I’ve read this book before, but I started thinking about it in a whole new light this time.

Animal Farm is an allegory for soviet communism and the way that power tends to recentralize regardless of the egalitarian principles of a revolution.

Reading it, I started thinking about how the same principles would apply to the Christian church.

Most Christian movements start as a revolution to defunk the hierarchy of the church, whether it be removing the pope, the priesthood, the clergy, or the special role of the church building itself.

But somehow they all seem to end up right back where they started, just with someone or something new on top of the system.

In the end there’s just a new set of priests or clergy, and the church building, even though it has chairs instead of pews or loses the stained glass windows, regains its significance as a place designated exclusively for religious worship.

Animal Farm is about how old social systems always seem to restore themselves.  As humans we always come back to the same place.

Communism, religion, hierarchy… even without the allegory Animal Farm is a good read.

Pigs get drunk, that’s always fun.

Besides, it’s only 100 pages.  My movie going record shows that I’ll spend two hours on just about anything.