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Part 53

5/30/2016

 

Between Stockholm Syndrome and Lima Syndrome
Part 53: "Big Father is Watching Us"

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Without buyers, there won't be sellers. Without demand, there won't be supply. Likewise, without believers, there won't be propagandists or, well, liars.
 
Propaganda, as discussed in Part 52 (The Power of Propaganda and Thanataphobia), should not be blamed only on its source. To a certain extent, its believers are also responsible because they willingly act as accessories to a crime: the crime of not thinking critically, the crime to let others "think" for themselves. In fact, we can use the dystopian novel Nineteen Eighty-Four (1984) published in 1949 by English novelist and social critic George Orwell (1903-1950) who warned us about the menaces of totalitarianism, as a cognitive prism.
 
Whereas the central theme of 1984 is that Big Brother is Watching You, in our current global religious landscape, Big Father is Watching Us. Political totalitarianism, as warned by Orwell, has transcended beyond Airstrip One in which we are all Winston Smiths. The very fact that most of us believe that "Big Father is Watching Us" makes us irresponsible and unaccountable creatures. Cause someone is going to redeem our sins anyway.
 
On the other hand, freedom from religion, as stated in Part 45 (The Law of Unintended Consequences in the Religious Industrial Complex), demands individual responsibility and accountability. Unfortunately, this sine qua non is a tall order for many. We can no longer comfortably hide behind Biblical or Koranic excuses, saviors, and redemption of any kind. The notions of heavenly rewards and hellish punishments (and twenty-one virgins waiting in paradise) go down the drain. In a religion-free environment, an individual is fully responsible and accountable for his or her own deeds.
 
Hence the cruel irony: agnostics and atheists tend to take religion much more seriously than theists. At the age of sixteen, British philosopher, logician and mathematician, Bertrand Russell (1872-1970) flatly declared: "(m)y whole religion is this: do every duty, and expect no reward for it, either here or hereafter." Observed another British, physician Jonathan Miller (b. 1934): "In some awful, strange, paradoxical way, atheists tend to take religion more seriously than the practitioners."
 
The similarities between political totalitarianism (as warned by Orwell) and religious totalitarianism (as we are witnessing today) are striking. Just take one of the slogans in "The Book" that "War Is Peace." Throughout the history of humankind, countless savage wars have been fought in the name of peace and merciful God and all kind of forgiving prophets. Another slogan—"Freedom is Slavery"—speaks volumes about the very core issue of how organized religions have enslaved believers instead of liberating them. But it is the third slogan—"Ignorance is Strength"—that has flawlessly exemplified the parallels between political and religious totalitarianism.
 
In Christian theology, for example, science and knowledge have had negative connotations. It is not an accident that the forbidden fruit of the Tree of Knowledge—not the Tree of Ignorance, mind you—was the cause of the original sin committed by Adam and Eve in the Fall of man as described in Genesis 2-3. Thus the primacy of ignorance over knowledge, and the rest is history.
 
The Catholic church burned Dominican friar, philosopher, mathematician and astrologer Giordano Bruno (1548-1600) at the stake as a heretic. He merely proposed that the stars were just distant suns surrounded by their own exo-planets in a center-less universe that is infinite, made from the same elements, and that matter was composed of intelligent atoms. Indeed the spectacular images sent by the Hubble Space Telescope of the Milky Way, other galaxies and even the most distant MACS0647-JD galaxy (13.3 billion light-years away) prove and confirm that Giordano Bruno was right! The fate of Galileo Galilei (1564-1642) would have been similar, if not for his personal friendship with Pope Urban VIII (1568-1644).
 
The strength of ignorance continues to this very day. In the states of Texas, Louisiana and Tennessee, laws to give teachers the freedom to question scientific theories including evolution were considered and applied. In the name of Islam, the Taliban and Boko Haram have openly declared war on education, kidnapped schoolgirls and terrorized students. In a video to claim credit for a wanton killing spree at a university in Pakistan, a Taliban commander made it clear: "We will continue to attack schools, colleges and universities across Pakistan as these are the foundations that produce apostates."
 
We are where we are, because we have been relentlessly bombarded by religious propaganda to worship the Tree of Ignorance instead of that of Knowledge.
 
[To be continued.]


 Johannes Tan, Indonesian Translator & Conference Interpreter 

Part 52.5

5/23/2016

 

Between Stockholm Syndrome and Lima Syndrome
Part 52.5: Intermission

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​Due to an out-of-state interpreting assignment and a pressing translation deadline, Part 53 will only be posted next week, on May 30, 2016. Sorry for the inconvenience and thank you for your patience.
 
