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The Book of Laurence - 17 -
- 17 -
increase my yearning for a religion to belief in; one that
passed muster for such as Jefferson.
36
Then one night while dulling my itch with good whiskey
and bad television, I heard a voice telling me that there was
a God and his name was Larry, and that Bertrand Russell
was right, but not completely.
Lord Russell, long after
giving up Mathematics, had written
"And if there were a God, I think it very unlikely that He
would have such an uneasy vanity as to be offended by those
who doubt His existence."
(What is an Agnostic? 1953)
which sentiment always cheered me up, and also
"Religion is based, I think, primarily and mainly upon fear.
It is partly the terror of the unknown and partly, as I have
said, the wish to feel that you have a kind of elder brother who
will stand by you in all your troubles and disputes. Fear is
the basis of the whole thing -- fear of the mysterious, fear of
defeat, fear of death. Fear is the parent of cruelty, and
therefore it is no wonder if cruelty and religion have gone
hand in hand." (Why I Am Not A Christian, 1957)
which sentiment usually cheered me down. But then Larry
went on, in a voice that sounded more like George Carlin
than Martin Luther.
36
“Question with boldness even the existence of a God; because, if there be one, he must more
approve of the homage of reason, than that of blind-folded fear.” (Thomas Jefferson 1743-1826,
July 4)
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