The Sovereignty of the Soul: Why are We Questioning the "Ownership" of Truth

Born and raised in a Coptic Orthodox family, with a lineage of Christians stretching back as far as ancestors, the incense, the liturgy, and the ancient traditions are woven into my DNA. Yet, despite this deep-rooted heritage, some find themselves at a crossroads where the heart and soul are in full-scale resistance.

We are compelled to ask a fundamental question: When did the "system" become the owner of the Truth?

🌿 The Middleman Problem

For a long time, we have been taught that truth must be mediated—that we need an authorized interpreter or a clerical authority to stand between us and the Divine. But there is a profound human drive for spiritual sovereignty. When Truth is treated as a "deposit" held by a few, it implies that the individual is not fully equipped to encounter God directly. 

Resistance isn't a rebellion against God; it is an act of reclaiming one's own spiritual agency. If Truth is universal, it cannot be "owned." If it is a light, it shouldn't be filtered through a human shadow before it reaches the seeker.

🌿 Ritual Over Humanity

Lately, I’ve seen this play out in my own church in a way that feels all too familiar. I’ve watched as a group "took over" the protocol for how readers should dress and present themselves. Suddenly, there are conditions. There is rigidity. There is a "look" that must be maintained.

In these moments, visual harmony and ritualistic perfection become more important than the human beings involved. It reminds me of the very things Jesus critiqued in the Pharisees: a preoccupation with the outside of the cup while the inside is ignored. 

When we prioritize the "correct" attire over a person’s heart and their simple will to serve, we aren’t practicing faith—we are practicing a dictatorship of aesthetics. We are placing additional conditions on service that God never asked for.

🌿 A Call for Simple Service

Service should be an outpouring of love, not a performance that requires a costume change. When we impose rigidity, we move away from the spirit of the Gospel and toward a "systematic ownership" of what is holy. 

I believe we are entering a time where many of us are weary of the middleman. We are looking for a faith that honors the heart over the habit, and the seeker over the system. We don’t need more "visual harmony"—we need more spiritual honesty.

Nermine, April 2026