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1937 on the 13th!
lt
is reported that
the British Navy, to counteract the
superstition, purposely launched a ship
on Friday the 13th, called the ship the
H.M.S. Friday and used a captain
whose name was Friday.
Even our speech is Jaden with expres–
sions, such as "thank your lucky stars"
and "cross my heart," which arise out
of superstitious beliefs.
Glossolalia- the Tongues
Movement
Perhaps one of the most unusual
phenomena among Christian churches,
condoned by sorne and condemned by
others, is glossolalia. Great debate has
accompanied any discussion of what
constituted "tongue-speaking" in the
Apostolic Church. Various groups have
claimed this "gift" clown through the
ages since then.
It has been confined to the
Pentecostal churches for most of this
century. But during the last decade, it
has been experienced and supported by
individuals of practically all the major
church groups, from the Catholics to
the Episcopalians to the Baptists. It is
prominent among the so-called "Jesus
people," a sizeable portion of them
young people - dropouts from the
major churches.
Universal Need for Religion
But why are so many turning to the
minireligions which include everything
from spiritism to astrology? Why in an
age of skepticism, of materialism, of sci–
ence are so many seeking satisfaction in
the occult and spiritualistic?
A famous Los Angeles religiooist
recently stated that religion is as basic
to the nature of man as sex or thirst.
There is a natural desire - a basic urge
- within each human being for some–
thing outside and beyond himself. Sorne
few appear to squelch that urge and
claim to be atheists. (But, does an
"atheist" really remain an atheist
in
a
foxhole?)
Most satiate their desire with the
"status quo" religion or church. They
belong to the ecclesiastical group of
their parents, their friends, their
colleagues, their cace or their nationality.
But the major Christian denomina–
tions are losing their infiuence. The rea-
The
PLAIN TRUTH
son is - as we pointed out in an article
on the subject in the June PLAJN
TRUTH - that the mainstream churches
are not fulfilling the people's needs.
They have failed miserably.
People are turning to occult, the min–
isects and other related practices in a
desperate attempt to get what they have
not received elsewhere. Thus, in Britain
the rise in spiritism is matched by a
decline in the traditional religions.
Psychotherapist Ludwig B. Lefebre
wrote that people are trying to únd
ways "to get beyond themselves," yet
the churches are just not responding
suitably. Mankind wants something
more than just "relevancy" of religion
to his secular way of life, though he
certainly waots that as well . He has an
inward drive for something above and
beyond the human.
This innate drive is partly the cause
of the widespread use of "mind-expand–
ing" drugs. The use of LSD is often
known to be accompanied by what is
termed a "religious experience." Sorne
Oriental religioos, such as Tibetan
Buddhism, claim to offer the same ef–
fect without drugs. The American host
of one Tibetan-Buddhist guru describes
such a mental trip as a "non-drug turn–
on, inner enlighteoment."
In fact, John Moon, registrar of
Chelsea (London) College of Arts, pre–
dicted last year that black magic might
replace drugs as the next "craze" among
young people. But drugs often are not
replaced by spiritism or occult expe–
riences - they are instead many times
an essential part of it. According to Dr.
A.
L.
Malcolm, staff psychiatrist of the
Addiction Research Foundation of On–
tario, mysticism is one of the things
underlying the drift to drugs by young
people.
But in any case - whether drugs,
mysticism, or both - the end is a "reli–
gious" trip.
If
such a religious expe·
rience cannot be found by conventional
methods in conventional cburches, it is
only predictable that many will turn to
a source elsewhere for excitement. This
is
precise/y
what is happening.
Sign of Death?
One "famous" witch explained why
young people turn to witchcraft:
"... they're disenchanted with the
November 1971
Christian rel igion. They feel their reli–
gion has gotten away from the people.
Everybody gets dressed up and goes to
church to hear someone else do it.
That's not religion, it's one big social
club, so a lot of people, especially the
younger people, are looking for some–
thing more."
"Social club" religious services might
fill one's social needs. But
not
bis reli–
gious needs. People are looking for
something to hang on to. They want
security. They want to know that a
greater power than themselves is with
them.
They have found the watered-down
ritual in normative "churchianity" of no
help. So they turn to astrology, mysti–
cism, and the occult.
Religion writer George W. Cornell
has pointed out that this state of things
"refiects a widespread reaction against
all-out modero secularism and its ten–
dency to reduce religion to man's own
capabili ties and judgment, instead of
his being helped by it." Churches have
ceased to give moral guides to living.
And many have quickly tired of their
new-found "freedom."
People are dissatisfied with our mate–
rialistic society. They are equally dis–
enchanted with the standard-brand
churches which seem to give no alterna–
tive to the secular world. In their frus·
tration to find a power beyond
themselves, they seem to feel the only
other path open is mysticism and the
psychic.
One of the major causes for the
collapse of Rome was the decay of reli–
gion from the status of moral judge and
champion to a hollow shell of ritual
and liturgy.
In desperation, people turned to
astrology, sorcery, and divination, the
natural refuge in a time of confusion
and collapse.
The occult scene - as the drug
scene, the crime scene, and the immoral–
ity scene - re.flects the turbulent state
of our contemporary society.
It
seems
that decadent and dying civilizations al–
most always turn to the mystical in their
final hours. Rome did. So did Con–
stantinople. And Athens. Is the present
interest in the occult another sigo that
our Western civilization is in its "final
hours"? O