Why Do Revolutions Devour Their Own Children When The Three Basic Needs Are Not Guaranteed?
Introduction: The French Revolution And The Three Basic Needs
Today, I will briefly talk about the French Revolution and evaluate the consequences of not guaranteeing the three basic needs from a religious perspective.
Bruno was an ordinary and hungry Parisian.
A City Without Bread
Just before the revolution, Paris, and almost the entire city, was experiencing a serious bread crisis.
There was bread, but it existed only for the nobility and the clergy.
Bruno, after remaining hungry for so long, eventually became hostile toward both the nobility and the clergy.
With his last remaining strength, he joined some secret and semi-organized Jacobin groups that included angry Parisians and peasants like himself, groups whose participation had been banned by the king, in order to overthrow the monarchy.
Hunger And The Collapse Of Reason
Bruno could not think properly because of hunger.
There was only one thing he focused on:
He wanted to have bread when he was hungry.
If he had to die for this, he would die.
He already had nothing to lose.
He was going to die of hunger anyway.
He pushed his way through the rat-infested streets of Paris, among people fainting from hunger.
The Fall Of The Monarchy
With the dream of taking part in governance once the monarchy was overthrown, he walked toward the Hôtel de Ville, the municipal building where the nobles stayed.
Together, they overthrew the monarchy.
First, they executed the nobles and the clergy by guillotine.
But then, a much greater struggle began among themselves.
Because the new regime was giving birth to its own new nobles and its own new clergy.
Does this sound familiar to you?
In fact, political parties with different views coming to power are also another version of the same process, more or less.
From Victim To Executioner
The more injustice a person has suffered, the greater the injustices they begin to commit as soon as they come to power.
Preventing this instinct for revenge truly requires an enormous heart.
Unfortunately, Bruno could not resist this desire.
He replaced his brown French jacket with the military coat of the new regime.
He no longer wanted to share the bread he could eat with others.
He was terrified of becoming hungry again and of becoming an ordinary Parisian once more.
From the seat he occupied, he thought he had no choice but to have his former friends—whom he now declared “enemies of the people” and saw as rivals—executed by the same guillotine.
There is no point in debating whether Bruno was right or wrong.
Poverty As A Domino Effect
Poverty is the second domino stone that causes all evils to fall one after another.
The first domino stone is the failure to guarantee the three basic needs when there was an opportunity to do so.
Even after the monarchy was overthrown, Bruno’s three basic needs were still not guaranteed.
Yes, he now had bread.
Yes, he now had a position.
He was living in one of the most beautiful houses in Paris.
But he had no guarantee.
He believed that before a stronger revolutionary came and took everything from him, he had no option other than sending as many people as possible to the guillotine.
Bruno, who had once been innocent, with ribs visible, begging in front of a well-dressed noble for a slice of bread,
had now turned into a pot-bellied, proud, and ruthless executioner.
Fear As The True Cause
The reason for all this was neither only the nobility,
nor only the people who later came to power.
The real reason was acting solely out of fear instead of making a plan for the common good of everyone.
This is what happens when the three basic needs are not guaranteed.
No one can trust anyone.
Women cannot trust their husbands.
Men cannot trust their bosses.
Children cannot trust their mothers.
Citizens cannot trust their states.
The Religious Perspective
Now it is time to emphasize that the approach of monotheistic religions on this matter is very clear.
Muslims say, “One who is full while their neighbor is hungry is not one of us.”
Jews and Christians say, “Love your neighbor as yourself.”
Of course, what is said and what is done are very different.
Once the rule is broken, it causes deep suffering at every level of society.
Who Was Truly Poor?
Let us look at who was poor in Bruno’s story:
Both the king and Marie Antoinette were poor in trust.
What they truly feared was no longer being able to rule, but the threat of even their most basic needs—such as food and shelter—being taken away from them.
From a higher perspective, their fear and Bruno’s fear are the same.
This fundamental fear does not change according to who you are.
Hunger And Human Behavior
When your stomach is full, your attention briefly shifts to luxury things; suddenly you find yourself watching dance videos on Instagram.
But when you are hungry, you immediately put down the phone and walk toward the refrigerator.
If there is nothing in the refrigerator, you cannot go back and continue watching videos.
First, eating something is essential.
When things became serious, King Louis also tried to secure his food and shelter; Bruno did the same.
The Hand Of God
We must learn to rule over one another for a single purpose under the threat of being deprived of basic life necessities.
This is called the hand of God.
Those who refuse to work to guarantee the three basic needs for others may be deprived of these needs.
Because that means committing a great crime against oneself, the society one lives in, and humanity.
This is a real crime, but it cannot be punished as long as the three basic needs are not guaranteed.
Bruno appeared guilty while burning the Hôtel de Ville, but being hungry justified him.
Louis XVI appeared guilty when he said, “Neither men nor women have rights; only the king has rights,” but hugging his small son in a shelter because of the crowd gathered in front of the palace justified him.
Heaven, Hell, And The Three Needs
Without healthy food for everyone, safe living spaces for everyone, and the meaning of life that we call the “love your neighbor as yourself” education, it is impossible to be happy—whether we are King Louis or Bruno.
Heaven is the state in which the three basic needs are guaranteed.
The first spark of the fire of hell ignites when even a single person cannot access these needs.
There is no evidence that Marie Antoinette ever said, “If there is no bread, let them eat cake.”
Yet she was executed by guillotine, completely naked.
So much so that even Bruno could not bear to look at that scene.
A Problem With A Simple Solution
Personally, I was deeply saddened that a problem with such an easy solution has plagued humanity since it has existed, and I thought about this issue for a long time.
I saw a single underlying cause beneath every war, every conflict, every power struggle, every inheritance dispute.
I realized that guaranteeing life for one another is actually the same as guaranteeing life for ourselves.
If my neighbor has the same strawberry cake in their refrigerator as the one in mine, why would they secretly enter my kitchen and try to steal my cake?
Housing, Technology, And Choice
I thought about this for housing as well.
Telling people who live in old 45-square-meter apartment flats, who can see daylight only a few hours a day and who look with admiration at those living in detached houses with beautiful sidewalks, to “be happy with this life, be grateful, and pay your rent on time” is not sustainable.
At least, not anymore.
Because local governments are now capable of building humane housing for everyone in need using 3D printing technology.
There is no longer any need for anyone to be hungry.
Because we can cover the entire earth with food forests.
Needs And Desires
Why are we not doing this?
There is only one answer:
Our needs and our desires are not the same.
Our needs are mathematical and unchanging.
Our desires are our emotions, and they constantly change.
That is why we feel differently when we are full and when we are hungry.
Our basic needs are always there, and whether we want it or not, we return to them.
Because God does not change.
The Curse And The Cure
God is where the three basic needs are guaranteed.
Where God is absent, there is an executioner.
And one by one, the executioner separates the poor from the rich, those living under bridges from those studying at private universities in London, villagers from city dwellers, believers from non-believers, women from men, King Louis from Bruno, by the guillotine.
The way to lift this curse is:
- Food for everyone
- Safe living spaces for everyone
- The teaching we call education about the meaning of life: “love your neighbor as yourself.”