Log in or Sign up
Coin Talk
Home
Forums
>
Coin Forums
>
Coin Chat
>
In God We Trust (til when?)
>
Reply to Thread
Message:
<p>[QUOTE="Sealgair, post: 4030768, member: 97867"]The English segment of my family (which is the great majority—another chunk is Nipmuk) came here in 1630 (Massachusetts Bay Colony) and John Winthrop is a direct ancestor. Further, Christianity and its history was a major component of my university teaching for 40 years. So, I have a fairly significant history with the core elements of that particular mythology. Unfortunately, except for elements like the historical facts of the great rabbi, Jesus of Nazareth and his followers and distractors, there is not a scintilla of testable evidence about its “truth”. That is the very, defining essence of all mythologies, which are cultural stories about unknowable matters, so asking about the “truth” of any religious mythology is just the wrong kind of question. Thus, when seen as cultural history (comparable to how the latter ancient Greeks thought that the sun was a god named Apollo), as the nation as a whole has been moving away from its Deistic foundation (now confused incorrectly with Christianity), the motto has become for many a kind of vague rejection of real responsibility. (There are those who say, stupidly, things like “climate change is a hoax because God wouldn’t destroy the world” are egregiously wrong about both science and Christian history.) So: would I like to see the motto go away? Certainly. But to object to it on literal grounds is to confuse reality and escapist phantasy.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>
[QUOTE="Sealgair, post: 4030768, member: 97867"]The English segment of my family (which is the great majority—another chunk is Nipmuk) came here in 1630 (Massachusetts Bay Colony) and John Winthrop is a direct ancestor. Further, Christianity and its history was a major component of my university teaching for 40 years. So, I have a fairly significant history with the core elements of that particular mythology. Unfortunately, except for elements like the historical facts of the great rabbi, Jesus of Nazareth and his followers and distractors, there is not a scintilla of testable evidence about its “truth”. That is the very, defining essence of all mythologies, which are cultural stories about unknowable matters, so asking about the “truth” of any religious mythology is just the wrong kind of question. Thus, when seen as cultural history (comparable to how the latter ancient Greeks thought that the sun was a god named Apollo), as the nation as a whole has been moving away from its Deistic foundation (now confused incorrectly with Christianity), the motto has become for many a kind of vague rejection of real responsibility. (There are those who say, stupidly, things like “climate change is a hoax because God wouldn’t destroy the world” are egregiously wrong about both science and Christian history.) So: would I like to see the motto go away? Certainly. But to object to it on literal grounds is to confuse reality and escapist phantasy.[/QUOTE]
Your name or email address:
Do you already have an account?
No, create an account now.
Yes, my password is:
Forgot your password?
Stay logged in
Coin Talk
Home
Forums
>
Coin Forums
>
Coin Chat
>
In God We Trust (til when?)
>
Home
Home
Quick Links
Search Forums
Recent Activity
Recent Posts
Forums
Forums
Quick Links
Search Forums
Recent Posts
Competitions
Competitions
Quick Links
Competition Index
Rules, Terms & Conditions
Gallery
Gallery
Quick Links
Search Media
New Media
Showcase
Showcase
Quick Links
Search Items
Most Active Members
New Items
Directory
Directory
Quick Links
Directory Home
New Listings
Members
Members
Quick Links
Notable Members
Current Visitors
Recent Activity
New Profile Posts
Sponsors
Menu
Search
Search titles only
Posted by Member:
Separate names with a comma.
Newer Than:
Search this thread only
Search this forum only
Display results as threads
Useful Searches
Recent Posts
More...