

“The Flower
Once in a golden hour
I cast to earth a seed.
Up there came a flower,
The people said, a weed.
To and fro they went
Thro’ my garden-bower,
And muttering discontent
Cur’d me and my flower.
Then it grew so tall
It wore a crown of light,
But thieves from o’er the wall
Stole the seed by night.
Sow’d it far and wide
By every town and tower,
Till all the people cried,
“Splendid is the flower.”
Read my little fable:
He that runs may read.
Most can raise the flowers now,
For all have got the seed.
And some are pretty enough,
And some are poor indeed;
And now again the people
Call it but a weed.”
― The Complete Works of Alfred Tennyson
Once in a golden hour
I cast to earth a seed.
Up there came a flower,
The people said, a weed.
To and fro they went
Thro’ my garden-bower,
And muttering discontent
Cur’d me and my flower.
Then it grew so tall
It wore a crown of light,
But thieves from o’er the wall
Stole the seed by night.
Sow’d it far and wide
By every town and tower,
Till all the people cried,
“Splendid is the flower.”
Read my little fable:
He that runs may read.
Most can raise the flowers now,
For all have got the seed.
And some are pretty enough,
And some are poor indeed;
And now again the people
Call it but a weed.”
― The Complete Works of Alfred Tennyson

“These days, my intercessory prayers are an act of surrender—a way to voice my hopes and my hopelessness, my power to act and my powerlessness. When I pray for things I hope for, I am searching for ways I can act to make a situation better. When I pray in situations I”
― Finding God in the Waves: How I Lost My Faith and Found It Again Through Science
― Finding God in the Waves: How I Lost My Faith and Found It Again Through Science

“Anxiety doesn’t tell us very much. It’s like the “check engine” light in your car, which tells you something’s wrong without telling you what it is.”
― You're a Miracle (and a Pain in the Ass): Embracing the Emotions, Habits, and Mystery That Make You You
― You're a Miracle (and a Pain in the Ass): Embracing the Emotions, Habits, and Mystery That Make You You

“I’ve heard skeptics satirically summarize the substitutionary atonement approach to Christianity this way: “God sent himself in the form of his own son to sacrifice himself to himself so that he could save humanity from himself.”
― Finding God in the Waves: How I Lost My Faith and Found It Again Through Science
― Finding God in the Waves: How I Lost My Faith and Found It Again Through Science

“Van Gogh's view of the world becomes a lamp that reveals corners of my heart that I didn't know were there- and all of this happens immediately, even though he died 88 years before I was born.
So ask yourself this:
Is The Starry Night infallible?
The questions doesn't make sense. Though grammatically sound, it is a query with no meaning. I could just as easily ask "How much does a sunset weigh?" The beauty of The Starry Night isn't in it being fallible or infallible. It's a window into another person's soul.
Let's try another question:
Is The Starry Night true?
If we're talking logic or math, this question is as nonsensical as the first. But if we ask with the perspective of an artist or philosopher, we might find that, yes, The Starry Night is very true- it tells us truths about the human experience. It's a testament to how grief feels and the numinous quality we often experience when we peer deeply into the night sky...
It is somehow more true than facts- it resonates in some deeper chamber of the human heart.
So let me ask you two more questions:
Is the Bible infallible? Is it true?”
― Finding God in the Waves: How I Lost My Faith and Found It Again Through Science
So ask yourself this:
Is The Starry Night infallible?
The questions doesn't make sense. Though grammatically sound, it is a query with no meaning. I could just as easily ask "How much does a sunset weigh?" The beauty of The Starry Night isn't in it being fallible or infallible. It's a window into another person's soul.
Let's try another question:
Is The Starry Night true?
If we're talking logic or math, this question is as nonsensical as the first. But if we ask with the perspective of an artist or philosopher, we might find that, yes, The Starry Night is very true- it tells us truths about the human experience. It's a testament to how grief feels and the numinous quality we often experience when we peer deeply into the night sky...
It is somehow more true than facts- it resonates in some deeper chamber of the human heart.
So let me ask you two more questions:
Is the Bible infallible? Is it true?”
― Finding God in the Waves: How I Lost My Faith and Found It Again Through Science
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