textfiles/magazines/EUTHANASIA/e-sermon.17

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Today's reading is from chapter two of _Our Plundered Planet_, by the
eminent zoologist Fairfield Osborn:
>>>>
Man, then, has exchanged the safety and flexibility of generalized
characteristics, which since his primitive days have largely contributed
to his survival, for extreme specialization. Through the development of
the physical sciences, funneled into vast industrial systems, he has
created and continues to create new environments, new conditions. These
extensions of his mind-fertility and his mind-restlessness are
superimposed, like crusts, on the face of the earth, choking his life
sources. The conditions under which he must live are constantly
changing, he himself being the cause of the changes. In this
metamorphosis he has almost lost sight of the fact that the living
resources of his life are derived from his earth-home and not from his
mind-power. With one hand he harnesses great waters, with the other he
dries up the water sources. He must change with changing conditions or
perish. He *conquers* a continent and within a century lays much it
into a barren waste. He must move to find a new and unspoiled land. He
must, he must--but where? His numbers are increasing, starvation taunts
him--even after his wars too many are left alive. He causes the
life-giving soils for his crops to wash into the oceans. He falls back
on palliatives and calls upon a host of chemists to invent substitutes
for the organized processes of nature. Can they do this? Can his
chemists dismiss nature and take over the operation of the earth? He
hopes so. Hope turns to conviction--they *must*, or else he perishes.
Is he not nature's "crowning glory"? Can he not turn away from his
creator? Who has a better right? He has seemingly "discovered" the
secrets of the universe. What need, then, to live by its principles?
<<<<
Dear brethren, the Great Purification is almost at hand. The Chinese
and French nuclear explosions are the glove-slap, the shot across the
bow, the beginning of the final battle. Fernando Pereira stirs from his
watery grave, as the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty smolders in the
ashes of Muroroa. Already President Clinton scrambles to take advantage
of the situation; soon America too, will resume "testing." Are the
Humans incapable of restraint? Are they truly programmed to destroy the
Earth? Must the Earth rise up against the hostile aliens? Is there to
be no reasoning with them? Did the Hopis address the United Nations
General Assembly for nothing?
Long ago, the Hopis predicted "If we dig precious things from the land,
we will invite disaster." See how the whales beach themselves, and crop
circles form in the fields; Mother Earth is crying, and who is to blame?
Who ripped her open? Who looted her treasures? Who stripped her bare
and blindly tore into her flesh, crying out for more? The Humans have
invited disaster, and disaster has come. Fundamentalists thunder that
the apocalypse is near. They are fools; their apocalypse has already
begun. All that remains is the question of *degree*. How much
suffering do the Humans really want? How much of the Earth must they
lay waste in their last spasm of self-destruction? Even now, on the
threshold of annihilation, the choice is still yours. Your leaders say
that to win in battle, you must know your enemy; I say to each and every
one of you, "know yourself."
Let us pray:
Great Spirit, I am unworthy;
My species has disgraced itself.
Of all the species that live, or have ever lived,
Mine is the lowliest.
Lower than the flowers who fill the air with sweet pollen,
Lower than the trees who encircle the Earth with their roots,
Lower than the insects, rulers of Earth
Since the beginning of time,
Lower than the darting fish,
Lower than the soaring birds,
Lower than the four-legged creatures,
Who are the beating heart of the living Earth.
Great Spirit, my shame is as deep as the ocean,
And my sadness is unbearable.
I pray for enlightenment,
But fear that my prayer is too late.
Great Spirit, if this be so, then I pray for extinction.
Let my species become extinct, and vanish from the Earth.
Let my loins be barren,
Let my seed not sprout,
Let the race of men fall like leaves.
Let my fields grow wild,
Let my fences crumble,
Let my cities turn to dust, and become forests.
Let the grass drink my blood;
Let my body be food for worms.
Great Spirit, let me die, that the Earth may live.
[a moment of silence]
Finally, an IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT. Thanks to Pastor Scott in Arizona,
we have a bold new plan. In early December, the Church of Euthanasia
will unveil the world's first suicide assistance hotline! We'll start
with a billboard here in Boston that says:
SUICIDE ASSISTANCE HOTLINE
Helping you every step of the way...
Thousands helped! How about you?
CALL 976-KEVO
Sponsored by the Church of Euthanasia.
Folks will be able to call up and use their push-button phone to select
from a wide range of helpful and inspirational options:
* Going out like a celebrity
* Techniques from A-Z
* Helpful hints
* Snuff de Jour
* How to become a saint
* Christmas getting you down?
* Etiquette: neatness counts
* For a damn good reason to do it
* For that added measure of courage
* Leave your final recorded message
We can charge up to a $1 per minute for the calls. With a little luck,
the service will MAKE MONEY and we'll be able to set them up NATIONWIDE!
Incredible? Not at all! The local billboard and telephone companies
have already agreed to it! It's legal! It can happen! We CAN make a
difference, but we need YOUR help! To make this dream a reality, we
desperately need financial support from YOU, faithful subscriber and
supporter of the Church of Euthanasia! Even with our tax-exempt
discount, the billboard and the telephone set-up charges will total
approximately $800. Are we going to let that stop us? The SNUFFIT-L
mailing list contains over 750 addresses. If each one of you sends as
little as ONE DOLLAR, we'll have enough money to set up the world's
first SUICIDE ASSISTANCE HOTLINE! Make no mistake, this will be
NATIONAL NEWS! Geraldo! Ricki Lake! Reader's Digest! Euthanasia will
become a household word, thanks to YOU! Your contribution is 100%
tax-deductible, so send a dollar, send five dollars, send whatever you
can afford, just send it TODAY!
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Rev. Chris Korda The Church of Euthanasia coe@netcom.com
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