Zhihu: The Crown of Tokamak
Because those things called "materialism" are actually a version of religion that has been castrated of its most essential parts, leaving only the dregs and inefficiencies, and they have committed every mistake that religion dares not make, how could a knockoff compete with the genuine article?
The essence of a successful religion often lies in its strong religious community. In thriving religions around the world, the religious community is generally not far from thriving itself, because the religious community is the true material foundation and institutional guarantee of religion.
The religious community is essentially a grassroots self-organization based on common customs, shared understanding, and a common social order. It is an important supplier of public goods, providing comprehensive social services ranging from laws and morals to welfare and relief, from marriage and funerals to local agreements and community regulations.
Taking welfare and relief as an example, in Islam, theoretically, a qualified mosque cannot refuse anyone entry. Providing basic food and shelter for those seeking refuge is a fundamental doctrine of Islam. The poor can seek relief from the mosque, while the wealthy have an obligation to donate to it.
Recently, there was a case in China where a person, after undergoing gender reassignment surgery without informing their parents, was afraid to go home. So, they decided to hide in a mosque, learning to pray and helping with cleaning and cooking. After more than a month of blending in, their parents reported them missing, and the police eventually found her in the mosque.
This level of relief is indeed not low.
Why are various armed organizations in the Middle East extremely fervent and devout? Because the region has been plagued by war and devastation for years, leading to a difficult life for the people and employment challenges. Many young people see no way out except for the relief provided by mosques. The high level of relief in Islamic religious communities has shaped a strong identity among the youth, resulting in a situation where the poorer they are, the more devout they become, and the more devout they are, the more they engage in jihad.
Hamas is a typical example; it was initially established as a relief organization by a group of religious scholars. Although the princes dare not confront the West directly, they have not ceased to make substantial donations to religious communities associated with armed organizations for decades, never being stingy.
Christianity is even more noteworthy; the welfare and relief efforts in modern society originally stemmed from the Christian church, and even the origins of modern medical and nursing practices are intricately related to the church.
It has built a comprehensive, large-scale, tightly organized, and highly effective charitable relief system, covering everything from basic food and shelter to surgical procedures, from end-of-life care to psychological treatment. Its level of relief has even extended beyond mere medical assistance to the realm of emotional value.
For example, among various church rock bands in the United States, there are quite a few high-level bands and works.
Church hospitals, church schools, and church canteens are flourishing worldwide, even maintaining a significant presence in the Middle East, the stronghold of Islam. The profession of nursing originally was almost synonymous with that of nuns. In the 19th century, when lower-class soldiers were treated like cattle, the only ones willing to patrol the filthy, smelly barracks of wounded soldiers with lamps were the clergy. The world's first global charitable organization was directly named the Red Cross.
To borrow a famous line from a certain Hong Kong movie by a priest:
"I have been preaching here for over thirty years. They may not believe in Jesus, but if I ask them to kill, you can ask them if they will do it?"
Then there is Chinese Buddhism, which is also skilled in religious community and welfare relief.
Before the Three Religions and One Martial Art suppressed Buddhism, why did Chinese Buddhism develop into a de facto armed group of manor lords? Why did it absorb a large hidden population? Why did it annex vast tracts of land?
It's simple: although those monks wielded power, the officials of the court also wielded power. However, compared to the various harsh taxes and labor imposed by the court, the rent collected by temples was relatively light. Therefore, many self-sufficient farmers chose to seek refuge in temples to avoid the court's heavy taxes and labor conscription, and they didn't even have to serve labor, which could be considered a form of social welfare.
This is called comparative advantage.
After the Three Religions and One Martial Art suppressed Buddhism, the social welfare content of Chinese Buddhism further increased, and attracting followers became a way to establish communities. The social functions undertaken by religious communities became increasingly diverse, including medical care, support for the widowed and orphaned, disaster relief, infrastructure development, cultural and artistic activities, weddings and funerals, festive gatherings, social morality, and exorcism (which is essentially a form of psychological therapy).
When Zhu Yuanzhang could no longer survive, he could only become a monk, right? Even begging, at least being a monk could give you a formal identity while begging.
It's not that the social welfare provided by religion is particularly good, or that religious people are particularly noble; everything is relative.
If you compare yourself to those "materialists" next door, those folks are the ones who come into villages with machine guns and barbed wire to seize grain. If they can't seize the grain, they come with armored trains and use poison gas against those who resist. Their tax rates are even higher than those of the most oppressive landlords. You should know that landlords do not dare to seize seed grain because they at least fear disrupting the spring plowing, while the "materialists" will even take away your plowing oxen and chase away your chickens and ducks. If you can't pay, they will angrily accuse you of being a rich peasant and a bad element, conspiring to sabotage, and will indiscriminately dump all sorts of blame on you.
Moreover, surviving religions, after years of development and enduring the trials of history and society, have gained experience in certain matters. For example, idol worship and image worship are major taboos in most religions. In Christianity, this is called "using objects to match the Lord"; in Buddhism, it is called "attachment to forms," which falls under ignorance among greed, hatred, and ignorance. Islam is even more prohibitive, not allowing any images at all.
Now look at the "materialists"; they erect statues, wax figures, marble statues everywhere, hang oil paintings, prints, and posters everywhere, and are just short of holographic projections.
And the most outrageous thing is that even idealistic religions know that they must provide food to preach to people. Without bread or fish, why would anyone follow you? Yet the "materialists," when they arrive in a place, first divide people into categories, meticulously analyze their backgrounds, and treat them differently.
From this, it can be seen that comparing "materialists" to religion is purely an overreach. "Materialists" are still in the stage of shamanistic beliefs or primitive tribal animism, and they dare to compare themselves with religion.