Pascal.
Knowledge.
The Universe.
What do these three things have in common?
Correct. We will never fully know any of them.
Pascal does quite a number on the mind when he begins discussing human limitations. As I was working through the reading I was captivated by the idea that I will never know the true beginning or the true ending of anything, especially life itself, since I am not the infinite Creator. The mere idea of infinity blows my mind, yet God comprehends it completely and knows every little thing about infinite and the temporal realms. It's never fun to admit that you will never be enough, but I can say with complete relief and joy that I'll never know the universe or really much of anything here on earth. Pascal points out that human beings are limited to the point of their own little bubble and their own body, yet even that in itself is so vast and infinite. The body itself, he implies, is a world on it's own, with actions so minute that we cannot even see their effects until it ripples throughout the entire body. Digging into this idea creates a sense of both never being good enough, yet never being too little for who we are. By comparing the body to the little circle of a universe we live in creates the fear of not knowing what's beyond our reach, but it also empowers us to believe that we are complex and the workings of the mind and body are similar to that of a whole universe in motion, with many moving parts, perfectly placed and designed for the greatness it can and will achieve.
Pascal may not have intentionally gone all "motivational speaker" on us, but he sure did give us a glimpse into the value we have and the limits we posses at the same time.
P.S. I commented on Luke and Jacob's posts
Knowledge.
The Universe.
What do these three things have in common?
Correct. We will never fully know any of them.
Pascal does quite a number on the mind when he begins discussing human limitations. As I was working through the reading I was captivated by the idea that I will never know the true beginning or the true ending of anything, especially life itself, since I am not the infinite Creator. The mere idea of infinity blows my mind, yet God comprehends it completely and knows every little thing about infinite and the temporal realms. It's never fun to admit that you will never be enough, but I can say with complete relief and joy that I'll never know the universe or really much of anything here on earth. Pascal points out that human beings are limited to the point of their own little bubble and their own body, yet even that in itself is so vast and infinite. The body itself, he implies, is a world on it's own, with actions so minute that we cannot even see their effects until it ripples throughout the entire body. Digging into this idea creates a sense of both never being good enough, yet never being too little for who we are. By comparing the body to the little circle of a universe we live in creates the fear of not knowing what's beyond our reach, but it also empowers us to believe that we are complex and the workings of the mind and body are similar to that of a whole universe in motion, with many moving parts, perfectly placed and designed for the greatness it can and will achieve.
Pascal may not have intentionally gone all "motivational speaker" on us, but he sure did give us a glimpse into the value we have and the limits we posses at the same time.
P.S. I commented on Luke and Jacob's posts
Comments
It still fascinates me how our minds just shut down when trying to comprehend something that is timeless. To our brains, timelessness is the equivalent of lawlessness and that is still sort of funny to me.