In the beginning were sounds of song and the sips of soup?

The gospel according to D. H. Lawrence:

“Brute force crushes many plants. Yet the plants rise again. The Pyramids will not last a moment compared with the daisy. And before Buddha or Jesus spoke the nightingale sang, and long after the words of Jesus and Buddha are gone into oblivion the nightingale still will sing. Because it is neither preaching nor teaching nor commanding nor urging. It is just singing. And in the beginning was not a Word, but a chirrup.”

These are bold assertions about what was believed to be happening in the beginning.

With none to witness it, assumptions are made. It is believed that it all began with chirrups of daisies and the gurgles of primordial Campbells. This is a nice thought. But it is quite incoherent with any philosophy that struggles with the tensions of life, reality, and truth.

I am perplexed by these thoughts that have not be tempered by anything other than an appreciation for the resilient beauty of nature. In considering the “brute force” that crushes, he declares these two characters representatives. Really?! Mr. Lawrence, could you not have picked some religious leaders that actually embraced some kind or any kind of “brute force?”

Jesus?!

Buddha?!

Ignorance is bliss when sitting in the garden with a bowl of chicken noodle soup. Ignorance is far from bliss when wrestling with who certain people really are what they were really all about. But even the ignorant stumble across truth from time to time.

With the sounds of birds singing and the songs of flowers there is this gentle reminder of what may linger longer than time itself. What lasts longer than the pyramids? What lasts longer than the institutions that claim to follow Jesus or Buddha? What lasts longer than this world with all of its flowers and fowl?

Life does.

There was life at the beginning. There had to have been life prior to such a beginning to bring about the life that chirruped. There will be life after these things.

It is not the resilient beauty of nature that has been noticed. It is the resilient beauty of life as noticed in nature.

Life is resilient. 
Life is full of beauty.

Stacking the quotes in favor of fairness?!

The gospel found on the back of the book:

“‘All thinking men are atheist,’ Ernest Hemmingway famously wrote. True? Here are quips, quotes, and questions from a distinguished assortment of geniuses and jokers, giving readers a chance to decide for themselves…”

Presumably this thought was typed by the author…err…”conceiver” of this book. Perhaps not. It doesn’t matter. Regarding Hemmingway’s quote, its boldness will be discussed at another time. But what I find intriguing about this statement is that it alludes to this book providing a bunch of thoughts that are admittedly one-sided and then characterizes this book as “giving readers a chance to decide for themselves.”

This is brilliant.

Brilliant, if you have already decided for yourself before you in fact opened the book and considered the thoughts that were recorded within. Brilliant, if you could get some one to actually believe that good decisions can be made on one-sided bits propaganda. Brilliant, if you want the decision to be about what kind of atheist a person may decide themselves to be. Brilliant, if you really don’t know what exactly they are going to decide on, but as long as its not about the existence of God, then its all good.

This may sound brilliant if you are “bright.”

Is this the kind of “chance” that Atheism gives Theism in the public square?

What kind of “chance” is this?

Illusion?

Delusion?

Thankfully, the measure of thoughtfulness is raised in most of the quotes find within the pages of this book. Though some seem to be purposed for comedic relief but it obvious that humor is being used to conceal the void of rationality and reason. All of which will be discussed in due time.