Sunday, August 11, 2013

Not-quite universal hymns

We sang Immortal, Invisible this morning. Have you noticed that a Jew, or even a Muslim could sing it without qualms (provided they didn't know its provenance)? It sings about God's transcendence and power, which all three religions affirm. (Not so Rejoice, the Lord is King, of course.) I don't think a Hindu would, though; since it implicitly denies the existence of any other gods, and emphasizes His invisibility and inaccessibility. It would require some serious mental gymnastics about the atman or else a who-cares attitude.

Even the things we think we can all agree on, aren't always universal.

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