“What was it for?”
“It was a monument to the Christian god. They used it as a place of worship.”
“The entire thing?”
“There were variations over time. Some religions believed that places like this were important. Dedicating a building and idols to the gods was seen as the greatest gift, because it meant bringing them into your life. The gods exist beyond reality, so it’s important to invite them in.”
“Is that what the people who made this believed?”
“Not exactly. I’m not an expert on early Christian thought, you understand.”
“Got it. Why the art?”
“The art is an act of devotion. Some wrote poetry instead.”
“It seems too physical. I thought religions were about the abstract?”
“They were, but they were also about morality, social order, community, and understanding the world.”
“Their understanding was wrong, and a lot of the morality was terrible. I’m not sure ‘social order’ sounds that great as a central tenet, either.”
“I’m not sure I can explain it to you. Things were different then.”
“You say it like you were there.”
“I saw the end of religion. I think I understand most of the history of human religion better than those who didn’t.”
“You weren’t religious, though.”
“No, I wasn’t.”
“You really talk like you admired the whole thing, but their priorities must have been skewed to preserve these buildings for so long. They could have tried to preserve the reefs instead.”
“I can’t argue with that.”
“I know that look. You want to argue.”
“Sometimes I wish I’d seen the Great Barrier Reef before it died, yes. But there’s something to be said for standing inside something like this.”
“It’s nice, I guess. I’ve never seen a building with this much wood and glass.”
“It’s always going to be a bit out of place now. Out of time.”
The title is a riff on Ancient Aliens, a show I’ve never actually watched and don’t plan to.
Inspired by the Quote of the Day, from texaslawstudent.com
Photo by Jan Tielens on Unsplash
