Of mud and men...
Heard an interesting quote on the radio today. A fellow loosely quoted John Calvin as saying "If we were made of the stuff of stars, we might have something of worth, but actually we are not made of the stuff of stars - we are made of mud. And we have not just mud in our shoes, mud on our clothes, and mud on our faces, but mud in our hearts and mud in our souls."
Of course the irony is that any cosmologist will tell you that actually we *are* made of the stuff of stars. The carbon we are made of (and the mud too for that matter!) is made from elements which can only be born in the heart of stars and shot out to the cosmos when they die in spectacular supernovae.
This got me thinking: is it only that we need a new metaphor, to bring Calvin up-to-date scientifically? Or is it perhaps time for a new and more optimistic theological anthropology - one which moves beyond an obsession with sin and guilt, and rejoices in our status as children of the stars?
Of course the irony is that any cosmologist will tell you that actually we *are* made of the stuff of stars. The carbon we are made of (and the mud too for that matter!) is made from elements which can only be born in the heart of stars and shot out to the cosmos when they die in spectacular supernovae.
This got me thinking: is it only that we need a new metaphor, to bring Calvin up-to-date scientifically? Or is it perhaps time for a new and more optimistic theological anthropology - one which moves beyond an obsession with sin and guilt, and rejoices in our status as children of the stars?
posted by Lindsay | 7:53 pm
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