What is it with Scientology that draws so much attention? Granted, new religions, like “fresh” wines, may reek dubious fumes, but they do have to have a beginning, don’t they?

We instinctively respect Christians, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, Jews and their non-violent variants without question, no matter how wacky their beliefs or interpretation of ancient texts. But Scientology is consistently lampooned by cultural institutions and the media as being the cult religion du jour for celebrities, something modern and reeking of inauthenticity. But are the ancients more plausible just because they weren’t created by a science fiction writer? Funny neckties aside, why does a carpenter have more credibility? I’m not making a case for Tom Cruise, who is clearly insane with or without religion, but it’s an odd world we live in that endorses and legitimizes it’s gods so arbitrarily. Really, who cares? The creation myth of Scientology is pretty hilarious with all it’s aliens and stuff, but a good close look at the creation myth of any religion should leave any reasonable person in tears in a matter of minutes. I say the more the merrier. Religions, like political parties, just create more cultural diversity, while unintentionally providing more entertainment for the rest of the post-Enlightenment segment of the world population.

That said, perhaps it’s time for traditionalists to take the Flying Spaghetti Monster, and other DIY religions more seriously. If your religion is inspiring you to burn down embassies, or protest the funerals of gay soldiers, then maybe it’s time for something new. After all, there are plenty of them to choose from, and some will actually let you enjoy your time on Earth. If you don’t like any, create your own. The sky is the limit. Think about it.

This entry was posted on Friday, February 24th, 2006 at 5:03 pm and is filed under culture, general, musings. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.