Our Family Has Fallen
Chapter 96: Materialistic Theology_1

Chapter 96: Chapter 96: Materialistic Theology_1

"This touches upon a very important concept in the formation of religion, which is ’Godmaking’,"

"Godmaking?"

"You can think of it this way: as an ordinary person, would you rather be close to a good person or a bad person?"

"A good person, of course."

"Exactly," Lance said with a grin. "We are naturally drawn to good people because our subconscious tells us that good people won’t harm us, while bad people might. This is essentially driven by self-interest and has evolved into a collective understanding through long-term social interaction.

"To make ordinary people feel a connection, religions cram every conceivable virtue—truth, goodness, beauty—into their gods, creating a flawless deity. After all, they control the narrative. Why wouldn’t they do it if simply uttering some words naturally attracts ordinary people?"

In fact, there was another crucial point Lance hadn’t finished: promoting virtuous qualities isn’t exclusive to the Church; the ruling class does it too.

This helps to pacify the populace and deter rebellion against rulers, a consequence of human social dynamics.

To some extent, the operational logic of religion and the state is quite similar: the upper class enjoys privileges, the middle class upholds the system, and the lower class is ruthlessly exploited.

The difference is that one tells stories without bearing any responsibility, while the other has to take the blame if things go wrong.

Now that he was a Lord, his loyalties lay with the ruling class. His position dictated his words; he wouldn’t easily say things that would undermine his own authority.

He was cracking down on the Church because it interfered with his rule over the territory. If everyone believes in your Church, who the hell is going to believe in me?

At this thought, Lance unapologetically directed his criticism at the Church.

"Talk is cheap, isn’t it? I could claim I’ll take you to the moon! Besides, only you folks in the vast middle and lower classes need to abide by those doctrines. As for whether the higher-ups actually follow them, ordinary people wouldn’t know. It’s all lip service; I’m sure you’ve realized that by now."

Reynard indeed understood this deeply. Looking back, he realized that the holy crusades he’d once participated in, proclaimed with such fervor, were, just as the Lord said, merely an excuse for the Church’s upper echelons to drive them to plunder. He himself had been no different from those bandits.

"But what about the Divine Arts? How can they perform them?"

Reynard recalled a crucial point: a major reason for the Church’s immense power in this world was its ability to perform apparent miracles in front of people.

Lance didn’t falter at this question. He had pondered it long ago and was already clear on the answer.

"You should know that a Flintlock Gun relies on gunpowder to function, but do you know the formula for gunpowder? Do you know why gunpowder emits light and heat when it burns?

"Truthfully, you don’t need to know. You just need to understand how to load the gunpowder into the musket and ignite it. You don’t need any faith to use a musket.

"Divine Arts are the same. They are simply methods that we don’t yet understand at our current stage. That’s why even Priests who violate the sacred laws can still perform them. In fact, they’ve helped us prove that Divine Arts have absolutely nothing to do with any god.

"They’re just a group of people who have monopolized Divine Arts, much like those who control the formula and production of gunpowder. For these individuals to preach that believers must make sacrifices is a joke. Those you revere are merely the Church’s upper echelon, having no connection whatsoever to the god you believe in."

Actually, Lance had an even more fitting analogy. The so-called Divine Arts were ubiquitous in the modern world—smartphones.

Ordinary people used them but didn’t understand the principles behind them. The knowledge of their creation was held by a few, and the barrier to entry for manufacturing was very high.

Moreover, different phone brands had vast numbers of ’devotees’ (users) who would attack each other, waging ’wars’ (online flame wars), just like damn evil cults.

Lance had used his Ability for so long, and it felt quite similar to a smartphone. He didn’t understand its operational principles, but it was undeniably useful.

Hearing this, Reynard seemed to grasp something. He closed his eyes and sighed.

"So, there really are no gods..."

The faith he had dedicated his entire life to was fundamentally a sham. This was a blow anyone would find hard to bear.

However, Lance didn’t continue his critique of the Church. Instead, he returned to the initial topic of their conversation.

"This brings us back to the original question you asked: whether I believe in the existence of gods. Now, I’ll give you my answer."

Lance finally adopted a serious demeanor and spoke earnestly,

"I believe in gods because I have seen a god, but I do not worship gods, because gods do not need human faith."

He had transmigrated, after all, and his system panel clearly stated an indescribable entity stood behind him. If he didn’t even believe that, there was definitely something wrong with his head.

But belief and faith were two different things. He was a staunch materialist. The existence of a god merely indicated the existence of a powerful "life form"; it didn’t necessarily require one to worship It.

However, Reynard, lacking Lance’s kind of education and upbringing, found these words deeply contradictory and difficult to comprehend.

Lance, unhurriedly, began to explain.

"The concept of ’gods’ is inherently a human construct. As ages pass, anything humans find difficult to understand can be labeled a ’god.’ Simply put, ’gods’ refer to humanity’s personified projections of external powers that transcend humankind.

"You can draw an analogy between ants and humans. To an ant, a stone might seem like a towering mountain, but to a human, it’s just a fist-sized rock that even a child could move.

"Perhaps you accidentally kick a stone while walking. The ants, unable to comprehend this mountain-moving power, might revere you as a divine being. Or maybe you drop some food on the ground while eating. The ants, not understanding why food falls from the sky, believe it to be a gift from their god and worship you fervently.

"But you wouldn’t care about a single ant at all, because the gap between humans and gods is likely infinitely large—so vast that mutual understanding is impossible. Just as an ant can never see your entirety or comprehend your thoughts, you too cannot understand what an ant is thinking. That’s why I say gods do not need human faith, just as you do not need an ant’s faith."

Actually, if he could, Lance would have preferred to use an analogy about file formats. Gods were, in fact, material. It was like trying to open a file of one format with a program expecting another; different decoding methods would inevitably cause a system crash. That’s why humans went mad upon encountering a god.

Even if the formats were compatible, a god’s data stream would be nearly infinite. A human brain, capable of decoding perhaps only 1KB at a time, would be instantly overwhelmed and blown out by such a torrent of data.

"Gods are invincible..." Reynard sounded somewhat dejected. The Lord’s vivid analogy made him understand that ants could never defeat humans; despair enveloped his heart.

Lance heard this but didn’t seem particularly concerned. He grinned, full of confidence, and said,

"Theoretically, that’s true. Humans can hardly defeat gods because they’re simply not on the same level. And now, there’s one right before us. Once It fully awakens, Its power will be enough to destroy the entire world.

"But in reality, differences exist even among gods. It has been imprisoned by an unknown entity beneath our feet, plunged into an endless slumber. And that entity granted me a Divine Revelation, bestowing upon me the power to influence It.

"To put it simply, when gods can be influenced by humans, they are no longer invincible, even if They are far more powerful than humans."

"If that’s the case, why doesn’t that entity just kill the Evil God instead of granting power to humans?"