Sacrificing on altars of Stanton’s own making
The essence of idolatry is the creation of one's own rules for religion. If you make the rules, those who can be convinced to follow them are like clay in your hands. Nearly 3,000 years before Karl Marx and Hitler discovered that, and put the state in charge of religion, Jeroboam had already beat him to it. His rebellion against Rehoboam's despotism ended up splitting the Kingdom of Israel into the divided northern and southern kingdoms of Israel and Judah. Having lost access to Jewish religious life in Jerusalem, Jereboam made a calculation. He decided to build his own altars and appoint his own priests so his subjects wouldn't have to cross into Judah's territory to worship in Jerusalem. Why not just give the people [...]
