Nietzsche on Churchianity

'At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry, and they began to pluck heads of grain and to eat. But when the Pharisees saw it, they said to him, “Look, your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath.” He said to them, “Have you not read what David did when he was hungry, and those who were with him: how he entered the house of God and ate the bread of the Presence, which it was not lawful for him to eat nor for those who were with him, but only for the priests?' 

Matthew 12:1-5

'Whatever is done from love always occurs beyond good and evil.'

- Nietzsche, Beyond Good and Evil

Keep those quote in mind.

Let’s think of the smarmy boy in your elementary school class. You know, the one that would tattle on you for breaking a small rule. He would do this to be spiteful. Or because he felt slavish towards the rules. Maybe get back at you for something. Your mom might have told you that he was acting that way because he was jealous. Nevertheless, the kid’s not wrong. You broke a rule and you will get punished for it. And the kid will certainly feel smug. Even if your mom is right, that he acts out of insecurity, the kid will feel smug.

And what did you really want to do? You wanted, I’m sure, to call him out on all his bullshit. But probably, you were a bit timid, were a bit confused, and didn’t yell at the kid in front of the class and show him for what he was. You defaulted to the easy path: a good boy; and let him get away with his antics. And you were left feeling dissatisfied.

Well, Nietzsche took another path: a cleverer one. For him, the tattle tell is christians as a collective. And he does call them out.

Let’s look again at the the spiteful boy. He uses the “rules” and “goodness” in a funny way. He might put on airs of goodness, like give the teacher a big, innocent simile as he devilishly prepares your destruction. He doesn’t really believe it, it seems. There’s something weak about his attitude. Destructive, yes ... but afraid too ... uncommitted to life or something … In any case -- there you are, you are called “wrong,” or “evil” and you do not do what you really feel you ought to do because you want to have the protection of being “good.” But now … you are being just as cowardly as your enemy … It’s unsatisfactory.

Using masks of righteousness, purity, and knowing the right things … hmmm …

What Pharisees does this remind you of?

Let us stay away from this attitude. Be bold. Love.

Let us follow King David. Let us follow Christ. And go beyond “good” and “evil.”