So who exactly is this guy that: “… does not play dice!”

Cardinal O’Connell of Boston who attacked Einstein’s General Theory of Relativity told a group of Catholics that: “The theory cloaked the ghastly apparition of atheism and befogged speculation, producing universal doubt about god and his creation”

So who exactly is this guy that: “… does not play dice!”

A New York rabbi faced Einstein with the simple five word cablegram: “Do you believe in God?” “I believe in Spinoza’s God who reveals himself in the orderly harmony of what exists, not in a God who concerns himself with fates and actions of Human beings.”

So – Just who was this Spinoza guy?

Spinoza lived in Amsterdam and in 1656 he sent a letter to the synagogue authorities. In this he outlined, in precise detail, his philosophical views, backing them up with logical arguments which he claimed were irrefutable From Spinoza in90 mins Paul Strathern

The synagogue authorities decided that they had no alternative: They would have to demonstrate to the Christian community that they no longer would have anything to do with this Spinoza. As far as they were concerned, Spinoza was a non-person, an ex-jew.

In July 1656 a grand ceremony of excommunication was held, and Spinoza was banished in style from the Jewish community.

…A great horn was blown, the candles were extinguished one by one and the curse was read out:

“With the judgement of the angels and saints we hereby: excommunicate, execrate, and anathematise Baruch de Espinoza. AND …

Cursed be he by day

and cursed be he by night,

cursed in his lying down

cursed in his rising up

cursed in his going out

cursed in his coming in

“…The Lord shall destroy his name under the sun and cut him off for his undoing from all the tribes of Israel. None may speak with him by word of mouth nor by writing nor shew any favour to him, nor be under one roof with him, nor come within four cubits of him, nor read any document written by him or dictated by him.”

All I know is that I got to read what this guy wrote

Oh – no – it’s in Dutch !!!!!!!!

Spinoza’s God A Universal God who can be properly apprehended only by the application of reason to the world around us. This suggests that Spinoza’s “religion of disenchantment” could in fact be a prescient description of modern science: a pantheistic universe whose truth we can apprehend only by the use of reason, mathematics and rational experiment. “Spinoza in 90 minutes” Paul Strathern

Years later Einstein expanded on this in a letter to Solovine, the survivor of the Olympia Academy (check Google?). “I can understand your aversion to the use of the term “religion” to describe an emotional and psychological attitude which shows itself most clearly in Spinoza, but I have not found a better expression than ‘religious’ for trust in the rational nature of reality that is, at least to a certain extent, accessible to human reason.”

Question everything and everyone The road to truth is paved with doubt and you will find many detours and roadblocks set up by individuals and organisations to waylay you and take away your freedom – your personal rights.

The road to truth is paved with doubt The road to deception is paved with conviction

Many give themselves away because they invariably get angry (or issue threats) when you express doubt but some are more devious - however they can be recognised as they invariably have a hidden agenda – to blind you with conviction in order to exert influence and power over you and your actions. Money is also often involved

Question everything Georg Christoph Lichtenberg

and cursed be he by night, cursed in his lying down and cursed in his rising up cursed in his going out and cursed in coming in…

Cursed be he by day,

and cursed be he by night,

All I know is - I got to read what this guy wrote

cursed in his lying down

So who exactly is this guy that: “… does not play dice!”