Letters to the Editor
-
Does God really only allow one religion?
To the doubting teenager,
Welcome to the rest of the world. The vast majority of human beings on this planet don't believe a word that your church says. In fact, I'd be willing to bet that most of the members of your church don't even really believe, they are just playing along so that they fit into your society. Perhaps they enjoy the ritual, the feelings of inclusion, and the idea of a perfect heaven but most of them don't really believe. I'm sure there are plenty of examples of hypocrisy by members of your church.
Why don't most of us believe in your faith? Because its illogical, unforgiving, and intolerant. Do you realize that evangelical christianity damns every other religion on the planet to hell? So, being born a muslim or a hindu pretty much guarantees that you are going to hell. Does that make any sense? Also evangelicals are working hard to convert anyone with any sort of native religion, decimating entire cultures. Its not "missionary work," its cultural genocide. Does God really only allow one religion?
So, while you might feel guilty about questioning your faith, its the right thing to do. Do yourself a big favor. Go away to college. Don't go to a bible college, go to a big public university or a well-respected private college. Become friends with people of other faiths and cultures. Better yet, sign up for a semester abroad. Learn some things about the world. See how the rest of us live and develop your own rules.
-
Congratulations LW, you're on the path to wisdom
My advice is to thoughtfully question authority while being respectful of your past. That's the key to developing your own moral compass.
Here's an example: I'm Roman Catholic, and I don't agree with the church that homosexuality is wrong. So, I read the bible's teachings on homosexuality, I talked a priest and a sister (nun), and I read some books and articles describing the church's stance and where it came from. I thought about the issue and prayed about it, too. I still don't agree with the church's teachings but I do agree with the principals that lead to these teachings: we should love and respect our bodies in the same way that God loves each of us. I keep urging the church to change its views in any way I can, while maintaining respect for those who sincerely agree with the church without expressing hatred or bigotry.
Depending on how different your views are from those of your church, you may not be able to still consider yourself a Christian (or a fundamentalist christian, or whatever) at the end of your own, unique, spiritual journey. But I hope that, regardless of where you land, you can still respect the way that you were raised. Both your parents and your church have helped to make you into the intelligent, compassionate, and thoughtful young woman that you are today.
-
The only way?
Ah, you Americans! You seem to believe that right-wing, fundamentalist, burn-in-hell Christianity is the only Christianity. You ignore a huge body of writing and belief that ascribes to a more inclusive, liberal, and even transformational way of life.
"What would Jesus do?" is a conservative Christian catch-phrase. But ask yourself this: what was Jesus like? This is a man who hung out with the most hated people of his day, tax-collectors, lepers and prostitutes. Some days he was in a terrible temper, and one day rebuked a fig tree, which immediately withered up (so watch it, guys!).
He was known to be irritable and impatient with his disciples, who were always slow to "get it", and even with his own mother, who surely didn't understand what was going on. He turned over the moneychangers' tables in a rage, attacked them with a whip, and sometimes acted so unbalanced that they wanted to put him away. Finally, in a supreme act of self-destruction, he let himself be arrested and put to death in order to fulfill the scriptures. And on the cross, he cried out in anguish that his beloved Father had abandoned him.
Does this sound like the wishy-washy "gentle Jesus meek and mild" of Sunday school lore? Does it sound like someone who is intolerant of sin? Does it sound like a narrow-minded, exclusive leader who divides people into "us and them"? (Remember that Gentiles were also part of the early church.)
The trouble with conservative Christians is that they have forgotten what Jesus was really like. I don't know how they can do this, as the evidence is staring them in the face. Jesus was a mysterious, passionate, brilliant, charismatic, extreme figure, with so much God flowing through him that he could do miracles. He embodied transformation (a terrifying process that people pretend they want) and the restoration of wounded and broken souls to wholeness.
Follow Jesus, and he will take you places you never thought of, or even wanted to go. It's strong stuff, and unfortunately the vast majority of people will have no idea what you're doing. They will probably call you a heretic and a sinner. No matter; they called Jesus crazy, and he was the most influential human being who ever lived.
As far as literature is concerned, there's a whole library of it, but Marcus Borg's Meeting Jesus Again for the First Time is a good start.
-
Most people are like your parents -- but in a good way
To the LW: Your parents have certain things they believe for certain reasons you may never understand, but they're not bad people. They just think differently than you do, and many time you will not be able to figure out just exactly why they're so different from you and how can you get along.
The thing to keep in mind, is this is how everybody else is, too: We don't really know other people all that well. We like to surround ourselves with people who "think" as we do, or "experience" life as we do ... but then they will surprise us. People we think think a certain way, think differently sometimes ... but don't want to say anything because they don't want to lose face, or a job, or a friendship, or a marriage. It can be tough out there when other people don't think like we do.
So we tend to band together with others who think like we do ... and we'll reinforce each other's beliefs, at least until we think something differently, then we'll talk about it, or argue about it, and see if we can work things out or if this is where we say goodbye.
I wish you all the best in life, and I am very, very glad that your parents gave you the kind of place to live and grow that led you to where you are today, wondering how to best treat yourself and other people, when to listen, when to talk, and when to just sit there and wonder what you're doing.