"The most preposterous notion that H. sapiens has ever dreamed up is that the Lord God of Creation, Shaper and Ruler of all the Universes, wants the saccharine adoration of His creatures, can be swayed by their prayers, and becomes petulant if He does not receive this flattery. Yet this absurd fantasy, without a shred of evidence to bolster it, pays all the expenses of the oldest, largest, and least productive industry in all history.” Robert A. Heinlein
2006-08-21 08:18:23 · 20 answers · asked by Kathryn™ 6 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
Seems people are not aware that Heinlein, author of many books, including Stranger in A Strange Land, died in 1988.
2006-08-21 08:30:31 · update #1
Okay, let's try one more time...what do you think about a supremely powerful being who gets cranky if you don't worship him?
2006-08-21 08:39:40 · update #2
I wouldn't call myself an orthodox Christian, but I agree with many tenets of various Christian faiths. However, Heinlein's quote seems to be addressing the institutions of Man and the peculiarities of human fears and the way they assuage them. I don't think it says a thing about whether there is a God (capital G) or not. It doesn't sway me one way or the other, except to bolster my already held view that Heinlein is a keen observer of human nature.
Re: added information--I was aware of Heinlein's death and have read his Grumbles from the Grave published thereafter. I think many people confuse the idea and the treatment of the idea. The view of a petulant God merely illustrates the nature of the human mind and its need to construct a light to see into a darkness. His quote says more about the person than the deity, and to equate the two is to subscribe to the "Star Trek" version of religion that says God disappears when people stop believing in Him. To ascribe these traits to a God is to simply reduce what could be a real God to a caricature that is nothing more than the mind who conceived the description. I hope that clears up my view of the matter!
2006-08-21 08:32:16 · answer #1 · answered by Black Dog 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I think that is the biggest fiction book ever written.
Too bad that some people choose to believe rather than think for themselves.
I can't see a god asking me to do most of the things that he supposedly states in that book.
Real big fiction.
The real reason it has "lasted" for this long is the perpetuation of every son or daughter born to the previous believer.
2006-08-21 15:52:42 · answer #2 · answered by melrae1116 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
An unbeliever would think that. I live to praise God. He gave me life after 40 years of turning my back on Him. The thing is, even after all I've done God wasn't, cranky , as you put it, but gave me a new life.
2006-08-21 17:41:19 · answer #3 · answered by thomasnotdoubting 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Some of the very best quotes come from Heinlein. This one, of course, is right on target. Another one of his that is applicable in this venue is "Never underestimate the power of human stupidity."
2006-08-21 15:26:17 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 1⤋
That's funny because Heinlein was a church going right-wing leaning person after the war.
2006-08-21 15:30:39 · answer #5 · answered by zhadowlord 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Why should I care what this person thinks about anything? He is just another person who didn't believe in God or the Scriptures. And when he died, he found out how wrong he was.
2006-08-21 15:36:40 · answer #6 · answered by BrotherMichael 6 · 0⤊ 2⤋
Yea, the the federal government. The religious lobby is extremely powerful. We should all be scared to death.
2006-08-21 15:26:47 · answer #7 · answered by Gorgeoustxwoman2013 7 · 3⤊ 0⤋
two thoughts:
1. God is not like that....
2. i agree that bad ministers and preachers have messed up everything God wanted.
2006-08-21 15:49:52 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
Every one is intitled to their own opinion.
Sad though that this guy couldn't Take GOD at face value, and decided to live in his own little fantasy world.
He reaped what he sowed
2006-08-21 15:41:38 · answer #9 · answered by obeysjah 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Wasn't Robert A. Heinlin a believer and church goer when he died?
2006-08-21 15:35:37 · answer #10 · answered by Pop D 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