The Human Condition - 1.

One of my favourite poets, Peter Wessel Zapffe, once wrote that humans are born with an overdeveloped skill: awareness, understanding, self-knowledge - exactly what I for years have called "our ability to think in abstract ways", which does not fit into nature's design.
The human craving for justification on matters such as life and death cannot be satisfied, hence humanity has a need that nature cannot provide satisfaction for. The tragedy is that humans spend all their time trying not to be human. The human being, therefore, is a paradox.

Religion, whether expressed through the 3m tall wooden Nerthus/Frej statues from Iron-age bog-finds or more contemporary manifestations, unfortunately reflects this condition in abundance.

Frey from Broddenbjerg, DK

Satisfying the Gods in the past was all about passing on items or behaviour that in the society of the time was considered to have high value, i.e. sacrificing our treasures or something we really appreciated ourselves: gold rings or abandoning a rich lifestyle.

Satisfying God in some of our present religions is all about our own reward: 99 virgins (actually a mis-translation from 99 white raisins, a delicacy at the time) or a place in 'Abraham's lap'.

Humans have moved from exo-centric religions (the Romans' 'do ut des'/ I give, so you shall give) to ego-centric: how will I be rewarded.

....

There was an implicit community feeling imbedded in the former.

Do ut des!

Without we would never have had the rich bog-offerings to the deities in Denmark from Hjortspring, Vimose, Illerup, Thorsbjerg, Ejsboel, etc. and La Tene in the Neuchatel lake, to name just a few.

Churches and mosques represent the same feeling: built to the honour of whatever God is in fashion - something that for the individual, by the way, still totally depends on where and when you are born.

Compare that to most religions today: it is me - me - me, wrapped in credit cards and a severe competition about whose God is the right one, and a plethora of rules, created by humans, with little emphasis on the God herself, rather on control of the people.

Hjortspring spear heads

As Seneca said: "Religion is regarded by the common people as true, by the wise as false, and by the rulers as useful",

or Einstein, whom religious people wrongly take under their wings, saying: even Einstein was religious.

No he was not.

Here's what he said:

"I never imputed to nature any purpose or goal or anything even mildly anthropomorphic."

Have we become wiser in the past 2000 years?