In case you missed it, some Muslims, Jews and Christians gathered on the West Bank on November 11 to pray for rain. A curious aspect of these rituals is of course that god (all three of them, or 5, depending on how you understand the trinity-voodoo) already knows that it’s raining, and also knows about the drought that has apparently depleted Israel’s water supply by 25%. It’s all part of his plan, remember? God also knows that you want it to rain – he knew before you did, and certainly before you decided to arrange this group-prayer thing. But seeing as it hasn’t rained, he doesn’t want it to rain – and however much you plead, it won’t make a difference, because he also already knows why you want it to rain. See how this works?
It will rain when he’s damn well good and ready for it to rain. In the meanwhile, remember that he loves you. Or some of you, and wants the others to go to some place of damnation, for they are infidels. Or something – it’s sometimes difficult to keep it all straight in one’s head.
While it’s no doubt a good thing that people are setting aside their differences with respect to invisible people in the sky to engage with some common cause, it’s nevertheless sad that they can’t do so with respect to real, existing authorities like governments, terrorist groups, insane Mullah’s etc. Natural phenomena aren’t controllable by chanting – but other forms of noises, like those involved in rational and civilized conversation – can help to eliminate other forms of ill. Like people killing each other.
There is a difference between being moral and being moralistic. Whether or not we ever reach consensus on what it means to be good, I don’t think it could ever be a good thing to replace debate and discussion on morality with simple – and simple-minded – tut-tutting and finger-wagging that is premised on a belief in moral certitude.
