I am the victim of religious persecution. It was subtle. The persecutors don’t understand. It still happened.
We were at a faculty meeting. We were going over the calendar for the next two months. I noticed that April 22 was designated as Earth Day. I noticed that May 26 was labeled as Memorial Day. I did not see anything marking Passover, Good Friday or Easter. The calendar included weekends and had activities listed on Saturdays and Sundays. I was going to suffer in silence but the principal said she was going to correct a few things and print it again. That was my chance to make a request and not be obnoxious about it.
So I raised my hand.
Here is my request as close as I can remember it. “You are going to reprint this, right? Since the Gaia worships get Earth day on the calendar how about us monotheists? How about putting Good Friday and Easter on also?” You would think I was a speeding car at night with my high beams on and she was a deer standing in the middle of the road.
She didn’t get it. I tried to explain. I could see that a few people knew what I was talking about but most of the college educated, credentialed, well paid government employees around me, aka teachers, filled their usual nitch in the food chain. They didn’t have a clue.
They patted me on the head, smiled indulgently and went on with the business of the day. I will concede it was not what you would call high level persecution. Contempt is the beginning of desensitization, but it is a beginning. It is a few levels below being fed to the lions or having my children taken away to be raised as Janissaries. It is still a beginning.
Persecution has to start somewhere and we are already heading down the road.
homo unius libri
You're right; they REALLY don't get it.
ReplyDeleteSo much in life requires some previous knowledge. So many don't have it. For them life is like a punch line without the joke.
DeleteGrace and peace.