How does it feel to be so wise
To see through eyes that only see what’s real?

Elton John:

“From my point of view, I would ban religion completely. Organized religion doesn’t seem to work. It turns people into really hateful lemmings and it’s not really compassionate.”

John also criticized religious leaders for failing to do anything about conflicts around the world.

“Why aren’t they having a conclave? Why aren’t they coming together?”

Personally, I don’t want to ban religion — not that I think EJ is really advocating that. I take this as “if I ruled the world” musing.

But let’s consider what it actually would take to let the sun go down on religion.

I think it would take just a single change to world culture: the end of knee-jerk deference to religion. That would mean…

• No more looking the other way when myth is presented as equal or superior to fact
• No more looking the other way when parents and communities brainwash their young with reality-distorting dogma
• No more tongue-biting when religion leads to holy wars, terrorism, serial child abuse, and bigotry
• No more governmental assistance in marketing religion, be it “In God We Trust” on the currency, oaths sworn on bibles, letting theocrats alter the Pledge of Allegiance, or tax breaks for churches and temples

Without such support, religious superstition should wither and die, which it likely wouldn’t with the counterproductive heavy-handedness of a prohibition.

Alas, for thousands of years, such a cultural shift has not happened.

May our grandchildren be the first to be raised in such an enlightened age. Otherwise…

Crazy boy, you’ll only wind up with strange notions in your head
Hear it, hear it, ticking, ticking