Out with the Old . . .
Once upon a time, when it came to accepted knowledge, the Church ruled with an iron fist. What the Church proclaimed true was true, and that was that. Believe it or burn, now and forever.
But as the Renaissance picked up steam, science started elbowing its way to the table, which pissed off the Church no end. Refusing to “look into the telescope,” yet recognizing a turf grab when it saw one, the Church smacked back with abandon, savagely punishing the impertinent soul who sided with science, regardless of what the Church proclaimed.
After bitter battle, the periodic tables were overturned; right was might, and science, on the mighty wings of the scientific method, escaped the clutches of religious orthodoxy. The Age of Enlightenment was upon us. In a historical trice, religion was on the ropes, and into the breach leapt atheism. In time, the turf grab became the turf grabbed and held with the same tight grip favored by its predecessor. Evolution.
Down went the myths and down went the dogma, neither being able to stand up to empirical scrutiny. The Big Daddy Ghost in the Sky was busted, fossilized by the testimony of the rocks, pestle-whipped into a Spaghetti-Monster mash in the mortar of Darwinian natural selection. Going, going, gone.
Gone was the Creator, left was the creation. Gone was the Divine Intelligence that put the play in spin, left was the spinning play.
From the point of view of the atheists, that was that. It was a banner day, and the banner unfurled said: Mission Accomplished.
Well, yes and no.
. . . in with the New Old
Mythic belief may have been laid bare, but the worldview from which it emerged hadn't budged one bit. Having held sway over ages, a few facts were hardly enough to dislodge it, resurrection being a house special.
So while the believers kept right on believering, atheism dropped the beliefs but held tightly to the well-worn, highly effective mythic structure, adapting it to the new world ordered by the evidence. Finding new bottles for the old wine and setting out the “under new management” sign was all it took before business was booming like never before.
Out of the Mythic fire, rose the Enlightened phoenix. Science killed at the audition, of course, grabbing both One True Way and Great God billing; it was now both the Yellow Brick Road and Oz. Pay full attention to that man behind the curtain, for he is not only the measure of all things, but the measurer of all things as well.
A Bright new day was dawning, the dark night of the sole authority of the Church over at long last. Given the heady mix of liberation and raw power, excess is perfectly understandable. Goes to the head, it does. And did it ever. But it didn't go alone, as it had some age-old company along for the ride, and soon the Same Old Song was being sung in a remixed version:
We know what's really Real. We know the One True Way, and unless you are on our team, you are an infidel. Why? Because we say so and we are rocking and ruling the world. Empirical is awfully close to empire, and our way is the highway, because we built it. Now, all roads lead to us. Deal with it.
When in Rome and all that. So Mythic went Industrial Strength, snuck in under the covers with Science, and soon a new age was born; a new faith for a new day. The us vs. them dynamic, the demonization of the Other, Mythic's signature move, was quietly appropriated for use against any who might challenge the new authority.
Same as it ever was.
Once upon a time, when it came to accepted knowledge, the Church ruled with an iron fist. What the Church proclaimed true was true, and that was that. Believe it or burn, now and forever.
But as the Renaissance picked up steam, science started elbowing its way to the table, which pissed off the Church no end. Refusing to “look into the telescope,” yet recognizing a turf grab when it saw one, the Church smacked back with abandon, savagely punishing the impertinent soul who sided with science, regardless of what the Church proclaimed.
After bitter battle, the periodic tables were overturned; right was might, and science, on the mighty wings of the scientific method, escaped the clutches of religious orthodoxy. The Age of Enlightenment was upon us. In a historical trice, religion was on the ropes, and into the breach leapt atheism. In time, the turf grab became the turf grabbed and held with the same tight grip favored by its predecessor. Evolution.
Down went the myths and down went the dogma, neither being able to stand up to empirical scrutiny. The Big Daddy Ghost in the Sky was busted, fossilized by the testimony of the rocks, pestle-whipped into a Spaghetti-Monster mash in the mortar of Darwinian natural selection. Going, going, gone.
Gone was the Creator, left was the creation. Gone was the Divine Intelligence that put the play in spin, left was the spinning play.
From the point of view of the atheists, that was that. It was a banner day, and the banner unfurled said: Mission Accomplished.
Well, yes and no.
. . . in with the New Old
Mythic belief may have been laid bare, but the worldview from which it emerged hadn't budged one bit. Having held sway over ages, a few facts were hardly enough to dislodge it, resurrection being a house special.
So while the believers kept right on believering, atheism dropped the beliefs but held tightly to the well-worn, highly effective mythic structure, adapting it to the new world ordered by the evidence. Finding new bottles for the old wine and setting out the “under new management” sign was all it took before business was booming like never before.
Out of the Mythic fire, rose the Enlightened phoenix. Science killed at the audition, of course, grabbing both One True Way and Great God billing; it was now both the Yellow Brick Road and Oz. Pay full attention to that man behind the curtain, for he is not only the measure of all things, but the measurer of all things as well.
A Bright new day was dawning, the dark night of the sole authority of the Church over at long last. Given the heady mix of liberation and raw power, excess is perfectly understandable. Goes to the head, it does. And did it ever. But it didn't go alone, as it had some age-old company along for the ride, and soon the Same Old Song was being sung in a remixed version:
We know what's really Real. We know the One True Way, and unless you are on our team, you are an infidel. Why? Because we say so and we are rocking and ruling the world. Empirical is awfully close to empire, and our way is the highway, because we built it. Now, all roads lead to us. Deal with it.
When in Rome and all that. So Mythic went Industrial Strength, snuck in under the covers with Science, and soon a new age was born; a new faith for a new day. The us vs. them dynamic, the demonization of the Other, Mythic's signature move, was quietly appropriated for use against any who might challenge the new authority.
Same as it ever was.
Fred, before you became interested in eastern mysticism, were you religious?
