Clancy;
I'm sorry, I didn't mean to imply there "had" to be a purpose. I was just wondering where we were going, is all.
I understand your thoughts here about the elitism. But, honestly, the same arguements can be made for just about any religious belief --
in their extreem. The crux of them all is that *we* are right and *you* are wrong....or, as I tell my students, "My god is bigger than your god, and I'll kill you to prove it."
Every religious group I've studied has had a period of being persecuted, and then persecuting others. This is Eastern and Western beliefs.
And it's totally human.
For me, I'm happy to accept the ideas expressed in our US Constitution, (with apologies to our non US members of SR). Freedom of religion. That includes the freedom NOT to believe. And it means to respect others in their beliefs -- just as we want to be respected in ours.
The mountain of Truth has many paths.
And I'm not more right by knocking another down.
I want to enjoy the journey, and to see what I can learn from others on that path up the mountain.
Shalom!