"The kind of religion that makes headlines in today's world, results from the warrior's method of problem solving. From the Crusades to modern fundamentalists' waging war on sin, evil, and the devil this has been the case. The warrior's approach to spirituality is to identify evil and eliminate it or make it illegal.
It is the impetus behind the campaign to get prayer back into the schools, to wipe out pornography, and to get rid of sex education. The next step up from this is to convert sinners. They do not need to be destroyed if they can be transformed away from their villainesses.
In politics, we have an interesting progression. In the most primitive mode, the hero kills the old king (the tyrant) and at least theoretically saves the victimized populace. That is how change occurs...
These practices continue into our modern day era in many parts of the world where change is still brought about by another bloody coup. In our country we have found a way to avoid such bloodshed.
The old king is neither ritually dismembered, as in some primitive cultures, nor killed in his sleep, nor tried and executed for his crimes. But as we are reminded each election year, the rhetoric based upon these old practices remains.
The challenger--whether in electoral or intraorganizational politics--explains how he or she will save the country or organization, and that the incumbent is responsible for all its ills. The incumbent, of course, retaliates by describing how he or she has, in fact, made major improvements in the country/state/organization and how the opposition would ruin things were they in power. THE LANGUAGE IS WARLIKE !
We talk about defeating the opposition at the polls. We may even say things like we "slaughtered them". The warlike language is also basic to business, in which the object is to defeat the competition.
The central belief of capitalism is based upon the wisdom of this modality: that competition, a version of the contest, will bring about the good life for all--better products, lower prices. The very stability and vitality of our country are seen as depending upon competition."
(exerts from Carol S. Pearson's book, entitled, The Hero Within)
