Nebs knew better; our entire modern world can’t imagine knowing better. In our world today, there is no better than to walk in the arrogance of human reason.

When it no longer amuses Him, God unmakes things.