How Religious Authority Conquers And Divides Us; From Our Self And From Others

Before we begin, 
please note:

All words that appear blue and underlined are links.

These links are offered as support and further explanation.

They are not necessary for the gist. 
But they are helpful for anyone who may be foggy or unconvinced of the points being made.

The author would ask that you please seriously consider setting aside the time to review the linked materials with an open mind; whenever you can find the time.

Thank you
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I knew a beautiful woman.

Her name was Amanda.

She had what I'd call "a beautiful soul".
I don't mean that in a supernatural sense; just to be clear.
                      
She would go for long walks
and quite literally commune with nature.

She would talk with trees.

They had a presence, to her.
She would carry on pleasant conversations with them.
Sometimes, even serious conversations.

They were beautiful people, to her.

She didn't realize it, but ...
She was actually meeting parts of herself.

It's how she was able to more clearly hear,
more deeply appreciate,
and more richly cultivate her own voice. 

Those conversations did really happen.

I would never want disrupt or corrupt that.

Nor would I want to disrupt or corrupt that same sort of relationship that many theists have with their trees gods.


Healthy versions of that relationship should be protected.

Unhealthy versions should be gently guided into health; whenever we're in a position to do so. 

And yet,
versions which directly threaten the health of others 
should be directly and immediately challenged.

My public response to Abrahamic fundamentalists 'caught in the act' ...
is not a tolerant response. 

This is partly because:
“in order to maintain a tolerant society, that society must be intolerant of intolerance.”

It's also because: 

They are attempting to give other people's "trees" of self ...
an abusive voice. 

In contrast, 
for Amanda, 
it was a very healing and connecting experience.

Every time she returned from those walks, she had clarified, healed, and grown in some way.

"Walking with God" is the same sort of thing, for many theists.

This remains true, ~even if~ there really is a literal Super-Father in the sky;
and even if there's not.
That would have no bearing on how this really works.

Likewise, 
even if literal trees eventually turn out to be sentient, with literal personalities of their own, ...

That would not change the nature of Amanda's past, present, or future experiences.

She has still been meeting herself, through that experience. 

This, in turn, fosters an ever-deepening ability to meet others.

 This is absolutely essential for all of us,
no matter how we accomplish it;  
because:
 We can only meet others
as deeply as we've met ourselves.

But for Amanda, it was more than just that. 

She was providing for herself
a healing fellowship;
which her fellow humans had not been reliably available to provide.

 I can think of no greater form of self-sufficiency than that.
--------
 However, ...

There is  something which can make that sort of experience destructive for some Theists.

I'm talking about a problem which would not normally arise for Treeists.

Whatever narrative someone is relying upon
to define "God"
will shape their relationship to "God".

That, in turn, will shape the relationship they have with their own self.

That, in turn, will shape the relationship they have with others.

Whenever those others are their own children, or their spouse, or a congregation, 
or really any vulnerable audience, ...

it will effect the relationship those vulnerable people with their own selves too.

So whenever an abusive voice is whispered,
from behind a tree
 or from behind a conceptualized "God",
...
the listener could be tricked into thinking they just heard that from a tree (if they are a Treeist)
or from their "God" (if they are a Theist). 

The results of that would be devastating for the listener.

It can also create a destructive ripple-effect, throughout human social systems;
even throughout entire societies.

That makes it everyone's problem;
which makes it everyone's business.

Serious problems should be promptly addressed;
not ignored.

This is why it matters if someone gives "God" an abusive voice. 

This is why it's important to educate people on what constitutes:
abuse vs kindness, 
dysfunction vs good function,
and
sickness vs wellness. 

When people give "God" an abusive voice, it's usually not out of malice.
They aren't trying to cause harm. They simply don't recognize it as abuse. 

This is why we all need to be educated on the difference.

This is the only reason
I ever concern myself with the preachments of Christians, and religious-Jews, and Muslims.

The more literal the interpretations,
the more "perfect" they see it as,
and the more politically-conservative the reader's leanings are, ... 

the worse the effect. 

That's the problem with Authoritarian narratives. 

 It's a crucial facet of maturity 
to realize:
The only true moral "authority" anyone rightly has 
is the moral authority they have over their own self. 
 
 The root word of "authority" is "author".
Ultimately, it refers to whoever is writing your story. 

 Who is deciding for you
what to regard as true,
or valuable,
or ugly,
or beautiful? 
 
If it's not you, 
then you have a very serious problem.  

Sometimes, people don't even realize they are complicit in a con.
But sometimes, people figure it out. 

Until people realize it, 
those complex religious narratives implant random people's thoughts, feelings, values, etc into their inner-dialogue
and into their story. 

So then it muddies, rather than clarifies, ... the experiencing of meeting one's self. 
---

Spirituality
is a profound relationship with the self.

"God" is often a mechanism used to facilitate that relationship.

