RITUALISM, n. A Dutch Garden of God where He may walk in rectilinear freedom, keeping off the grass.
Interpretation
Ritualism refers to structured practices that may restrict genuine connection with the divine.
In this quote, Ambrose Bierce critiques ritualism by portraying it as a rigid structure that separates individuals from a true, free relationship with God. The imagery of a 'Dutch Garden' suggests an artificial and orderly space where the divine presence is constrained, leading to a metaphorical limitation on spiritual experience.
In practice
In a discussion about the constraints of organized religion during a philosophy class.
PALM, n. A species of tree . . . of which the familiar "itching palm" ("Palma hominis") is most widely distributed . . . . This noble vegetable exudes a kind of invisible gum, which may be detected by applying to the bark a piece of gold or silver.
Human nature is pretty well balanced; for every lacking virtue there is a rough substitute that will serve at a pinch--as cunning is the wisdom of the unwise, and ferocity the courage of the coward.
Indigestion: A disease which the patient and his friends frequently mistake for deep religious conviction and concern for the salvation of mankind. As the simple Red Man of the Western Wild put it, with, it must be confessed, a certain force: 'Plenty well, no pray; big belly ache, heap God.'
Disobey n:To celebrate with an appropriate ceremony the maturity of a command
NOUMENON, n. That which exists, as distinguished from that which merely seems to exist, the latter being a phenomenon. The noumenon is a bit difficult to locate; it can be apprehended only by a process of reasoning - which is a phenomenon.
PARDON, v. To remit a penalty and restore to the life of crime. To add to the lure of crime the temptation of ingratitude.
A man with a machine and inadequate culture is a pestilence.
We live in capitalism, its power seems inescapable - but then, so did the divine right of kings. Any human power can be resisted and changed by human beings. Resistance and change often begin in art. Very often in our art, the art of words.
The blessed spirits must be sought within the self which is common to all
To be moral, correct, and virtuous is to be obedient to an old established law and custom.
Nearly all creators of Utopia have resembled the man who has toothache, and therefore thinks happiness consists in not having toothache... Whoever tries to imagine perfection simply reveals his own emptiness.
I think that cosmetic enhancements in my profession are just an occupational hazard. But I think, more culturally, I'm interested in starting the conversation about aging gracefully and how, instead of making it a cultural problem, we make it individuals' problems.
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