No Stoicism Without God?

Nigel Glassborow has written what is to my mind the best summary of the ancient Stoic view of the Divine that I've read. See for yourself at Stoicism Today.

Even if you are an atheist the article is worth your time as a history lesson, if nothing else. Glassborow tells us that for the ancient Stoics God was everywhere and everything. The Cosmos itself is alive, and we are all a part of it. Each of us are a little piece of God looking to the larger whole. We are the Logos, the divine reason of the universe. For the ancients Stoicism was a way to live more in accord with Nature, and for them "Nature" signified the Divine Fire, or the Logos, or Phusis, or the gods, or God. It's all one and the same. Glassborow himself seems to prefer "Phusis," which describes an intelligent and purposeful universe.

I had never seen it put so cleanly before. I've had ill-defined thoughts and half-formed opinions, but I've always been uncomfortable with them. This piece of writing has allowed me to put words to my own intuitions of the Divine. I am extremely grateful to Professor Glassborow for providing me with the opportunity.

He doesn't stop with definitions and a history lesson, though. He asserts that if we do not accept the Divine we are not Stoic at all.

We've heard this assertion before; it's a well-worn subject in Stoic circles, but the way that Glassborow puts his case gives it new life..

Glassborow's view is that Stoicism without God misses the point. The entire reason why Stoicism exists is because ancient Stoics wanted to live in accord with the "Divine Fire," the God of Stoicism. They wanted to live in accord with a living thing, or perhaps rather a "reasoning" thing. No Divine Fire, no Stoicism.

There are some very interesting ideas about quantum physics rolled into the argument. The very reason why the universe exists at all, he says, is because a consciousness was able to observe it. The passive principle, or disorganized matter, was organized by the active principle, or the consciousness of the universe. It is this active principle that we want to be in accord with. If you reject the active principle, or "God," what exactly are you trying to live in accord with? Random chance? Mutation? What?

My own opinion is that other Stoics may view the divine however they like. I've had enough heartache wrestling with the issue myself; I don't need to take on somebody else's struggles, not that my opinion of another person's Stoicism means anything anyway. Not so Glassborow.

"So it is not the case that ‘people are free to incorporate theism," he tells us, "but rather that they are free to delude themselves by omitting it, which raises the question as to if they can then still call what they then follow Stoicism or call themselves Stoic if they reject the Divine Fire."

By all means use Stoic techniques, he says, but don't call it Stoicism. Stoicism without the Divine is "dumbed down."

I haven't done his argument justice; he is a far more eloquent man than I am, as are his detractors (the comment section bears this out).

I don't know. I'll be thinking about this for awhile. I think that there is a Divine presence in the universe. I think there is something to what Glassborrow calls "The Wisdom of the Ages," the common thread which winds through most religious traditions. I'm not sure that Stoicism is rendered null without God, though. Take as your example the gentlemen who run The Painted Porch, of whom I believe that at least two are atheists. They seem pretty Stoic to me...

Something to think about, anyway.

And the idea that the universe is infused with a Divine Fire is lovely.

* * *

Edit:

I had a very interesting conversation with UnlimitedRed on the Stoic Reddit. I'll post it here:

UnlimitedRed: I think the quote that is often attributed to Marcus Aurelius but also seriously questioned sums up the whole god thing perfectly.

"Live a good life. If there are Gods and they are just, then they will not care how devout you have been, but will welcome you based on the virtues you have lived by. If there are Gods, but unjust, then you should not want to worship them. If there are no Gods, then you will be gone, but will have lived a noble life that will live on in the memories of your loved ones."

Also the movie Kingdom Of Heaven has a reasonable view of god. That view is that If god is indeed god, it would understand all our hardships and be completely reasonable unlike how all the fanatics portray god as; a wrathful jealous being.

So back to your question, No Stoicism without god?

God does not make you act virtuously, although if there is a god, it would certainly hope you would try your best to be noble. Whether there is or is not a god though has no effect on your ability to improve yourself and act as a good person should. As a Stoic should.

Me: "Now departure from the world of men is nothing to fear, if gods exist: because they would not involve you in any harm. If they do not exist, or if they have no care for humankind, then what is life to me in a world devoid of gods, or devoid of providence? But they do exist, and they do care for humankind: and they have put it absolutely in man's power to avoid falling into the true kinds of harm."

Glassborow tells us that when the ancient Stoics advise us to act in accordance with Nature they mean act in accordance with the Logos, or the Divine Fire, or Phusis... They mean that we are each a spark of a Divine whole. [Edit: For ancient Stoics, in other words, the Universe is alive and conscious and we are a part of it].

UnlimitedRed: Enlightening. I understand your question fully now. However one can still act or be virtuous regardless of their belief in god. Maybe that individual isn't an exact kind of Stoic that perhaps Marcus Aurelius was but is still nonetheless a Stoic.

Me: I think that I agree. There are a lot of Stoic atheists on this sub and I've benefited from speaking to them. They seem like real philosophers to me. And I don't think that Stoicism should be a philosophy that remains frozen in time. That said, for me there is something to this "Divine Fire" idea. Something strikes a chord. Also, hearing Michio Kaku say that we have a candidate for the mind of God in string theory has to give a person pause... I don't know.

* * *

Image, by Awesomoman, is public domain