fandomhigh | Hubris from Revelation: the Social Engineering of Ultimate Truths [Monday, Period 2]

Ghanima was sitting idly on her desk again as people filed in, completely absorbed in her book. But the moment that everyone was seated, she snapped to attention.

"Like the definition of religion, the construction of religious history is a task fraught with ideological implications," Ghanima said crisply, setting her text aside and getting up to wander between the desks. "Early studies of religions were often written to imply that the author's own religion was the most accurate. Even in a secular history, to imply that religion "progresses" towards better understanding of reality makes a value judgment about past religions; likewise, to consider religion an essentially social construction with no transcendent meaning denies the claims of every religious authority."

"It is important to note that here is no time or place in human history where religious movements are not being founded, and religious practice is not merely a matter of founding prophets but also of local traditions and reforms. There is not even a single era when the Abrahamic religions were developed; the Jewish prophets lived some centuries before Jesus, Muhammad came six centuries after him, and Bahá'u'lláh founded the Bahá'í Faith over a millennium later."

"Religion was the dominant ideology behind many conflicts of the Middle Ages. Muslims were in conflict with Zoroastrians during the Islamic conquest of Persia; Christians were in conflict with Muslims during the Byzantine-Arab Wars, Crusades, Spanish Reconquista and Ottoman wars in Europe; Christians were in conflict with Jews during the Crusades, Reconquista and Inquisition; Shamans were in conflict with Buddhists, Taoists, Muslims and Christians during the Mongol invasions; and Muslims were in conflict with Hindus during Muslim conquest in the Indian subcontinent."

"European colonisation during the 15th to 19th centuries resulted in the spread of Christianity to Sub-Saharan Africa, the Americas, Australia and the Philippines. The 18th century saw the beginning of secularisation in Europe, rising to notability in the wake of the French Revolution. By the 20th century, religion was no longer the dominant ideological force behind international wars, but had generally been unseated by political ideals such as democracy and communism. However, it is still a driving factor in regional conflicts, especially in areas where a minority religion has a natural resource that the majority desires."

"You may be asking, 'why is this important?' After all, isn't this a class about religions? What does the politics matter?" Ghanima continued wander the rows, gesturing as she spoke. "To understand a religion, you cannot simply accept the theological and mythical history of it. You must understand how it was shaped, what shaped it, and how it influenced the world around it. A religion is not a thing set in stone, but a living, breathing, creation. One which must be carefully tended and raised, least it all prey to those around it."

"To you, this may sound misanthropic at best. After all, isn't religion about divine revelation? To the lay-person, yes, of course, it may well be. But it is also a method of validation, of control, of imposing something upon the surroundings, and attempting to force the world to fit the mold created for it."

"And believe me when I say that the use of religion as a weapon and a tool for control is not an obscure idea. I possess the training of the Bene Gesserit; a key social, religious and political force in my universe. The Bene Gesserit have chosen to use indirect methodologies to further their goals, rather than wield overt power themselves. They have noted the Taoist principle that whatever rises must fall; and so rather than taking direct control of the human race, instead manipulate the social and political order with subtlety and insinuation, often using extraordinarily long-term stratagems spanning generations."

"One method that the Sisterhood practices "religious engineering" through a faction called the Missionaria Protectiva, which spreads contrived myths, prophecies and superstition among the populations of the Empire. A Bene Gesserit may then later take advantage of the prophecies, casting herself as a guide, protector, or some other figure in fulfillment of the prophecy, in order to manipulate the religious subjects for protection or other purposes. These myths also exploit religion as a powerful force in human society; by controlling the particulars of religion, the Bene Gesserit have a manipulative lever on society in general," she said calmly. "It is not something done lightly, but it is done often and efficiently. Entire planets have had their philosophies re-engineered to suit the desires of the Sisterhood, with no one the wiser. This can take years, decades, even centuries, but the Sisterhood can afford to be patient, so long as it serves their purpose."

"Your activity for today is to take a religion that you are familiar with, and look at it with a critical eye. Who benefits from its laws? Who does not? How could you leverage it to your own advantage if you were stuck somewhere with no money and no allies? If you would like to pair up with a friend or two, please feel free, or you may work on your own."

