Wrestling with Religion

I’m lingering after a meeting and ask the woman next to me: “Do you know that man who asked that last question?” “The one that sat in the back row?” “That’s him.” We look around. We don’t see him. “Somebody called him Joe,” I volunteer. “He was introduced to me as Sarge. He heads the finance committee." “ You must be talking about Mr. Edwards,” says a man who has been listening. Or maybe I inquire about the Way, the Truth, and the Light. “You mean the Godhead incarnate?” “That’s him.” We look around. We don’t see him. “Somebody called him Krishna,” I volunteer. “He was introduced to me as Jesus. He died to give eternal life.” “You must be talking about Orpheus,” says a man who has been listening.

The 2001 film cartoon Monsters, Inc . imagines a corporation of monsters that feed off scaring children through doors that are portals to their bedroom closets. This is a variant on the motif of the monster under the bed. In both cases, a presence is felt but never seen. It’s the opposite of the refrigerator light that seems to be always lit. Just as we never see the light off, children in the cartoon world never see the monsters. They can never confirm or disconfirm the existence of beings who exit through magic portals whenever closet doors are  opened. Despite their ontological indeterminacy, the monsters do frighten children. They power Monstopolis with juvenile screams, so there's clearly a psychic drain caused by the children’s belief in monsters. But if monsters are unfalsifiable, why should children believe in them at all? Why scream needlessly? Shouldn't they imagine more pleasant unfalsifiable creatures in their closets? Shouldn't they imagine, say, magica...