Error? So what?

Someone pointed out to me that I misspelled Mr. Huckabee's name in my last post. Getting carried away with the "Huckleberry" name I called him Hucklebee. I kind of like that better, but since I gave him a new first name I will respect the last name in the future.
It's just that he's so nice, Hucklebee seems like a more likely fit.

On "Wait, wait, don't tell me" today, Paul Begala, political commentator, commented, (This as part of an explanation why he thinks Mitt Romney is a phony—but we in Massachusetts knew that already)."I respect the man, (Huckleberry) even tho I disagree with his beliefs—he doesn't believe in evolution, gravity, or photosynthesis…"
That about sums it up. Huckleberry's whole platform is basically that he believes the Bible is literal truth. Foreign policy, a sensible tax policy? Fageddaboudit.

Sigh. It just seems pointless to point out to people who believe in scripture's literal truth the contradictions, the impossibilities etc. "With God, all things are possible." Hmm, who was it said "Even God can't win a game of straight poker with five aces." Alan Watts or Richard Feynman? Or someone else.

It's our (i.e. the Hebrews, but we adopted it) creation story. The Navaho have one, the Hindus have one, the aborigines of Australia have one. Everybody has one and they are all different, but you know that already. The Huckleberry doesn't. And if he does, he knows they are WRONG.

There's a lot of good stuff in the Bible. Some of it does represent actual history (but not the story of Noah—no T.Rex's on the ark). And the fact that whatever you read can have different interpretations only adds to the value. The point is to use it to expand your mind (think of it as a Hebrew version of LSD) and see things in a new, hopefully better, way and adjust your thinking about the world you see around you. It takes work.

Those who latch on to a literal reading are only showing themselves to be the fearful, insecure people they really are. They DON'T REALLY believe, they are just afraid of being wrong, they are afraid of going to hell, they need the security. They are also taking the easy way out.

C'mon, what kind of a god assigns people to hell even if they are good people, just because they don't believe in a certain kind of doctrine? A righteous God would only send to hell those who disagree with ME.
This is kindergarten stuff, but megachurches are full of people who believe in literal truth.

Whether you are a literalist or a metaphorical interpreter of our religious writings and practices, consider this: Following the guidelines and becoming a good, generous, considerate and compassionate human being doesn't make you spiritual. It may make you a benefit to your community and a great person to know, but that stuff is there only to get you to the point where real spirituality can set in. It's like sanding and cleaning the siding before painting it. Before the good stuff there has to be preparation.

That's all for now.