snip: They are nothing more or less than the world which is already passing away. At times it seems clear that they don’t even want to refute other arguments, they just want to suck people into an argument that itself will drag everyone down to death. They want us to speak like them: at one time ironic, condescending, and spiteful, and at another time with a false modesty that feeds on ignorance, tepidity, sloth, and death.”
Spirited: Indeed. And it is not as if they are without underlying motive, for they most definitely are. That which fuels them is envy....malignant narcissism plus covetousness.
The early Church Fathers viewed envy as a sin of spirit, and the most evil of all sins, none barred.
At some deep level the “Dawkins” crowd are aware that they have lost or are losing their salvation. We can be sure that they are as a consequence beset by many fears, which are in fact warnings: fear of the void, of death, of aging, of imagination, of night terrors.
However,their cosmically inflated pride nevertheless requires that all others lose their salvation as well. What they have refused they cannot stand for someone else to have. Only in that sense do they covet our salvation while simultaneously rejecting it. For this reason they attack, deride and demean us.
Note the hypocrisy: The attack is spiritual, yet they deny their own souls/spirits, having reduced them to matter in a futile attempt at escaping God the Father.
Only malignant narcissists are capable of such evil. The wills of such people are unsubmitted to the demands of their conscience.
Narcissistic personality disorder is characterized by dramatic, emotional behavior, in the same category as antisocial and borderline personality disorders.
Narcissistic personality disorder symptoms may include:
* Believing that you’re better than others
* Fantasizing about power, success and attractiveness
* Exaggerating your achievements or talents
* Expecting constant praise and admiration
* Believing that you’re special and acting accordingly
* Failing to recognize other people’s emotions and feelings
* Expecting others to go along with your ideas and plans
* Taking advantage of others
* Expressing disdain for those you feel are inferior
* Being jealous of others
* Believing that others are jealous of you
* Trouble keeping healthy relationships
* Setting unrealistic goals
* Being easily hurt and rejected
* Having a fragile self-esteem
* Appearing as tough-minded or unemotional
Although some features of narcissistic personality disorder may seem like having confidence or strong self-esteem, it’s not the same. Narcissistic personality disorder crosses the border of healthy confidence and self-esteem into thinking so highly of yourself that you put yourself on a pedestal. In contrast, people who have healthy confidence and self-esteem don’t value themselves more than they value others.
When you have narcissistic personality disorder, you may come across as conceited, boastful or pretentious. You often monopolize conversations. You may belittle or look down on people you perceive as inferior. You may have a sense of entitlement. And when you don’t receive the special treatment to which you feel entitled, you may become very impatient or angry. You may insist on having “the best” of everything — the best car, athletic club, medical care or social circles, for instance.
I don't think their problem is pride. I think it is the opposite. It is insecurity. Like the kid who holds his hands over his ears, closes his eyes and shouts, "I can't hear you! I can't hear you!", they want to banish that which they have denied. They don't even want it to be a possibility else they may be wrong. It must be gone, gone forever.
Note the hypocrisy: The attack is spiritual, yet they deny their own souls/spirits, having reduced them to matter in a futile attempt at escaping God the Father.
Is the attack spiritual or is it simply an attack on the spiritual?
Only malignant narcissists are capable of such evil. The wills of such people are unsubmitted to the demands of their conscience.
All narcism is malignant. It is total self-centeredness. There is no empathy and empathy is the door to the conscience.
As I said elsewhere, Eve and Adam's disobedience introduced us to ourselves. Ever since, our natural state is self-centeredness with all the human foibles that go with it. We were no longer the pure spirit and love of God, by our very natures as transformed by disobedience. We became dualities, spirit and nature. Being aware of nature through our senses we became mostly sensual. Spirit was still there but is was mostly manifest by a gnawing hunger for something unknown and occasionally flashes of intuition and inspiration.
Sorry, as is normal, I have gone off on a tangent rather than sticking to the subject. It is just that each idea folds into the next so easily. Now back to what I was saying.
The narcissists become totally immersed in themselves, blocking out their spiritual selves and moving further and further away from God. They get to the point where they must eliminate God. After all, God frowns on much that they do and they don't like that. They want to do any and everything that satisfies their senses and they don't want it spoiled with guilt. So, they banish God from existence. They are their own God.
Communism fits perfectly into this conversation. Communism is based on Hegel's Dialectical Materialism which also denies God. In addition it says anything a person experiences is truth to that person. Different environments also affect ones experiences and, therefore, ones truths. The rich can't have the same truths as the poor because their worlds are different. Also, ones truths cannot be questioned. They are what they are. This blends perfectly into Moral Relativity.
From this Marx and Engels came up with "From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs." However, that was only for the masses. The elites, with their different experiences and their different truths, were the obvious and natural leaders for such a society. With no God, and with some truths superior to others, the elites were natural narcissists. That left the masses with no where to go and no one to turn to so they became a problem. Those unwilling to go against their natures, and their instincts, were either killed or imprisoned.
It is obvious why a society with no God can never work.
Oops. Sorry, I wondered again. Back to you, Irish.