MikeFerrara, the quote posted by Thalassamania is an abbreviated summary of the Epicurean paradox, and the summary conclusion in that post "Therefore it follows..." is not from Epicurus himself. Epicurus was one of the three or four most influential of the ancient Hellenic philosophers. His Paradox was presented more like a mathematical proof, not as a general statement, and it's called a paradox because it leads to no clear conclusion. Epicurus himself thought speculating about God was a useless exersize, because it was manifestly obvious (it still is) that the human intellect was unable to determine the attributes of the Gods, beyond the obvious logical requirements that if there are any Gods, they must be immortal and they must be good. He certainly did not believe in life after death, and his philosophy of life was centered around seeking the greatest pleasure and avoiding pain to the greatest extent possible, both individually and for all persons collectively. He saw the greatest pleasures as intellectual. He influenced 18th century Naturalists, 19th century Pragmatists, and even Karl Marx.
He was unconcerned with the question of God's existence, seeing it a irrelevant and, ultimately, unresolvable. I think he would have laughed at people who picked up magic books to look for answers to subtle and complex questions. 'Let's see, it says here that I must not think this and that I should avoid that", etc. This is an infantile and truly primitive way to approach life. It can also be quite dangerous. Just as liberty requires constant vigilance, and democracy a continuing engagement in the process, effective ethics and morality must be developed and cultivated individually, through education and an inner process of reflection, not received as a package from some external source.
He was unconcerned with the question of God's existence, seeing it a irrelevant and, ultimately, unresolvable. I think he would have laughed at people who picked up magic books to look for answers to subtle and complex questions. 'Let's see, it says here that I must not think this and that I should avoid that", etc. This is an infantile and truly primitive way to approach life. It can also be quite dangerous. Just as liberty requires constant vigilance, and democracy a continuing engagement in the process, effective ethics and morality must be developed and cultivated individually, through education and an inner process of reflection, not received as a package from some external source.
