The Blissful Climax of Religion
No – it is OK. I haven’t gone mad. I am not having a road to Damascus conversion. I have not suffered a delusion. I have not turned religious. My antitheist credentials are still intact. I still believe all religion is constructed by men and it is all about power and control.
I wrote this poem because I was struck by all the ancient church spires sticking up into the sky. I saw the sexual symbolism and the power they exhibited.
Those churches once ruled over everyone around. Religion was compulsory. There was no escape. Terrible wars, crusades and witch-hunts were carried out in its name, but for me the worst aspect was the fear-driven control of the populace. They had to adhere to strict codes on dress, food and daily life, including compulsory worship.
Fortunately we have had an enlightenment. People are free of that terrible yoke. Now we are free to decide whether we want to believe or not. Most choose not to believe. The churches are empty and merely historical buildings of splendour and beauty. The power and control has gone.
There are still those who would wish it otherwise, who would wish to impose their beliefs on others, indoctrinate the children, enforce strict laws and return us to the Dark Ages of superstition and enforcement. Watching the antics of preachers in the US South and Muslims all over the world sends chills through me. Theirs is not a faith of tolerance but a superstition of fundamental control and power.
I oppose it with every ounce of strength. Give me spirituality, harmony, tolerance and peace any day.
I enjoyed playing with the sexual imagery though. I think sex is tightly bound up to religion.
The Blissful Climax of Religion
Throughout the countryside of Britain
Spires penetrate heaven
Like archaic ICBMs of the past faithful.
The members of God
Stabbing into the skies,
Once symbols of the fertility of faith,
Impregnating minds
With seeds of fear,
Now impotent and drooping
In decay,
Devoid of power,
No longer spouting
From their inner fonts
That christened many a virgin.
The bishops staffs
Are grounded wands
Devoid of power,
Waving through the motions
Of birth, marriage and death,
Without belief,
With no libido
To erect
An entry into heaven.
For it is the neon lights
Of the retail outlets
That now seduce
And bring their acolytes
To blissful climax.
Opher 17.9.2016
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I just commented on a previous post, echoing much of your thoughts. Apart from the sex thingy. Have you ever read Dan Brown’s books – Da Vinci Code, Angels and Demons, The Lost Symbol? They are a fascinating insight into the symbology of the Divine Feminine in Church architecture, artworks etc, as well as the corruption within religion. You would be aware the Catholic Church tried hard to stop the release of the Da Vinci Code and denied vehemently that some of the practices described within the book are still in use.
Yes I enjoyed the Dan Brown books. I just read the Potato Factory – I think you recommended it. I enjoyed that too.
The church is very archaic. Who knows what weird stuff goes on. I wonder if any of actually believe any of it?
Yes I did recommend the PF. Glad you liked it. Bryce Courtenay is a great author.
The church was particularly horrid in the medieval times (and I’m sure some of it still goes on esp. in the sects) – I suspect they were so caught up in their own power and greed that they believed their own perverted rhetoric. And that of course justified their actions – just like the perverted rhetoric of the terrorists today. It does not reflect the ethos of the beliefs they espouse to follow.
The history of power. The church/all religion has a very frightening past. Not only on the scale of international warmongering but on the level of the control of the population. It was tyrannical in the way it set the laws on what to wear, eat and how to behave. People who did not comply were dealt with through torture and death. Still going on today.
Having said all of that, the art work and architecture is exquisite. Makes me wonder what is hidden in the vaults under the Vatican that we never get to see….
Too true. All the best artists, masons and architects were deployed to create the biggest splash.
If it’s huge and impressive it must be true!
Despite the trappings from whence they emerge, they are beautiful to look at just for the workmanship and creativity.
I travel the world marvelling at the wonders created in the name of religion – from pyramids to temples, cathedrals and mosques. Some of the artwork is incredible. The Vatican has hoarded the best.
Greedy buggers !!!
About time they brought it out for us to appreciate. Mind you the Vatican was amazing. They already have a treasure trove on display.
Does it not make you wonder which “shrine” we worship at is worse?
They are all beautiful and enticing and all equally divisive, dogmatic and intolerant. They just have their phases.