The Opiate of the Masses

I was thinking today about something Karl Marx said. He called religion, “the opiate of the masses.” Opiates are a class of drug including heroin and morphine that relieve pain. Often people interpret this statement as meaning that religion is a poor solution to problems just as morphine only masks pain rather than treating the root cause of the illness.

But if you look at it in another way, what Marx is saying is really a compliment to religion. In fact, not only is it a compliment, but it’s one of the kindest things anyone has said about religion in a long time. He’s saying that religion relieves the pain of the impoverished people on the bottom of the social ladder. It eases the hardship of those who suffer the most. Religion gives people hope that a better world exists.

Also, the quote is rarely seen in its original context. Here is an English translation of Marx:

“Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, just as it is the spirit of a spiritless situation. It is the opium of the people. The abolition of religion as the illusory happiness of the people is required for their real happiness. The demand to give up the illusion about its condition is the demand to give up a condition which needs illusions.” (http://atheism.about.com/od/weeklyquotes/a/marx01.htm)

Granted, he says that religion needs to be abolished and that religion is illusory. Yet he also calls religion, “the heart of a heartless world.” Honestly, if one were to attribute that statement to Jesus rather than Marx, one could fool many people.

Marx, perhaps inadvertently, expresses a vision of what religion can offer the world. It can provide solace in times of pain. It can remind people to care in the midst of uncaring times. It can redirect society’s energy from the head to the heart.

Answers to Lyrical Questions

“These fickle, fuddled words confuse me
Like ‘Will it rain today?’ ” – The Space Between, Dave Matthews Band

Hey Dave, why so confused? It’s a pretty simple question. If you believe water will fall down from the sky today, say yes. Otherwise, say no. The only way this could be confusing would be if your language lacked a future tense.

“Isn’t it ironic . . .  don’t you think?

It’s like rain on your wedding day”  – Ironic, Alanis Morissette

Sorry Alanis, I don’t think so. Rain on one’s wedding day may be unfortunate, but it’s not necessarily ironic. If you’re holding a wedding in New Orleans during hurricane season, you’d be a fool not to expect rain. Some people even like rain, see Garbage’s Only Happy When It Rains.

“Whose gonna ride your wild horses?

Whose gonna fall at the foot of thee?” – U2

Is there much interest in riding wild horses these days? If some girl has wild horses, I think it would be pretty hard to find a cowboy who can ride them. Also, you don’t see a whole lot of guys falling at girls’ feet. But it does make a lot more sense than what I thought Bono said which was, “Whose gonna fall from a tree?” and I think very few men would be willing to do that who aren’t totally insane.

“She says days go by, I don’t know why” – Sunny Came Home, Shawn Colvin

Let me explain this to you Miss Colvin, I am a science teacher. The earth rotates around its axis and makes one complete round every twenty-four hours. As the earth rotates, a fixed point moves in and out of the view of the sun. When a point on the earth faces the sun, it experiences day and when the point faces away from the sun, it experiences night.

Jason Mraz “I’m Yours”

Artist: Jason Mraz Album: We Sing Title: I’m Yours

Well you done done me and you bet I felt it
I tried to be chill but you’re so hot that I melted
I fell right through the cracks
and now I’m trying to get back
Before the cool done run out
I’ll be giving it my bestest
Nothing’s going to stop me but divine intervention
I reckon its again my turn to win some or learn some

[The title, "I'm Yours" means "I am your soul mate." He's talking about being in love with a girl who intimidates him. He tries to be cool around her but he gets flustered. I love the line where he says, "I'll be giving it my bestest." The pseudo-word "bestest" is often uttered by children who are still learning the rules of English grammar and don't realize that "best" is the superlative of good so it needs no additional "est." Even though this girl makes him feel nervous, he keeps on trying and asserts that only God (divine intervention) can stop him.]
I won’t hesitate no more, no more
It cannot wait, I’m yours

