Why doesn't God just say what he means?

[lindyhopper]

OR

perhaps it was written by men in a way that it would appeal to as many people as possible.

They do with with song lyrics all the time. The less specific the better. Who wants to hear a song about some other guy or gal somewhere else doing something else, when it could be a song that sounds like they are singing directly to you (and you and you and you...), about your experiences and feelings. It is much more powerful that way (in record sales and on the radio anyway)...and yet in a way, much more generic. It lets you fill in the blanks.

So string songs together like random verses and send a mix tape to your favorite loved one and start your own religion.

oh, and rock on.

Edited August 16, 2007 by lindyhopper

[Larry N Moore]

:)

Are you taking exception to my choice of emoticon? I don't see how my selection of emoticons, differs from those available on the main board -- then again, I haven't spent much time, investigating my preference settings.

You have something in particular in mind?

Your response continues to remind me of someone else. It's exactly how that person was known to answer a question.

Enjoy!

[sprawled out]

But perhaps that is exactly the beauty of it. It's about you and God in your own unique relationship first, then your relationship with others. It's about my own unique relationship with God and others, it's about Cman's own unique relationship . . .

i like this idea. years ago, i wrote an essay (just for myself, to put into words what i thought i believed at the time) that talked about how everyone's perspective or interpretation was necessary because God is too big for any one of us to know every facet. of course, it kinda renders organized religion useless. which is ok by me.

waysider, i understand what your saying. but it doesn't really address my question. i was talking about how God seems to choose to speak to us in words, i.e., in the bible and what people call prophecy.

as for your second post, about musical notation, i think you've got i backwards. musical notation is fairly precise in terms of the fundamentals like melody, harmony and rhythm. if someone who knows how to notate transcribed "Mary Had A Little Lamb," anyone who reads music could read and accurately play it. (yes, yes, there is interpretation involved, but not when it comes to the essentials of a piece) for musical notation to be analogous to what i was saying about the bible, it would say "play something that sounds like a bird," rather than a highly specific system of notes on a staff.

[waysider]

Sprawled

I now see that my example of musical notation was weak, at best.

Suppose that in your mind you can hear the tuneMary Had A little Lamb

Perhaps you can play it on an instrument, perhaps not.

It does not matter.

Using your knowledge of music theory, you transcribe it .

Perhaps you carry it a step further and score an arrangement that features an entire orchestra.

Still, this is not "music".

It is a *recipe* for music.

It follows all the conventions of harmonic theory, etc, and is very precise in expressing what is expected of the individual performer.

Perhaps "dynamic" notations are added to further aid in interpretation.

Still, this is not music.

It is only an explanation and analytical view of music.

The music, itself, transcends the written page.

Here's another way to look at it:

You have a recipe for cornbread.

It may reflect how you have made cornbread in the past.

It may reflect how you think cornbread should be made in the future.

Still, it's not cornbread.

It can't express that glorious sensation you experience when you bite into a piece of cornbread that has been prepared perfectly.