A Mimetic Theory of Religion and the Sacred

Three topics that we are advised to avoid at polite dinner parties are politics, sex, and religion. Obviously, the purpose of these tacit prohibitions is to prevent conflict, because the guests may have very entrenched opinions about such matters. This is always the purpose of taboos, and the rule is to avoid anything that can stir conflict and lead to violence.Religion is one of those things, as history will testify, and yet its mission has traditionally been one of managing violence. It has done so by channeling it toward an individual or group arbitrarily designated to absorb it. Long ago-and still in some areas-blood sacrifice was the means by which this was done, and we find references to this practice all throughout ancient literature as well as historical and ethnographic studies. Through many stages of cultural evolution, we now have other means of managing violence, often closely resembling their ancestors in form but not in the amount of needless suffering they produce. The theatre is but one example, as we will explain.This book takes you on a fascinating journey through the history of religion and the sacred as they encounter anti-sacrificial cultural currents and either adapt or react to them. We will attempt to tease out the implications of what has been observed and learned. The matters discussed here involve very large social forces that have changed the course of history and will continue to do so.

Pagina's: 220, Paperback, Independently published