This sunset shot was taken in winter at the edge of the parking lot of Rowley's Red Barn in Santaquin, Utah. It was one of the most sublime sunsets I've ever seen, and it brought to mind an imaginary conversation between a Christian and an Atheist, discussing the nature of sunsets and other things.
Christian:
Magnificent! This is the art of The Creator!
Atheist:
Actually, it's just light waves from the sun passing through dust particles and cloud formations on the horizon.
Christian:
I think two words you just said get at the heart of the difference between us.
Atheist:
What words?
Christian:
"It's just."
Atheist:
Explain.
Christian:
We perceive the same thing, but see different things. I see light and dust stirred into glory--a beauty that makes the soul ache for something beyond it, something that makes me better for having seen it, a work of art from another world. But to you "it's just" light waves moving through dust particles.
It's basically the same with everything that matters.
To us it's a profound, mystical union--a Divine gift that enables a transcendent intimacy between husband and wife. To you "it's just" sex.
To us, moral debates are battles between good and evil in the context of a cosmic war for the souls of people. To you "it's just" one groups' pursuit of self-interest over another.
Atheist:
Back to the sunset! You can't deny that it's made up of light rays and dust particles!
Christian:
I only deny that that's all it is. The point that always leads science worshipers astray is precisely the point where they are correct. You are right in what you know; you are wrong in thinking what you know is all there is to know.
You learn the cellular structure of a flower and stop there without considering the beauty of a flower. Because you first notice the shape of a square when perceiving a cube, you swear by the square and dismiss the cube as a myth.
Christians, on the other hand, live in a God-haunted world. For us, beauty and morality and sex buzz with the glow of the Holy Spirit. For us the world is like a dark house where each room is lit by a mysterious luminescence streaming through the windows from outside.
For you, the world is a well-lit, windowless lab, clear and controlled, without mystery and without life.
Magnificent! This is the art of The Creator!
Atheist:
Actually, it's just light waves from the sun passing through dust particles and cloud formations on the horizon.
Christian:
I think two words you just said get at the heart of the difference between us.
Atheist:
What words?
Christian:
"It's just."
Atheist:
Explain.
Christian:
We perceive the same thing, but see different things. I see light and dust stirred into glory--a beauty that makes the soul ache for something beyond it, something that makes me better for having seen it, a work of art from another world. But to you "it's just" light waves moving through dust particles.
It's basically the same with everything that matters.
To us it's a profound, mystical union--a Divine gift that enables a transcendent intimacy between husband and wife. To you "it's just" sex.
To us, moral debates are battles between good and evil in the context of a cosmic war for the souls of people. To you "it's just" one groups' pursuit of self-interest over another.
Atheist:
Back to the sunset! You can't deny that it's made up of light rays and dust particles!
Christian:
I only deny that that's all it is. The point that always leads science worshipers astray is precisely the point where they are correct. You are right in what you know; you are wrong in thinking what you know is all there is to know.
You learn the cellular structure of a flower and stop there without considering the beauty of a flower. Because you first notice the shape of a square when perceiving a cube, you swear by the square and dismiss the cube as a myth.
Christians, on the other hand, live in a God-haunted world. For us, beauty and morality and sex buzz with the glow of the Holy Spirit. For us the world is like a dark house where each room is lit by a mysterious luminescence streaming through the windows from outside.
For you, the world is a well-lit, windowless lab, clear and controlled, without mystery and without life.
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