Projecting “sacred value” onto a mere object seems irrational. It’s a book. A vase. An urn. An area of dirt. A building. A piece of cloth. And old thing that can no longer be used. A mummified finger.
Three major religions assert that only God is sacred (Hebrew, Christian, Muslim). To assign “sacred” to anything other than God is idolatry and ‘out of line’. So say the primary assertions of these religions.
Yet Mulims assert that the Koran is sacred. Christians assert that the Bible is sacred, that there is “holy ground”, that certain buildings are sacred. No need to go into the superstitions of years gone by about the sacred power of “relics’. People of the Jewish faith assign sacredness to a wall, to scrolls, to items of clothing.
It’s irrational. Unthinking. Silly. Unscientific.
What do you think? Leave a comment and let us know.
I think superstitions are dangerous, especially when people not only rely, but base their whole worlds and communities, upon them. One of my beliefs (and, I like to think, more than a superstition), however, is in Karma. Reality, whatever it is, comes back to bite. Or reward. Depending on our efforts to discern and discredit superstition (or "magical thinking"), among other things.
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