It is better to have no belief in God at all than to believe in something that diminishes Him. To lack belief is merely disbelief, but to believe wrongly is to insult God. Plutarch put this well when he said, “I would much rather people say there was no such man as Plutarch, than to say that Plutarch ate his children as soon as they were born,” referring to the myth of Saturn. Just as such a false story insults Saturn, false beliefs about God insult Him even more. Worse still, while disbelief might leave people to follow reason and morality, superstition often leads to confusion and harm.
Atheism leaves a person to rely on reason, philosophy, natural respect for life, laws, and reputation—guides that can still lead to outward moral behavior, even without religion. But superstition overrides all these things and creates a kind of tyranny in the mind. Historically, atheism has not caused chaos in governments; in fact, times when atheism was more common, like under Augustus Caesar, were generally peaceful. Superstition, on the other hand, has destroyed many governments by introducing new forces that disrupt the natural order of things.
Superstition is fueled by the masses, and often wise people end up following foolish ones. Arguments for superstition are shaped to fit people’s habits, not reason. During the Council of Trent, it was wisely observed that the schoolmen—philosophers who shaped church doctrines—were like astronomers who invented complicated models, like epicycles, to explain the movements of the stars, even though they knew these models weren’t real. In the same way, these thinkers built complex and subtle theories to justify church practices, regardless of their truth.
The roots of superstition are many: rituals and ceremonies that are too focused on outward appearance; extreme displays of holiness; over-reliance on traditions that weigh down the church; ambitious leaders seeking power or wealth; and the tendency to mix divine ideas with human imaginations. Superstition often flourishes in barbaric times, especially during disasters and hardships.
Without its disguises, superstition is an ugly thing. It is like an ape pretending to be a man—its similarity to true religion makes it even more grotesque. Good traditions, when corrupted, can turn into useless or excessive rituals, much like wholesome food that spoils into worms. Ironically, there’s even a kind of superstition in trying too hard to avoid superstition. When people try to reform things by rejecting all past traditions, they often throw out what is good along with the bad. This usually happens when the general population, rather than wise leaders, drives reform.
This is a lesson for modern thinkers, especially entrepreneurs and leaders: avoid clinging to rigid or outdated ideas simply because they feel familiar, but also beware of rejecting everything old in a blind pursuit of change. Success requires balancing tradition with reason, and being thoughtful about what to keep and what to discard.
Bacon Blueprint 