Image from skippingtothepiccolo.com
I know that full consciousness of this concept will never penetrate the fundamentalist mind, but I still wonder:
Might it ever occur to them that, if their program were wholly spiritual, we would have no objection to their religious beliefs and practices whatsoever? I have no problem with the Amish, Pagans or Buddhist monks, because they practice their spirituality in peace and demand nothing from me.
But the fact is that fundamentalists cannot help but insert themselves into the phenomenal world -- the only one we know exists -- in a supervisory role. Faith in a god is their claim, but regaining their cultural hegemony is their actual aim. Given half a chance, they will set about contracting the civil rights of all who do not share their delusions. For this reason, free citizens in a secular, democratic republic cannot abdicate the fight against them.
We find ourselves in a war we never wanted -- we humanists are generally the "live and let live" type. But since fundamentalist religion has declared war on the larger culture, we have no choice but to engage.
Might it ever occur to them that, if their program were wholly spiritual, we would have no objection to their religious beliefs and practices whatsoever? I have no problem with the Amish, Pagans or Buddhist monks, because they practice their spirituality in peace and demand nothing from me.
But the fact is that fundamentalists cannot help but insert themselves into the phenomenal world -- the only one we know exists -- in a supervisory role. Faith in a god is their claim, but regaining their cultural hegemony is their actual aim. Given half a chance, they will set about contracting the civil rights of all who do not share their delusions. For this reason, free citizens in a secular, democratic republic cannot abdicate the fight against them.
We find ourselves in a war we never wanted -- we humanists are generally the "live and let live" type. But since fundamentalist religion has declared war on the larger culture, we have no choice but to engage.
No comments:
Post a Comment