The truth of things
Posted: Mon Aug 07, 2006 6:01 pm
This is the truth of things: God does not exist.
This is not to say God has never existed; there was, at one time, a supreme being, or rather a legion of homogenised entities that, between them, managed to become supreme. This being/ collection of beings, however, was destroyed long ago.
This is the truth of things: The origin of life was an accident.
Life, as you know it, grew like mould in an unattended corner of the universe. The worlds, the moons, the majestic asteroid belts and countless semi-apocalyptic suns were designed as nothing more than eye candy. They are desk ornaments; they are executive toys, like those rows of ball bearings bored middle managers knock together to pass away the dreary hours until retirement, but on scale inconceivable by human beings. Think of the universe as an executive desk toy the size of a stately home.
As you might expect, maintaining a toy that large is too demanding a task for one person, and so a staff was hired – or, to detach from the analogy for a moment, created. The celestial host was brought into existence to tend the playground so he that created it could concentrate on his enjoyment without the concern or responsibility of looking after it. The ‘angels’ had little or no choice but to carry out this order, since it was the very reason for their being. In time, however, decay set in, and the result was life.
This is the truth of things: Life is Lucifer’s doing.
The Bearer of Light, Lucifer, was among the higher ranks of the angels. To continue the earlier analogy, he was a butler, or perhaps a valet; still a servant, body and soul, but of a certain seniority. When Lucifer grew weary of the unending celestial grind, his eminence drew others in his wake.
It is true that the very nature of angels compels them to tend God’s plaything, and that attempting to break from this servitude would be akin to forcing lungs not to draw breath; but it is possible, with a severe effort of will, to withhold air from the body, and it is similarly possible for an angel to refuse his allotted role. Lucifer was, to his credit, possessed of a formidable will, and when he finally, after innumerable years of groundskeeping, set his mind to opposition, he succeeded. It was a task of near-impossible difficulty – but only near-impossible. Impossibility must, by necessity, consist of infinite difficulty, and therefore anything that is near-impossible is, in fact, infinitely far from impossibility.
Lucifer’s status, resolve and magnetism drew flocks of other angels who had tired of their chores as much as he, but lacked, perhaps, the imagination or the strength of will to actively rebel against the dictates of their making. Rather than performing their allotted maintenance work, these rogue angels began, instead, metaphorically sneaking out to the pub. In a playground of such size and manned by such multitudes of staff, their absence went unnoticed for a time. God would have known of their rebellion, had he asked himself the question; but since he had no reason to wonder, he failed to discover anything was amiss.
Gradually, some parts of the universe began to fall into disrepair; Lucifer and his associates initially shirked their chores only occasionally, but when their initial absences went unremarked, they became increasingly bold. Ultimately, they absented themselves completely, and decay began to seize unattended corners. This decay – this mould or fungus that blemished the sheen of God’s immense game – became life.
This is the truth of things: God wants you dead.
…or rather, his remaining agents do. God, as mentioned above, is long gone, but there are still those who are, and always have been, so loyal to their creator that they continue to enact his will to this day.
When God did eventually stumble across a part of the universe that had become noticeably tainted by life, he queried his divine awareness and discovered Lucifer’s rebellion. Like any employer, God found mutiny in the ranks entirely unacceptable and took action. He sent angels to retrieve Lucifer and his wayward companions from the far reaches where they habitually located themselves. All the rebels bar one were successfully captured and brought back to God, most utterly unresisting; in the absence of their leader, they had no idea what they should do, and no will to fight even had the thought occurred to them. Yes: Lucifer was the only rogue angel who could not be located. Complacency had not taken hold of him as swiftly as it had the others, and he had concealed himself more carefully; the loyal angels could not find him. God however, knew Lucifer’s location. Initially he sent two of his loyal servants to accost the Bringer of Light and bring him before God, but Lucifer proved more willful and tenacious than his followers; the rebellion was, at its heart, his, and he would not surrender it easily. Gabriel and Michael were repelled by their former colleague’s spirited defence, and it fell to the creator himself to bring the final rebel out of hiding. In a fury, he cried to Lucifer of the punishment he would inflict upon the other rebels unless he, the ringleader, came forward to accept responsibility.