Johannes Tan, Indonesian Translator & Conference Interpreter

Part 52

5/16/2016

 

Between Stockholm Syndrome and Lima Syndrome
Part 52: The Power of Propaganda and Thanataphobia

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Why do followers of Rev. Sun Myung Moon's Unification Church (the "Moonies") cut ties with their families and adopt austere lives? Why did Bhagwan Shri Rajneesh's staunch believers wanted to prove their love and devotion with 365 different Rolls-Royces, so he would have one for every day of the year? Whether we are talking about the blind loyalty and devotion of the followers of the Church of Scientology, Jim Jones' People Temples, or the Hare Krishna Movement, the constant question is: Why?
 
The power of propaganda.    
 
Oxford Dictionary defines propaganda unflatteringly as "chiefly derogatory information, especially of a biased or misleading nature, used to promote or publicize a particular political cause or point of view." Historically, fascist and totalitarian regimes—from Hitler to Stalin, from Franco to Tojo, from Mao to Suharto, from Mugabe to Kim Jong-un—had embraced propaganda as an indispensable tool to consolidate and legitimize their political power. It's only natural that in the 21st-century we tend to think that propaganda is exclusively utilized within the domain of political science.
 
Nothing could be further from the truth, because the place of propaganda in religion is actually as central if not more so. As cited in Part 25 (What If Adam had not Eaten an Apple?) the word propaganda derived from an office created by the Catholic Church (Pope Gregory XV) in 1622 called the Congregatio de Propaganda Fide (Congregation for Propagating the Faith) to suppress the reformation movement. The principles of propaganda, whether applied in the realms of politics or religion, remain the same.
 
As a matter of fact, it's interesting to observe the similarities between how propaganda flourishes both in politics and religion.
 
First, almost all propaganda is designed to create fear. As observed by English author and social commentator John Boynton Priestley (1894-1984), heads of governments know too well that fearful citizens are more obedient, easier to govern, will forfeit rights they would otherwise defend, and are less likely to demand a better life. Cult leaders have realized this phenomenon and strategically exploited the fear of their followers for blind loyalty, unquestionable devotion, and more Rolls Royces.
 
Understand the psychology of thanatophobia, add the inevitable death into the equation, promise believers with eternal salvation and paradise with nineteen virgins, then you'll get the picture. Since most organized religions have claimed different explanations about the afterlife, heaven and hell, it is only natural that most believers have developed a severe case of thanatophobia, which is defined by Webster dictionary as an abnormally great fear of death.
 
Second, propaganda draws strength and nourishment from a common enemy. In fact, without an enemy, propaganda loses its steam in next to no time. No enemies? No problem. Just create new enemies or scapegoats or boogeymen—real or perceived. While for Hitler it was the Jews, for Stalin it was the counter-revolutionaries. While for Mao it was the reactionaries, for Islamic fundamentalism it is Western lifestyle and education. While for Shiite theocratic rulers in Iran the enemy is the Sunnis, for Sunni theocratic rulers in Saudi Arabia the enemy is the Shiites. After all how would one explain the 1,400-year bloody sectarian violence between the two denominations that is still going on up to date?
 
Then if it seems as if the 1,400-year sectarian violence is an exercise in futility, it is. Social philosopher Eric Hoffer (1898-1983) explained this phenomenon in The True Believer: Thoughts on the Nature of Mass Movements (1951): "propaganda ... serves more to justify ourselves than to convince others; and the more reason we have to feel guilty, the more fervent our propaganda." After 1,400 years of violence, how many Sunnis have ever been converted into Shiites (and vice versa) anyway?
 
Third, and this is the most amazing part in my humble opinion, propaganda miraculously converts suicidal inferiority complex into chauvinistic superiority complex. This is by far propaganda's biggest bang for the buck. To compensate for blind loyalty and irrational sacrifices offered unconditionally to a despot, cult leader or holy cause, obedient followers are made to believe in their own superiority and holier-than-thou piety.
 
As explained by English writer and philosopher Aldous Huxley (1894-1963) in Writers and Readers: The Olive Tree and Other Essays (1936): "Dictatorial propaganda demands obedience and even considerable financial and other sacrifices; but by way of compensation it assures the individual that, as a member of a chosen nation, race, or class, he is superior to all other individuals in the world; it dissipates his sense of personal inferiority by investing him with the vicarious glory of the community; it gives him reasons for thinking well of himself; it provides him with enemies whom he may blame for his own short-comings and upon whom he may vent his latent brutality and love of bullying."
 
