Friday, October 13, 2006
The Existential Fear of God
(3)
What I would like to address tonight is your fear of God. You may not even aware of it, but if you fear God, that fear will subtly influence much of your behavior depending on what you think about 'the will of God.' Your fear will in a sense form your behavior. Hence the 'fear of God' is a 'cultural fear' which is far more significant than, for example, your 'fear of heights.'
'Fear of God' figures prominently in the modern social phenomenon known as 'The Culture Wars.' Jews (boom), for example, sexually mutilate their male children on the eighth day after birth out of their fear of God - the God they invented. Muslims follow that unfortunate Jewish sexual prescription. Both religions rely on sexual mutilation to suppress male masturbation because both religions regard that very normal activity as displeasing to God. The result is intercultural (boom) penis envy, not to mention huge amounts of sexual misery.
Your fear of God will be amplified if you think that God can read your thoughts. Your fear of God will be doubly amplified if you think that God cares about what your thoughts really are. If you think that God can read your thoughts and that furthermore God makes judgements about what you think you will be concerned into changing your behavior to conform with whatever religious mores you are inclined to believe. This effect is even further amplified if you believe in a life after death wherein God 'takes revenge' on those whose thoughts and actions displeased Him.
And if you believe that God will punish you forever in Hell for what you think and do while you are alive then you will be literally terrified into behaving in certain stereotypical ways.
The key word here is, 'believe.' You must believe. If you don't believe, you are free: free from the Existential Fear of God.
What I would like to address tonight is your fear of God. You may not even aware of it, but if you fear God, that fear will subtly influence much of your behavior depending on what you think about 'the will of God.' Your fear will in a sense form your behavior. Hence the 'fear of God' is a 'cultural fear' which is far more significant than, for example, your 'fear of heights.'
'Fear of God' figures prominently in the modern social phenomenon known as 'The Culture Wars.' Jews (boom), for example, sexually mutilate their male children on the eighth day after birth out of their fear of God - the God they invented. Muslims follow that unfortunate Jewish sexual prescription. Both religions rely on sexual mutilation to suppress male masturbation because both religions regard that very normal activity as displeasing to God. The result is intercultural (boom) penis envy, not to mention huge amounts of sexual misery.
Your fear of God will be amplified if you think that God can read your thoughts. Your fear of God will be doubly amplified if you think that God cares about what your thoughts really are. If you think that God can read your thoughts and that furthermore God makes judgements about what you think you will be concerned into changing your behavior to conform with whatever religious mores you are inclined to believe. This effect is even further amplified if you believe in a life after death wherein God 'takes revenge' on those whose thoughts and actions displeased Him.
And if you believe that God will punish you forever in Hell for what you think and do while you are alive then you will be literally terrified into behaving in certain stereotypical ways.
The key word here is, 'believe.' You must believe. If you don't believe, you are free: free from the Existential Fear of God.
Labels: fear of God, religion
