Religicide

I 'must believe' in something to be

Saved, so I've been told,

And practice all those rituals

Passed down from days of old,

Conform to thoughts conceived by men

Two thousand years ago,

The followers of Jesus, Buddha,

Krishna... So and so!

 

Then once I've made my choice I must

Resist all other faiths,

And war with each heretic, spill

Their blood, malign their race,

Aver that only my belief

Will take us to the stars,

While all those other foolish folk

Head to some place like Mars.

 

And all this on the words of those

Who trod the desert plains,

Who never saw an aeroplane,

Electric light or trains,

Knew nothing of the Internet

Or travel into space,

Who muttered superstitions round

The campfires of their race.

 

Our lives are fraught with peril as

Fanatics roam the earth,

Who seek to kill and maim us

By the values of their dearth,

No matter what I think, believe,

Or what man has begun,

The universe will plough its way

In circles, round the sun!

 

David Lewis Paget

Reviews

[Mark]

One of my favorite aspects of your writing, David, is how you can incorporate deeply-held personal views into a poem, letting people know absolutely where you stand, without giving offense or treading toes! This poem, though funny, is also very poignant. We who do choose to espouse the existance of one o'erweening God have certainly acted more than savage in the past, proving that humankind have still not gotten His core message. Well spoken!

[R J Askew]

Here, here! This a day after religious lunatics plant bombs in churches in Nigeria. Was their intention to cause religious sectarianism, death, war? They are evildoers. I agree with every work of your poem.

[Balthazar]

Absolutely Amazing!!! I very much enjoyed this. The way it speaks volumes of truth. This is a very moving write. I've never seen it put better. You are a very talented and ensightful writer. Thank You for sharing.

[Manpreet]

A strong write with accurate consolidation of that time! Nice work!

[Amila Jay]

Truly a good piece of writing, you have captured the essence of life very well!

[Becky C Strukamp]

You capture the pure raw true self of our lands and what we are engaged in...excellent delivery.

[Kat Collins]

I loved the flow of your poem and how you incorporate such a poignant view of God and the world into it. It is amazing to me that people kill, spew hatred, support racism, and on and on, all supposedly in God's name. And they wonder why there is so much negativity surrounding religions. I agree wholeheartedly with what Mark said...proving that humankind have still not gotten His core message. Well done!

[Priyankaabhilaashi]

Fantastic..!!!

[EMF]

Belief if an odd thing. You do or you don't, and it is that simple. You put the idea accross so well and with such humour and style. A class piece of work that really does deal with the heart of the issue. Cracking read

[Arielle Ann]

when I read the title , I knew this was bound to be something unique...I have been always awed by religion and the fallacies associated with its name (though I don't have much knowledge regarding its history)...but one thing I know is - it defines God (his existence)..and that much is enough..you each line conveys spiritual depth- we have been following rituals laid down to us (but why? what is the significance?no we don't know)..crusades etc - wars have devoured us since time immemorial...we follow everything like fools..etc etc
your write gave us a varied insight..I had to read it with great concentration...and now it goes into my favs :)

[Rene Velez]

Interesting poem for me since I'm a believer, like the.rhyme scheme and flow...