A popular Italian magazine (L'Espresso) has recently published an article in which Eugenio Scalfari presents his book "The Labyrinth."
I found in this article some statements by Mr Scalfari highly disappointing.
Considering that it is useless for me to write to the magazine in the hope to obtain an explanation, the only viable option for me is to express my disappointment on this blog.
Without discussing on Scalfari reflections on the concept of "myth" (very superficial and commonplace words), I prefer to directly quote the words at issue:
"Many religions have died over the centuries and millennia. Who today would open a temple to Zeus or Apollo, or Aphrodite, Persephone and all the other gods of the Olympic religions? Religious temples where they worship the gods?
Those who did so would be suspected of madness or would be a showman with in mind a tour to entertain the audience for a few nights and earn money and fame. "
OK. One can put aside the fact that religion, as we know it, is a concept that was unknown to the ancients.
One can put aside as well the fact that what concerns the Gods and Goddesses is not a "religion", but something much more complex and higher that a profane can not understand.
One can put aside the fact that an ancient temple is not a church, a mosque or a synagogue. It 'something totally different. And I concede that it is a notion a profane can not understand.
Also one can put apart the fact that there may be someone who has decided, within a precise and complex spiritual and inner existential experience, to undertake the "Via" approaching the Traditional Knowledge.
One can put aside all this. But the idea to call these men and women fool or scoundrel, it seems to much too much. It is very offensive.
I therefore do want to clarify who is casually reading this blog, that I'm not a fool (or It seems to be not to be such) and above all I'm not a showman! I do not intend to entertain the audience and gain neither money nor fame.
I would say quite the contrary. And who has undertaken the Way of Tradition knows how hard and heavy is the journey along this path.
I hope I have sufficiently clarified the concept.
The full text can be read on this link
4 commenti:
I looked up this fellow and it was no surprise at all to learn that he is an atheist! Every religious movement has their Achilles heel (and atheism is definitely a religion for it constitutes a belief system, a world view and an interpretation of how the universe operates) and the weakness of atheism is that oftentimes it seems to give rise to arrogance and narrow mindedness. Any belief system which proclaims that it contains the only correct way of understanding the inner workings of the universe has got to be deeply flawed and it is not surprising that people who are so utterly convinced that they alone (and their fellow co-religionists) have a correct handle on the truth become so infamously smug. Richard Dawkins is oftentimes seen as the foremost leader of the atheist movement and he is widely regarded as a total git. Not to say all atheists are wankers but golly, an awful lot of them are.
I have a profound respect for those have decided to opt for atheism when this choice results from an inner deep experience. I have the same respect for any kind of personal choice made on these bases.
I have a rather less respect when these choices (in particular when interesting religion, atheism or any other expression of the spiritual sphere) are just the consequence of ignorance. A lot of people are monotheists just for lazyness and/or ignorance. Others are atheists just for lazyness and/or ignorance as well. Lazyness and ignorance drive also these individuals to intollerance: they just "don't know" and "don't understand" being able only to be incline to prejudices.
The words I have quoted are only expressions of ignorance and, therefore, of prejudices and intollerance unfortunately aggravated by the old age of the (consequently rather confused) author.
A not secondary annoying aspect of the issue is "conformism": nobody has criticized the foolishness of these words just because this fellow is considered a great intellectual. I think that even these (supposed) great men and women have their intellectual weakness. I believe that everyone has the duty to gain, maintain and defend his/her own intellectual independence and freedom in order to avoid a "flat" mental and cultural conformism.
I really like the first sentence in your reply and I totally agree. The more I travel along in life the more convinced I am that deep spirituality is possible in every tradition (including Atheism, for example, when the vastness of the universe is contemplated). It is all a question of where the individual takes it. For example, Christianity can be a religion of love and mercy or one of hellfire and punishments. It all depends on what we focus on. Unfortunately Paganism is an easy target at this point in time, this is why I am "in the closet" with a great many people!
I agree. And I have got to say that this "closet" is not so bad at all...
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