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1-READ-ALOUD-7m-30s 1-DAVE-7m-30s VIDEO PDF SHORT (A1-1)
“The simple step of a courageous individual is not to take part in the lie."
— Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn.
Introduction.
SHORT (A1-1) Religious systems and algorithmic structures share some similarities. Both are sets of instructions or guidelines that dictate behavior or outcomes. Religions provide moral and ethical frameworks through their teachings and practices, these are similar to how algorithms define a sequence of steps to achieve a specific goal. Much like algorithms govern processes, religions dictate community behavior, serving as a cohesive force that shapes culture. This perspective underscores the significant influence of religious systems on social dynamics and their pivotal role in molding the nature and quality of civilizations.
SHORT-3 Recognizing religion as an algorithmic construct provides a framework for understanding its impact on communal behavior, cultural norms, and the overarching character of societies.
Society behaves according to what its individuals believe, and religion is what we use to teach a belief to the society we live in. In general people are both proud and ignorant, do not question reality, nor discern the truth from experience, still they will fight for what they believe, regardless if it is correct or not. A population can be easily manipulated, a trick that is well known by those in power, and has been the purpose of religion ever since the word religion was first uttered.
We are more affected by what others believe than by our own independent search for understanding.
Since religion shapes the people who surround us, and in turn they shape us, we must make certain that religion be truthful as well as beneficial. Encouraging students and congregations to question established dogmas could then transform religion into a truth-seeking process, dedicated to cultivating a more functional and enlightened community.
If a society malfunctions, if we see injustice, it is because the algorithm, or the religion and beliefs of society are faulty. If we want a good life, to live within a society that is not dysfunctional, we must modify the religion of the land until it provides the desired effect.
SHORT 2 In scrutinizing the Western Judaeo/Christian-Islamic religious model, one observes a potent algorithm that has, for nearly two millennia, subjugated a peasant class. Rooted in superstition, this model fosters notions of racial superiority, subjugates women, and discriminates against the uninitiated. Grounded in the Jewish Old Testament, which chronicles a history of war and provides instructions for conflict resolution under the banner of a "chosen people" destined to be priests, it intertwines with the Christian New Testament. The latter asserts that the God of the Old Testament, representing Earth, is Satan, thereby designating the "chosen people" as chosen by Satan.
In whom the God of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them. 2 Corinthians-4-4
This narrative forces a dichotomy between good and evil, with Christian ideology portraying peasants as the meek, adhering to the notion of turning the other cheek. Simultaneously, the wielders of this narrative, the priests and rulers, are implicated as Satan worshipers enslaving the lower class—a narrative deemed absurd.
This narrative is our algorithm, or set of instructions which has made our Western civilization behave as it has throughout history, it has both ruled us, and failed us for many years.
While philosophy and science have moved ahead, religion is dogmatic and changes slowly, this has left us with a belief that is better suited for the middle ages, and is no longer appropriate for our current society.
In the 19th century we began to recognize this fact, as was notably pointed out by Friedrich Nietzsche.
SHORT B-1.5 402 "God is dead. God remains dead. And we have killed him. How shall we, murderers of all murderers, console ourselves? — .
Nietzsche speaks to the fact that the "Age of Enlightenment'' began an erosion of our belief, and that society's view of the existence of God had become unreasonable. The old dogma had been proven false, and now found itself unable to stand against modern thought. Nietzsche does not indicate that religion is no longer needed, quite the contrary, religion is what gives society stability. He suggests a new dogma based on our “will to power,” for power is what will fulfill the “will.'' This is a dogma for those superior individuals, who are above the law, for those who rule, and what he calls “Supermen.” To Nietzsche, Christianity is a dogma for the meek, and a belief designed for enslavement, an ideology which is destructive to his “Superman.” Nietzche sees Christianity and its moral laws, as what is given to that part of our society which serves the Superclass of men who rule. He has simply re-stated the justice of the strong, Machiavellian political theory, a concept of justice for those who know the path forward, and make it their will at any cost, certainly not how the Equal Justice of a Democracy should work.
SHORT - b-1-5a CLIP “I love him who labors and invents, that he may build the house for the Superman, and prepare for him earth, animal, and plant: for thus seeks he his own down-going.” ― Friedrich Nietzsche, Thus Spoke Zarathustra
Nietzsche’s suggestion is quite functional, and works well as long as the lower class does not get wise, and revolt. It does have an enormous, obvious, and yet a mostly unmentioned flaw.
What is the purpose of any human “will to power”?
What is the point of having a “Will” if it is only to have power over others? For that matter, what is the ultimate point of any activity which the “will” pushes us to do, and are we not by the motive of this "will" actually deterministic automatons? Since no one has ever given us a fundamental reason for our actions, or purpose for existence itself, it is simply absurdity to go off doing anything without knowing "why" in the first place.
Without a defined purpose for existence how can the “will” be defined? For that matter, how can God be defined without a concrete basis for existence.
SHORT B-1-6 -401 When Maxwell discovered electromagnetism, someone asked what the purpose of his discovery was, he answered, “what is the purpose of a new born baby.” No known religion or philosophy provides a realistic answer to the purpose of existence. If a “Superman” is expected to act, it would be first prudent to know why, and what verifiable purpose Superman may have to exist at all.
We need a Religion that provides a proper explanation for our existence, one which is not absurd. Then from this explanation we could devise a basis for a set of instructions that would permit an agreeable and harmonious life. We need both rules of conduct, and a premise for existence, along with an honest position or perspective of the unknown, or metaphysical. A truthful basis for theology and its rules would then need to stand up to critical scrutiny, not as we have now, a dogma accepted by faith.