Our Collective Salvation?

Under a clear blue sky and the eyes of a restless, anticipatory graduating class at Wesleyan University in Connecticut, Barack Obama has once again delivered a stellar dissertation. Not of fire and brimstone from whence the philosophy comes, but rather candy coated with the eloquence that great orators posssess. Speaking words of partial truth to a liberally indoctrinated class of 2008, we can only HOPE. Hope that there are some in that class, and every class across this great land, who will act as salt and light to a world of the young and impetuous. Salt and Light to those so seemingly hungry for a message of humanism and how great we can be. There have always been times in history where the cadence and rhythm of a strong orator has trumped experience, logic and Truth. To wit:

Barack Obama - "...there is no community service requirement in the outside world, no one is forcing you to care.... You can take your diploma, walk off this stage and chase only after the big house and the nice suits and the other things that our money culture says you should buy. You can choose to narrow your concerns and live life in a way that tries to keep your story seperate from America's. But I hope you don't....because you have an obligation to yourself: because our individual salvation, depends on our collective salvation..." ( see below starting at 9:20)



When it is all said and done we are left with the empty rhetoric of Karl Marx, rising up from the ash heap of history, propped with the strength of a government by the people.

Karl Marx - "Religion is [the world’s] general basis for consolation…The struggle against religion is…a struggle against that world whose spiritual aroma is religion. Religious suffering is at the same time an expression of real suffering and a protest against real suffering. Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the sentiment of a heartless world, and the soul of soulless conditions. It is the opium of the people. The abolition of religion as the illusory happiness of [people], is a demand for their real happiness… " [in Tucker, Marx-Engels Reader, 1978: 53-4]


In order to abolish religion one must first replace it with something of perceived equal import and efficacy. What could possibly be more important or efficacious than a graduating class from any of our nation's illustrious bastions of academia? A SELF annointed-importance and efficacy will do just fine, thank you very much. Replacing the gift of salvation, with a collective work ethic toward the common good can't be all bad, can it?

The challenge that we face here is not that we have a presidential candidate who doesn't understand religion: it is that we have one that DOES. At least, religion defined as man's attempt to reach God. On the other hand, we have a God who makes it clear that our reach is far too short. "True religion is this, to help orphans and widows in their distress and to keep one self from being polluted by the world. " In some ways, religion (man's reach toward God) is best exemplified by our reach toward one another. That is truth, and is neatly tucked in Obama's message. The falsehood lies in the perception that our pursuit of religion IS our salvation. Barack Obama is, intentionally or not, confusing salvation with religion. The two are not the same. Salvation is a True altruistic Gift from Almighty God to us, relgion is a type of gift from us to Almighty God.

See how he confuses this. In the mind of Barack Obama, our would-be next President, religion is something that we use to satisfy our inner most desires when they cannot be appeased. He proves it with his words:

" ...each successive administration has somehow said that these communities are gonna regenerate and they have not. So it's not surprising that they get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy toward people who are not like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations..."



By his account, religion among other things, is something that we "cling" to when hope is lost. Salvation is what we strive for by collectively working together. Karl Marx said the same thing much more clearly: "...Religion is the sigh of an oppressed creature, the sentiment of a heartless world..." The logical conclusion? No oppression equals no RELIGION. No RELIGION equals a heart-full world.

Watch out for the fallacy of humanism that awaits outside this door disguised as HOPE.