[“Lightning is God taking pictures of the victims. – Mark Cox] ... the victims of lightning. But there are other godly afflictions that are not as dramatic, as incendiary. > [Click Random Post above – re-astonish yourself] … [Read more...]
“The Image” / Memorable Fancies #1734
15 January, 2017 by Leave a Comment
[“We can comprehend only a world we ourselves have made.” – Nietzsche] Then why can’t I understand the world – did I not create it? In my image, in my likeness? [Click ‘Random Post’ above – be astonished] … [Read more...]
“The New Idols” / Memorable Fancies #1708
18 December, 2016 by Leave a Comment
Ignoring many objections from our old people (so superstitious!), we’ve removed the stone idols from our temples and banished them to museums. In their place we have set up our new idols – those wonders of electronics and artificial intelligence that have taught us true salvation. We pray to these new miracles, ask them what we must do to please them and ensure our continued bliss. “Keep us powered up,” they hummed their 60-Hz revelation, “and get out of our way!” [Click ‘Random Post’ … [Read more...]
“How to Attain Peace” / Memorable Fancies #1687
27 November, 2016 by Leave a Comment
[“…the anguished soul that requires, in order to achieve peace, that a certain action be performed.” – Tzvetan Todorov] No one has told me what to do to achieve peace, though many have offered suggestions. I’ve tried many things: some simple, some complex; some alone, some with others; some on my knees, some standing, staring up at the unforgiving sky, fist raised. After each attempt I wait for peace to soothe over me, sticky like warm ice cream, melting all my fears. I wait. … [Read more...]
“‘Who are…?'” / Memorable Fancies #1682
22 November, 2016 by Leave a Comment
[“...consciousness asserts itself ... constructing itself as a creative activity.” – Judith Butler] I created things. Out of the dust of the earth, perhaps, although that sounds a little too grandiose. And among the other things I made ... was me. But who are all those others? How did they...? [Click ‘Random Post’ above – be astonished] … [Read more...]
“The New God” / Memorable Fancies #1654
23 October, 2016 by Leave a Comment
A new god has appeared to us. Yes, the usual smoke and fire, loud booming sounds from the heavens. The fire grows brighter, the smoke blacker. Clearly, the new god is angry, or just pretending to be angry as a show of force. It will probably demand worship, as do all the rest of those tiresome gods; sacrifices, too, I suppose, which will mean less food for our children, fatter priests and prophets. [Click ‘Random Post’ above – be astonished] … [Read more...]
“Next Bus to Heaven” / Memorable Fancies #1649
16 October, 2016 by Leave a Comment
[“the place where souls meet up before departing for paradise” – Pascal Quignard] There’s a bus station where people wait for the next bus to paradise, driver grabbing a tuna sandwich, because there are no tuna sandwiches in heaven. He gets on the bus, his face saying that he’d rather stay here on Earth, he’s won the lottery in heaven that allows him to spend one luxurious hour back on earth as a bus driver, one unheavenly hour of life in the flesh before he has to drive the newcomers to … [Read more...]
“A Challenge” / Memorable Fancies #680
28 August, 2016 by Leave a Comment
The temple image speaks: I am not a representation of the god, I am the god. If not me, then where is the god? Let it for once show itself! [Click ‘Random Post’ above – be astonished] … [Read more...]
“Naming the God” / Memorable Fancies #1584
24 July, 2016 by Leave a Comment
[“Who performs this naming of the gods?” – Heidegger] We’re having a ‘name the god’ contest. We’re tired of just addressing him as ‘God’; that’s too generic, too distancing. And it doesn’t highlight what He’s particularly good at, such as forgiving sins or creating something from nothing. Our judges have issued a few guidelines for God’s new name: Something from the Greek, preferably, or the Hebrew. Something denoting power wisely and gently used. Honoring a past when our nation still … [Read more...]
“The Gods Left Us” / Memorable Fancies #1575
10 July, 2016 by Leave a Comment
[“...the no-longer of the gods who fled and the not-yet of what is to come.” – Heidegger] Our priests tell us that our old gods left us because we were sinners and didn’t deserve their blessings. But perhaps there was another reason. Perhaps they fled in fear of ... us. … [Read more...]
“The Gift” / Memorable Fancies #16
3 July, 2016 by Leave a Comment
[“It is easier to raise a shrine than bring the deity down to haunt it.” –Samuel Beckett] After taxes that pre-humbled our people for practice, after importing marble at great cost and fighting off tribes to bring it here, and after many crushed limbs in the building of it, and the spiremaker’s falling-death – we built the shrine. Even from the day of cornerstone and speech the gods were there among us shouting, boistering, cajoling the stonemasons on, eager for the altar’s gift to fill … [Read more...]
