Manifesto Version.02

The commercial religion and the religion of commerce

1. GOD.

Provided the religion and is an embodiment of it. Religion was to aid an answer to the reason of the existence of the human condition.

2. SCRIPTURE.

The Bible, the Koran, the Torah, the Buddha, teachings of the prophets and divine characters: are used and were elaborated by incorporating cultural and historical traditions organized in a way to create a set of practice guidelines governing human behavioural patterns. Hence, liturgy translated into a lifestyle.

3. ICON.

The cross of Christianity, the Hilal (crescent) of Islam, the Hebrew letters of the 10 commandments, all represent characters or events of the stories foretold. The teachings passed down by many generations promoted those icons as holy, so we grew to perceive and worship them as such and have psychologically redefined their purpose from their intangible idea. We have elevated the physical icons to the level of the idea it represents.

4. WORSHIP.

Walking the aisles of churches, attending the Sunday mass (Eucharist) consuming the body of Christ (bread), The pilgrimage to Mecca for hajj, gesturing little wish lists or prayers on top of temple trees, all are symbolic proceedings and calculated behaviours, but in some way are actions of giving back to the icon and in so attaining a newer one.

5. COMMERCE.

A simmered down version of those icons come in the shape of a simple souvenir within the grasp of our hands. This is not only exclusive to Christianity, from rosaries to mini ceramic statues of the virgin Mary or the cross of Jesus Christ, but are also observable in many structured religions such as in representations of the Buddha, miniatures of Mecca, the David Star for Jews. Is it possible that deep down inside, some pagan weeds still managed to survive in many of us? I wonder?

But nevertheless, I would call that “Commercial Religions”.

Conversely, there would be no reason that commercialism should be excluded as a religion in itself.

Merging the commercial religions to the religion of commerce, could be by cross-referencing the new pilgrimage hot-spots, the ‘’shopping malls’’ from its aisles, method of organisation, construction detailing in contrast to the iconic churches of the world and extracting their best-hit lists of new methods of construction technology (at the time), use, scale, aisles, would probably amalgamate in creating a collage of this new religion of commerce building.