Ye Olde Joke
One day a group of atheists got together and decided that humans had come a long way and no longer needed God. So they picked a spokesman to go and tell God that he was no longer needed.
The spokesman walked up to God and said, “God, we’ve decided that you’re no longer needed. We’re to the point that we can synthesis new elements, we can create the building blocks of life in a test tube, we can clone sheep and soon we will be able to clone people. There’s no end to the miraculous things we can do. You’ve become irrelevant.”
God listened patiently. After the spokesman finished talking, God said, “Very well! How about this? Let’s have a person-making contest.” To which the spokesman replied, “OK, great!”
But God added, “Now we’re going to do this the old fashion way, just as I did it originally.”
The spokesman said, “Sure, no problem” and bent down and grabbed a handful of dirt.
God smiled and said, “No, no, no . . . You get your own dirt!”
The spokesman walked up to God and said, “God, we’ve decided that you’re no longer needed. We’re to the point that we can synthesis new elements, we can create the building blocks of life in a test tube, we can clone sheep and soon we will be able to clone people. There’s no end to the miraculous things we can do. You’ve become irrelevant.”
God listened patiently. After the spokesman finished talking, God said, “Very well! How about this? Let’s have a person-making contest.” To which the spokesman replied, “OK, great!”
But God added, “Now we’re going to do this the old fashion way, just as I did it originally.”
The spokesman said, “Sure, no problem” and bent down and grabbed a handful of dirt.
God smiled and said, “No, no, no . . . You get your own dirt!”
Comments
In my inability to find a better way to contact you, I thought I would try this.
I am a Master of Divinity student at Philadelphia Biblical University. I am currently writing my thesis on Paul's understandings of "hell" and the underworld, and I have been greatly inspired by the work of yourself, Thomas Talbott, and others in dialogue with you.
I wish merely to ask you a few brief questions, primarily regarding resources for study. If you would be willing to contact me, I would be thrilled and grateful. Thank you.
Joshua Bean
bean.joshua@gmail.com
One of my favourites, slightly related, is the man who said:
"I used to be an agnostic -- but now I'm NOT SO SURE."