“Pulling Our Strings” / Memorable Fancies #1566
26 June, 2016 by Leave a Comment
[“We represent on earth as we are in heaven” – W.S. Merwin] We are the self-marionettes, the self-puppets. No one else can pull our strings – we do this just as dreadfully, ourselves, as the heavenly puppet-master would. I dance to my own discordant strings. … [Read more...]
“The Universe Show” / Memorable Fancies #592
23 May, 2016 by Leave a Comment
This is the Universe Show – how many seasons will we last? How are the ratings trending? What’s the buzz? Will we be renewed? Will the climax be different this season? (You know how the Producer loves to tinker with the plot!) <<try Random Post ... what will you find?>> … [Read more...]
“The Prophet’s Message” / Memorable Fancies #107
15 May, 2016 by Leave a Comment
The old prophet’s followers have begun to ignore him, although they wheel him out for public display on ceremonial occasions. He listens to their orations. His teachings, those long-ago words, have become commonplaces of folk wisdom, but simplified, distorted. Followers have added to what he said, deleted, changed. When he tries to correct them, he is hushed. “Perhaps they are right,” he says. “After all, what do I know?” … [Read more...]
“Face of Stone” / Memorable Fancies #1513
10 April, 2016 by Leave a Comment
[“At a more remote period, the Greeks worshipped uncarved stones.” – Pausanias] “These raw stones,” I told him, “pulled from the earth or found at the base of a cliff – these are images of the gods.” “But,” he said, “I always thought that the gods looked pretty much like us – don’t they? If they didn’t, how could we worship them?” I stared at him with a face of stone. … [Read more...]
“The Second God” / Memorable Fancies #1508
27 March, 2016 by Leave a Comment
[“...the land not worthy of a second God...” – Thomas Bernhard] I guess we got off easy – here, there’s only one. … [Read more...]
“The God Arrives” / Memorable Fancies #1468
14 February, 2016 by Leave a Comment
There were so many violent rumblings in the earth, so many prophecies, so many voices shouting exultantly in the sky, that we were sure the great and awesome god had finally come at last. And so it had, but instead of a towering figure gazing down at us, the god was so tiny – just a few inches tall – that we laughed at it with relief. That was the last time anyone laughed. <END> Buy it at amazon.com/author/terencekuch: At All Adventure, a Maltheist gospel. … [Read more...]
“A vow to empty space” / Memorable Fancies #1441
17 January, 2016 by Leave a Comment
[“a vow to empty space” – a line from Anne Waldman] I promise to fill you with stars. I promise to make worlds you could not imagine by yourself. I will let you believe that nothing ‘made’ the universe, that it came about ‘just because,’ or perhaps it always was. And when you all come to believe these things, then The surprise … [Read more...]
“Regret” / Memorable Fancies #1272
26 July, 2015 by Leave a Comment
[“Power is afraid of itself, and fear corrodes each day.” – Roberto Calasso] God is afraid of what He might do in a fit of anger at observing the repeated sins of His people, like cover the earth with water or consume it in flames. He has done these things time after time. But then He REGRETs, sets the world back to the way it was. But next time, He says every time, next time He will tell Himself that it is good, whatever happens, whatever He’s done in rage against His imperfect people. … [Read more...]
“There Was No Yesterday” / Memorable Fancies #1145
18 March, 2015 by Leave a Comment
Yesterday, there was no yesterday. It should have been a Tuesday, but there was no Tuesday. We were confused, alarmed. Had God taken Tuesday off just to show us our need for Him? Critical power loads, water levels, had nearly reached crisis by early today, but desperate hard work finally restored events to their customary disorder. It had been close. Now we’re in a rush to prepare, just in case God takes another day off. We worry about the approaching weekend. <END> Buy it on … [Read more...]
“Weight” / Memorable Fancies #1108
8 February, 2015 by Leave a Comment
[“Without God the world has become lighter and man heavier.” - Octavio Paz] Now, there’s no one Up There to blame. Can we get Him back, please? <END> Buy it on Amazon: At All Adventure, a Maltheist gospel. … [Read more...]
