To be a Philosopher is to worship Apollo


I humbly solicit my readers' incredulity.

While the definition of philosophy as "the love of wisdom" is well understood, the actual practice of a philosopher is, regrettably, less clearly recognized. To be a true friend of wisdom requires a particular caliber and mindset, but also a certain mode of conduct, a certain code of behaviour. As friends of wisdom, we must appreciate that our particular manifestation of love - phillia - can be considered in various forms. To hone our friendship, we must consider these forms in their appropriate context.
Mutual admiration requires the two agents in question to recognize the inherently "good nature" of the other, regardless of their ability to offer one another pleasure or even patent advantage. This is the affection a philosopher must hold for wisdom. Note the intensely personal nature of this relationship, and yet the lack of sensual desire or longing. Thus, to be a philosopher is to be a true friend of wisdom, and to very much enjoy hanging out and getting slightly drunk with it.

A friendship based on mutual admiration means that the friends must, to put it simply, truly believe in one another. To establish this relationship with wisdom requires a conviction in the mind of the philosopher that wisdom is a real thing. What, then, is to be our understanding of wisdom? How are we to focus our affection upon wisdom? How are we to habituate ourselves to a flourishing, mutual relationship with a mere concept? Indeed, how are we to hang out and get slightly drunk with wisdom?

Well, friends, I believe I have the answer. I have spent my life in the pursuit of befriending wisdom, and I am perfectly convinced that our conventional notions of wisdom or the logos or even God are insufficient to the purposes I have described above. And yet there is an answer, a very simple answer, which explains everything quite neatly and succinctly. It has literally been staring us in the face all along.

To be a Philosopher is to worship Apollo.

Any elementary student of philosophy of course knows this, but to know it and to actually do it are entirely different things. As Socrates, we are tasked by our friend, Apollo who is wisdom, to share our lives with him in an everlasting and unshakeable relationship based on mutual admiration.

I argue that devotion to the gods is good to the extent that it is reasonable and morally instructive. Our impulses towards supernatural belief (both positive and negative) are capable of being controlled and being made more productive through reason. In the interest of further educating my rational capacity, I chose to devote myself to Apollo who is wisdom. He is the eye with which the universe beholds itself. He is older and more powerful than any other god you can think of, predating Yahweh by a good 500 years, and he is also tremendous fun at parties.

Apollo is the god of light, the restrainer of evils, the physician and the god of the bow. He is the leader of the Muses and the bringer of music and art, of law and civilization. Apollo instructs us to know ourselves and to be moderate in all things. Apollo thus guides humankind towards virtue - to be excellent in belief and thought and action. Apollo guides us towards true flourishing and accomplishment. And to top it all off, unlike certain other gods we might mention, Apollo totally loves dogs.

Be seeing you,

Rev. Dr. Pope[BRAK]