Religicide Poem by David Lewis Paget

I 'must believe' in something to be
Saved, so I've been told,
And practice all those rituals
Passed down from days of old,
Conform to thoughts conceived by men
Two thousand years ago,
The followers of Jesus, Buddha,
Krishna... So and so!

Then once I've made my choice I must
Resist all other faiths,
And war with each heretic, spill
Their blood, malign their race,
Aver that only my belief
Will take us to the stars,
While all those other foolish folk
Head to some place like Mars.

And all this on the words of those
Who trod the desert plains,
Who never saw an aeroplane,
Electric light or trains,
Knew nothing of the Internet
Or travel into space,
Who muttered superstitions round
The campfires of their race.

Our lives are fraught with peril as
Fanatics roam the earth,
Who seek to kill and maim us
By the values of their dearth,
No matter what I think, believe,
Or what man has begun,
The universe will plough its way
In circles, round the sun!

2 February 2010