A BONFIRE OF VANITY

(Savaranola redux)

In Florida, a Pentacostal preacher man’s plans to commemorate the horrendous events of 9/11, by having a bonfire of as many copies of the Koran as possible, is more than just a futile exercise of vanity, a bit of – Savaronola redux – to show contempt for the Moslem faith.  Such an act of demented zealotry is the grossest possible insult against the memory of all those who perished in that event. By this, he and his cohorts might as well be spitting on their graves.

Of course, throughout human history, burning of books (satanic or otherwise) has rarely accomplished anything, beyond gratifying the vanity of those doing the burning, and as a way of preening themselves in self-righteousness.

Early Christian hierarchs tried it against Nestor, and his heretical writings, to no avail. Nor did it work too well for our Florentine cleric, Savaranola, with his great bonfires of vanities (since it ultimately had him tossed into a bonfire as well). And two Renaissance luminaries,  Leonardo da Vinci, and Galileo, had their problems. Leonardo, impelled to keep his notebooks in a secret reverse mirror-image code to avoid a similar fate. As for Galileo, he and his writings were simply put under interdict, gagged into silence for life, rather than being consigned to the flames….still, it was a close call.

Then of course, the Spanish Inquisition had its own brand of vanity, not just burning books, but heretics and Jews as well. Later, in the New World, it performed further “sacred service”, deeming as satanic Mayan codices, unfit for viewing by civilized eyes, and properly incinerating them (along with a few Mayans besides). It was one of history’s more extreme episodes of cultural genocide springing from the insane dementia of theocratic minds.

Of course, politicos, in modern times, have not been shy about following such examples to suit their own agendas and purposes. Hitler, had his own brand of bonfires. Not satisfied with just books, and works of “degenerate art”, he and his regime went on to make it into an industrial process, with people as….fuel.

Here, in America, we’ve had our own home-grown pyromaniacs, as a way to express their extreme displeasure or hate for whatever was bugging them at the moment, including the flag. Boston Brahmins, while they didn’t go in for bonfires (too risky, as it might have burned down their town), banned books, movies, and theatrical productions they didn’t like, instead. Still, it served the same intent of -burn, baby, burn!-.

Well, to quote yet again from an unpublished collection of mine, titled – Songs for Armageddon – perhaps such aberrations by our human species are best summed up like this:

“No fires, no floods, or other wrack,                                                                                                                    

May come to be our fate.                                                                                                                                   

Nor may some giant bollide from space,                                                                                                          

Wipe out this most un-human race.                                                                                                     

We’ll just spin off on a wild loony track,                                                                                                           

Right through an Orwellian pearly gate,                                                                                                                           

To find, when we stop to rest a spell,                                                                                                    

There are no meadowlarks,                                                                                                                           

In our own-created, silent, hell.”

CENTURION