Posted: Jan 11, 2019 12:08 am
felltoearth wrote:I agree. There is no need to call your highest ideal a god. It’s an ideal, simple as that.
I agree. There is no need to call it a god. And because of the baggage associated with that word, it might be counter-productive, or even arguably wrong.
On the other hand, if we are prepared to accept the word nonetheless (as it often colloquially is accepted) then we can still discuss it.
Did someone once say something about money being 'god'? I seem to recall. There's also 'shopping is the new religion'.
I also do agree with some of the things Émile Durkheim said about non-supernatural religion, and that people can be religious in the non-theistic, non-supernatural sense.
Or, if you prefer sticking to the word ideal, then how close does that come to being like the psychological/cultural role a 'god' plays? Or by saying 'I agree' to the part of my post you quoted, are you already agreeing that it's 'a lot like a god', in the ways I suggested? If you had said, 'I agree (with the above)... but ....there is no need to call it a god....' I would be clearer on what you meant.