Be Glad

By Carl S ~

When it comes down to it, be glad that those who believe some things really don't.

Hanging on a wall built from human bones is the nearly complete dried skeleton of a man with the dessicated skin still covering most of the corpse. Down and to the left is a similarly dried corpse of a small child. The idea behind such shocking use (abuse?) of the corpses of humans was to remind visitors to the chapel of the Catholic belief (particularly important to the Franciscan order) that the body is only a temporary vessel for the immortal soul. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Recently, in Texas, two men became martyrs in attempting to kill attendees at a meeting. A central point of this meeting was a contest for the best cartoon portrayal of Mohammed. I told my wife, "Now they are the true believers. They died for their faith.” She replied, "They're in for a surprise." Later on, I remembered what she told me right after the Sept. 11 attacks. Then she said that if those perpetrators believed they would be rewarded in the afterlife, they would. Here's where she and I differ. She thinks the surprise will be hell, and I see no "they" – after they’re dead - to experience either place. As with any religion, the reward destination is a dream the heart hopes for.

Damn. When are people going to let go of this belief in an immortal soul and stop harming and killing their own and one another's bodies for salvation? Boy, if there ever was a great logical reason for murder, this sensible solution of killing humans to send them on their way to heaven/paradise is awesome! Why wait? Babies ought to be drowned shortly after birth. They would be dispatched to that place "eye has not seen nor has it entered into the heart of man what God has prepared" for them.

All adults, children, adolescents, should be made to convert to the true religion of their culture by any means possible including torture and burning alive! After all, any life on earth is piddling bother compared to enjoying an eternity of happiness.

You don't agree? Pay attention. Does the word "Inquisition" ring a bell? What about that word “martyrdom?" Of course, the crusades, burning "heretics" and "witches" at the stake, and, as one apologist said, slaughtering the Canaanite’s babies and sending them to heaven all qualify! Yet, that old immortal soul tradition is still here.

And it seems like the worse things are, or the worse they can be made for people, the more they look to heaven. That's why the slaves in America were converted to Christianity: keep at it, you'll get rewarded forever in heaven. (I remember learning an old gospel hymn: "How long dear savior will that bright light delay? Come ‘round you wheel of time and bring that promised day.") There's one reason why the Bible belt states are so poor: Stay miserable and keep praying. Your soul is what matters and it'll be rewarded.

Here's how far out this gets to be: The last days. Can't wait until everyone is killed, alleluia! Everyone horribly wiped out when this only world we have is destroyed. Vast numbers of Christians and Moslems long for it! The conclusion of the movie “Dr. Stangelove" is a good comparison to the glorious endings promised in the Book of Revelations. All those souls going either there or there, forever!