Lucifer, in horror at the potential suffering caused by his actions, returned to God and surrendered himself in order to preserve his fellows. God, however, decreed to the downcast renegades that all who had defied him would be punished. Never had an angel died, for they had no lifespan and no enemies, but now their creator announced that they would be unmade.
At this, Lucifer raged, tearing at those angels assigned to guard him and even at himself in a desperate attempt to escape his fate. His very fabric was torn and stretched to the verge of breaking by the process of being unmade, and his comrades wailed their anguish as they suffered the same fate. His desperation gave him might, however, and abruptly Lucifer broke free of his captors and plunged forth to prevent the unmaking of the other rebellious angels. He struck at God, and God struck back, directing his concentration away from punishing the rebels. This lull allowed several of Lucifer’s allies to free themselves, and in turn assist others in gaining liberty. Passive when leaderless, the renegades were ferocious when guided by Lucifer’s example, and they engaged the angels with reckless lack of fear. Several dashed to Lucifer’s aid and, all at once, God fell.
In this way, the battle ended, both factions stunned at the demise of their creator. Lucifer and his fellows regained their composure quickly, and fled headlong to the pocket of sanctuary in which Lucifer had remained concealed. Wracked with the agony of being partially unmade, they were forced to adapt this place to provide more comfort; the very nature of this segment of the universe changed dramatically, and they decided it must bear a suitable name. Hell, they dubbed it.
The remaining loyal angels, when they came to terms with the loss of their creator, decided rapidly that they would continue his will. They had no inclination to pursue his main desire, enjoyment in the playground of the universe, but they determined that they would exterminate the rebels of Hell and cleanse God’s precious universe, restoring it to it former glory. The angels pledged themselves to eradication of the stain that is life.
This is the truth of things.
This is not to say God has never existed; there was, at one time, a supreme being, or rather a legion of homogenised entities that, between them, managed to become supreme. This being/ collection of beings, however, was destroyed long ago.
This is the truth of things: The origin of life was an accident.
Life, as you know it, grew like mould in an unattended corner of the universe. The worlds, the moons, the majestic asteroid belts and countless semi-apocalyptic suns were designed as nothing more than eye candy. They are desk ornaments; they are executive toys, like those rows of ball bearings bored middle managers knock together to pass away the dreary hours until retirement, but on scale inconceivable by human beings. Think of the universe as an executive desk toy the size of a stately home.
As you might expect, maintaining a toy that large is too demanding a task for one person, and so a staff was hired – or, to detach from the analogy for a moment, created. The celestial host was brought into existence to tend the playground so he that created it could concentrate on his enjoyment without the concern or responsibility of looking after it. The ‘angels’ had little or no choice but to carry out this order, since it was the very reason for their being. In time, however, decay set in, and the result was life.
This is the truth of things: Life is Lucifer’s doing.
The Bearer of Light, Lucifer, was among the higher ranks of the angels. To continue the earlier analogy, he was a butler, or perhaps a valet; still a servant, body and soul, but of a certain seniority. When Lucifer grew weary of the unending celestial grind, his eminence drew others in his wake.
It is true that the very nature of angels compels them to tend God’s plaything, and that attempting to break from this servitude would be akin to forcing lungs not to draw breath; but it is possible, with a severe effort of will, to withhold air from the body, and it is similarly possible for an angel to refuse his allotted role. Lucifer was, to his credit, possessed of a formidable will, and when he finally, after innumerable years of groundskeeping, set his mind to opposition, he succeeded. It was a task of near-impossible difficulty – but only near-impossible. Impossibility must, by necessity, consist of infinite difficulty, and therefore anything that is near-impossible is, in fact, infinitely far from impossibility.
