THEOSOPHY, n. An ancient faith having all the certitude of religion and all the mystery of science.
Interpretation
Theosophy combines elements of religious belief and scientific inquiry, presenting a worldview that acknowledges both certainty and mystery.
In this quote, Ambrose Bierce highlights the unique characteristics of Theosophy as a belief system that embodies the unwavering faith typically found in religion, while also embracing the enigmatic nature of scientific exploration. It suggests that the pursuit of spiritual and philosophical understanding involves both conviction and contemplation of the unknown.
In practice
In a discussion on the intersection of belief and knowledge, this quote can remind people of the balance between faith and inquiry.
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.
Human affairs are so obscure and various that nothing can be clearly known.
You don't get heaven or hell. Do you know the only reward you get for being Batman? You get to be Batman.
We live in an almost perfect stillness and work with incredible urgency.
I always think about what it means to wear eyeglasses. When you get used to glasses you don't know how far you could really see. I think about all the people before eyeglasses were invented. It must have been weird because everyone was seeing in different ways according to how bad their eyes were. Now, eyeglasses standardize everyone's vision to 20-20. That's an example of everyone becoming more alike. Everyone could be seeing at different levels if it weren't for glasses.
Whether the flower looks better in the nosegay than in the meadow where it grew and we had to wet our feet to get it! Is the scholastic air any advantage?
Our Lord humbled without humiliation His lofty station which yet could not be humbled, and condescends to His servants, with a condescension ineffable and incomprehensible. God being perfect becomes perfect man, and brings to perfection the newest of all new things (cf. Eccles 1:10), the only new thing under the sun, through which the boundless might of God is manifested. For what greater thing is there than that God should become man?
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