Re: The hypothetical again


Let me ask you a hypothetical.

Let's say you meet this wild-eyed man who claims to be Reginald, the
son of the Goddess. He describes to you a strange religion in which
it is said that your ability to perceive the sacred color taupe is due
to your "boul," an immaterial whatsis that resides in your left heel
until you die, at which time if you've been good and had all your
brussel sprouts it will go to a wonderful afterlife and perceive taupe
of such purity that it's joy will know no bounds.

Riiiggghhhhtttt, you will say, but seeing that you are an unbeliever,
he turns you into a blue jay for an hour.

Does that convince you?

if he can turn me into a blue jay because of my incredulity, then I'd
sure start figuring out how to relate to this seemingly insane person.
I'd rather not be on the wrong side of that kind of power.

Sure.

And if so, what does it convince you of?

it convinces me that here is someone who knows something I don't,
which I might want to pay more attention to based on his demonstrated
power to mess with my life.


Just about everyone knows something you don't. I don't mean that as a
slam, merely that people have different knowledge. Similarly, nearly
everyone can mess with your life if they choose to, just not in that
particular dramatic fashion.

That he has magic powers?

not magic powers -- magic is merely illusion. This is not an illusion
(hypothetically speaking).

That he is the true Reginald, and that his
religion isn't the crackpottery that it at first appeared?

right now I don't know about his brussel sprouts and taupe, but I
kinda think I enjoyed flying high as a blue jay. Maybe brussel
sprouts and taupe might be just as enjoyable. I'd investigate
further.

Here is rather the crux of the matter. How do you investigate
further? There isn't anything especially investigatible about
miracles.




.

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