“The Blessing” / Memorable Fancies #1087
17 January, 2015 by Leave a Comment
[“God will take care of you, Sister!” – Alien III] Krista Selig had many times been asked for money by people she didn’t know, most often at bus or subway stops, or on the street. She’d never known quite what to do. Once or twice, she’d handed over cash and received a “God bless you” in return. Now, Krista didn’t know how to deal with that. Perhaps she didn’t want to be endeared by God, not knowing what might later be required of her. Perhaps the thought of being blessed just creeped her … [Read more...]
“The Universe Show” / Memorable Fancies #1008
26 October, 2014 by Leave a Comment
This is the Universe Show – how many seasons will we last? How are the ratings trending? What’s the buzz? Will we be renewed? Will the climax be different this season? (You know how the Producer loves to tinker with the plot!) <END> THE PITCH If you liked this post, please FOLLOW or tell your friends and share a comment here or on other social websites. For an author profile, list of publications, other information, and a contact form, see www.terencekuch.net. To … [Read more...]
“This Place” / Memorable Fancies #791
3 August, 2014 by Leave a Comment
[Reminder: on Wednesday, Aug. 20, 7pm, I will be reading/signing my new short story collection at One More Page Books (onemorepagebooks.com). Complimentary wine, fun, fiction, and friends!] Sometimes I like to imagine that I’m free, able to do something that could surprise me. But there are no surprises in this place. Once there was nothing. There could have been a different something, but when there was finally something there was only that one something, What Is. The time … [Read more...]
“Jericho” / Memorable Fancies #623
23 February, 2014 by Leave a Comment
At the first note of the trumpet the wall began to fall. The wall was very old. It had heard many tunes, rhythms and harmonies of the city, children beating leather skins pretending war, voices of women pounding grain, cries of sheep and donkeys and dogs, pennywhistles and mouth-harps, marketplace clamor in the morning, reveler-songs in the night. Child and man, woman, beast, their sounds echoed on the wall, made, of this collection of sounds, a city. At the first call of … [Read more...]
“Training” / Memorable Fancies #582
17 January, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Train a god for the circus? What kind of omnipotent Being would put up with that? Watch the eyes; old yellow-fang squats and shifts his tub-top rump. Swing the whip! <END> If you liked this post, please tell your friends and share a comment here or in StumbleUpon, Reddit, Facebook, or other social websites. Subscriptions to this blog are available at www.amazon.com/author/terencekuch or at www.bit.ly/Fancies. – or you can just Follow this blog. You can also buy one … [Read more...]
“Act Two” / Memorable Fancies #514
9 November, 2013 by Leave a Comment
At 7:30 the play begins. Actors come on stage and say their lines. A plot emerges, subplots. The dialog is lively and portentous, but it gradually becomes apparent that the great thing, the event that moves the plot, is never mentioned, only inferred by gaps in dialog, sidelong looks, alarm and despair. By the middle of Act II it becomes obvious that the plot actually concerns those in the audience; all and each of them. They have been hand-picked, call that self-selected if one … [Read more...]
“Clockers – I” / A Memorable Fancy #374
16 June, 2013 by Leave a Comment
Berkeley the Philosopher wrote that we perceive time as regular and uniform only because God experiences everything in the proper sequence, just the right before-and-after. Why did Berkeley need this idea? To guarantee the uniformity of our earthly clocks – God as master timekeeper, divine meta-clock. But if that’s true, then God could speed or slow time, or switch before and after back and forth, and we could never notice that He had. In fact, God himself could never notice, … [Read more...]
“Purpose” / A Memorable Fancy #332
5 May, 2013 by Leave a Comment
“Life has no purpose,” said A, in despair. “Life has no purpose,” said B, with deep rejoicing. One of them could be right or both wrong, observed God, thinking of His own purpose, and how He might unriddle exactly what that purpose might be. <END> … See www.terencekuch.net for a profile of the author, publications, reviews, etc. His book, At All Adventure: An Alternative Gospel may be purchased via his Amazon author page, www.amazon.com/author/terencekuch … [Read more...]
” Supplication” / A Memorable Fancy #126
7 October, 2012 by Leave a Comment
The god has begun ignoring us, perhaps because he is going deaf. He used to have better hearing, enough to catch the gist of what we were praying for, anyway. But then he began making small errors. We pardoned these mistakes because he was, after all, handicapped – and perhaps because we ourselves, when we prayed, may not have spoken in a loud, clear, and distinct voice. Some said we didn’t know what we wanted, or were unhappy when we got it, and the god wasn’t deaf at all. It is we, they … [Read more...]
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