Thanatophobia. Blind loyalty of the bullies, by the bullies, and for the bullies. Custom-made common enemies or scapegoats to consolidate power. Inferiority complex coupled with holier-than-thou piety. Those are the building blocks of the propaganda ecosystem that have been effectively used by despots, cult leaders, theocratic rulers, Boko Haram and Islamic State.
 
[To be continued.]

Johannes Tan, Indonesian Translator & Conference Interpreter 

Part 51

5/9/2016

 

Between Stockholm Syndrome and Lima Syndrome
Part 51: The Difference between a Physician and a Clergyman

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Born in England, Alan Watts (1915-1973) was an Anglican priest, writer, and speaker. He attended Seabury-Western Theological Seminary, where he received a master's degree in theology. After moving to the United States in 1938 his strong interest in Zen Buddhism and Taoism developed even further, and he became one of the most illuminating interpreters of Eastern philosophy in the West.
 
Watts became an Episcopal priest in 1945, but left the ministry in 1950 and moved to California, where he joined the faculty of the American Academy of Asian Studies. While working as a volunteer programmer at a radio station in Berkeley, California, he wrote more than 25 books and essays on the philosophy of Zen Buddhism and Taoism, including his bestselling book, The Way of Zen (1957). With this rich spiritual background, to say that Watts knew a thing or two about both Western and Eastern religions—inside out and outside in—would truly be an understatement.
 
A lucky owner of The Way of Liberation: Essays and Lectures on the Transformation of the Self (1983) which was published posthumously, I have always been drawn into one of his lectures titled The Relevance of Oriental Philosophy. In this particular lecture, Watts invited the audience (members of a Christian theological institution) to consider the difference between a physician and a clergyman.
 
"The physician wants to get rid of his patients, so he gives them medicine and hopes they will not get hooked on it," said Watts. "The clergyman, on the other hand, is usually forced to make his patients become addicts so that they will continue to pay their dues." Thus, in essence, while the physician's objective is to cure the patients, the clergyman's objective is to sustain the patients' addiction.
 
The only problem is that the clergyman's patients—a.k.a. the believers—love the addiction. As illustrated in Part 50 (A Self-perpetuating Pyramid Scheme Trickled Down Straight from Heaven), poor Nigerian workers delightfully donated their hard-earned money to a rich Bishop whose net worth of $150 million includes two mansions and four private jets. Indeed this strange phenomenon only exemplifies Karl Marx's observation that "religion is the opium of the people."
 
This religious Stockholm Syndrome happen all the time in various religions and denominations. A self-declared messiah of the Unification Church, for example, Rev. Sun Myung Moon (1920-2012) drew criticism and charges of brainwashing for demanding his followers (a.k.a. "Moonies") to cut ties with their families and adopt austere lives. At the same time, he built a multi-billion dollar business empire, including a major seafood distributor (True World Foods), a newspaper (The Washington Times), a gun factory (Kahr Arms), and a hotel in Manhattan (New Yorker Hotel).
 
At the time of his death in India, Bhagwan Shri Rajneesh a.k.a. Osho (1931-1990) owned more than 90 Rolls-Royce cars, which meant he had the largest single collection in the world. In fact, his staunch believers were not content to shower Rajneesh with 90 fancy cars to show their absolute devotion. They had even planned to expand his collection and were aiming to acquire 365 different Rolls-Royce cars, so that Rajneesh would have one for every day of the year!
 
But why are believers addicted to religion? Why are they addicted to blind worship and devotion in the first place after all? Why do they willingly become Stockholm Syndrome hostages?
 
[To be continued.]


 Johannes Tan, Indonesian Translator & Conference Interpreter 

Part 50

5/2/2016

 

Between Stockholm Syndrome and Lima Syndrome
Part 50: A Self-perpetuating Pyramid Scheme Trickled Down Straight from Heaven

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I have little confidence in any enterprise or business or investment that promises dividends only after the death of the stockholders.
-ROBERT G. INGERSOLL
 
In Part 49 (It Takes Two to Tango) we briefly touched on the subject of foolishness and waste, which are indeed incompatible with the core beliefs of most organized religions. Historically, all religions started as cults, evolved into sects, then subsequently evolved into religions. While cults come and go, those which survived and matured into religions must have relied on resourcefulness, if not extreme conservation of resources.
 
