The photographs shows a scene that is replicated all over the world each Sunday.
It shows a sombre gathering of people who believe in a God, a gathering held in a beautiful building, one owned by a very wealthy and powerful religious institution. There is much pomp and ceremony and symbolism used during this religious ritual.
People wear elaborate robes depending on their status and sometimes talk in Latin and there is organ music and choirs and gold religious objects shine and people eat wafers and drink grape juice believing it to be the flesh and blood of a man who died two thousand years ago, a man who they are told will accord eternal life to them if they believe strongly enough and they give enough financial support to the religious institution to assist it in its endeavours...
This institution is in serious competition with many other powerful religious institutions who represent very different Gods and who have a whole series of very different promises and have different rituals but which have the same objective: to exert as much control as possible over the minds and lives of their adherents, their flock, so that their great power and wealth will continue and even increase. Wars have been fought between these religious institutions for centuries. They still are.
How different would human history be if religious belief had remained something that was simple and humble, something that was only practiced in the homes of individual believers as it once was a couple of millenia ago? What kind of world would we live in today if these religious institutions (that in some ways resemble huge, predatory multi-national companies) hadn't been formed by opportunistic, manipulative, exploitative men who saw clearly how gullible and superstitious humans were?
Should religious institutions and empires be broken up and faith returned to individuals who feel a need for it? Would the world become a better place?
7 comments:
daniel, have you ever seen a single sheep? they like to travel in herds. the world would be a better place if folks realized that spirituality is far different than religion- and thus took the power away from the folks in the robes.
Ah, Betmo, under the robes are humans who, sad to say, are just as flawed as the rest of us!
Sadly, some are even worse.
Peace.
To answer your ending questions--yes, and yes!!
I don't think all of the world's problems would be solved by dismantling religious institutions...but it would certainly be a good start!
The problem, Bluegrrrrl, is that most major religions are not only powerful and wealthy but, employing theo-babble, they control so many captive souls who then indoctrinate their children to follow in their footsteps.
Resultantly, generation after generation continue to fall victim to the world's greatest, most divisive con! Cheers.
D, you have a t*ro^an on the Dec 10th post, appears like that from here. Later.....
Hey, Lang Mack, I had to pull that post on Kirribilli temporarily because the 'there until Xmas' rumour was published on Crikey this morning but was contradicted later this afternoon when Webdiary was reporting that P.M. (the radio station) had said the last removalist truck left there this afternoon.
I've listened to all the television news and I can't confirm or deny what the true position is. I couldn't email you because I didn't have your address.
I'll check the newspapers tomorrow morning and see if I can get to the bottom of the matter. Sorry but I don't want to get sued for peddling false information! Cheers.
Understand, my PCillian was turned off as /or just after I clicked send and had to reboot and all that jazz , why I don't know, to get things back to mild chaos. I thought you had my add, however, if you wish, lang56au-yahoo-c.a.is a generic and if you send me a G'Day there,I can send you a more discreet form should you like to bung in you contacts. ( I spent most of the day in water, dare I say it, no more please , just for a little while, I'll regret that, however , watching a dog going around a mob this morning and the dog with spray flying around him as he raced to the front of the sheep, there may be a God).
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