Week in Review (June 17-21)
A Broken Dryer, Outjumping Luka Dončić, the Bad Idea of Voting the Bible, and Answers to Life's Greatest Questions
It’s Friday morning in Nampa, Idaho. As most mornings, I began this day by pushing the start button, feeding the dogs, and reading a collection Bertrand Russell essays, which I picked up at the Boise Library last week.
This morning’s Russell essay was simply titled, “Language”, and opens with this:
“The subject of language is one which has not been studied with sufficient care in traditional philosophy. It was taken for granted that words exist to express ‘thoughts’, and generally also that ‘thoughts’ have ‘objects’ which are what the words ‘mean’.”
Geesh! Nothing’s easy.
But how complicated does this need to be? There are words we use to refer to stuff we are talking about so we can have intelligible and constructive interaction and dialogue. Right? What else do we really need to know???
The examination of language seems like a niche topic. I can’t remember in all the years I have asked for people to suggest article topics of interest, that anyone said:
“Jim, I’d be interested in you writing an article about pursuing the meaning of a text to the point of exposing the supposed contradictions and internal oppositions upon which it is founded—showing that those foundations are irreducibly complex, unstable, or impossible.”
But believe it or not, the examination of language had a profound impact in my religious deconstruction process, and changed the way I think about everything. I’m considering this as my topic in the presentation I’m giving in a couple weeks at ORTCON 2024 at the Grand Tetons. In anticipation of this, I might publish a Substack article on the topic to see what you think.
Life’s Greatest Answers and the Politics of God
This week on Substack, I posted an article in which I offered one-sentence answers to life’s 11 greatest existential questions.
There are times when I feel that people too quickly take the “embrace mystery” route when it comes to the epic questions of life. There are perhaps several reasons for this, including:
People have a hard enough time trying to figure out why their dryer takes three cycles to dry anything, much less determine the meaning of human existence.
After watching theological and philosophical debates on YouTube, they concluded it’s impossible to have definite answers about anything.
The “embrace mystery” path seems more peaceful, compared to slogging through the writings of French philosophers you can’t even properly pronounce.
I get it.
But I wrote the article because I truly believe that the most important questions of life aren’t quite as mysterious as people make it out to be. I understand that figuring out what’s wrong with your dryer is important, but I also think that taking life’s existential questions under consideration could be a pathway to a life of deeper meaning, fulfillment and liberation.
Viktor Frankl wrote, “Those who have a ‘why’ to live, can bear with almost any ‘how’.”
I also wrote an article this week titled, Is God Republican or Democrat? Why the Bible is Not a Political Blueprint. Some recent statements by Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, namely calling for a “biblically sanctioned government” promoted this article, as well as the absurd popular mantra “vote the Bible”.
In the article I discuss:
Why the "vote the Bible" idea is absurd
What is biblical textjacking
God and politics - a cautionary tale
Can the Bible be used as a party platform
Should we be concerned about Christian Nationalism
Religion and politics is obviously a huge and complex subject. I’m sure by now you’ve heard about Louisiana’s ruling, requiring public schools to display the Ten Commandments in public school classrooms. Some believe that Louisiana’s demand to display the religious text in public schools is part of an effort to make the US a theocratic state. I will likely write an article on this next week.
This week I also posted a conversation thread with the topic: “If you were to recommend one book, what would it be and why?” I shared some of the books that have impacted my journey, and I revised my current reading list with a few of the books others shared. I hope you will comment on the thread. I’d be interested in knowing the books that have been meaningful for you.
My NBA Comeback
So, the Celtics won their 18th NBA Championship this past week. Another top basketball story was my bid to re-start the basketball career I never had. ESPN has not yet called to cover this epic sports story but I’m anticipating the call next week.
Here’s what happened. I was at the Nampa Recreation Center on a treadmill, and noticed pick-up basketball games on the courts below. After my workout, I decided to go down and shoot around a bit on my own. While it’s true that I clanked my first five shots into the rim, this didn’t stop me from wondering if I should return to the world of basketball and re-start my bid for the basketball career I never had. Luka Dončić has inspired me. I think I might actually have a higher leap than he does.
I lived in Chicago during the Michael Jordan and Chicago Bulls dynasty. I wrote about this in my first book, Divine Nobodies:
“During the Michael Jordan and Chicago Bulls championship dynasty, I often lost sleep when the Bulls lost an important game. It gets worse. I cried when Michael Jordan retired the first time. I did a victory dance when he returned. I was distraught when he didn't dominate Major League Baseball, and I wished there could have been one last Cinderella story playing with the Wizards. The truth is, something died in me the day I realized Michael Jordan was not the perfect hero and role model the little kid inside me so deeply needed him to be. I don't know why it was so important to me; nobody's perfect, not even MJ. All these years later, and hardly a week goes by that I don't watch a video of a Michael Jordan tongue-out slam dunk or last second buzzer beater. I knew I was supposed to want to be like Jesus but secretly all I ever really wanted was to be like Mike.”
Each time I did a workout at the rec center I would shoot around on the basketball court after my workout. Then came that day when I was asked if I wanted to play in a pick-up game. It was that day that I learned how far middle-school kids have come in the evolution of their basketball skills.
Keep in mind, that when I’m playing basketball, I think I’m doing this:
But in reality, I’m doing this:
In terms of my athletic and sports interests, I did football, wrestling and track in high school. I had dreams of playing college football, but suffered a serious back injury my senior year. In college I took up running and for most of my adult life I have competed in endurance sports such as ultramarathons, triathlons and long-distance cycling. But for some reason watching a pick-up game from that treadmill in the Nampa Rec Center, suddenly the idea of team sports appealed to me again.
For me, endurance sports training and competing has largely been a solitary endeavor. I’ve run several 100+ mile ultramarathon races and most of those miles I ran alone. I’m not quite sure why team sports piqued my interest at this stage of life. I am an introvert, experience mild social anxiety, and generally avoid people in public.
But in an effort of continuing the lifelong endeavor of self-actualization, I considered the benefits of breaking out of my comfort zone, doing something new, and challenging myself. Of course my newfound inspiration took a hit when I was schooled by a skinny high school kid in a pick-up game, but I don’t give up easily.
Despite the recent craze, there’s no way I would ever play Adult Kickball or Pickleball. No offense intended. I would consider, however, something like an adult basketball league. I’ll keep working at it in hopes of draining a three-pointer to win the Nampa Recreation Center Adult League Basketball Championship in the 40-60 age division. I’ll keep you posted.
It’s Good to Laugh
Robert Frost wrote, “If we couldn’t laugh we would all go insane.” Okay, it’s a little dramatic but I think we all could benefit from laughing a little more. The Mayo Clinic recently published research on the benefits of laughter. Amy and I decided to augment our watching of Parks and Recreation with episodes of The Office. It worked! Our brain function and coping skills have skyrocketed. Who knows what will happen when we add Seinfeld!
In an effort to bolster the quality of life of my subscribers with laughter, I offer George Carlin’s “everyday expressions (that don’t make sense)”:
Top Purchases This Week
Mini Chainsaw (unruly bushes)
Basketball Shoes (NBA comeback)
Currently Reading
Substack Articles that Caught My Eye
We Don't Need 'Self-Help,' We Need Support by
On Nature’s Wisdom for Humanity by
On the Stoic God (or absence thereof) by
In Summary
Once one has a fully-functioning dryer, life’s existential questions are worth exploring
The ideas to “vote the Bible” or enforce a “biblically sanctioned government” are a dangerous combination of religion and politics.
I might be able to out jump Luka Dončić.
Laughter might be our best defense against insanity.
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