Been Thinking

I took a few days away, due to some personal issues.  They happen to everyone, but under many circumstances, I can just set everything aside and get something committed to paper.  But these issues that arose, not so much.  No, I do not feel like talking about it.

One thing that has crossed my mind recently is religion.  Sitting where I am, with the titles I hold, some good, more bad, I am tired of it.  Religion needs to go, even my own.  It is some hold over from our race when it was too ignorant and stupid to understand even the most basic of concepts.  It rained, therefore God.  The crop season was good, therefore God.  Half the city wiped out in a plague, therefore they (the ones that died) pissed God off.  It is divisive, turning humanity against each other in such a way that only death, destruction, and utter mayhem follows.  We use it to cop out of action, we use it to justify our actions, we use it for all the wrong reasons. 

We have moved past the era where we needed it to create a set of guides to live our lives.  Actually, I do not think it ever really did.  We used it to wholesale slaughter people who believed differently than we did.  We used it as a justification, no, we use it to do that.  We use it as a means to deprive others of life, liberty and happiness.  We use it as a means of inaction in the face of all that ills our society.  There are people who would give their last penny, subject themselves, their children to hunger, than use it for food.  For what?  A promise that we will get some better life after this one. 

For too many years, we have allowed poverty, illness, wars, and a host of other issues to run like a plague in this world.  Sure, religion isn't the sole blame of this, it has a small part to play.  It is a cog in the machine, just as we are.  But we constantly keep oiling that cog, rather than let it degrade and fail.  We plug along, feeding one of the Christian Horsemen of the Apocalypse. 

Speaking of which most churches have a nice little bank roll from their sheep.  Their congregations give hundreds of billions of dollars every year, some of these people give to multiple churches, but what do these churches do?  A thousand years ago, that money was used to raise armies, go to war with the infidels, kill the heathens.  Sure, today some give to the poor, some help those in need.  Others support legislation to trample the rights of others to be married.  Legislation against abortions, or this topic, or that one.  Most of it is spent producing media solely to convert the heathens.  I have recently been told many things, one of which suggested that if I converted to a specific religion, I would not have half of the problems I do.  Spoken like a true hypocrite and coward.  One should never hide who or what they are, out of fear.  But I guess that is the world we live in with religion.

It has no place in the modern or future world.  We can discard it, like we did so many things of the past, you know using mercury as medicine, radiated water, or using cocaine for a tooth ache.  It is easy enough to say, impossible to do.  It is so far ingrained in our world that stamping it out, is like stamping out an infestation of roaches.  Where you see one, millions more lurk in the dark waiting for the light to be extinguished.  And that is the problem.

Those millions of people, the use religion as a means to leech off society, the poorest of people.  Others use is as a means to get out of any moral obligation to help others, something religion isn't that great at instilling to begin with.  That section just depends on if religion is supporting or opposing your current source of action.  It also allows a nice little cop-out for all the problems you see.  "I'll pray" over it.  Things get better, therefore God, even if you did recently apply for a job that you were massively educated for, and had more experience than 90% of the world.  If you didn't get the job, God hates you, or you just didn't pray hard enough.  Maybe, if you worked at it a little bit, shined up the resume, showed up to the interview in a nice set of clothing, looking professional, you might just have gotten that job, in either case.  Rather than praying about it.  I saw college students thanking God that they passed a test, the same test they studied hours for, and could use a text book.  God didn't do that, their brain did.  When you put it in God's hands, you are basically saying you can do nothing for yourself.  Why don't you thank him for having a bowel movement? 

Yes I am a Rabbi.  Yes, my religion needs to go just like the rest of them.  It serves no purpose.  We know that God does not make it rain, or that praying does anything more than make you feel like you are doing something so important.  If you need it in your life, congratulations, you are an addict, and you have a problem.  Seek out the closet atheist that you know, or suspect, and talk to them.  It is a crutch, one that you are using to fit in with the society around you, it is a means for you to rationalize being a prick to some people, while helping others.  It is a means for others to rip you off. 

Look, if you really want to do some good, I know a few places.  Sure spring has apparently sprung on us, but I would be hard pressed to notice it, as snow lines the ground in a blanket of white.  But it still stands, things need to be done, and praying just doesn't cut it anymore. 

Here are 3 charities I know of, one for the Richardson Family, one for another family in a similar situation (like the Richardson's if we can gather enough, house bound they are), and one started by the Richardson Family to assist other elderly people who are victims of fraud (contact information is being worked out):

The Richardson Family Charity

Propane Powered Heater

The Richardson Elderly Victims Fund, account number 138900447 found at Woodforest National Bank.