 It's certainly not the only possible mechanism for getting to know one's self, or further developing one's self. 

It's not even necessarily the best way.

But it's "a" way.
And sometimes, that way can be very effective.

And yet, when someone mistakes another fallible human's voice for "God's" voice, ...

That voice 
will gradually supplant their own. 

None of us 
should feel entitled to hijack the mind of another.

Thus, none of us should ever speak as
a messenger-voice for any "God". 



But that's exactly what billions of people have been programmed to do to each other. 

Whenever that program engages, 
such messengers speak on the pretense of "authority", to impose an undue sense of obligation upon their audience. 

This is designed to cause any recipient person to feel like they are wronging "God" somehow, if they doubt, criticize, or reject it; 

if they attempt to weed-out other human's voices. 

In Abrahamic religions (or "faiths"),
that's an impossible task anyways, because:

In those religions' narratives,
 the whole damn field is nothing but weeds.

It is 100% other fallible humans
trying to pass their own voice off as everyone else's "God". 

All the while,
those narratives are imbedded with self-abusing ideas;
designed to deceptively appear wise and helpful. 

So then it maneuvers (mentally sheep-herds)  persons into abusing themselves and others. 

A common example of that
is when vulnerable people are compelled to tell themselves: 
they are "nothing" apart from whatever validation/approval/acceptance they get-and-feel from an outside source;
- in this case, a larger-than-life, ever-hovering Super-Parent;
- under whos grand shadow they should spend the rest of their days "and rejoice"  

"or else". 
--

It stunts growth, by setting manipulative limits for what you're allowed to think, say, or do. 
-so that every right and wrong
is entirely a matter of yielding to someone else's authority.
 -What the late Christopher Hitchens correctly identified as "the Totalitarian Principal" of the Abrahamic religions. 

That literally and intentionally keeps people (even grown adults) stuck in a dependent child-state.

Thus, it satisfies the core ideal
of Bibles, and Qurans, and every book later written under the same premise of authority. 

"Do not even risk
ever outgrowing your utter child-state dependence on (that) God. "
 
- Or else that "God" will cast you out; discarding you like trash, for having offended his fragile and entitled ego.

That ego, if you follow the puppet-strings back to source,
is always actually the ego of fallible humans.

What they imagine is:
The human is the puppet; through-whom their "God" speaks.

What's really happening is:
The "God" is the puppet; through-whom humans artificially amplify their own voice. 

That's a very dangerous amount of power for any human to wield over others. 

In fact, no matter what a wielder does with it, 
it's automatically abusive. 

There is never a valid justification for tampering with someone else's mind;
scribbling narrations into their story under the false premise of "authority". 

Such a gross amount of stolen power 
naturally corrupts the wielder. 

It also appeals to already-dangerous humans, because:

 It's an easy form of great power over others.

They don't really even need to work hard to gain it.

They just have to learn how to "talk the talk", and then step into the nearest vacancy;
where pre-tamed and church-penned sheep are ready and waiting to be led.  

So then, what are they doing with that power?

What sort of voice are they giving to "God"?

Per fundamentalist Abrahamic narratives, 
 YOU have no worth,
except for whatever validation you can earn on your knees. 

So you must surrender to "Him"
by surrendering to the authority of the "messenger". 

 As this transpires, the God(ego) of the messenger
finds a moment's peace. 

 But it's a very hungry "God". 
He has ongoing needs. 
Thus, every self-sacrificing sheep is told
this needs to be a regular event, in a permanent arrangement.

This, then, 
sets the criteria-by-which
the "believer" bases the worth of all other humans.
 
If the believer believes
they aren't even worthy of the air they breathe, "lest they not only SUBMIT
but also
REPENT", 
then:
 You don't have any worth (in their eyes) either; except for your "amazing" ~potential worth~;
as potential slaves to the same religious narrative. 

So then you might ask, ...
"repent" of what?". 

Let's examine that list. 

1. (harmless) thoughts, feelings, and actions, 
(based entirely on the personal and cultural biases of random, fallible men)

2. any-and-all actual wrongs (which people really only owe amends to specific other humans about),

3. (imaginary) soul-stains,

4. (imaginary) spiritual disease they inherited from (imaginary) ancestors.

So then, how do they recommend we take care of all that? 

* By correctly (lucky-guessing) which religion and which sect's interpretation of those stories is the correct-es;
which always "just happens to be" the exact religion and interpretation of the messenger.  

Further, by: 

* surrendering fully to their (pretense of) moral authority over your life;
 "in the name of (that) God".
---

So let's be clear about this.

YOUR worth, and MY worth, and everyone's else's worth 
is being assessed (by the believer) on that criteria. 

That's why they already plan to forget about you, if you end up in their "Hell". 

 They think it's what you deserve. 

That is a worse-than-low value
which they are ascribing to your worthiness to exist.

 It's infinitely negative value
which they're placing on your very existence
(As you are right now.
If you were to die right now). 

