All successful societies establish a connection with the Divine. This connection takes many different forms, but it always involves a strong sense of the sacred.
The spiritual impulse
Over 20,000 years ago, hunters painted pictures of animals on the walls of caves in Alamira and Lascaux. Those caves weren’t just caves, though—they were the world’s first cathedrals. That’s because the paintings in them weren’t just paintings.
The hunters had a sense that those animals weren’t just sources of meat, but rather sacred beings. By expressing that in art, they hoped that the spirits of the animals they killed would return again in material form to help sustain their tribes.
Inspiration and health
This spiritual impulse is innate in us, and the more we express it, the better we do. We see that in the art of civilized societies. Beautiful art in sacred spaces expresses this innate impulse, and the more beautiful the art, the more vibrant the society.
That’s because it inspires us to know that this earthly existence isn’t all there is, that there is something More. It’s also healthy for us to consider that we aren’t the epitome of creation, that in another realm exist those who are Better.
A balancing power
Western civilization ascended in conjunction with the Church: as the great cathedrals rose, so did the nations of Europe. That’s because the Church, as a champion of holiness, served as a counterbalance to the secular ambitions of kings and princes.
Today Western civilization is in decline, dominated by kings of finance. Without a powerful Church to promote the glorious over the usurious, the people of the West now live in spiritual—and increasingly financial—poverty.
A new civilization is emerging in America, struggling to be born. Its success will be determined, in large part, by the strength of its connection to the Divine.