Well open up your mind and see like me
Open up your plans and damn you’re free
Look into your heart and you’ll find love love love
Listen to the music of the moment maybe sing with me
Ah, la peaceful melodies
It’s your God-forsaken right to be loved love loved love love

[He resolves to stop hesitating and to plunge into this relationship. He wants her to have an open mind and realize that she loves him too. He tells her to "listen to the music of the moment." I think he means he wants her to focus on the present, forget the past and ignore the future. He says, "it's your God-forsaken right to be loved."  Some people feel like we live in a world abandoned by God and all we have left is love.]
So I won’t hesitate no more, no more
It cannot wait I’m sure
There’s no need to complicate
Our time is short
This is our fate, I’m yours

[He reminds her that life is short. He believes he is destined to be with this girl. Every moment they spend apart is like a moment spent denying their destiny.]
I’ve been spending way too long checking my tongue in the mirror
And bending over backwards just to try to see it clearer
But my breath fogged up the glass
And so I drew a new face and laughed
I guess what I’m saying is there ain’t no better reason
To rid yourself of vanity and just go with the seasons
It’s what we aim to do
Our name is our virtue

[This part is a little opaque and resists analysis. I'm not sure why he's checking his tongue in the mirror. I only do that after I eat a popsicle or something similarly laden with food coloring. But checking one's self in the mirror often connotes vanity. Yet at the same time, he possesses a childlike innocence shown by his drawing a face using the moisture from his breath. Mraz seems to realize that he's not making much sense so he helps me out by summarizing, "I guess what I'm saying is there ain't no better reason/ To rid yourself of vanity and just go with the seasons." He's saying that there's no point in going through your life being full of yourself and stubborn. Instead, you should be flexible and open to change. I like the line, "our name is our virtue." I'm not sure what it means but it could mean that when our parents name us with a name like Jason, meaning "healer" or Asad, meaning "lion" with the connotation of courage, they are hoping to inspire us to have some kind of virtue. The name is like a wish for a certain type of character that will help us be decent people.

The song is about trying your hardest to get what you want in life. It's about choosing to be flexible rather than stubborn. And it's about realizing that what you have within you is enough to overcome any obstacle that comes your way.]
I won’t hesitate no more, no more
It cannot wait I’m sure
There’s no need to complicate
Our time is short
This is our fate, I’m yours

Well no no, well open up your mind and see like me
Open up your plans and damn you’re free
Look into your heart and you’ll find love love love love
Listen to the music of the moment come and dance with me
ah, la one big family ([2nd time:] ah, la happy family)
It’s your God-forsaken right to be loved love love love

I won’t hesitate no more
Oh no more no more no more
It’s your God-forsaken right to be loved, I’m sure
Theres no need to complicate
Our time is short
This is our fate, I’m yours

No I won’t hesitate no more, no more
This cannot wait I’m sure
There’s no need to complicate
Our time is short
This is our fate, I’m yours, I’m yours

New Job

Today I interviewed for a job at Curie High, on 4959 S. Archer in Chicago. A few hours later, I was offered the job as an environmental science teacher. I start on Monday. I bought some cool science toys I want to try out with my kids.

Shortest Khutba

I explored the idea of writing a parsimonious, simple khutba. I realize that a khateeb must draw upon the Quran and Hadith and that a khateeb must remind the congregation to fear Allah. What follows is my version of the shortest acceptable khutba.

————————————————————

Alhamdulillahi rabbil alameen wa salatu wa salaamu ala rasulihil kareem

All praise is due to Allah, the Lord of All the Worlds and greetings and peace to the Noble Messenger

Bismillah hirr Rahman nirr Raheem

In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful.

يَـٰٓأَيُّہَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ ٱتَّقُواْ ٱللَّهَ حَقَّ تُقَاتِهِ

O, You who believe! Fear Allah the way He should be feared, Quran, Surah 3, Surah Ale Imran

Allah’s Messenger said to Abu Dharr, “Fear Allah wherever you are; if you follow an evil deed with a good one you will obliterate it; and deal with people with a good disposition.“

Remember Allah who is Glorious, He will also remember you, Be grateful upon the bounties of Allah, and He will grant you more. Allah’s remembrance is indeed the greatest thing, Verily! Allah knows what you do.

