"The mystical trend of our time, which shows itself particularly in the rampant growth of the so-called Theosophy and Spiritualism, is for me no more than a symptom of weakness and confusion. Since our inner experiences consist of reproductions and combinations of sensory impressions, the concept of a soul without a body seems to me to be empty and devoid of meaning."
"From the standpoint of a Jesuit priest I am, of course, and have always been an atheist.... It is always misleading to use anthropomorphical concepts in dealing with things outside the human sphere - childish analogies."
It really is too bad that Einstein used so much religious language. He was much closer to being an atheist than an Orthodox Jew. In the quote here, he's obviously not talking about anything like Orthodox Judaism.
It was, of course, a lie what you read about my religious convictions, a lie which is being systematically repeated. I do not believe in a personal God and I have never denied this but have expressed it clearly.
Maybe he did it to try to convince religious people of the beauty of science. Maybe he was trying to co-opt humanity's religious drive by synonymizing religion with wonder and caring. But it's pretty obvious that he didn't really believe in God, or at least not any God that you believe in.
Not that I care but for the sake of being difficult, the great Alber also is quoted as having said the following...
- "God does not play dice [with the universe]."
-"I believe in Spinoza's God who reveals himself in the orderly harmony of what exists, not in a God who concerns himself with fates and actions of human beings."
the above quote flows nicely with the ending of JA's quote..."...It was, of course, a lie what you read about my religious convictions, a lie which is being systematically repeated. I do not believe in a personal God and I have never denied this but have expressed it clearly. If something is in me which can be called religious then it is the unbounded admiration for the structure of the world so far as our science can reveal it.
You know Einstein was an atheist, right?
ReplyDeleteGoo - Not true! Sigh.
ReplyDeleteAre you claiming tha Einstein believed in god?
ReplyDeletetwo other Albert quotes:
"The mystical trend of our time, which shows itself particularly in the rampant growth of the so-called Theosophy and Spiritualism, is for me no more than a symptom of weakness and confusion.
Since our inner experiences consist of reproductions and combinations of sensory impressions, the concept of a soul without a body seems to me to be empty and devoid of meaning."
1921
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"From the standpoint of a Jesuit priest I am, of course, and have always been an atheist.... It is always misleading to use anthropomorphical concepts in dealing with things outside the human sphere - childish analogies."
From a letter dated July 2nd, 1945
It really is too bad that Einstein used so much religious language. He was much closer to being an atheist than an Orthodox Jew. In the quote here, he's obviously not talking about anything like Orthodox Judaism.
ReplyDeleteIt was, of course, a lie what you read about my religious convictions, a lie which is being systematically repeated. I do not believe in a personal God and I have never denied this but have expressed it clearly.
Maybe he did it to try to convince religious people of the beauty of science. Maybe he was trying to co-opt humanity's religious drive by synonymizing religion with wonder and caring. But it's pretty obvious that he didn't really believe in God, or at least not any God that you believe in.
Not that I care but for the sake of being difficult, the great Alber also is quoted as having said the following...
ReplyDelete- "God does not play dice [with the universe]."
-"I believe in Spinoza's God who reveals himself in the orderly harmony of what exists, not in a God who concerns himself with fates and actions of human beings."
the above quote flows nicely with the ending of JA's quote..."...It was, of course, a lie what you read about my religious convictions, a lie which is being systematically repeated. I do not believe in a personal God and I have never denied this but have expressed it clearly. If something is in me which can be called religious then it is the unbounded admiration for the structure of the world so far as our science can reveal it.