After this, the rapporteur gave some time to reflect on what he had heard. This was used by one of the members of the expert committee.
– Were the Abrahamic religions the creation of Moses or the idea of Abraham? – asked for clarification a man who, according to Rutra's typing formula, resembled the cosmonaut Titov, for which reason he was recorded under the code name Eagle.
In the world, he was the head of the DARPA directorate. The sign in front of him read: Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency of the U.S. Department of Defense, responsible for developing new technologies.
– As I have already said… – the lecturer, apparently out of inertia, began to continue what he had started, – well, well, I will explain, and then what I wanted to say. Abrahamic religions are religions that as if came out of one root. There lived such a man Abraham, he tended his flocks, he was not poor. He lived first in the region between the rivers Tigris and Euphrates, which now flow through Iraq, and then through Babylonia. I'm just kidding. As and where they flowed, so they flow now. Babylon became Iraq. How he got there, of course, history is silent, all peoples were once nomads, but in the process of either wandering, or traveling, or nomadic, he ended up in Palestine. It was then called Canaan. There he agitated nomadic shepherds, transit merchants, and locals to become adherents of his religion. He even wanted to sacrifice his son for the sake of his faith and the truth of his religious doctrine. Then he came to his senses. Or rather, – well, I think so, and he who believes, believes – God said to him, "Don't do it, it's enough to sacrifice a lamb. But, interestingly enough, his wife was barren for many years, and this Abraham, driving his flocks through the countries, took a second wife, younger and fertile.
Someone chuckled.
– Why? It was normal back then. It was not normal that he lived with a childless woman for so many years. And now this Hagar gives birth to a son, and Sarah, the first wife, naturally disliked her and insisted that he cast her out. Later, either out of jealousy or the Holy Spirit helped, Sarah also gives birth to a son. All would have been nothing if Sarah had not by this time passed 90 years of age.
Some smiled ironically, apparently knowing the story, while others almost laughed.
– You can go a lot deeper into Bible stories, and almost any story, so let me tell you a story related to the Gospels. By the way, the gospel, the "good news," is the New Testament, and what came before Christ is the Old Testament.
He looked around at his listeners, smiled sweetly.
– I talk a lot out of habit, I apologize. I realize my story is not new to many. However, the Jews are opposed to the last statement. They do not recognize Christ as God, prophet, or messiah. The Muslims at least recognize him as a prophet, but they are against him. But I will tell you honestly, do not judge them harshly, they have their own good reasons. The divine essence of Jesus is a subject of great controversy in the Christian world, but his identity as a prophet is not in doubt. Again, however, there is complete antagonism. This is how I characterize atheism. Although atheism is more broad spectrum…the very definition. Okay, let's not flip through the pages of a related program. So, this Abraham is sort of considered to be the first preacher of religious tenets, on the basis of which Judaism, Christianity with all its many offshoots, and Islam and its offshoots, too, were later born and crystallized. And now let us turn to the main topic.
This statement caused movement among the listeners. They were clearly tired of sitting for so long. Ruthra tapped his fingers on the table to get Phfitnop's attention and, receiving it, nodded and announced a fifteen-minute break. After the allotted time for rest, the professor, glancing at his modest watch, not waiting for the audience to fully assemble, continued his part of the speech.
– As I have already said, it will be very useful to you in the process of mission realization. By the way, from the usual everyday understanding of faith and unbelief, we now have an associative mental and logical reaction to the words "faith" and "believe" when it comes to religion. It was originally about literal faith in the resurrection and the whole story. And then it got so twisted that the concepts of faith and unbelief became all about human attitudes toward good and evil. I'll tell you right away, I'm being frank with you here. There," he pointed with an open palm to the side, and a holographic model of the planet appeared in space, "I am saying something else.
Listeners buzzed over the revelation . The scale of braggadocio was slightly peaking, but after that the equalizer scale of logical clarity began to dominate. The amplitude of the respect-reverence scale also went up. All this was analyzed by Rangit based on the results of constant brain scanning of "applicants".
– You understand, religion is the opium of the people… it is the revelation of a person who has consumed this very opium in a physical and in a spiritual sense. Otherwise the experience is false. Or… "the state can be ruled by a cook". All this characterizes the inner world of a person. I would say that… – he scratched the tip of his nose playfully, – okay, or I'll go away again, we all periodically go away, – now he twitched the edge of his mouth, – the main thing is not to cross the point of no return. A lot of things. And the examples I gave to prove it, – he looked silently into the hall again, – yes, yes, I am putting the thought together like this, the association of God with good and love… and of his opponents with evil became logical and self-evident for human consciousness.
The audience began to look at each other and whisper. The reason was the strange structure of the honorable scientist's speech.
– In those times, though not only in those times, it was necessary to declare a monopoly on truth in order to usurp power. After all, such a thing is always relevant, you will agree. That is, the truth could only be from God, and God Himself became a cult for everyone voluntarily and compulsorily. In modern interpretation we can explain it as a monopoly on minerals, natural monopolies – power grids, railroads, highways and the like. Someone will say now, they are in different private hands, at least in capitalist states with free economy. And I'll answer you: there are dozens of different religious sects. For the most soulless system, which is the amorphous system of the state, the power of one person, clan, clan, even party is a threat. The aura of power and the people in power are different substances. The system of power, what I'm talking about, what I'm associatively comparing, that monopoly and this one… in the case of the state, in addition to owning the basic sources that give capital, there is a system of governance. It is the rule and the mechanism, I would even say, the instrument in any system folded into a power structure. This system is subject to the very aura of power, to a certain imperial spirit. It includes management systems: law enforcement, tax systems and the like. The structure varies more and less in ownership depending on the capitalist and, for example, communist system. Either way it is a monopoly on something that everyone needs. No matter how much people blaspheme God, there is no way they want to, if not can't, live without God. It is the same, for example, with law enforcement, military, and medical systems. No matter how much we scold them, there is no way to live without them… I have left the main topic a little bit. Let's go back. As I said, you need to know the gospel stories for your mission. This is necessary both for proper maneuvering within the story itself and for understanding the truth or fiction outside of the story. Knowing at least the story that is officially accepted by almost everyone, you will be able to use it by giving, for example, appropriate quotes from the Gospel to defend your own point of view in discussions on domestic and religious topics. Knowing the theme that has developed historically in the minds and understanding of the masses will enable you to know what the main characters mentioned in the story itself do not know.