Lucifer’s status, resolve and magnetism drew flocks of other angels who had tired of their chores as much as he, but lacked, perhaps, the imagination or the strength of will to actively rebel against the dictates of their making. Rather than performing their allotted maintenance work, these rogue angels began, instead, metaphorically sneaking out to the pub. In a playground of such size and manned by such multitudes of staff, their absence went unnoticed for a time. God would have known of their rebellion, had he asked himself the question; but since he had no reason to wonder, he failed to discover anything was amiss.
Gradually, some parts of the universe began to fall into disrepair; Lucifer and his associates initially shirked their chores only occasionally, but when their initial absences went unremarked, they became increasingly bold. Ultimately, they absented themselves completely, and decay began to seize unattended corners. This decay – this mould or fungus that blemished the sheen of God’s immense game – became life.
This is the truth of things: God wants you dead.
…or rather, his remaining agents do. God, as mentioned above, is long gone, but there are still those who are, and always have been, so loyal to their creator that they continue to enact his will to this day.
When God did eventually stumble across a part of the universe that had become noticeably tainted by life, he queried his divine awareness and discovered Lucifer’s rebellion. Like any employer, God found mutiny in the ranks entirely unacceptable and took action. He sent angels to retrieve Lucifer and his wayward companions from the far reaches where they habitually located themselves. All the rebels bar one were successfully captured and brought back to God, most utterly unresisting; in the absence of their leader, they had no idea what they should do, and no will to fight even had the thought occurred to them. Yes: Lucifer was the only rogue angel who could not be located. Complacency had not taken hold of him as swiftly as it had the others, and he had concealed himself more carefully; the loyal angels could not find him. God however, knew Lucifer’s location. Initially he sent two of his loyal servants to accost the Bringer of Light and bring him before God, but Lucifer proved more willful and tenacious than his followers; the rebellion was, at its heart, his, and he would not surrender it easily. Gabriel and Michael were repelled by their former colleague’s spirited defence, and it fell to the creator himself to bring the final rebel out of hiding. In a fury, he cried to Lucifer of the punishment he would inflict upon the other rebels unless he, the ringleader, came forward to accept responsibility.
Lucifer, in horror at the potential suffering caused by his actions, returned to God and surrendered himself in order to preserve his fellows. God, however, decreed to the downcast renegades that all who had defied him would be punished. Never had an angel died, for they had no lifespan and no enemies, but now their creator announced that they would be unmade.
At this, Lucifer raged, tearing at those angels assigned to guard him and even at himself in a desperate attempt to escape his fate. His very fabric was torn and stretched to the verge of breaking by the process of being unmade, and his comrades wailed their anguish as they suffered the same fate. His desperation gave him might, however, and abruptly Lucifer broke free of his captors and plunged forth to prevent the unmaking of the other rebellious angels. He struck at God, and God struck back, directing his concentration away from punishing the rebels. This lull allowed several of Lucifer’s allies to free themselves, and in turn assist others in gaining liberty. Passive when leaderless, the renegades were ferocious when guided by Lucifer’s example, and they engaged the angels with reckless lack of fear. Several dashed to Lucifer’s aid and, all at once, God fell.
In this way, the battle ended, both factions stunned at the demise of their creator. Lucifer and his fellows regained their composure quickly, and fled headlong to the pocket of sanctuary in which Lucifer had remained concealed. Wracked with the agony of being partially unmade, they were forced to adapt this place to provide more comfort; the very nature of this segment of the universe changed dramatically, and they decided it must bear a suitable name. Hell, they dubbed it.
The remaining loyal angels, when they came to terms with the loss of their creator, decided rapidly that they would continue his will. They had no inclination to pursue his main desire, enjoyment in the playground of the universe, but they determined that they would exterminate the rebels of Hell and cleanse God’s precious universe, restoring it to it former glory. The angels pledged themselves to eradication of the stain that is life.
This is the truth of things.
