32 Religion is weird

What?

I looked baffled and dumbfounded at Aer. Her hair was still ruffled by the storm that surrounded both of us. Moving at high speed and strangely completely silent.

"...cursed?"

"Yes!"

"Who?"

"You!"

"Why?"

She shrugged her shoulders.

"I don´t know!"

"Aren´t gods supposed to be omniscient?"

"Omni- what?"

Right... different language...

"Knowing everything..."

"Oh... not exactly..."

"What?"

"You see I am the air."

"You told me several times already."

"So if I listened to everything said in the air I would be able to know."

She shrugged again and put on a helpless face.

"But it really is boring."

She leaned a bit forward seemingly getting really interested in something.

"Where did that theory come from? As far as I remember nobody near your village has ever spoken of something like that. What else is a god supposed to be?"

Ah! I did just talk about something from my previous life, didn´t I? Well, she already knows, that I am... or at least my soul is not from this world...

"God is supposed to be all-knowing, all-powerful, all-benevolent, and unchanging."

Well, those are the core attributes that humans think god has. Can´t say I agree with every single one, but that is only my personal preference...

"Hmm... Something like all-powerful is a little bit strange, you know?"

Hm? Why did she pick the all-powerful? Most people would raise their eyebrows at the unchanging or all-benevolent attribute...

"You know, if this god would put a stone with the intention that no one even himself would be able to move the rock then tried to move the rock he wouldn´t be all-powerful anymore."

Oh! That paradox... Yeah, I do know about it...

"You mean because, if he is able to move the object then he isn´t powerful enough to put an object, that no one can´t move and if he can´t move the object he isn´t al powerful, because he should be able to move an object regardless of circumstance?"

She clapped her hands, seemingly very exciting that I got her question... well I did have that conversation a few times previously...

"Exactly!"

I massaged my forehead and steeled my resolve.

"It is not exactly an answer, but that is why all-knowing is important to god. He can avoid putting that paradox into existence just by knowing that he won´t need to move the rock anymore and even without that if someone puts an object somewhere, even if others might not be able to move the object he himself should put that object himself."

I shrugged my shoulders helplessly.

"There is no answer to that paradox, just that it is very unlikely to actually happen."

She looked a bit frustrated at my answer. Yeah, I get it... I was frustrated as well and I am not smart enough to come up with a clear solution to that paradox myself... so...

Actually, I came up with another question that is very problematic...

Let´s assume that a father has - let´s say five children. So right after they are born he brings to baptize them with the effect of cleansing their souls. Right after that, he murders them. So since they were just baptized and cleansed of their original sin and they had no time to sin themselves they would go straight to heaven. The father of course would go straight to hell, but at least his children would be enjoying eternal bliss.

Now don´t get me wrong that is insane and hopefully, no one does something like that in real life, but it works. For just his own soul he managed to get all of his children into heaven. Nothing wrong with trying his best for his children, right?

Religion is really weird sometimes... since that would only work in an individualistic view of sin. By the way, the old testament of the bible is not individualistic and that is the answer to that "question". The sin of the father is the sin of the children as well. That is why Eves's and Adam's sin did doom the whole of humanity and not only themselves. The father ate sour grapes and the son's teeth become dull.

Then again, I wouldn´t really be that excited to bear my father´s sins...

"So there really are other worlds out there?"

Where did that come from? Should I tell her everything or...

"Come on! Just tell me already, okay? I mean it is practically confirmed already with your wind being foreign and being cursed by someone and you know of a paradox which was discussed just recently among some scholars. By the way, that paradox was the solution to the question if there is a chief of gods who is all-powerful similar to what you said, but there is no way of you knowing that."

She looked at me expectantly. Being excited and humming to herself. I could see she was holding herself back from dancing around... here goes nothing...

"You are right."

Her smile brightened up her face and for a moment I found her especially beautiful. My heartbeat was faster and I could my face brighten up a little.

"So you really are from another world."

I shook my head.

"Not really my soul, I mean my wind is from another world, but the body is..."

She nodded happily.

"Yeah I know that kid was supposed to be stillborn since there was no wind inside her, but your arrival changed that. At least that is what I think from my conversation with the others."

She stopped seemingly thinking about something and I was left speechless once again. So I do inhabit a dead body? At least I did not kill another person... which leaves me with just one question that is quite, no, really important right now.

"So... what is going to happen now?"

She jerked her head up and stared at me flabbergasted. Did she just forget that I am here with her?

"Hm? Right! Let´s make a deal, okay?"

A deal? Am I going to become a warlock now?

"What deal?"

"Just something minor, really. I give my blessing and you will tell me all about that world you come from. You get what you want, and I get what I want. Simple, right?"

Yeah, right... will it really be that simple though?

"Why would you offer your blessing?"

Surely she has other things that she would like to offer.

"Simple! You are weak! And I don´t want you to die before your time."

Fair enough... I am weak, but will her blessing really make me stronger? Somehow I really doubt that.

"Don´t look at me like that! I don´t know what my blessing will do either, you know? Since I have never done that before."

She really hasn´t? Damn! I will be the first to become a chosen one from the wind god...

"By the way..."

Can I really ask that? Will she be offended or...

"Ask away!"

"... are you really a god?"

She looked baffled and then began laughing. It took a while for her to calm down...

"I am."

I frowned, if that is like that, then I can´t really get her blessing can I?

"But I don´t care for worship, you know?"

What which god wouldn´t care for worship? Then again it is not really clear to me why gods would want prayers at all...

"I don´t think you are a god... and you aren´t offended?"

She tilted her head curiously.

"I have known my share of people that denied my existence when I was staring them right into the face... I didn´t kill either of them. By the way, time is up. I assume you agree to our contract?"

I was hesitating for just a second before mother´s smile bloomed in my mind and I nodded reflexively.

Aer smiled happily and nodded.

"You shouldn´t move for a few days..."