That is a serious problem for everyone. 

They've essentially re-invented racism, so that their faith functions as a race;
 an idea they adopted from ancient Jews. 

- Except that it's a joinable race.

 Meanwhile, anyone who doesn't join has a worthless life. 

That's what Christianity's doctrine of "grace" is.
 
It's an offer to FORGIVE YOU for being worthless. And then allowing you to inherit wonderful worth as recipients of their God's radiant glory;
- to gain worth by proxy, by basing your worth on the only being which HAS any worth in-and-of their self:

 The Great And Powerful OZ of Christian mythology. 

 -Except that their Oz doesn't later admit it was a hoax, and never admits that you always actually had what you sought. 
Because their OZ is a puppet for covert, malignant clinical narcissists.
And the whole POINT OF IT was to gain and keep author-ity over your story. 
 
--
Arthur C. Clarke once said "'One of the great tragedies of mankind is that morality has been hijacked by religion." 

 He was right. 

 But to understand how that happened,
we must explore the more personal roots
of that pervasive and devastating weed,
 to see how it takes hold.
 ------------------------------

Consider also the soil; to see where it's mostly likely to thrive. 

 Does it appeal most to strongest among us, like a virtue would? 
Or does it go after the most vulnerable, like a disease? 

Consider also the nature of its pollen, to see how it spreads. 

It spread by coercion, fallacy, and dishonesty.

It spreads by crippling minds with unreasonable SHAME.
Afterwards, they'll offer to help alleviate some of that shame,
if you'll submit to them as a moral authority;
 - over your entire life,
and even the very core of your personal identity.  
 
And then they lie to you again;
by calling that fantastically high price ... "free".

They also attempt to prevent free thinking,
WHILE trying to make you feel like you are a free thinker.

Part of how they set out to accomplish that is by imposing obligations on our thinking.

They also attempts to get people to distrust their own ability to reason. 

Their sheep are told "Do no trust your own reasoning. 
Lean upon your master's reasoning instead".  

 They justify that, on the premise that the master they are deferring to is the creator of the universe.

But who is giving that figure the words it speaks? 
 Fallible humans. 
It's their words. 
 
Humans imagined the stories.
A literal Super-Being didn't say a damned thing to anyone.

Other humans later created new stories from pieces of stories copied from other/older cultures.

Humans further changed the stories, in long chains of retellings. 

Humans eventually wrote their own understanding of whichever versions of the stories they heard.

All the while,
humans handpicked which stories to keep or discard in their collections.

Humans later translated whichever versions they could find; with additional piles of fallible human bias.

Humans kept competing to be the "authority" about what various stories (and pieces of stories) "really meant". 

Those various interpretations were dispensed to congregations as "fact". 

Later, other religious people then further corrupted those stories.

 End result?
Countless humans 
 are functioning as "Lord" and "God" over everyone who surrenders. 
                                       
They might SAY that your relationship with "God" is just between you and that god. 
But that pretense of neutrality is ABSOLTELUY NOT what's happening.                                             
Ancient predators created the entire premise of that "relationship".

Ever since then, 
both predators and those they duped into it
have wedged themselves into that "relationship";
by presuming to speak for your "God". 
                   
It's not a "God" deciding what your worthiness to even EXIST should be based on.  
It's them.

Worse yet, 
consider how it corrupts, destroys, and obscures
 the life, the beauty, and the truth
of everything around it. 

Consider also 
 how it falsely claims credit for everything it has 'allowed' to live;
along with everything it has (so far) failed to destroy. 

Better we should meet ourselves through
healthier expressions of nature;
even if, for example, that might be the trees themselves, or some Stoic/pantheistic sort of "God" which we are
all a natural part of;

- rather than to "deny ourselves", and even disavow the spirituality of nature. 

As the Abrahamics would have it, ...

we aught to be abusing ourselves, under the grossly false pretense of self-care; 
- overly self-sacrificing, to the point where we've hollowed ourselves out;
- in order to escape the extremes of self-loathing which predators have instilled within us ... as a means of controlling us.   



 SHRINKING.
Denying our truth;
 so that the "God"(ego) of others
won't feel insecure around us.

Trying also to force OTHERS also to THEIR knees. 

They're fostering weakness;
but calling it strength. 
And some of us realize it. 



Meanwhile, ...

They're weaponizing humans against each other, in the name of "love". 

Bringing a SWORD of violently dysfunctional division and hate;

-where there could, instead, be a peacefully shared garden of mutual understanding. 

And then
unfairly blaming their "enemies" for fruitless divisions of their own making; 
- under the façade of righteousness; for the narcissist's mask they call "God". 

-  A "God" whom countless predators 
have being using as a Trojan Horse,
to spread that malicious virus into our systems; 
to gain power over minds, and journeys, and even entire societies.

 - LIVES 
which have NEVER been rightly theirs to control.