Evidence for God from Science

Leo Tolstoy, who wrote a book called A Confession to describe his existential crisis and what he did in an attempt to resolve it.

Today or tomorrow sickness and death will come (they had come already) to those I love or to me; nothing will remain but stench and worms. Sooner or later my affairs, whatever they may be, will be forgotten, and I shall not exist. Then why go on making any effort? How can man fail to see this? And how go on living? That is what is surprising! One can only live while one is intoxicated with life; as soon as one is sober it is impossible not to see that it is all a mere fraud and a stupid fraud! That is precisely what it is: there is nothing either amusing or witty about it, it is simply cruel and stupid.

Back in his time of the 19th century, he saw four ways that people were handling this problem.

1. Ignorance. “It consists in not knowing, not understanding, that life is an evil and an absurdity. People of this sort — chiefly women, or very young or very dull people — have not yet understood that question of life which presented itself to Schopenhauer, Solomon, and Buddha.” Believers in God fit within this category.

2. Epicureanism and pleasure. “[This] is the way in which the majority of people of our circle make life possible for themselves. Their circumstances furnish them with more of welfare than of hardship, and their moral dullness makes it possible for them to forget that the advantage of their position is accidental, and that not everyone can have a thousand wives and palaces like Solomon.”

3. The “strength” to commit suicide. “Having understood the stupidity of the joke that has been played on them, and having understood that it is better to be dead than to be alive, and that it is best of all not to exist, they act accordingly and promptly end this stupid joke, since there are means: a rope round one’s neck, water, a knife to stick into one’s heart, or the trains on the railways.”

4. Weakness. “It consists in seeing the truth of the situation and yet clinging to life, knowing in advance that nothing can come of it. People of this kind know that death is better than life, but not having the strength to act rationally — to end the deception quickly and kill themselves — they seem to wait for something.”

PaulSacramento wrote:While not a fan of the website, the writer makes some interesting observations on his life VIA Tolstoy's Confessions:

http://www.rooshv.com/does-life-have-in ... ief-in-god

EX:

Leo Tolstoy, who wrote a book called A Confession to describe his existential crisis and what he did in an attempt to resolve it.

Today or tomorrow sickness and death will come (they had come already) to those I love or to me; nothing will remain but stench and worms. Sooner or later my affairs, whatever they may be, will be forgotten, and I shall not exist. Then why go on making any effort? How can man fail to see this? And how go on living? That is what is surprising! One can only live while one is intoxicated with life; as soon as one is sober it is impossible not to see that it is all a mere fraud and a stupid fraud! That is precisely what it is: there is nothing either amusing or witty about it, it is simply cruel and stupid.

Back in his time of the 19th century, he saw four ways that people were handling this problem.

1. Ignorance. “It consists in not knowing, not understanding, that life is an evil and an absurdity. People of this sort — chiefly women, or very young or very dull people — have not yet understood that question of life which presented itself to Schopenhauer, Solomon, and Buddha.” Believers in God fit within this category.

2. Epicureanism and pleasure. “[This] is the way in which the majority of people of our circle make life possible for themselves. Their circumstances furnish them with more of welfare than of hardship, and their moral dullness makes it possible for them to forget that the advantage of their position is accidental, and that not everyone can have a thousand wives and palaces like Solomon.”

3. The “strength” to commit suicide. “Having understood the stupidity of the joke that has been played on them, and having understood that it is better to be dead than to be alive, and that it is best of all not to exist, they act accordingly and promptly end this stupid joke, since there are means: a rope round one’s neck, water, a knife to stick into one’s heart, or the trains on the railways.”

4. Weakness. “It consists in seeing the truth of the situation and yet clinging to life, knowing in advance that nothing can come of it. People of this kind know that death is better than life, but not having the strength to act rationally — to end the deception quickly and kill themselves — they seem to wait for something.”

PaulSacramento wrote:You don't know who Tolstoy is ?

crackpot wrote:

PaulSacramento wrote:You don't know who Tolstoy is ?

Young people today are not erudite. Educated, yes but not erudite. They are uncultured, ignorant and easily led astray.

PaulSacramento wrote:Ok, but the article actually says who Tolstoy was.

PaulSacramento wrote:You don't know who Tolstoy is ?

PaulSacramento wrote:While not a fan of the website, the writer makes some interesting observations on his life VIA Tolstoy's Confessions:

http://www.rooshv.com/does-life-have-in ... ief-in-god

B. W. wrote:P.S. you think the majority of college or high school youth even read such authors as Tolstoy, Dickens, etc and etc these days?

RickD wrote:Kenny was making a funny. You all need some help recognizing obvious sarcastic wit.

RickD wrote:Who is Tolstoy?

Kenny wrote:

PaulSacramento wrote:You don't know who Tolstoy is ?

Was he a person incapable of being depressed?

Ken

PaulSacramento wrote:

Kenny wrote:

PaulSacramento wrote:You don't know who Tolstoy is ?

Was he a person incapable of being depressed?

Ken

Yes, yes he was.

Kenny wrote:

PaulSacramento wrote:

Kenny wrote:

PaulSacramento wrote:You don't know who Tolstoy is ?

Was he a person incapable of being depressed?

Ken

Yes, yes he was.

What was it about him that made him incapable of becoming depressed?

Ken