A world where humans have to bow down to deities every Friday evening.

Inspired by the Chambers post, so I thought I'd try this as a short story. It's not mine, of course, but I'll tell you the story. <br><br>Every Friday evening at 5 PM, people must bow down to the deities of their faiths. It can be Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam, Judaism, etc.<br><br>There are rules to this, however. <br><br>- You must bow your head to the ground, and place your hands on it. <br>- Your eyes must be closed. <br>- Your face must be uncovered. <br>- You must be on your hands and feet, not your knees. <br>- You must stand upright, and not lean on the ground. <br>- You must not bring any items with you, such as books, purses, phones, etc. <br><br>This has been the rule since the Great Accord. It happened 200 years ago when a world war was sparked over religious differences, and people fought and killed each other in the name of their gods. This war lasted for over a century, and eventually, the people of Earth realized that religion wasn't worth fighting over, because no matter who won, the other side would still have their beliefs. <br><br>The Great Accord was forged when all the religions came to an end and agreed that the only way to prevent any more wars would be to have everyone bow down to one god. This would mean that everyone would be equal. <br><br>But then, another problem popped up. There were so many religions. There were over a million, if not billions of religions. How could one person bow down to all of them? <br><br>This problem was solved by the creation of the Great Pantheon. This is a collection of deities that represented each religion, and each one was chosen by a vote from the people. There were over a million people that voted, and it was the most popular deity from each religion that made it in. <br><br>There were 100 deities, and they were placed in a massive hall in front of the United Nations building. The hall was filled with a large stone podium at one end, where the UN Secretary-General spoke every Friday evening before the ceremony. <br><br>The deities were arranged in a large circle, with one space in the center of the hall. Every Friday, a screen was set up there. This was the altar where the people would bow down. <br><br>The people of Earth stood outside in front of the hall, and the UN Secretary-General would come outside and speak. <br><br>"We have all gathered here to bow down to the deities," the UN Secretary-General said. "For the next ten minutes, you must bow down. No one can stand upright, and no one can leave this place." <br><br>Everyone nodded, and the UN Secretary-General walked back inside. <br><br>The screens in the hall turned on, and it showed every corner of the Earth. <br><br>"Please bow down," the UN Secretary-General said. <br><br>The people outside bowed down, and the people in the hall did as well. <br><br>"I am the Supreme Being," said the Christian God. "I am the one who made you, and you must worship me." <br><br>"I am Brahma," said the Hindu God. "I am the first of the Trimurti, and I have created the universe and everything in it."<br><br>"I am Ahura Mazda," said the Zoroastrian God. "I am the benevolent deity who has helped you through your darkest days."<br><br>"I am Odin," said the Norse God. "I am the All-Father, and you should bow down to my power."<br><br>And so on. The deities all said their names, and told the people why they should bow down to them. The people listened intently, and bowed their heads deeper into the ground. <br><br>After ten minutes, the ceremony was over, and the people stood up. The UN Secretary-General came back outside and smiled.<br><br>"You have all fulfilled your duties," the UN Secretary-General said. "Thank you."<br><br>The people all nodded, and walked back to their homes. The deities in the hall all smiled, and bowed down as well.<br><br>"You have all worshiped me this week," the Christian God said. "Thank you."<br><br>"I have created a universe of beauty and wonder," the Hindu God said. "You should thank me."<br><br>And so on, the deities all said thank you, and the people walked back home.<br><br>&#x200B;<br><br>This story is not mine, but I thought I'd tell it here.<br><br>&#x200B;