The Bible mentions in Revelations that famine will strike the world in the end days, among other things. While this is universally taken as meaning a nutritional famine, it is clear that there is a spiritual famine of equal destructive power, if not greater. Make no mistake; there is no shortage of religion. The problem is, there is very little that is not destructive about what we call our religious institutions. They have become little more than hermetic bubbles of exclusion.
This is not news.
As we slide toward a prolonged time of excruciating trials, we go unarmed. Of course, I am not speaking of everyone, but I am forced to generalize that we are in deep trouble. One needs only look at our young people and their priorities to see what we have wrought. Though it could be argued that it could be said of any generation of the one that follows, I think the state of the entire planet shows that the writing is on the wall. But the knee-jerk response for some is to turn to our “spiritual leaders”, which is a meaningless term.
Today, political parasites disguised as “spiritual leaders” stoke the fires of discontent to their vacant throngs. The admonition of Richard III has become so: “Now is the winter of our discontent…”. The national media aids this completely and, of late, blatantly. After all, the only way to control a large population is by creating conflict among them. So these “spiritual leaders” seek power in this world, having had their collective conscience excised by greed decades ago.
In even worse moments, news anchors turn to religious “scholars” to talk about spiritual matters that are trendy. There’s nothing quite like intellectualizing the spiritual to confer oh so much validity upon it. Again, more two-dimensional people to be spokesmen for multidimensional issues. It’s like interviewing a paramecium to explain music…or a politician to explain himself.
And in politics the religious has become part of the armory. Jesus has become a weapon. I grow tired of so-called morality being injected into governance. Time and time again, in every election, what are called Christian Fundamentalists are looked upon to influence or ordain, if you will, the veracity of a given candidate. When this happens I have to wonder: why would anyone want the support of a point of view that actually anticipates the end of the world? In fact, one of the major factors influencing the Central Intelligence Agency’s blindness to the impending fall of the Soviet Union was that they were saturated with so many Fundamentalist Christians in their power structure, that they couldn’t bring themselves to believe the Soviet Union was falling. It wasn’t “supposed” to happen. It was “supposed” to bring about Armageddon.
I feel safe. Don’t you?
None of this does anything to nurture spirituality. It is impossible for affluence to give rise to the spiritual. Even Jesus said that. I contend that only true suffering and fear can jump start the spiritual famine we find ourselves in, and let me assure you the opportunity for both of those is coming very soon. This may sound negative, but it’s not. Jesus spent three days in hell before he ascended. An alcoholic must hit rock bottom before he has the spiritual awakening that will abate his disease. A dying culture must be brought to the brink – or beyond – to motivate the people to “change the towels”.
To be sure, there are powerful forces that have been at work for decades in an effort to bring about a race war, if not a civil war. In the winter of 2007, Halliburton Corporation was given a government contract to the tune of $400,000,000+ to build concentration camps in the U.S. Ostensibly, these are for the purpose of moving people into “new programs” if necessary. “Coincidentally”, in May of the same year, President Bush signed an executive order giving the president the power to declare martial law without the consent of Congress.
What exactly are we anticipating?
The spiritual famine that is pandemic in our world will inevitably lead to the massive unrest that is being prepared for in the above examples. What began as the simple lack of common courtesy, common sense, and common decency has metastasized into a spiritual cancer that is now spreading to the spinal column of our nation. And it looks like there will be no spiritual CPR, merely religious morphine to numb the pain.
What is the answer? I don’t know, and if I did I wouldn’t give it. This is an individual’s own journey. A nation of sheep will be sheared, without a doubt. What I do know is that whatever answer there is cannot be found in a book, a 12 Step program, a feel-good seminar or a relationship. For some, these things may work for a time. But only a wholesale return to our connectedness we call the spiritual can save what I am sure is the potential demise of society.
An answer? All I can say is do this at all costs, no matter what it takes. Find what is beyond the TV and the Web. Find what is beyond your stupid cell phone and your iPod. Find what is beyond your parties and your kisses.
And find what is beyond your fists.
And tell your “spiritual leaders”, “No, thanks. I can take it from here.”
(c) Andrew T. Durham, 2008
This is not news.
As we slide toward a prolonged time of excruciating trials, we go unarmed. Of course, I am not speaking of everyone, but I am forced to generalize that we are in deep trouble. One needs only look at our young people and their priorities to see what we have wrought. Though it could be argued that it could be said of any generation of the one that follows, I think the state of the entire planet shows that the writing is on the wall. But the knee-jerk response for some is to turn to our “spiritual leaders”, which is a meaningless term.
