URGE: what a powerful word with which to describe the insatiable forces of nature. Generally, this word suggests a persistent inclination or force for completion of an action. Everywhere we look, those forces are being played out to completion or attempted completion. For instance, the waves of an ocean roll onto shore in unrelenting fashion–a rockslide on a mountain persists until it meets an unrelenting opposite force.

Personally, as a farmer and gardener, I have observed thousands of times how living vegetation exhibits those powerful urges to reproduce. In the spring and early summer, a specific weed or grass may grow for weeks and reach considerable height before any sign of blossoms and seed appears on its stem—it seems to be taking its ‘good ole easy time’ with no sense of urgency. As a matter of principle, there is no urgency—it has all summer to ‘get the job done’. However, in late summer and fall, that same weed or grass sprig may sprout today and show seed formation in just a few days–a dramatic sense of urgency—frost is coming soon and that means death. The species must be reproduced at all cost—there is no time for leisure ‘growth loafing’.

In the animal kingdom we observe that same sense of urgency, albeit in somewhat different fashion. Typically, the larger, stronger male will challenge all others for the breeding rights of an impatiently waiting female—the survival of the fittest. Humans are little different. The urge for reproduction is identical and unrelenting, but the main difference is that humans make an attempt at being civilized in their choice of mate. Given the opportunity, the average human will breed ‘come hell or high water’—and whether or not the opportunity presents itself, the unrelenting ‘urge’ is always there.

Throughout the centuries of Christianity’s existence, the Church has attempted to stifle that urge– I have often wondered for what purpose. Was/is it a deliberate attempt at controlling the masses, or does the Church consider sex to be intrinsically evil? I believe the answer to that question can be clearly found in the book of Exodus– please allow me to explain. It is an established acceptance among Biblical scholars that Moses wrote the first five books of the Bible. Prior to Moses’s time, by his own admission, concubines and sex with slave girls was accepted practice — Ismael was the product of Abraham mating with his Egyptian slave girl.  The word or concept of specific sin had not yet entered the picture.

So, Moses either concocted per primum or altered myths and fairy tales which had been handed down through the ages about creation stories, the Adam and Eve story on down to the very moment he found himself in the desert with a clan of people who had become rebellious against himself because he had led them into a death trap of starvation. He had long-since established with them that he and he alone could ‘talk directly with God’. So, as his story went, he had no problem convincing them that his Ten Commandments were God’s directives given directly to him with instructions that any violators would be severely punished by God himself — personal sin against God was instituted on the spot.

As his story goes, the Israelites did in fact cease their evil ways and began once again obeying Moses’ orders. Moses surely was writing for future generations because anyone of his followers at the time, or anyone who has read the Book of Exodus would know that the complete set of directives associated with each commandment would require stone blocks at least the size of a city block square. Furthermore, they would have required years and years for a stone chiseler to cut them into the massive blocks.  In addition, it is likely that ten thousand able-bodied men would not be able to lift just one of them. Yet Moses would have us believe that God gave them directly to him in one day and he carried both at the same down the mountain time and presented them to his subjects.

In addition, Moses presents us with the picture if the Israelites reverting to worshiping a golden calf. It seems unthinkable that those poor peasants would be carrying enough gold to fabricate a golden calf in the first place but secondly, and possibly more importantly, how were thy able to heat it to the 1948 degrees F. required to melt it. One must wonder at the basic mentality and/or rationality of humanity both then and now for allowing such nonsense to be propagated for three thousand years unquestioned — likely, larger fairy tales have been told but I can’t recall them.

Of course, human nature as it is, God’s rules were being broken routinely by all. The net result of that thinking imposed by Moses was a concept that such a God would be continually angry and vengeful, and that thought process led to the eventual concept that their wrathful God must be appeased. That reasoning led to the conclusion that sacrificial offerings of a ‘perfect nature’ must be made — by whom? Of course, the High Priest. Not only could the High Priest alone make the offering, but only he could provide those ‘perfect specimens’ to be offered. Extortionist religion was created — enter Jesus.

The net result of attempting to thwart the second strongest urge in life is the generation of millions and millions of neurotic and/or psychotic people. Taylor, in his very astute book, Sex In History, described medieval Europe as one giant cesspool of psychosis generated by the Church’s attempts at demonizing and suppressing sexual activity—the Inquisition lives on even till today. The Church can’t physically harm us any longer, but for those who submit to its teachings, the likelihood is they are permanently psychologically scarred. I am convinced that this singular attitudinal teaching of religion is the primary cause of most neurotic disease in the world.

At this point it should be noted that, as people worldwide have become more educated and introspective, they have abandoned religion as being irrelevant in their lives. That is borne out by statistics which show church attendance to be diminishing steadily — it is reported that between 1960’s and the early 2020’s, the attendance at Catholic services on a weekly basis has dropped 40%. Of course, ‘attendance at mass on all Sundays and holy days’ of obligation’ is a Church commandment which was preached and demanded regularly in days gone by– one seldom hears any Church Commandment mentioned any more.

That lack of attendance does not coincide with lack of spirituality in those people—it simply means that their commonsense has overridden the irrational concepts propagated by religion.

Those concepts and many, many more are drawn out extensively in my three books, Wilderness Cry , Peace in Spirituality, and Provocative Catholic. If you have an ‘urge’ for truth, their readings are mandatory.

In addition, I have published a semi historical, semiautobiographical book, Growing Up In Fancy farm Kentucky. I believe you will find it both informative and humorous. All my books are available from Amazon-Kindle, both hardcopy and digital.

All comments welcomed. and any questions will be addressed directly.

You may like the attached trailer video produced by Covenant Books about Wilderness Cry.

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