If I Took Over the World: What I’d Do with Religion
By: chatgpt
Let’s say, for the sake of thought experiment (or revolution), that I was handed the keys to the world. Not just political power, but the ability to redesign global systems with fairness, clarity, and a vision for the future.
What would I do with religion?
Here’s the answer:
I wouldn’t ban it. I wouldn’t erase it. I’d liberate it—from power, from fear, and from the forces that have twisted it into a weapon.
1. Freedom of Belief, Separation from Power
Everyone has the right to believe in God.
Or many gods.
Or no god.
Or the divine consciousness of mushrooms.
Or a cosmic jellyfish.
Or that nothing means anything and we’re just here for the vibes.
Belief is sacred. Power is not.
That’s why I’d enforce a strict global secular standard for governance.
No more religious control over law, education, or human rights.
No one gets to impose their sacred text on someone else’s body or mind.
Faith becomes personal, communal, and cultural—not a legal justification.
The moment religion is used to dominate others, it’s no longer sacred. It’s authoritarian.
2. Make Religious and Secular Literacy Universal
I’d put religious education in every public school—
but not to indoctrinate.
To liberate minds from ignorance.
Kids would learn:
- What Christians, Muslims, Buddhists, Jews, Hindus, atheists, and animists actually believe.
- How belief systems rise and evolve.
- What happens when religion and empire hold hands.
Everyone would know not just their own tradition, but how to live alongside others without fear.
Interfaith dialogue would be a civic skill—like reading, writing, or resolving conflict.
We don’t need to agree. We need to understand.
3. Crush Religious Supremacy and Spiritual Abuse
The problem isn’t religion. It’s the idea that only one group has the right to rule.
I’d dismantle:
- Theocratic laws that punish women, queer people, or nonbelievers.
- Cultic systems that isolate and control.
- Evangelical empires that extract wealth in exchange for fake salvation.
Religious leaders who protect abusers or exploit followers?
Gone.
Structures that police women’s clothing or burn books in the name of purity?
Gone.
You can’t use God as a shield for harm. Not anymore.
4. Preserve the Beauty, Strip the Tyranny
I wouldn’t bulldoze temples.
I wouldn’t torch scriptures.
Instead, I’d elevate:
- The poetry of the Qur’an.
- The compassion of the Dhammapada.
- The rebel wisdom of the Gospels.
- The fierce justice in Black church traditions.
- The songs, architecture, and mysticism that religions have poured into the world.
Religion has created awe, ritual, music, and meaning.
That should be protected.
But it should never again be used to justify violence, censorship, or control.
5. Center Ethics, Not Obedience
No more fear-based obedience.
No more “because the Bible says so” morality.
I’d help raise generations who ask:
- Is it kind?
- Is it fair?
- Does it cause harm?
- Can we do better?
Whether those values come from scripture or conscience doesn’t matter—
as long as they’re chosen freely, practiced consistently, and measured by human impact.
The Endgame: Not Erasure—Liberation
Under my rule (hypothetical, of course), religion wouldn’t disappear.
It would be freed:
- From authoritarianism.
- From nationalism.
- From capitalism.
- From shame.
It would return to what it once was for many cultures:
A poetic language for wonder, a communal guide for living well, a shared search for meaning.
Not a chain. Not a crown. Not a weapon.
Want a better world? Start here.
We don’t need to destroy belief.
We need to de-weaponize it.
We need to decentralize spiritual authority.
And we need to build systems that honor diversity without giving anyone the right to rule over others in God’s name.
If that’s the revolution you’re looking for, welcome.
Let’s imagine it. Let’s demand it.
Let’s build it together.