Religion is politics about the unknown

Robert G. Ingersoll’s 1877 speech, The Ghosts, critiques superstition and the lingering influence of fear-based beliefs in human societies. He refers to these notions metaphorically as “ghosts” and describes how they have shaped religious culture for the worse and constrain human progress to this day, fostering ignorance, subjugation and moral paralysis.

Ingersoll’s critique extends beyond religion to encompass all social systems that depend on fear, ignorance and inequality. The lecture’s impact lies in its bold call for intellectual courage and its affirmation of the human capacity for growth and enlightenment. Ingersoll’s message remains timeless, encouraging critical examination of inherited beliefs and promoting a worldview grounded in knowledge, compassion and progress.

With characteristic wit, Ingersoll urges his audience to confront and dispel these spectral illusions, replacing fear with reason and freedom. I have polished the gems, set them with appropriate art and give them to you here.

Background art:

  1. The Ten Commandments (1956).
  2. Saint John the Evangelist on Patmos, Titian and workshop, c. 1553-55.
  3. The Allegory of Good and Bad Government, Ambrogio Lorenzetti, c. 1338.
  4. The Ten Commandments (1956).
  5. Castlevania (2017).
  6. Castlevania (2017).
  7. Underworld: Evolution (2006).
  8. The Temptation of Saint Anthony, Hieronymus Bosch, 1510.
  9. The Crossing of the Red Sea, attributed variously to Domenico Ghirlandaio, Biagio d’Antonio and Cosimo Rosselli, c. 1481-82.
  10. King James I of England, John de Critz, c. 1605.
  11. Examination of a Witch, Tompkins Matteson, 1853.
  12. Trial of George Jacobs, Sr. for Witchcraft, Tompkins Matteson, 1859.
  13. Christ Tempted by the Devil, John Ritto Penniman, 1818.
  14. Castlevania (2017).
  15. Exorcism, unknown artist, 1370.
  16. St. Guy Heals a Possessed Man, Gabriel Mälesskircher, 1474.
  17. An Apostle, Carlo Crivelli, 1473.
  18. Saint George and the Dragon, Raphael, 1503.
  19. The ordeal of Cuningunde, proving her innocence of adultery, Franz Carl Stauder, 1708.
  20. The Wizard of Oz, 1939.
  21. Le Jugement dernier, Martin de Vos, 1570.
  22. Massacre of the Innocents, Peter Paul Rubens, 1611.
  23. Quakers being whipped in Puritan Boston in the 1670s, unknown artist, digital print after 19th century wood engraving.
  24. David and Goliath, Titian, c. 1542-44.
  25. Moses Breaking The Tablets Of The Law, Gustave Dore, 1866.
  26. The Ten Commandments (1956).
  27. St. Jerome Punishing the Heretic Sabinian, Raphael, c. 1503.
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