The Sexual Nature of Evil

Consider this question: Are we really at such a loss as to why young men are blowing themselves up in the name of religion?

Reflecting on the swirl of newly produced hormones coursing through my body in my late teens and early twenties from the vantage point (and safety!) of my old age, I don't find it difficult to understand at all.

I was raised in a fundamentalist Christian environment ... Baptist oriented--with a brief mix of Pentecostal ... yes, I experienced the psychic phenomenum of "Speaking in Tongues" as a manifestaion of the "Baptism of the Holy Spirit". Imagine my suprise when I later started lusting after members of the opposite sex! How could this be?

The battle I fought against Satanic forces seeking to control my soul was gigantic, heroic, and--finally--tragic ... because I was fighting myself.

Fast forward to a philosophical review of our history from the vista of old age: We have made it public policy to deny the sexual nature of sociopathic environments in our history, such as the slavery in the Southern Baptist south and homophobia in the military.

Because we do not, as part of our conventional wisdom, acknowledge the double-bell shaped curve of human sexuality as a continuum without sharp delineation in our species, we continue to fail in our attempts to understand the roots of much behavior that we have labeled as evil.

My hypothesis is that if we understood the sexual nature of our own history, we could better understand the (also seemingly obvious upon reflection) sexual nature of the jihadists efforts.

Do we really NOT understand the frenzied drive to overcome the lust awakened in us by what religous leaders call Satanic forces?

I can still remember--though I no longer feel--the heat of that powerful force ... and the peace that finally came when I understood it was natural, that I was supposed to feel that way, and the secret to feeling the indescrible joy in its climax and release (as opposed to guilt and shame), was to care about the other person.

Otherwise, I was a dog chasing my own tail.

Read my play, HUNTING THE ROAD KILL MOOSE, dealing with this subject.

I will also be facilitating the Tuesday evening, August 2nd, Symposia Salon in Greenwich Village on this subject, "The Sexual Nature of Evil." Check out www.symposia.us for time and place.