There is a mystery in a human being, and only religion can reveal this mystery to us. Up until now, especially in the nineteenth century, efforts were made to apprehend the essence of religion through science and philosophy, which led to the gradual impoverishment of religion on the one hand, and science and philosophy on the other. That was perfectly intuited by Martin Heidegger for whom religion was of great importance. He argued that in order to properly understand philosophy and science, one must first understand religion. René Girard followed in that vein, but using different means, different tricks and a completely different method.

Mimetic Crisis

Culture is a great mimetic mechanism where everyone imitates their neighbor, where they all counterfeit one another and change into mirror images of their fellow men. Having not the possibility of multiplying oneself ad infinitum in a row of mirrors, claims Girard, neither man nor culture could exist. People are not as diverse as it might seem at first glance; they are the same.

Mimetic behaviors, meaning when the same people pursue the same goals, contribute to the creation of a unified world, which, in turn, leads to social antagonism. This antagonism is the result of conflicting desires, but the conflict is not about the fact that (take the example of children playing in the sandbox) Billy and George both like Laura and will soon find themselves fighting over her. It is not the object of desire (Laura) that is at stake in their game, but the desire itself.