So its seems that a Major World Religion is about to get voted off the island. According to the Times, Zoroastrianism (as in "what about Zoroastrianism?" or "don't forget about Zoroastrianism!"), is apparently dying. The faith, which once claimed 50 million adherents, has dwindled to less than 200,000.
Reading the article, it is hard not to make the mental comparison to Judaism. Like Judaism, Zoroastrianism is a pre Common Era monotheistic faith, does not proselytise, has historically made little use of the sword, has a high rate of intermarriage. Like Jews, its adherents generally assimilate into society and become professionals. There is even a picture of a guy wearing a gartel (they call it a "kushti"- but we know where they got it from!). In fact, if not for the the relgious rituals depicted in the article, its resemblance to Reform and Conservative Judaism is uncanny.
However, it is that very tendency that has gotten it in trouble:
The very tenets of Zoroastrianism could be feeding its demise, many adherents said in interviews. Zoroastrians believe in free will, so in matters of religion they do not believe in compulsion. They do not proselytize. They can pray at home instead of going to a temple. While there are priests, there is no hierarchy to set policy. And their basic doctrine is a universal ethical precept: “good thoughts, good words, good deeds.”Putting Judaism aside for a moment, it seems that a key to success in Survivor (Religion Edition) is the use of things like swords and guns as part of your program of religious perpetuation (I realize that this may not apply to Eastern religions). Fear of death is a great persuader when argumentation doesn't do the trick. Both Christianity and Islam have made great use of this tactic over the years.
So how has Judaism managed to stay in the game while keeping its hands relatively clean of evils like mass murder? Discuss.
No comments:
Post a Comment