My town had a First United Methodist Church. It really wasn't large enough for two Methodist churches but my father started one anyway. Located on the outskirts of town, my church was smack-dab in the middle of what was then (and by some, even now) known as "colored town." At least that's what the really nice people called it. I won't bore you with some of the other names.
When I was very young it struck me as somewhat odd that so many black families lived around our church but none ever attended. After I was older it was easier to understand why. I vaguely recall one of my parents explaining the reason to me.
"They aren't like us. They don't worship like us."
(and we don't really want them among us.)
Before I chose to abandon any form of organized religion in favor of the piecemeal collage I assembled for myself, I did attend a few services offered by other denominations. There was never a perfect fit. I even flirted briefly with Hinduism, only to be totally put off by the superiority complex again which I found so prevalent in many Christian groups.
One thing my father used to believe was this: If you take 6 million people and quiz them on the Bible, you are likely to get 6 million different interpretations of it.
Religion is, and should remain, a personal issue -- even for those who proselytize and wear their religion on their sleeve, or their car bumper. Where things get a little sticky is when adherents feel their religion is true and all others are false. Sadly, that's a common opinion and an increasingly dangerous one to express.
Religion-bashing is a commonplace occurence in many blog threads. Because a few outspoken so-called Christian leaders have strayed as far as possible from the teachings of Christ, Christianity has very negative connotations for many -- particularly in the Blogosphere. Many of us lefties are as guilty as any when it comes to making blanket derogatory statements about people of faith, and particularly against those who call themselves Christians.
Pick any blog and wait for a post about religion. I'll even help you out by giving you this example. Read the comments, one of which I'll share with you here:
the more I study it, the more it occurs to me to believe that religion is a form of insanity.
We hear a lot about the need for tolerance -- particularly in the LGBT community. This need must be expanded to religious differences if we are to avoid inciting widespread global conflicts between religious groups. Indeed, many who call themselves Christians are abominable people, and the same can be said of any religion. When going on the attack, it would be ideal if we could all stick with specifics rather than broader generalizations to avoid alienating those who would otherwise glady be our allies.
The mind-blowing insensitivity of major public figures when dealing with other cultures and religions poses a threat that makes terrorism seem like a gang of grade-school bullies. As if the red-hot Bush rhetoric isn't fanning the flames hard enough, we now have the Pope insulting Muslims.
The Vatican secretary of state, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, said the pope "sincerely regrets that certain passages of his address could have sounded offensive to the sensitivities of the Muslim faithful and should have been interpreted in a manner that in no way corresponds to his intentions."
It's now the fault of the Muslim faithful for failing to correctly interpret the Pope's intentions. Nice work.
While walking in unfamiliar pastures, it is best to keep one's eyes on the ground instead of gazing into the heavens. Aside from avoiding the occasional venomous reptile, one might also avoid stepping in shit.
crossposted at B3
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