So what if I would say that religion is nonsense? Would this sound offensive? Disrespectful to the millions or billions of fellow humans who walk the earth building churches, temples, synagogues and mosques? Would it be plain arrogant to all those good people who pray, donate to charity and follow the ten, twenty or hundred commandments? (depending to the complexity of their priests) Many will think so. Depending on where you stand when you say it, if you claim religion is nonsense, you might receive a variety of responses from getting arrested, stoned, excommunicated to simply get frowned upon, raise an eyebrow or two, distress your mother in law or get a couple of pitiful looks. In most cases around here, people might think you are an arrogant smartarse, or a stray pseudo-intellectual, seeking the attention you cannot otherwise get (because you are a godless loser and deeply depressed as a result).
I will not say this. Religion is not nonsense. Yet I will say that every religion is built on a fundamental “non-sense”, a fact which simply makes no sense under the most elementary laws of reality as we know and live it. This will be the meta-physical element, which is at the foundation of every religion. Meta-physical of course (and don’t start thinking about vampires and werewolves), simply because it is beyond the physics of this world. So to create a religion what you first need is a glorious, hilarious, impressively unnatural event, fact or story. Something that simply makes no sense, your founding nonsense. The more unnatural the better it would be for your religion. Let me give you an example of a beloved founding nonsense. Your teenage daughter walks in with a pair of puppy-eyes ( you know this kind “oops I did it again look) and requests your full attention. Then she declares with some hesitation that she thinks she is pregnant. And before you even realise the words you just heard, she swears that she has not had sex with anyone, but instead she had this funny dream of an angel touching her and telling her that in a few months she will give birth to the second Messia who will save the world. Period.
Now, honestly, wouldn’t you jump up and scream “Nonsense” at the top of your lungs ?
(Or would you better scream “He is not the Messiah, he is just a very naughty boy”, in eternal glory of Monty Pythons, amen).
At least I would scream nonsense! Noone would buy such a story...not even Sarah Palin, who I’m sure would love to believe this version of events, when she was confronted with the situation during the electoral campaign!
