Wednesday, November 16, 2011

The Burial at Thebes

"I disobeyed because the law was not
The law of Zeus nor the law ordained
By Justice, Justice dwelling deep
Amont the gods of the dead. What they decree
Is immemorial and blinding for us all.
The proclamation had your force behind it
But it was mortal force, and I, also a mortal,
I chose to disregard it. I abide
By statutes utter and immutable--
Unwritten, original, god given laws."
                          -Antigone, from Sophocles' Antigone

The meaning of this passage is so inherent in the descions we make concerneing our morals and laws in today's world. It means that higher law, the law of god, is more important that 'lower' laws, laws made by man.

What do I mean by this? Some of America's most polarizing political topics stem from religious beleifs: abortion and gay marriage. The very heart of the debate is whether or not they are 'moral'. The morality comes from a higher power, it is divinely ordained.

We pride ourselves as a secular nation, seperating church and state.

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