"And the God of the TAs has struck. Mr. Bass, Miss Levine, congratulations."

[OCD up!]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Jonas wasn't familiar with any religion, really. He'd looked up a few of the larger religions after class last week but that didn't make him knowledgeable by any stretch of the imagination.

The only thing he could think of to look at was Sameness even if he didn't think that was a religion. Once he started trying to apply the questions to that practice, he found that it both benefited and repressed everyone in the Community. Everyone who didn't know any better thought it was fine but those who did (the two who did) could see the repression occurring in each person.

There seemed to be no advantage to Sameness if you knew the truth. And Jonas did. He frowned at his paper, feeling idiotically sorry for himself for being blind for so many years.

Ben smiled at the boy he didn't really recognize. "So...do you have religions at home?"

"Not rea--" He cut the words off when he realized that, in actuality, it was probably a lie. He just couldn't make what the Community practiced seem like a religion. It wasn't letting anyone grow or change, it was all the same. "No, we don't. We never have. Yourself?"

"We have a few trillion beings running around the galaxy," Ben said with an easy smile. "So there are a few."

"This class is my first real exposure to them," he admitted with a nod. "I hadn't know there were so many before arriving. They weren't taught at home."

"Not even in the abstract?" Ben asked, absolutely fascinated.

"No," he said, shaking his head. "It wasn't part of the curriculum. It wasn't needed."

Well, Jonas was figuring out that it was needed, just not for those in the Community. They had no need to learn about something that would never be experienced.

"Did you have something that replaced religion, or did you just have that much faith in yourselves to solve all problems?" Ben asked.

It made his stomach clench uncomfortably when he realized that it was, in fact, the latter. The Elders thought they could solve all problems and, if they didn't, they disposed of those problems.

"There weren't many problems," he answered, shaking his head, "so it was probably the second option there. If there were problems, they were addressed and resolved."

Ben frowned. "How many people did you live with?" he asked. He'd spent his entire life around professional negotiators, so hearing about a place where things were addressed and resolved immediately sounded restful.

Or creepy. He hadn't decided which yet.

"There were five in my family unit," he said and then shook his head before he added, "but I don't know how many total were in the Community. It was...relatively small as compared to most places."

"Family unit?" Ben repeated. "Were they related to you?"

No.

That automatic response stayed unsaid just out of sheer force of will. After all, explaining to someone he didn't know that his parents had applied for him seemed like it would go over...rather badly.

"Yes, of course," he lied, steeling himself not to look away and give himself away. "It was just the word that was used. I've found that language is used differently in the Community than it is here."

Ben frowned, feeling the lie. He was too polite not to call Jonas on it, though. "What other differences in language have you found?" he asked instead, steering the conversation to safer waters.

If Jonas had known the lie was sensed, he would have been grateful to Ben for not pushing it. He wasn't ready for that yet.

"We call children that have just been born newchildren," he said, giving one example. "Dinah told me there's a different word here."

"Babies?" Ben replied.

"Yes, that," he said, nodding. "Or newborns, I think, was another word I've found. They mean the same thing but we just tend to use different words. It's one of the differences I've found and I'm still adjusting to."

Ben grinned. "Yeah, I'm from a different galaxy. There are adjustments to make. Like everyone here doesn't know how to fly."

"I'm one of them," he said, pleased that he hadn't shown too much surprise at the being from another galaxy information. He was grateful to Ender for that. "The first time I flew was on my way to this place."

"So...airplane?" Ben guessed. "Or are you from a nearby planet?"

Where he came from, this was a normal question.

"Airplane," he confirmed with a brief nod. "I'm from this planet. I didn't really know anything about other planets before arriving here. My school assigned big sibling warned me things like that would be coming though."

Just another thing on his list of 'things I didn't know about'.

"Who's your big sibling?" Ben asked. "They did a good job."

"Ender," Jonas replied. "I haven't talked to him since my arrival but, despite the hectic time, he was able to tell me of some of the oddities without making me panic."

Ben's smile widened. "He's my roommate, and excels at keeping people calm."

"He was very helpful in that aspect," Jonas complimented, "and, once I started telling him about myself, he was even more helpful. You're lucky to have him as a roommate."

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