I have finally started A Map of Life, and I collected some quotes that
summarize this first chapter:
"It is of his (man's) nature to be a union of matter and spirit."
"In no case is intellegent living- that is, living consciously for the true purpose of
our being- possible to us unless we are told by God what the purpose is."
Any questions or comments? I'm not much good at starting a discussion but if anyone else has an idea for a discussion please post or comment.
3 comments:
Don't you think that quote about intelligent living (watch the spelling, though) is a little shocking? Do you agree with it? How would you try to explain what it meant to someone who was offended or upset by it?
I was thinking much the same thing. At first, that statement sounds slightly opinionated. But when you think it over, it makes sense, doesn't it? We can't "live consciously for the true purpose of our being" until we are consious of what that purpose is. And when in history has anyone been told their vocation by someone other than God, or without God willing it?
Although, if you want to mince the phrase, you could try to argue that knowingly following your God-given purpose in life is not the only form of intelligent living. However, that disregards logic, which is bad theology. I don't agree with it myself, but there are people today who do. Why do you think that is? Do you think, like me, that the definition of 'intelligent living' depends almost solely on the beliefs of the person defining it?
I think you can consider two definitions of "intelligent living". One is relative to a particular person you're thinking of and whether or not they are living as intelligently as they could. But it would be a mistake to only consider this "relative" view. There is an "absolute" truth by which this relative view is understood. I'm not sure if I'm making myself completely clear here, but this distinction between "relative" and "absolute" is quite important.
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