This khutba praises Allah and His Messenger, salla allahu alaihi wa sallam, reminds Muslims to fear Allah, and tells Muslims to remember Allah. It could help Muslim students learning how to give a khutba to practice and focus on the essentials.

Read, read

A voice in the cave

Told the messenger to be brave

When he was lost in a time of doubt

God sent him guidance to find a way out

 

Gabriel cried out, “Read, read . .  .”

At first the messenger disagreed

Telling him he did not know

So the angel squeezed him and would not let go

 

Once, twice, thrice, Gabriel held him tight

The unlettered Prophet continued to fight

The angel said “Proclaim, Proclaim”

And that he must do this in his Lord’s name

 

After the third time, the angel told him what to say

The shaken messenger did obey

Not knowing what had just occurred

He wondered if his vision was absurd.

 

He went to his devoted wife

Beloved Khadija, the light of his life

Frightened and shaking, he spoke

Asking her to wrap him in a cloak

————————

While some women would have been abhorred,

She spoke of a Lord 

That would never leave him

She spoke of how all men believed him

He looked after the aged and the tender youth

In every instance, he would tell the truth.

With gentleness, not a bit of wrath

She showed him that this new faith was his path.

Babies

I noticed a baby in the grocery store today. It was not on sale. (Didn’t your parents ever joke that they bought you at KMart?) No, the baby, I think a boy, was with a female caregiver. Probably his mom, but who can say for sure? It could have been an aunt, a sister, a grandmother, a nanny, or someone else.

What struck me about this baby was the way he was playing with his toes. He was wiggling them, touching them, and touching them to his bottle. And I realized that one of the great things about being a baby must be the ability to touch your toes with incredible ease. As one gets older, one gets further away from one’s toes and in some ways that’s a shame. I can still touch my toes without bending my knees, but I know a lot of people my age and not much older who can’t. I suppose it doesn’t have much practical benefit, but it’s one of those little things about life.

Picture courtesy of Madeline’s Blog, http://www.gracefulmadeline.com/blogs/index.php?blog=2&cat=17&page=1&disp=posts&paged=2

Wikipedia Fun

I like to browse Wikipedia. Maybe that makes me a nerd. I don’t care.

I found something interesting today. The Prime Minister of Japan, Yasuo Fukuda, resigned today, after less than a year in office.

It is odd to step down from such a position so early, but it gets better.

First off, it says that prior to being Prime Minister Fukuda was the longest serving Chief Cabinet Secretary in Japanese history. Now when it says, “longest-serving,” a reasonable person would think that maybe he served for ten or twelve years. That sounds like a long term. But in fact, he served for three and a half years. I don’t know much about Japanese politics but that seems pretty short to me. They must have a lot of turnover.

But here’s the best part, this is directly from Wikipedia and I have not altered a word:

“When Fukuda was Chief Cabinet Secretary to former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi he was reported to have made highly controversial comments during an off-the-record discussion with reporters in June 2003 regarding the victims of rape by male members of the Waseda University “Super Free” club^[15], according to an article in the weekly magazine Shukan Bunshun.^[16] The magazine quoted Fukuda as saying: “There are women who look like they are saying ‘Do it to me’. Those who have that kind of appearance are at fault, because men are black panthers.” In response, Fukuda claimed that the Shukan Bunshun had distorted his comments, stating that he had never intended to defend rape, and told a parliamentary panel afterwards that rape was “a criminal act and an atrocious crime”.”

He actually said that women were sending the message, “Do it to me” to the men who raped them.  Please understand,  I think rape is a heinous crime, and I do not mean to make light of it at all. But what I do find funny is when politicians suffer from foot-in-mouth disease.