I had a series of dreams last night that helped convince me that the Scimitar in the world as we know it at present is nearly unstoppable (don't worry; I'm not sharing the dreams). One reason is that it is structurally identical with what René Girard calls "the primitive sacred." Regardless of one's aptitude and/or predilection to understand mimetic theory (and it seems either like a gift of the Holy Spirit or nearly the same thing - one can't take credit for "getting" MT. I sure don't want to read Bernard Lonergan).
Under the same heading for those with eyes to see, the Scimitar is rife with tribalism, shame culture aspects, and its flip side, honor, so-called.
All of this rumbles tremulously into the reality that Girard deems Mimetic Rivalry on a Planetary Scale. And then, of course, there is the worst of all reality: the West's junkie addiction to Middle Eastern (read: Scimitar) petro energy in all its forms. This means we get to pay for our sworn enemies' terrorism and the education-of-hatred of their prolifically produced young with our own "drug" money.
With this burr under my saddle, I asked author, lecturer, friend and mentor Gil Bailie why there was so much ostensible silence from Girardians regarding these disturbing developments.
He answered, kindly. But I suppose I am realizing (hence, the dreams) that merely thematizing the dilemma of our "doubling rivalry" with the Scimitar will neither remove our concomitant sin in the West (which resembles in all ways the shame, tribalism, mammon addiction, honor worshiping of the Scimitar) nor provide entrée for the Holy Spirit into the hearts of millions of those who live and move and have their being under the Scimitar's deity, such as he is.
So, what's to do? Perhaps I am sounding less and less a proponent of legitimate defense and more one of monasticism, but Eliot's prayer, observance, discipline, thought and action sounds pretty good to me. If you have a better idea, please let me know.
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