Keynote Address at the Grand Opening of the Church of Scientology New York (cont.)
And
therein lies the real problem. For the truth of the matter is
that, thee and me are the most powerful force on this God
created Earth.
And
no, I am not merely speaking of the daily headlines of international
warfare and conflict. The fact is that's only but the latest chapter
in the drama that has continued to unfold for the past several millennia. War, man against man, nation against nation. And if
today it is different, that's only because the weapons are larger.
But here's the real
point. While we are hit with the daily headlines, the terror alerts
and all else, it obscures the deeper, more serious problem that
underlies it all. Man himself.
Today we live in a
world increasingly obsessed with science. Yes we can send man to the
Moon, explore the surface of Mars, and even survey the galaxy with
NASA probes. With advanced computer technology, and satellites
circling the globe, we can communicate to anyone, anywhere on Earth,
in an instant.
Yet with all of that,
everything science has brought us, with the high technology of this
21st century science can't yet prevent war. And what about the terror
alerts that are a part of everyday existence?
The upsets at home that
are so common it's considered a routine part of life? Or what about
raising a child today? If it's not the drugs, then it's the all too
common worry that they'll actually get an education.
The answer to this
planet's problems will not be found in the material. Of
this there can be no question.
For if those solutions
can't prevent war, nation to nation, how then can it be expected to
answer questions like love, happiness or compassion?
And what of our
traditional values, what makes us all brothers one to another,
regardless of race, creed or religion? These are the values that
come from within. They transcend what can be discovered through
probes and microscopes. They are things we feel, and which can only
be touched through the spirit.
So yes, in the face of
scientific advance, something was left behind: Man
himself.
For when a culture
falls away from spiritual pursuits into materialism well that is when
man becomes just another animal and with no belief-in let alone hope
of the hereafter, of something greater than just day-to-day existence
then what does anything matter anyway?
