The Faithless Faithful
Years ago I heard a story - probably apocryphal - about a monk who, upon learning human beings kill millions of microscopic organisms with every breath, committed suicide rather than be a party to those deaths. This story was presented as an example of the monk's great faith.
Which is nonsense.
This story (true or not) doesn't demonstrate great faith, it demonstrates a complete and utter lack of faith. If the monk believed God created the Earth and all the creatures that dwell upon it, why did he believe that same God wouldn't be aware of such a basic fact of biology? And if he believed every organism that destroyed other organisms to survive should follow his example, isn't he arguing against the existence of life itself? Life that, presumably, God placed here?
I could go on and on - something the monk obviously didn't bother to do. Nope, rather than rationally consider why those organisms are killed in the broader spectrum of scientific reasoning and religious theology, he pulled his own plug. (Not worried about all the organisms within him that would perish as a result of their host body dying, apparently.) In other words, he thought he was smarter than his God. If that doesn't define 'lack of faith' I don't know what does.
Of course I'm sure the monk didn't see it that way. I'm sure he - like those I heard this story from - considered his gesture the ultimate act of godliness. A sacrifice to the sanctity of all life, no matter how small and inconsequential. He was a spiritual martyr.
No - he was an asshole.
He was an asshole because he thought he knew the mind of God. I'm sure he expected to be greeted warmly at the gates of Heaven, St. Peter clapping him on the back and ushering him inside to meet Jesus and God Themselves, who would hail him as a true man of faith. His righteousness would be celebrated and his reward would be eternal.
Sound familiar?
That's essentially (with different casts of characters) what every fanatic who thinks they know the mind of God - whichever God - believes their reward will be. They presume to speak for, defend and even second guess their deity, certain they have been chosen and will be rewarded. This is what leads to morons attacking people over gender, sexuality, differing faith, cartoons, or a host of other completely ridiculous and petty reasons.
Those who presume to know the mind of God aren't demonstrating faith. Like the monk, they are demonstrating a lack of faith. They assume the omnipotent creator of all things is also somehow a total fuck-up who can't take a joke.
In other words, they think their God is just like them: 'Total fuck-ups who can't take a joke' is a pretty good description of every fanatic, extremist and terrorist in the world. They are non-believing believers, the faithless faithful. They have so little confidence in their own supreme being they presume to be God's representative, God's defender.
On the Earth they supposedly believe God created.
On the Earth over which God supposedly holds dominion.
But no - God needs you to condemn and attack and kill for Him. Because He can't handle the human beings He created acting like, well, human beings.
There's a great quote from Gilbert Keith Chesterton that I used in the epigraph to my book: "It is the test of a good religion whether you can joke about it." Meaning the ability to withstand examination, question and satire is a test of true faith. Those who believe they know the mind of God - and use violence to enforce those delusions - aren't exhibiting the strength of their faith, but the weakness.
At least the asshole monk had the good manners to only kill himself.
