Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. He has ruled Iran with divine authority for approximately 37 years since 1989. [Reuters=Yonhap News]

Madness Claiming to be God's Deputy: The Case of Iran

We must confront the tragedy of the Islamic Republic of Iran, which has persisted for over 40 years since the 1979 Iranian Revolution. Iran completed its revolution under the pretext of overthrowing royal absolutism, but its outcome was a more horrific dictatorship cloaked in "divine authority."

Iran's theory of "Velayat-e Faqih" (Guardianship of the Jurist) justified the seizure of all state power by Islamic jurists as God's deputies. The Supreme Leader (Rahbar) wielded absolute, unelected power, dominating the judiciary, executive, and military, and ruling over the populace.

Dogmatic ideology mandated the wearing of hijabs for women and led to the execution of resisting citizens under the charge of "Moharebeh" (enmity against God). The killing of hundreds of its own citizens during the protests sparked by the Mahsa Amini incident in 2022 is a stark illustration of how cruel religion can become when it serves as a handmaiden to power.

Economic isolation, corruption, and a rigid divine authority system, akin to hereditary dictatorship, have isolated Iran from the civilized world. This serves as a stern historical judgment that any nation, regardless of the sacred values it espouses, embarks on a path of ruin the moment humans monopolize its authority.

Humans Aspiring to Be God: The Beginning of Ruin

Human history has continuously progressed towards "freedom," but behind it, there has always existed a grand deception aimed at enslaving humanity. The core of this deception is "imperfect humans elevating themselves to the status of absolute beings or God's deputies."

The first commandment of the Ten Commandments in the Bible warns, "You shall have no other gods before me." This transcends mere religious doctrine; it is the last line of survival for humanity, preventing the tragedy that occurs when finite beings claim infinite authority.

Materialistic communism and the pseudo-religious political system of divine authority are two forms of totalitarianism that threaten humanity. Let us examine why humans can never become absolute beings.

The Paradox of Materialism: Human Idols Replacing God

Communism defined religion as "the opiate of the masses" and thoroughly denied spirituality and faith. However, paradoxically, in the place where they expelled God, they erected a colossal idol of "living dictators" and oppressed the people by denying the inherent rights that God bestowed upon humanity.

A 5-meter-high full-body color statue of Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il inside the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun in Pyongyang. [KCNA=Yonhap News]

Let us examine the history of brutal idolization. Stalin and Mao Zedong, based on materialism, suppressed religion but were themselves revered as "Sun" or "Father," leading tens of millions to their deaths through purges and famine.

The hereditary dictatorship of the Kim Il-sung family in North Korea for three generations is the worst form, combining communism with pre-modern divine rule. Under the name "Juche ideology," Kim Il-sung is worshipped as an eternal god, and the people's minds are controlled through the "10 Principles for the Establishment of the Party's Ideological Purity," which hold higher authority than the constitution.

Ceaușescu of Romania and Castro of Cuba monopolized national resources and enforced personality cults, blinding and deafening their citizens.

To them, humans were not beings with spiritual dignity but mere material tools to be consumed for the party's objectives. This Satanic thinking, which denies God, ultimately reduced humans to machine parts.

Plunderers of Souls: Anti-social Cults Masquerading as Faith

While communism oppresses the body with guns and swords, pseudo-religious groups claiming divine authority hold "faith" hostage, referring to themselves as "Second Coming Jesus," "Comforter," or "Judge," and feeding on human anxiety. Anti-social religious groups engage in family destruction, sexual exploitation, and property extortion.

The People's Temple incident in Guyana in 1978, where over 900 people committed mass suicide under the coercion of cult leader Jim Jones, is a tragedy of modern history. Japan's Aum Shinrikyo, with its leader Shoko Asahara's delusional doctrines, carried out a sarin gas attack on the subway, killing innocent citizens.

Korea is called a "department store of religions," and we have witnessed the rise and fall of many religions facing accusations of being cults. Their common characteristic is that they wear the mask of "clergy" or "leader," claim to be the sole path to salvation, and isolate their followers from the world. This is not the love and liberation that are the essence of religion, but another form of a spiritual prison and totalitarianism.

Why Humans Cannot Be Absolute Beings

From philosophical and theological perspectives, the reasons why humans cannot be absolute beings are clear. Humans are beings with "creatureliness" and "limitations." The absolute being created the universe, nature, and humans, and humans are but dust in the vast universe.

As imperfect beings, humans, no matter how outstanding their priests, pastors, monks, or politicians, cannot be free from death, illness, or error. The moment they call themselves God, they are forced to resort to lies and violence to hide their flaws.

Siddhartha Gautama realized the fate of human birth, aging, sickness, and death and embarked on the path of seeking enlightenment. The fact that U.S. presidents place their hands on the Bible during their inauguration and hold regular prayer meetings in the White House demonstrates the spiritual tradition of democracy, where leaders acknowledge their limitations and bow humbly before the absolute being.

When power is concentrated in one individual, privatized, and falls into dogma, critical thinking is paralyzed, and only collective madness remains. The witch hunts and the issuance of indulgences by medieval priests were atrocities committed under the guise of clergy. True religious leadership stems from "humility" in lowering oneself before God, not from "arrogance" in sitting on a throne.

True Freedom and Liberation Under the Creator

The only way for humans to escape the chains of totalitarian dictatorships and pseudo-religious cults is to regain freedom by restoring "discernment in truth."

First, we must recognize that all humans are equal and imperfect beings before God (the Absolute Being). We must confront the fact that all ideologies and cult leaders that deify humans are merely idols.

Second, we must guard against the destruction of human dignity caused by communistic materialism. We must not forget the historical lesson that ideologies that deny faith in the absolute being and absolutize human power ultimately lead to ruin.

Humans cannot be truth itself. We can only be most human and achieve true freedom when we are humble seekers striving towards truth. The arrogance of attempting to ascend to God's throne will inevitably bring historical judgment and ruin.

◆ Dr. Shin Dong-chun

Doctor of Public Administration, President of the Global Aerospace Industry Association, and Representative of the National Alliance for Freedom and Unification. After passing the 21st Higher Civil Service Examination, he has been active in public service, as a CEO, university professor, media contributor, author, and president of the Global Aerospace Industry Association.