The Pantaloon : Unto Caesar : Brother Wagwit

The Pantaloon
Edited by Brother Wagwit
Earlyish in the 21st Century

Unto Caesar

Religion has its place in civil society. As do sport events, concerts, trade shows, Burning Man, and doula gatherings. Some of us don’t go to church, or concerts, or stadium sporting events. Many of us will never get to go to Burning Man and even less of us will be at a doula gathering. Most of us, however, watch porn. So much so that it has been a viable business for a long, long time.

What enriches us as a society is that we can engage all these things and more, with varying degrees of fervor. But by and large, even though some outsize egos would think otherwise, these activities are ancillary to society and are not foundations for normative laws.

Yet, somehow, for many of us, religion has become –once again– foundational to our country’s legal structure. Yes, the Holy See (SCOTUS) has given the notion of religion as a legal referent its seal of approval. But this is the result of a decades-long push by many of us. So it’s not just them, it’s us too.

The Romans (always a good go-to since our legal system is actually based on Roman Law), knew better even back in the day. They had their bread and circuses for the masses; their own vestiges of paganism as a convenient vehicle for being both observant and superstitious; they allowed for conquered peoples to worship in keeping with local traditions; and would not get in the way of religious tithing as long as its own treasury needs were met. Hence, the oft quoted “Render unto Caesar what is of Caesar”. And they were smart enough to understand that when a young hippie from the Galilee was proclaiming himself king of whatnot, they had to intervene (as did the Jewish leaders) and put a stop to the madness, because they knew that somewhere down the line, the marriage of religion and law would be counterproductive to empire. And it was. And always has been.

When spires conspire, the mired get tired, and the hired get fired. Frequently tied to a stake.