Today’s Scripture Reading (March 3, 2018): Ephesians 5
The Illuminati. Even the name is filled with mystery. The name has
been applied to several groups, both real and fictional, and some stories of
the organization are simply the products of some people’s
overactive imagination. While the name is filled with mystery, it is the
evolved and imagined mystery that almost seems to stand in contradiction with
both the name and the original aims of the secret society. The Bavarian Illuminati,
founded by Adam Weishaupt, was originally intended to oppose superstition and
excessive religious influence over public life. The founders of the society
proposed to end injustice by controlling the agents of injustice without
dominating over them. In many ways, the original intent of the Illuminati was to expose injustice and
superstition, essentially by filling such practices
with light.
But the contemporary legend of the Illuminati
is almost the polar opposite. Rather than illuminating the world stage so that
we can see the injustice that is taking place in the world, they are supposed
to be a dark, secretive order that leads from behind the scenes. It doesn’t
matter who is in power in a certain country
because world events are being run in the darkness far away from the political
stage by a small closed group of people who are the real kings and queens of
the earth. They influence everything, and you have no power to stop them.
As conspiracy theories go, this is an
intriguing one, but it is unlikely that even if there is a modern version of
the Illuminati that they are powerful enough to pull off all that is attributed
to them. But that does not mean that there are not powers behind the throne. In
the wake of yet again another mass shooting, we are reminded of the power that
the gun lobby has over politicians in the United States. The rhetoric of “guns
don’t kill people, people do” is growing tired. The reality is that if the
gunman in the February 2018 school shooting at Florida’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas
High School, was armed with just a knife, he would have been overpowered long
before the death toll reached seventeen. But the powerful gun lobby is deaf to
the pleas of the people with regard to the sanctity and protection of human
life. (Personal Note: no one is suggesting that all guns need to be removed
from the possession of the people, but that possession of a firearm should be
seen as a privilege and not a right. We do not let children play with guns, and
neither should those who are unstable or a risk to society be able to even
possess one. But the powers that exist behind the throne disagree.)
Many Christian religions have long stood
against the existence of secret societies and the reason is a simple one: we believe
in the power of light. I am a critic of Christian Leaders who will not release
their income levels when asked. The reality is that, on the average, pastors
are among some of the worst paid professionals in our society. But then, for
most of us, money was never the reason why we go to work. Out motives for
action should be apparent and be able to stand up under scrutiny. Everything
that we do should become visible under the light that we or our culture want to
shed on it. And if we are involved in questionable activities, it is that light
that will purify us and allow us to grow stronger.
Some years ago a
new member jokingly (I think) asked if now he got to see all of the secret
areas of the church. I hope he wasn’t disappointed when I told him that there
were no real secret areas, but if he really
wanted a tour of the furnace room, I would take him. The Church and Christians
live and act in the light; nothing is to be
hidden. Because it is only evil that lives in the dark.
Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Ephesians 6
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