Hinduism teaches the notion of "conserve ecology or perish." The third chapter of Bhagavad Gita (dialog between Krishna and Arjuna), states that a life without contribution toward the preservation of ecology is "a life of sin and a life without specific purpose or use." Islam is explicitly against extravagance, particularly in the notions of israf (consuming more than what one needs) and tabzir (spending resources for unnecessary things).
 
Raised as a Catholic by strict parents who would raise hell if I had the audacity to skip even a single Sunday Mass, no one can blame me for still memorizing Jesus' aphorism of the camel passing through the eye of a needle (Matthew 19:24) which captivated me as a kid. Well, sorry Jesus, but just tell this parable to ultra rich pastors whose net worth are beyond your wildest imagination. According to a report released by the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance of January 2011 (Grassley Releases Review of Tax Issues Raised by Media-based Ministries), regarding tax-exempt status of churches and religious organizations, many pastors are so rich they can actually buy out the kingdom of God, change all divine conventions, and overrule Jesus.
 
As summarized in the aforementioned report, Kenneth Copeland of Kenneth Copeland Ministries (KCM) in Texas has a net worth of at least $1,200,000,000. Owning two private jets—a Cessna 550 Citation Bravo and Cessna 750 Citation X—it was reported, that his private jet had made several layovers in Maui, Fiji, and Honolulu, which were all claimed to be "ministry trips" and therefore qualified the jet to remain tax exempt. Indeed Pastor Copeland claimed that no less than God Himself told him he needed to be a billionaire! Also tax exempt is his huge mansion, valued at just over $6 million and includes its own landing strip. His ministry alone has over $20 million in assets yet it takes huge loans from the Mr. and Mrs. Copeland, only to be paid back shortly after with high interest rates.
 
With an estimated net worth of $1.1 billion, Edir Macedo of the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God in Brazil holds the second spot. Some accuse him of taking money from poor people and laughing all the way to the bank. The only problem with this statement is that Edir is so filthy rich that he actually owns his own bank (and probably the kingdom of God as well). In fact, in July 2013, Forbes reported that Macedo acquired 49% of Banco Renner and this acquisition had been confirmed by Brazil’s Central Bank.
 
Third on the list is Bishop David Oyedepo of Living Faith Church World Wide (Winners' Chapel) in Nigeria with a net worth of at least $150 million, according to Forbes. In addition to having a net worth higher than the country he lives in (Nigeria), he also has two mansions and four private jets. One may wonder how a pastor in one of the poorest countries on earth has a net worth of over $150 million. Hint: the poorest people are usually the least educated and the most vulnerable to be manipulated. They faithfully give their hard-earned money to him; in return he promises them riches and the kingdom of God. Subsequently the shrewd Bishop Oyedepo invested some of that money to publish tons of religious books through his own publishing company, Dominion Publishing House.
 
Let's get it straight. A poor Nigerian worker donated his hard-earned money to a rich Bishop whose net worth of $150 million includes two mansions and four private jets. Then with the donations from millions of other believers, the Bishop published and sold books like "Understanding Financial Prosperity", "Breaking Financial Hardship" and "The Unlimited Power of Faith" which surely makes the Bishop even richer and the workers even poorer. This miracle happens in a country with an annual per capita income of $2,970 (World Bank, 2014) or $8 per day, where 46% the population live below the national poverty lines (World Bank, 2009). I don't know what God is doing to end this inequality, but it is certainly a self-perpetuating pyramid scheme trickled down straight from heaven. Witness the religious Stockholm Syndrome in high definition.
 
The cruelest irony is that such phenomenon is universal and do not only happen in Texas, Brazil and Nigeria. In fact, the famous L. Ron Hubbard, Founder of the Church of Scientology, once confided: "You don't get rich writing science fiction. If you want to get rich, you start a religion." This is straight from the horse's mouth; indeed one has to appreciate Ron Hubbard's brutal honesty.
 
And efficiency. Thanks to the tax-exempt status granted by the IRS in 1993, according to Jeffrey Augustine, of the blog The Scientology Money Project, the Church of Scientology is doing very well. It has a book value of $1.75 billion, about $1.5 billion of which is tied up in real estate, mostly at its headquarters in Clearwater, Florida, and Hollywood, California, in addition to other properties in Seattle, London, and New York.
 
[To be continued.]

 Johannes Tan, Indonesian Translator & Conference Interpreter 

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