What Hath God Wrought?

Shepherds don’t look after sheep because they love them — although I do think some shepherds like their sheep too much. They look after their sheep so they can, first, fleece them and second, turn them into meat. That’s much more like the priesthood as I know it. —Christopher Hitchens

OK. I'll go along with the idea that without religion, the world might conceivably be a worse place. On the other hand, I'd stipulate that it might be an altogether better place if religion didn't exist at all.

One thing that's always bothered me is that, if God did exist, why does he let “men” prostitute his word? For that matter, why would he let them write his word? From the time of the Nicean Council about 300 years after the death of Jesus, madmen were gathered by the emperor Constantine to clear up the Christian mess that had been created by too may conflicting eye-witness accounts of the gospel. People who had no idea of what Christ had said or meant wrote fanciful stories they believed would be convincing to the hoards. Over two thousand years later we still have men telling us what they believe God wants for us and from us.

Well, as long as there is still a plethora of peasants out there with torches and pitchforks, I say, “Let’s get ’em!”