House of Worship

By A.D. Gentle [Contributor]

Between 2040 and 2052 many people killed one another. Those left behind simultaneously cleaned up the resultant environmental disaster and created a new world religion. Each achievement managed to out shine all previous expectations of what humans could do when they worked together. They repaired decades of pollution and the final nuclear fallout of 2051—when eleven years of fighting lead to the last resort. The advantage of a greatly reduced population let huge portions of contaminated cities rest while everyone saved the portions of usable soil to raise garden beds to feed one another.

Now, the abolition of all existing religions in order to replace them with the religion that ultimately took over did not take much effort. The fundamental principles of the new religion made logical sense, which was more than could be said for the unfounded beliefs of the big three. The transition was most easily facilitated by the fact that most religious followers had succeeded in destroying themselves while vying to prove their views correct over the non-believers.

Essentially, the new religion was self-worship. The self responded to one’s own prayers and could change one’s future. The self created its own image through hard work, through visits to the gym or by decorations with paint, ornament, and cloth. The self could also create new things and new life. It was an ideal deity in a world that realized there was no greater force going to step in and rescue them.

Acts of creation became the hot topic of the time. Most conversations involved some aspect of creation, whether of art, science, or life. A sample conversation of life creation might run as follows:

“Would you like to share an act of creation with me?” said the one who approached first.

“Yes, I enjoy sharing creation. Shall we go to the eighteen to twenty-five mutual creation garden?

“Certainly. It is good you find my appearance favourable.”

“Likewise. Shall we return to my house of worship afterward?”

A person’s home is their own house of worship. Whether clean and tidy, or in chaos, each house was perfect as it was, for it represented the deity exactly. Some worshipped themselves with offerings of incense or food, and others chose to worship with bloody acts inflicted upon the self. Each way was accepted by the other deities.

Children made perfect followers until they reached the age of godhood at around sixteen, whereupon they set up their own house of worship and began to create themselves in their own images. In this manner, children care for their own bodies and quickly become adults. This has been facilitated by the creation gardens where children may watch the other age group gardens as they engage in acts of pleasure creation.

We sincerely hope the new religion prevents a repeat of the Twelve Year War. If not, we may be forced to use the last resort again.