David Brooks continues to be your most intelligent, thought-provoking syndicated columnist. His column "The age of spiritual pluralism," July 10, may be his most important, and relevant, recent piece.
I have often referred to our current historic epoch as "a time of choosing." We are compelled to consciously choose our own spiritual path and orientation. Charismatic prophets such as Moses and Mohammed are relics of a bygone era. It's all on us this time.
Choosing a spiritual path without some kind of God or "God concept" becomes problematic. God creates a sense of stability and security. It creates an unshakable center upon which we can base our lives and endeavors. We need God to hold our lives together and give them direction and purpose.
In our time of choosing, we must ask ourselves the primal, seminal question: "What kind of God do I want God to be?" The choice we make determines the world we live and the reality we experience.
Many today have chosen to make science and technology their God.
But the flaws and cracks in "technology as God" are already beginning to reveal themselves. It causes us to create an impersonal, dehumanized world devoid of meaning and purpose in which humans are subjected to being controlled by a "Big Brother," who suppresses human freedom and creativity and diminishes human dignity.
Joseph H. Vanderpool
Rensselaer