Satire or Steadfastness: Conscience in a World of 6,000 gods

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According to Erasmus (1941, p. 46), in his satirical work, he made fun of Pythagoras, who concluded that man is miserable. Man's central problem is not that he is miserable, but that he is unable to choose between good and bad at all times. Sure, he can refine himself, engage in university to gather knowledge, work, and invest to become better off than his neighbor which is why he works so hard in the first place, and through personal effort or Epicurean practice, which was an ancient train of thought that the ultimate aim of man is to pursue pleasure as an end in itself (Edwards, p. 5), can attain some peace of mind intermittently. Just look around our world today; those thoughts are not so antiquated as they are in our communities.

Instead, the real struggle lies in the inner workings of the heart and conscience. No matter how much a person debates or denies the existence of conscience, it remains—a persistent voice wrestling within, beyond the reach of self-improvement or external achievement. Can anyone be good or bad? And by extension, answer the question ultimately from a faith perspective or argument of reason or even those who just plain decide to avert the question as our scholars have posited (Hutchins, 1952a, p. 543) entirely, does not negate the fact that the real question remains at the end of the day, is there some type of supernatural being out there, a creator, God, or is man top of the food chain or is there some sort of reward or punishment for being good or bad as it relates to mans interaction with God (Hutchins, 1952b, p. 605)?

I exercise my own personal faith in the God of the Hebrews, or the Christian God, though I understand that many other cultures have their own views of a deity. According to some, there are more than six thousand gods (Hutchins, 1952, p. 544). That's a lot of gods to choose from, worship, obey, and honor. How do we remain steadfast, faithful, persevering, and head to our calling if we follow the Christian God? Paul encouraged early Christians to grow in their knowledge of God (The Holy Bible, New International Version, 1999, Colossians 1:10). But our pursuit of faith is not just a matter of belief—it is revealed in how we live. Our actions and priorities, visible in how we spend our time, demonstrate what we truly value and teach others by example.

It is widely accepted that the environment shapes an organism, so Nietzsche argued that human beings are molded by their surroundings and become resilient through ominous conditions (Nietzsche, 1918). Environmental pressures over time produce resilience and resistance to change or destruction. If this is true, then within a theological framework, the environment of a faith-based community powerfully shapes a believer’s faith so that we are not taken captive by a worldly outlook on life, though not always adverse, sometimes as disciples we endure discipline from our heavenly father (The Holy Bible, New International Version, 1999, Colossians 2:8; Hebrews 12:7).

Together in the struggle,

Brian

References:

Edwards, P. (1967). Epicurus. In The encyclopedia of philosophy (Vol. 3, pp. 3-5). essay, Macmillan Company & the Free Press.

Erasmus, D. (1941). The Praise of Folly (H. H. Hudson, Trans.; 3rd ed.). Princeton University Press.

Hutchins, R. M. (1952a). God. In The Great Ideas: A Syntopicon of Great Books of the Western World (Vol. 2, pp. 543-604). Encyclopedia Britannica.

Hutchins, R. M. (1952b). Good and Evin. In The Great Ideas: A Syntopicon of Great Books of the Western World (Vol. 2, pp. 605-636). Encyclopedia Britannica.

Nietzsche, F. (1918). Beyond Good and Evil. Boni and Liveright, Inc.

The Holy Bible: New International Version. (1999). Cornerstone Bible Publishers. (original work published 1973)