Complexity and theology
I keep getting into this recurring argument about software projects: there will be some kind of problem, and someone will say “we can fix this by adding another table to the database and adding a few more buttons to the user interface.” I will say, “no, no, we can’t fix this by making the system more complicated, we have to fix it by making the system simpler!” I typically lose the argument. The system becomes more complicated, which leads to additional problems, which are addressed by adding even more complexity. And so it goes.
Mouse’s piece on Practical Demonology got me to thinking about this in relation to religion, which, after all, is cultural software. Monotheism is very simple, which I like. Nice, minimalist design. And yet, complexity creeps back into Catholicism:
- The hierarchy of angels: Raphael, the archangel in charge of healing.
- Demonology: Leonard or “Master Leonard” is a demon or spirit in the Dictionnaire Infernal, Grand-master of the nocturnal orgies of demons.
- Patron saints: St. Gertrude of Nivelles, invoked against fever, rats, and mice, particularly field-mice.
While I’m at it, let me mention the proliferation of superheros with obscure powers, as opposed to the simple, all-purpose Superman.