Thinking Out of the Book

The Book. Since the Book literally dropped from the heavens ( depending on your own version of the story ), it has given strength to the weak, speech to the voiceless and wealth to the poor.

On the dark side however, the Book also lends itself to quite a lot of misinterpretation by those who would pervert such information for their own nefarious purposes. Fiendish creatures who wouldn't think twice about using the little religious knowledge they have to impose their own despotic archaic rules upon the less enlightened.

And there's simply no challenging these sly fiends since they always rush back to thump the Holy Book when in doubt. And the meek simply shiver at the very thought, cowed by the very idea of heavenly reprisals. After all, most of us aren't brought up to question the Book.

You'd expect those around us - at least the more learned fellows - would be able to think, question and ask! Or at least hope they would.

Zaharah : Yes, I would follow the book without question.
Paul : So if the Book lay a command to kill your best friend, you would? Without question?
Zaharah : I'd have to think about it.
Paul : Think about it? So it could be a yes?
Zaharah : Yes.

The fact that Zaharah had to stop only for a split second before wielding the unforgiving ax left me a little unnerved. No doubt she would have butchered her bosom friend with barely any remorse.

Well maybe a single tear after the brutal act.


Bet they wouldn't ask anything even if we told them to dance Gaga-style on the temple steps!
And I bet Zaharah would have followed the unquestioning lemmings to leap off the nearby cliff if it had asked her to. Quite a terrifying idea. Just a few words from a Book would drive someone reasonably sane to commit an act akin to murder? How much more to stir the zealous hearts of the less tolerant? How very easy it would be to use the Book as a tool to stir the unthinking masses into a mindless jihad!

But seriously. Is it really too much to expect these gullible folks to think out of the Book? If God didn't want us to think, why would He have given us a brain? If He had wanted unquestioning obedience, He would have created simple robots instead.

Do not ever think that faith is weak if it questions. Even a little child learns to ask when it first speaks. Far be it for me to quote from the Book but ... for God has not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

Think. Question. Ask.