PERMIT-WILDERNESS CRY- HILARY L HUNT MD

PERMIT-This word means to allow a course of action. Permits are issued and authorized for all sorts of legal and/or civic activities. Likewise, requests for permits may be denied for multiple and varied reasons. In the case of religion, Christians have been denied permission to perform as sorts of activities throughout the ages. Some classic examples, probably not known about by the younger set, were the multiple prohibitions regarding fasting, eating flesh of warm-blooded animals, taking communion etc. For instance, Catholics were not permitted to eat more than one full meal per day during the forty days of Lent; Sundays being the exception. Likewise Catholics were not permitted to eat meat (flesh of warm-blooded animals) any day during Lent except Sunday; neither were they allowed to eat such meat on any Friday throughout the year.  Likewise Catholics were not permitted to take the Eucharist (Holy Communion) if they had eaten anything or taken even the tinniest sip of any liquid after midnight the night before. With the advent of the second Vatican council, many of those restrictions were lifted and/or altered significantly. Whereas in former days Catholics were prohibited from “receiving” if they were not completely fasting after midnight, and neither were they  permitted to allow their teeth to touch the communion host under “pain of Mortal sin”, nowadays no fasting at all is required; likewise we are encouraged to vigorously chew the communion host as though eating a hamburger. In the realm of reproduction and sex, in former days the pulpits riled against artificial birth control of any kind except the hapless so-called “rhythm system”. The word “abortion” was so horrific as to be seldom even mentioned. Non-fertile couples were never allowed to even consider outside scientific assistance such as in-vitro fertilization in attaining pregnancy. To my knowledge, not one of those prohibitions has been officially eliminated. However, the only one ever mentioned is abortion. The reason is very clear to ascertain; persistent riling against common-sense practices drive the faithful away from the church. Of course, that would be the greatest catastrophe of all; not because of moral implications but, rather, because of the loss of  POWER, MONEY, AND CONTROL of the masses. The loss of money is obviously the most important consideration. As in almost any organization, there are Conservative and Liberal factions. The Conservatives in the Catholic hierarchy, demand iron-fisted rules and regulations aimed at keeping the constituents under absolute central, dictatorial, control. Liberals, on the other hand, seek to return the the practice of Christian worship to local governance. Also, and just as important, if not more-so, they seek to be more, if not, all- inclusive in their membership. They seek to unite under one communion of spirituality; that being, of course, the recognition by all that each of us is the mirror image of our common creator. In that sense we all are irretrievably united in one common spirituality, The Spirit of God (The Holy Spirit). Under the supreme theocratic dictatorship of the Vatican and like High-holy places around the globe, such union would never be permitted. I have expressed this complete philosophy in my powerful little book, Wilderness Cry. It is available all major on-line book vendors, hard-copy and digital. I strongly urge your consideration for the preservation of the human race.  handg@comcast.net.