It strikes me as somewhat odd that the people who use God's name most frequently, both in life and in literature, usually don't believe in him.

I share Einstein's affirmation that anyone who is not lost in rapturous awe at the power and glory of the mind behind the universe "is as good as a burnt out candle."

Time exists so that everything doesn't happen at once.

It was the same way with silence. This was more than silence. A deaf person can feel vibrations. Here there was nothing to feel.

I think your mythology would call them fallen angels. War and hate are their business, and one of their chief weapons is un-Naming - making people not know who they are. If someone knows who he is, really knows, then he doesn't need to hate. That's why we still need Namers, because there are places throughout the universe like your planet Earth. When everyone is really and truly Named, then the Echthroi will be vanquished.

If it can be verified, we don't need faith... Faith is for that which lies on the other side of reason. Faith is what makes life bearable, with all its tragedies and ambiguities and sudden, startling joys.

Stories make us more alive, more human, more courageous, more loving.