I do not believe in the creed professed by the Jewish Church, by the Roman Church, by the Greek Church, by the Turkish Church, by the Protestant Church, nor by any church that I know of. My own mind is my own church. --- Thomas Paine
There is an inconsistency in his statement. The creed he espouses is actually that of the Protestants. He just didn't realize it.
What tickles me about this sort of statement is that it is put out by sophomores everywhere with a kind of bravado--as if they were the first ones to think of it-- they wear this statement as one might brandish a protest sign or a red badge of courage--never actually taking the time to think through either the statement itself or how dumb they look proclaiming it to the world.
What tickles me about this sort of statement is that it is put out by sophomores everywhere with a kind of bravado--as if they were the first ones to think of it-- they wear this statement as one might brandish a protest sign or a red badge of courage--never actually taking the time to think through either the statement itself or how dumb they look proclaiming it to the world.
Oh Thank God the fluff is gone! Have heard that statement so many times, especially when I was in college. Explains why they don't have to follow anything, except what feels right for them at the moment.
ReplyDeleteFather, don't hold back or beat around the bush. Tell us what you really think ;-)
ReplyDeleteYou're back! Thanks be to God!
ReplyDeleteFrom the wellput to the street version: a perrenial favourite karaoke on the "costas" (spanish resorts frequented by Brits atc and over a million retirees): "I did it my way." Yeah, great, and just look at you!
ReplyDeleteGodsend that I could not identify, but I ve often enough fallen for" be yourself= Be like Gods". Such a lie!
We hellbound sinners are as utterly individually out of touch with each other and God inside and as utterly alike as a beachful of sloshing grains of sand only causing each other external scratches- the genuinely individual and each so different people,being the most themselves at their most selfless wholly in community are the Saints.
Great post, Padre...but one nit: there isn't a "Protestant Church." That phrase implies a central authority and unity of belief. There are Protestant churches, plural.
ReplyDeletegood point. Post amended.
ReplyDelete"nor any church that he knew of" then he said his mind was his own church? So he didn't believe his own mind? hahaha! Good one!
ReplyDeleteI suspect that today we would say that Paine was a legend in his own mind...
ReplyDeleteIf I'm not mistaken, Paine believed in "the natural religion", meaning Muslim, Hindus, aboriginals, Confucians, Buddhists, and Christians all believe a common subset that was true. It's just that humans added "a bunch of stuff" for their own selfish interests.
ReplyDeleteThis isn't quite Protestantism.
It's Deism with the stipulation that he would agree that this is such a thing as Natural Law.
Of course, you are correct that if he actually stepped outside his mind and looked at history, he'd see that there were countless Greeks who believed the same thing. He was just reinventing the square wheel. Without the benefit of others experiences, he was doomed to blindly repeat their errors.