From the desk of Roland Rocchiccioli

BELATEDLY, I have made two New Year resolutions: I intend to be more intolerant, and much less perfect! Please, allow me to explain!

Like many, I have grown weary of being told what it is I may, or may not, say; or what I may, or may not, believe. I reject, categorically, the misguided implacability of those who believe their ‘yes’ carries more weight than our collective ‘no’. It is time for the silent majority to challenge the vocal minority. To reject with alacrity those whose fundamentalist arguments are not representative of the broader community, and whose propaganda threatens our existence. They must be brought to a surrender.

In the course of a broadcast, a radio colleague told his audience he did not believe in God. To his, and the management’s, bewilderment, a listener phoned the radio station in a state of high-dudgeon, protesting to be offended by the blasphemy. This is political correctness — wokeism, religious fervour — call it what you will, gone stark, raving mad! Typically of those with a dubious agenda, the complainant did not stop to consider his belief in the Nazarene might cause outrage in the atheist.

The hubris of an individual in making such a complaint, and to cause genuine disquiet in the workplace, is incomprehensible. I doubt a complaint to the broadcasting tribunal would be taken seriously; however, there is a more serious conundrum to be pondered. The scourge of bigotry and a lack of regard run rampant. These are the darker forces at work. Those who live the moderate life have an obligation to vociferously challenge those who would wreak moral chaos on society. They are self-serving and treacherous!

Categorically, there is no empirical evidence to support the existence of a God; however, religious belief is not dependent, only, on empirical evidence. It can, also, be based on faith, and typically involve supernatural forces or entities. The hypothesis is simple: For those who believe, no explanation is necessary; for those who do not believe, no explanation is possible.

All faiths are profoundly personal. Christians believe fervently in God, and the Holy Trinity. Unambiguously, they embrace the dogma of the faithful and the confronting battles. The Holy Father has said: “You cannot cherry-pick.” Trusting and believing was, he explained, an act of blind faith. It defines any committed Christian.

We live in an age of fundamentalist religiosity which barely recognises the basic tenets of Christianity. As a consequence of a fragmented and dysfunctional society, and a diminution of social mores, people seeking a spiritual ballast in their lives have resorted to propagating contaminated ideologies. The determination of the intemperate, with their jaundiced and sometimes dangerously fragile understanding of the world, is worrisome. They cannot be allowed to pollute the national discourse; to continue to espouse their dangerous and corrosive narrative without a serious and determined challenge.

Spiritual perfection is imperative for the balanced life. It is achieved when we learn to acknowledge all arguments and arrive at consensus. No-one has the right to impose their individual philosophy, or to distort the common belief to any form of perverted fundamentalism.

The last time I checked it was Charles on the throne, and not Putin. We must protect what we have before it is too late!

Roland can be heard with Brett Macdonald — radio 3BA Monday at 10.45 a.m.

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