My run tonight was another heavy footed and affair. For some reason my heart wasn't in it; it became something to be endured rather than something to be enjoyed. Try as I might tonight, I just couldn't drum up much enthusiasm for it. I dawdled my way around; a bit fey and pathetic.
The mental and the physical are inextricably linked and influence each other hugely. I'm aware of this and I've touched on the subject here before. I'm facinated by the power of belief and how it can change your outlook completely. I'm an atheist; I believe there is no God - moving mysteriously or otherwise. However, I am always intrigued by the way belief can sometimes alter the physical, for example, how belief can diminish pain or increase strength.
It seems that, were I a Dutchman, I could be devoutly Christian without having to denounce my atheism. I could become a pastor in the Protestant Church in the Netherlands and continue to believe that when I die it is the end. I could preach every Sunday and believe that there is no God and that the Baby Jesus just never happened. Such is the latest stance taken by this Dutch protestant church.
This rethink on Christianity reported by the BBC states that the Rev Klaas Hendrikse can offer his congregation little hope of life after death with his atheism and his message of "Make the most of life on earth, because it will probably be the only one you get". This smacks of Christian liberalism gone mad. They must be so desperate to get bums on seats (or should that read, "knees on hassocks"?), that they'll say and do anything.
They'll be telling me next that it's OK to covet my neighbour's ox.
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