O assunto surgiu na comunidade "Olavo de Carvalho do B", mas achei interessante que fosse colocada aqui. O que acham dessa frase de Voegelin? Que tipo de explicação poderia ser dada dentro do contexto de sua obra?
I have long remembered an aphorism of Eric's at one of these occasions: "Of course there is no God. But we must believe in Him." I understood, I thought, the concept of the indispensable symbol.
http://www.voegelinview.com/eric-voegelin-a-recollection-pt-3.html
But, as we say this, notice also that we are not dealing with a simple-minded denier of God, who belligerently argues that there is no God and who makes it plain that he is at war with religion, when we are dealing with Voegelin. We are dealing with an extremely sophisticated thinker, that is to say, with one who is by no means aggressively atheist.
Voegelin understands both the need for religion, and the role that it plays in man's life and in society, as well as the fact that religion is one of the symbolic expressions of the structure of human consciousness which is eclipsed at the cost of human decency and civility. Indeed, it is owing to this latter point that Voegelin speaks so knowingly and even positively about religion, despite his being of the view that 'there is no God,' and in the process puzzles many of his followers as well as opponents about his true views
http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Eric+Voegelin%27s+imma…-a0201086898
I have long remembered an aphorism of Eric's at one of these occasions: "Of course there is no God. But we must believe in Him." I understood, I thought, the concept of the indispensable symbol.
http://www.voegelinview.com/eric-voegelin-a-recollection-pt-3.html
But, as we say this, notice also that we are not dealing with a simple-minded denier of God, who belligerently argues that there is no God and who makes it plain that he is at war with religion, when we are dealing with Voegelin. We are dealing with an extremely sophisticated thinker, that is to say, with one who is by no means aggressively atheist.
Voegelin understands both the need for religion, and the role that it plays in man's life and in society, as well as the fact that religion is one of the symbolic expressions of the structure of human consciousness which is eclipsed at the cost of human decency and civility. Indeed, it is owing to this latter point that Voegelin speaks so knowingly and even positively about religion, despite his being of the view that 'there is no God,' and in the process puzzles many of his followers as well as opponents about his true views
http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Eric+Voegelin%27s+imma…-a0201086898