Monday 6 September 2010

Of course God exists. He just happens to be rather busy.




Recently, the scientist Stephen Hawking declared that God doesn't exist. Tell that to a Muggletonian. In 1651, Lodowick Muggleton and his cousin were glancing through the Book of Revelations when, lo...they discovered that, contrary to popular belief, God is far too busy to listen to idle prayers. This must have been disturbing news to the prayer mat industry and to anyone admonishing little children for not saying their prayers before bedtime. Indeed, Muggletonians were so convinced that God wasn't listening, they tried to silence all other Evangelicals disturbing His afternoon nap. They were known as the "Ranters"...and indeed they ranted at anyone - Quakers in particular - who kept muttering praises to God. So what did the Muggletonians reckon God was doing? He was preparing for the end of the earth, of the universe, of time, of absolutely everything. And just before this spectacular event, he was scheduled to appear, warn everyone and make his apologies. The Muggletonians never had a precise plan of action for this event, other than the fact that they'd been very good, never been a nuisance, and would have been on hand to fetch God his slippers and make Him a cup of cocoa at bedtime had it been required. There was another interesting truth they discovered at the back end of the Book: God was only 5ft-6ft tall. Also, Heaven was located just 6 miles above the Earth.
But think they were a bunch of loonies at your peril! The author and poet Sir Walter Scott did just that and died a horrible death as a result of the Muggletonian curse. And indeed, the wag of a pointed finger from a Muggletonian could easily spell doom to anyone who doubted the truth of their beliefs. God only knows what happened to the 6 mile above theory when the Apollo Moon Mission crashed up through Heaven's floorboards...

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