Augustine & Wittgenstein & Drury & Tolstoy

[Thomas Eckhardt]

Jane wrote:

> If religious belief is not based on historical fact or
> philosophical (or indeed
> theological) reflection, neither is it based on science.

Yet again, Cherrycoke: "Doubt is of the essence of Christ." (quoted from
memory) A statement that implies that at least the narrator of "M&D"
shares this view of religious belief as being neither based on
historical fact nor on philosophical/theological reflection. This is a
mystic approach, no? And C doesn't like Deism, if I remember correctly,
which I find quite interesting in this context.

>
> James Frazer in The
> Golden Bough, a book Drury obtained at Wittgenstein's
> request in 1931, had
> understood the primitive rituals he described as arising
> partly from the
> scientific errors of the peoples who celebrated them. This,
> Wittgenstein said,
> was itself erroneous. These rituals were created by
> technically advanced
> civilisations.

Yes, Frazer is terribly condescending. A valuable source, but terribly
condescending.

Thomas

P.S. For all you Jim-Morrison-scholars out there: The lines "Not to
touch the earth/Not to see the sun" are the headings of sub-chapters of
"The Golden Bough".