The Failure of
Religious Indoctrination
Religious Indoctrination
John 1:1-4, In the beginning was the Word, and the Word
was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All
things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.
In him was life; and the life was the light of men.
The beginning of this discussion
shall be inclusive in nature as pertaining to all religions, but the basis of
my dissent shall be based upon the Hebrew Scriptures, The Holy Bible. The enlighten minds
through the attainment of the knowledge of good and evil will quickly assert that
my beliefs are tainted and is the product of religious indoctrination.
This may be true, but there is a case to be made for indoctrination as
well as Christianity.
The consensus of today’s society is, that
when a school from elementary to university level only allows one view of
anything with regards to discussions of politics, God and morality, they
are not open to learning. Thinking and learning places have become schools of
indoctrination. When we do not teach people to have respect for opinions that
differ from their own, we teach intolerance.
When schools only allow access to liberal views and no conservative views
they are not taught how to think but what to think.
The above statement reflects a generalized
truth that is accepted by a highly educated society, but an ancient proverb says,
“too many cooks spoil the broth”. As my
grandmother explained it, If everybody is allowed to put something in the pot,
the stew becomes a polluted mess”.
The definitions of religion tend to
suffer from one of two problems: they are either too narrow and exclude many
belief systems which most agree are religious, or they are too vague and
ambiguous, suggesting that just about any and everything is a religion.
Indoctrination often refers to
religious ideas, when you're talking about a religious environment that doesn't
allow you to openly question or criticize those beliefs. The Latin word for
"teach," doctrine is the root of indoctrination, and originally
that's just what it meant. The Hebrew religion of the Bible was founded
upon this concept. In the wilderness for forty years the Children of Israel
were indoctrinated into a new religious
order. The result of the failure of this
indoctrination was a nation scattered.
Indoctrination can also refer to the
ideas or concepts of the formation and foundation of a society or nation.
Pledges are designed to indoctrinate the members into the unity of cause
and purpose. Thus, it can be augured that a cause, society or nation is
no stronger than the strength of its indoctrination and when the indoctrination
fails the host perishes.
The history of the United States will
show its success at the exporting of democracy through a process of
indoctrination. Indoctrination allows for the use of force to
achieve its ends. Germany, Japan and other countries were convinced to
give up their form of governments and explore a new concept called democracy.
The modern day history of the United States will also show its failure
to achieve the same ends with certain Middle East nations. There was
a time when the exportation of Demoracary was a saleable commodity, today it is
a hated concept. What went wrong? Has Demoracary become a
polluted mess?
This country once was successful in
its attempt to defend religious values based upon an ambitious definition
that also proved to be detrimental to the act itself. The same question
poises itself and demand and answer, "what went wrong"? Have
the religions of the world become a polluted mess? The same held true when this
great country attempted to define and defend human rights. The act itself
created a hatred greater than the one it was supposed to suppress. Yet,
there are those who act as if a law can eradicate hatred. A door was
open that could not be closed and all that came through was not the intent of
the act.
Religion and Christianity once were
thought to be synonymous, if you had religion you were a Christian. The
knowledge of good and evil emerged under the guise of political correctness
causing the indoctrination to fail.. The awaking came through the realization
that Christianity was one of many religions.
Political correctness and the advancement
of human rights placed a new demand on religions. Religions were encouraged to lay aside their
indoctrinated orders an acknowledge the rights of all religions to
co-exist. This in itself is impossible
without creating a new religion. The indoctrinated concept of the ancient religions was to convert, not conform.
Every religion or cult has a stated, vague and metaphorical goal. Because this
goal must serve as the "illuminated eye" of the pyramid, it cannot be
attained in this natural existence. Rather, it must be expressed as an
abstract goal, like "salvation" which the members will
enjoy once they have made it to the top of the pyramid. The abstract goal
of religion is a weakness in itself because it allows for the manipulation
of those who seek enlightenment from those who have mastered the art of
indoctrination. The Hebrew scriptures speak of them as wolves coming in
to destroy the flock.
Religion has always served to define the destiny of mankind, and its rules of acceptance have always been relevant to the adopting nation. At some point along with the idea of conception and formation of a nation a set of religious values is adopted, and in some cases excluded. This became the national identity and indoctrination of a particular area, nation or culture. It could be augured that the Roman Empire was at its strongest when the pagans assembled to watch the Lions verses the Christians. The Empire began to crumble when Constantine made a pact with the Christian, and a new religion was established, one that Jesus said he hated. England enjoyed its status as a world empire until King James decided to tamper with the religious indoctrination for personal gain.
When a nation becomes a 'melting pot' of many different cultures, the purity of its religion is changed. Some nations go to war to protect the purity of their belief, courts are established and death sentences are handed out to those who violate the religious order. Some nations fight to maintain individual choice. The Hebrew God of the Bible demanded that his chosen people fight to maintain religious purity. Why? Different religions from different parts of the world may hold different values. Religion can be explained as a set of beliefs concerning the cause, nature, and purpose of the universe, especially when considered as the creation of a superhuman agency or agencies, usually involving devotional and ritual observances, and often containing a moral code governing the conduct of human affairs.
Is
there a belief that makes a particular religion superior to all of the rest? The first step to answering the question is, admitting whether or not you believe in God, not I want to, or I think I do, but a simple do you believe in God. I am not speaking of this new Santa Claus concept of God standing at the head of the checkout lane, passing out goodies, do you believe in the ancient God of Revelation? You alone will be able to determine whether you are true to your indoctrination or your indoctrination has failed.
The evolution of religion should allow for one religion to emerge as the superior religion or the true religion, but the rights of the individuals to maintain their own belief trumps this idea. A particular religious value should not change with time, but the indoctrination of a religious idea changes, it is updated and in many instances it forms a new an alien entity. Thus we have the proliferation of religion.
Next
What is the primary purpose of your religion?
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