By Forest Rain
A masterpiece of storytelling, writing, and cinematography, the “Vikings” series enthralled me.
I cannot imagine being able to write a sweeping saga so
well. The characters are well-rounded and complex – as human beings are. The
society portrayed is very different than what we are familiar with and yet, it
is presented in a way that makes sense, through the lens of values and norms of
that time rather than the judgment of our present-day perspective. This is an
extraordinary accomplishment. On top of that the cinematography, lighting, and
soundtrack are artfully done.
And still – I found myself baffled. Why was I so caught up
by this series? I have no emotional connection to Vikings or England. I don’t
particularly enjoy scenes of violence and blood. The characters, while
interesting, are not necessarily likable. So… why did I find this saga so
gripping?
Jordan Peterson explains that people don’t have ideas but
rather ideas take hold of people. Ideas are bigger than individuals and
they form, push and guide people. Stories teach ideas. People connect to
certain stories because they hold something of value for the individual
enthralled by them. This concept made me pay attention to the unexplained
fascination I had with the Vikings saga.
(See? “Made me,” the idea caused me to act)
It took me a while
but eventually, I figured it out.
The Vikings series portrays the rise of Christianity and the
clash between societies – one that adheres to ancient gods while the other is
willing to do anything to promote their new god. The societies struggle to live
together but this is impossible. The conflict between ideas and the divide
between societies is too large. The new Christian god kills the old gods.
As a Jew, one would think I would identify with the
Christians as the rise of their society meant the dissemination of the biblical
values that were adopted from my faith. Instead, I found myself identifying
with the people whose ancient society and old ways were under threat.
And then I understood – we too are living in a time when “gods”
are at war.
My God, the God of the Jews is an ancient God. The God of
the bible is a god of rules, definitions, order, and judgment. The rights and
obligations of humanity come from God’s Commandments. This means that no human
has the right to take away what was granted by God. It also means that if we do
not fulfill our obligations, we will have to answer to God.
The new god is called “Progress”. To triumph, Progress must vanquish
the God of the bible. That is why Progress proclaims that the God of the bible
does not exist. This means that rights are given by humans and can be taken
away - if the human does not fulfill his or her obligations to the god
Progress.
The god of Progress gives no Commandments, aside from demanding
obedience to the guidelines of the day. These change from time to time, but all
are designed to rip apart the rules and order defined by the God of the bible.
The God of the bible created the universe through the power
of words. Through words, order was created and from order, hierarchy: the
separation between chaos and order, night and day, the heaven and the earth,
animals and humans, man and woman, good and that which is not good.
After every act of creation, God judged and deemed it good.
The god Progress claims that words morph according to the
agenda of the day. Words have no solid meaning; they shift according to the way
people feel. One day the word “whiteness” is a description of skin color, the
next it is an indication of origin, and then it becomes an accusation of
privilege. Progress claims that it is wrong to judge, wrong to define, and
separate.
The God of the bible created man and woman because both are
necessary. Progress declares that gender isn’t biology, it’s a feeling. Men and
women are exactly the same, and all differences are a sign of the evils of
society.
The God of the bible placed people as custodians over animals and nature.
Progress says that humans are not separate or in charge of animals, humans and
animals have the same value and perhaps animals are to be valued more. Progress
presents thinly-veiled genocidal tendencies, suggesting that the planet would
be better off with no humans on it.
Progress looks at the humans created by the God of the bible
and deems us bad.
The God of the Jews is rational, can have a conversation with humans, and can
even be convinced to change His mind. The God of the Jews defined morality and
gave humans the ability to choose. If there was no choice there would be no
distinction between good and bad, or anything at all. It would all just be
whatever we were told.
To vanquish the God of the Jews Progress must destroy
everything created by our God.
Undoing the meaning of words isn’t a matter of being flexible in order to
prevent hurt feelings, it is a way to undo the fabric of Creation.
Pretending that there is no difference between man and woman
isn’t a path to equality, on the contrary, it’s a tactic to divide and conquer,
for man to hate woman and woman to be afraid of man. It’s a denial of the spark
of the divine in each individual and the rejection of the incredible bond and
strength that results when man and woman strive together, in harmony.
The God of the Jews told us that mother and father are
sacred and must be honored so that we can live long on the earth. This means
that the family is sacred, that this institution provides us with the stability
we need to survive. Progress rips apart the hierarchy of family, telling
children that they must obey Progress and not parents who might tell them otherwise.
The God of the Jews determined that stealing and even
coveting is wrong. We are not allowed to take what is not ours and even jealous
yearning for something we did not earn is forbidden. Progress declares that redistribution
of wealth and anti-racism is the way to fight disparity.
Progress fights hate with new hate. The God of the Jews
fights hate by teaching compassion and justice. (Justice is also a word under
attack by Progress…)
Understanding what is happening in our world today as a
modern-day war between gods makes it easier to see a pattern. Seemingly
disparate issues are pieces to the same puzzle, individual battles in the same
war between the God of the Jews and the new god, Progress.
Progress has long been undermining the Judeo-Christian ethos
that made America unique among nations. I no longer recognize the country I was
born in. It is no wonder that Progress is infesting Israel, attempting to
poison our roots, to make them wither and die.
The God of the Jews gave the Children of Israel a choice and
we agreed to the special job He gave us – to be a Light unto the Nations. If it
wasn’t a choice, the title would be meaningless. If it was easy, there would be
no need to choose.
The God of the bible created light by separating it from the
darkness. Creating order from chaos. We Jews were given the Commandments and
rules for life that were designed to create order and justice for all societies
that chose to adopt those principles. We are supposed to uphold and model these
ideas. That is OUR story.
It is no wonder Progress hates Jewish stubborn adherence to
our God, our Torah, our Land, and our People. These hold the ideas that
provided the foundation of what we still call the “free world” and Jewish
ability to maintain them over time. To reign supreme, Progress must kill them
all, make them devoid of meaning and erase our understanding of these ideas. In
many places, in many ways, Progress has already succeeded.
And yet, the war of the gods is not over.
Like the Vikings discovered, the two societies cannot
co-exist. It is ours to choose which we want.
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