Great post. Voted, Subbed and Re-steemed!
I frequently have to point this out to friends or family members, and you have written the sentiment very clearly.
As a side note, government has replaced religion, in that it is accepted as a universal truth by a majority of the people. Many people love it, many more don't love it but respect it and follow the laws, some ignore it completely and become it's victims, and a small small percentage realize it for what it is... A bunch of garbage dumped in your life for you to deal with.
Religion, no matter your view of it, has been largely rendered irrelevant, though there are many who embrace it and actively follow it. I'm halfway in that camp.
I would like to see the state take a similar path, One that allows people to participate if they like, but lose the ability to force others into following them.
The bigger the state gets, the more resistance they will encounter, but unfortunately, it will probably get much worse before it gets better!
Thanks a lot!
The nuances of how things are looked at are subtle and not always considered when we just accept things as they are; if people haven't critically examined the system rather than accepting its place, then they can jump to certain ways of seeing things that are still within the problems. It is like attempting to address a symptom rather than trying to address the root cause--there are always side effects.
As far as government replacing religion, I'd be very careful in that conclusion. Religion is about God, and those who believe in their religions believe in them much more than they believe in their government since they perceive one as God and the other not. Simply put, one's perception of God is more influential than a government (which is essentially a lesser god, regardless of if its perceived as such).
Governments are largely controlled by religions, in the hierarchy of how things function it all starts with the things that control us, as a whole, the most and then trickles down to the least influential things. God, religion, self, family, friends, government, ...for example, as a hierarchy. This means that people in government roles can make decisions that are really stemming from their religious views. It's no accident that the world is approaching a world war between America and Russia, two Christian nations. There is an active pursuit to "prepare the way for God" by bringing the world events to look as much like prophecy fulfillment as possible. It's really intense psychological warfare by willing participants who have already been overpowered by that psychological warfare at a previous stage--if that makes sense.
Unfortunately government and religion will always try to get its fingers in control of whatever it can if we just passively allow their existence. The best approach is just raising awareness as much as possible to the flaws behind them and have a global debate where persuasive arguments are allowed to transform the way we do things. If there's no system, we need to be good to one another and actively support one another and stand for equality and peace. That really stems from global understanding that God is Everything, which is the foundation of a successful society. Having that God as top priority, means everyone and everything is important.
Yes, I do agree with your reply.
God is everything. Religion is men trying to do what they interpret as God's will. This is why the commandment not to take the Lord's name in vain exists. There are a great many who take His name in vain and use it to influence others, get gain for themselves or even, ultimately, destroy others.
Being all God's children, it is inappropriate for us to judge others by our flawed interpretation of His law. While Christ lived, he made it quite clear that men's iteration of his law was wrong.
Individual beliefs do play a significant role in the way people live their lives, what they tolerate from a state and their fellow man. Using government to do what they interpret God's will to be is little different than the jewish leadership of the time twisting the roman state to dispose of what they believed to be a false Messiah.
I believe the state to be little more than a satanic force that men wield to achieve unrighteous dominance over each other, it is a huge stumbling block upon which many have fallen.
I agree that raising awareness is a key factor in getting people to see the truth about Government.
Thank you for the reply!