World Religions, Wednesday, 2nd Period [11/22]

[preacher-custer.livejournal.com]

One might wonder why the religion teacher has a busted lip and what looks to be the beginning of a black eye. From the forbidding look on said religion teacher's face, one might want to keep one's questions to oneself on that particular matter.

Jesse is awake. He has no coffee. He doesn't have his feet propped on his desk, and there are no handouts to go with today's class.

Instead he watches the class file in, and stands up when everyone is settled in.

"Mornin'. So, tomorrow's Turkey Day. If you're an American, you know it's a secular celebration of food. They'll tell you in grade school that it's somethin' else. Honoring the pilgrims and all that happy horseshit.

"It's about the food."

He rests his hip against his desk and tousles his already tousled hair. "Since I've already shot the syllabus to shit, and I've had a long coupla weeks, we're gonna throw it out for now. I'll save Christianity for near the end, when we're comin' up on one of the religion's big days.

"Instead, what I want you to do today is to think waaaay back to the beginnin' of the year when y'all made up your own religions and tried to sell your buddy on it.

"Today you're gonna come up with a high holy day for your religion. Food? The first grape stompin' of the year? Holy day of the great beatdown? I want your holy day, how it's celebrated, what colors, sacred items, or clothes are associated with it. You can do that with someone and I'll come by and listen in, or you can do it on your own and give me a report, your choice.

"There's a point to this. Really."

Comments

Re: Class Activity

[nadiathesaint]

"Hey, you can get a lot of good done when you manipulate people. . . ."

Re: Class Activity

[sogothcally.livejournal.com]

Cally stared at Nadia.

Re: Class Activity

[nadiathesaint]

"What?"

Re: Class Activity

[sogothcally.livejournal.com]

"You think it's okay to manipulate people?"

Re: Class Activity

[nadiathesaint]

"If you're doing something good, yeah. Why not?"

Re: Class Activity

[sogothcally.livejournal.com]

"Because it's manipulating people?" Cally said.

Re: Class Activity

[nadiathesaint]

"I'm not talking about doing it just for fun, or to make yourself feel good or powerful, just . . . well, like, if you've got a bad guy in custody, and he won't tell you something you need to know to make sure that hundreds of people stay safe, you have to manipulate him into telling you. And that's okay."

Re: Class Activity

[sogothcally.livejournal.com]

"Yeah, but we're not talking about that," Cally said. "We're talking about, like, religiousness."

Re: Class Activity

[nadiathesaint]

"Which is one way to manipulate people. It's just a tool. You can use it for good things, or for bad things. But you can't use it for either unless you know how it works."

Re: Class Activity

[sogothcally.livejournal.com]

"But why use it all when people should be allowed to think what they want and be who they are?"

Re: Class Activity

[nadiathesaint]

"Because sometimes people thinking what they want and being who they are means that those people are going to think they're above the rules of society and a serial killer."

Re: Class Activity

[sogothcally.livejournal.com]

"And religion is supposed to stop that?"

Re: Class Activity

[nadiathesaint]

"It's one of the methods. So is education and government law."

Re: Class Activity

[sogothcally.livejournal.com]

"But you just said they think they're above the law. More laws aren't going to change that," Cally said.

Re: Class Activity

[nadiathesaint]

"Which is why the government can't help. But a lot of the people who wouldn't care if they got arrested and went to jail would care if they got sent to hell when they died, and the other way around. So one catches what the others don't. You're never going to catch all of them, but you catch a lot more than you would otherwise."

Re: Class Activity

[sogothcally.livejournal.com]

"And everyone has to suffer because of it?"

Re: Class Activity

[nadiathesaint]

"Most people don't suffer under the oppression. They never notice it."

Re: Class Activity

[sogothcally.livejournal.com]

"It's oppression!" Cally said. "People are supposed, to, like, toil and then have to throw off the yolk and stuff."

Re: Class Activity

[nadiathesaint]

"Yeah, and how often does that work?"

Re: Class Activity

[sogothcally.livejournal.com]

"Well, that's cause oppression is evil and kills them for it," Cally said.

Re: Class Activity

[nadiathesaint]

"Or is it because the oppression is just a fact of life and they're being dumb?" Nadia held up a hand. "I'm not saying that's always true, just that it is sometimes. Oppression isn't always bad."

Re: Class Activity

[sogothcally.livejournal.com]

Cally frowned. "I dunno. It seems just kinda... wrong, that's all. People should be happy. Not opressed."

Re: Class Activity

[nadiathesaint]

"But sometimes, people need oppression to be happy. People are stupid."

Re: Class Activity

[sogothcally.livejournal.com]

Cally frowned. "I like to think people are better than that."

Re: Class Activity

[nadiathesaint]

Pooooor naive Cally.

"They're dumb. Trust me."