Today, political parasites disguised as “spiritual leaders” stoke the fires of discontent to their vacant throngs. The admonition of Richard III has become so: “Now is the winter of our discontent…”. The national media aids this completely and, of late, blatantly. After all, the only way to control a large population is by creating conflict among them. So these “spiritual leaders” seek power in this world, having had their collective conscience excised by greed decades ago.
In even worse moments, news anchors turn to religious “scholars” to talk about spiritual matters that are trendy. There’s nothing quite like intellectualizing the spiritual to confer oh so much validity upon it. Again, more two-dimensional people to be spokesmen for multidimensional issues. It’s like interviewing a paramecium to explain music…or a politician to explain himself.
And in politics the religious has become part of the armory. Jesus has become a weapon. I grow tired of so-called morality being injected into governance. Time and time again, in every election, what are called Christian Fundamentalists are looked upon to influence or ordain, if you will, the veracity of a given candidate. When this happens I have to wonder: why would anyone want the support of a point of view that actually anticipates the end of the world? In fact, one of the major factors influencing the Central Intelligence Agency’s blindness to the impending fall of the Soviet Union was that they were saturated with so many Fundamentalist Christians in their power structure, that they couldn’t bring themselves to believe the Soviet Union was falling. It wasn’t “supposed” to happen. It was “supposed” to bring about Armageddon.
I feel safe. Don’t you?
None of this does anything to nurture spirituality. It is impossible for affluence to give rise to the spiritual. Even Jesus said that. I contend that only true suffering and fear can jump start the spiritual famine we find ourselves in, and let me assure you the opportunity for both of those is coming very soon. This may sound negative, but it’s not. Jesus spent three days in hell before he ascended. An alcoholic must hit rock bottom before he has the spiritual awakening that will abate his disease. A dying culture must be brought to the brink – or beyond – to motivate the people to “change the towels”.
To be sure, there are powerful forces that have been at work for decades in an effort to bring about a race war, if not a civil war. In the winter of 2007, Halliburton Corporation was given a government contract to the tune of $400,000,000+ to build concentration camps in the U.S. Ostensibly, these are for the purpose of moving people into “new programs” if necessary. “Coincidentally”, in May of the same year, President Bush signed an executive order giving the president the power to declare martial law without the consent of Congress.
What exactly are we anticipating?
The spiritual famine that is pandemic in our world will inevitably lead to the massive unrest that is being prepared for in the above examples. What began as the simple lack of common courtesy, common sense, and common decency has metastasized into a spiritual cancer that is now spreading to the spinal column of our nation. And it looks like there will be no spiritual CPR, merely religious morphine to numb the pain.
What is the answer? I don’t know, and if I did I wouldn’t give it. This is an individual’s own journey. A nation of sheep will be sheared, without a doubt. What I do know is that whatever answer there is cannot be found in a book, a 12 Step program, a feel-good seminar or a relationship. For some, these things may work for a time. But only a wholesale return to our connectedness we call the spiritual can save what I am sure is the potential demise of society.
An answer? All I can say is do this at all costs, no matter what it takes. Find what is beyond the TV and the Web. Find what is beyond your stupid cell phone and your iPod. Find what is beyond your parties and your kisses.
And find what is beyond your fists.
And tell your “spiritual leaders”, “No, thanks. I can take it from here.”
(c) Andrew T. Durham, 2008
Brilliant!
ReplyDeleteThere is an inherent irony in the spiritual famine you speak of: Those starving the most are the very ones feeding in a frenzy at the table of religion and fundamentalism. That is truly frightening.
The political players and manipulators who have brought society to this point definitely use these starving masses as a means for their own political power ends.
However, those same religious, hungry souls may just turn on the hand feeding them: The political manipulators could be destroyed by these religious fanatics. Unless, of course, the fanatics are already in power. Um....could we imagine THAT?
Mr. Durham, your closing lines are profound and sad at the same time. I agree with the sentiment, but do not have faith (are you listening, Obama?) that the masses will take it from here.
To put it into a pop culture context, Jesus, in the rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar screamed at the teeming masses begging to be healed "Heal yourselves!" In another line, he admonishes that to conquer death one only has to die.
In other words, we have the power within ourselves to guide, and change our lives as we wish. We have the power to live.
But beyond the iPods, cell phones and other toys and diversions that have been created to divert our collective attention, is any of that possible?
I sometimes doubt it.
R. Burnett Baker
Mr. Durham,
ReplyDeleteI found your website through Michael Savage's website. I have just finished reading some of your blogs, which I found enlightening, entertaining, and frightening; but it is refreshing to see a true independent thinker. Don't stop writing, and NEVER sell out! For what it is worth, you have an admirer in me.
-K. Patrick Murphy