Religious Freedom - A Parable
Tuesday, September 7, 2010 at 11:20AM Once upon at time, there was a group of people that believed that tennis racquets were sacred. They built courts of worship and placed golden tennis racquets at the altar and everyone in their group came in and prayed to the tennis racquet for absolution, peace, and bologna.
But there were other people who didn’t think that these Raqueteers, (as they were called), had the right to worship tennis racquets, as the bulk of the population in that particular country worshiped tennis shoes, so you can understand, I am sure.
They felt that only the tennis shoes were sacred and that these folks had to either worship the tennis shoes along with the rest of the population, or die. Simple choice, really.
However, the Racqueteers felt that they had the right to worship whatever and whomever they wanted, so they decided to flee across the Westernesse Sea and find their own land where anyone would be free to worship whatever diety or appliance that they settled upon.
They sailed in a small wooden ship called the Maidenplower and landed in a completely unspoiled land inhabited by friendly animals and savages that worshipped something called the Great Spirit.
You couldn’t see the Great Spirit, not like you could see a tennis racquet; not that you could touch like you could a tennis racquet. What fools.
And these fools said that while you could not see the Great Spirit,you could see what the spirit had done, i.e., the sky; the forest, the buffalo herds.
"What poppycock," the Racqueteers snickered amongst themselves.
So the Racqueteers then convinced the indigenous natives that everything that they knew was wrong and that these natives should see the TRUTH and worship tennis racquets like they did.
Somehow, they sold the natives on the idea and a country was created and tennis courts were all over the place, though they did have to kill or displace an inordinate amount of natives, but hey…
Centuries passed and this new country welcomed anyone and everyone and they could worship whatever appliance or sporting goods item that they chose, but then something happened and there was a change in the national character.
A group of people came into the country who worshipped string cheese and these folks didn’t like or mix with the Racqueteers. They kept to themselves and built their holy refrigerators, but somehow this just didn’t sit well with the Racqueteers.
The Racqueteers decided that this country had been founded by Racqueteers for Racqueteers and that anyone else who attempted to worship any other food, appliance or sporting goods item would be demonized and encouraged to go find their own place to worship, the filthy heathen bastards.
These Racqueteers felt that their beliefs were the ultimate truth and that everyone else had it so wrong that they were evil. I am sure you understand.
Well the Fromageteers (as they were called) refused to leave and wanted to build their own holy refrigerators anywhere they wished. The Racqueteers would not put up with it, so there was a “holy” war, and all the Fromageteers and Racqueteers killed each other.
But God didn’t care, as he held all these fools in equal contempt.
He gave them all heaven, but they decided that this wasn’t heaven. Heaven was someplace else, maybe in the sky somewhere with golden streets and pearly gates.
And these ingrates had just polluted their heaven and said it wasn’t their fault. It was the corporations, which were ficticious legal entities created by people.
And these corporations had the rights of people, but the people who ran them didn’t have to actually take responsibility for the decisions that they made. It was the corporations fault. I’m sure you understand.
Well, God just sighed, which blew away an entire universe.
He’s a big dude. His smallest action has enormous impact, but we keep forgetting.
We also keep forgetting that, while we are not such big dudes, our actions also have enormous impact.
I’m sure you understand.
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