Letters to the Editor
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throw-away line
"He'd listened to prisoners at Guantánamo sob as they described Christian jailers destroying the Koran"
Throw-away lines like this so often reveal the prejudices of writers (including myself when I see things I've written in hindsight). First of all your lawyer friend may have breached professional ethics if he revealed something his client told you. I find it dubious that he told you this. Secondly the whole Qur'an desecration allegation are a hotly disputed topic regrading what was done where, especially the toilet flushing claim.
Finally what a vulgar political statement by Ms. Miles to claim that the jailers are "Christian". This may seem almost hypocritical given the overall message of her piece, but beyond the usual cheap leftist nod towards Muslims as pet victim, it shows arguably her own eltist, self-righteous attitude towards other Christians. I am spiritual but not religious (and thus not a Christian), but I have known several far-left Christian who become so unconsciously proud and righteous about how much more true to Jesus, etc. their version of Chritianity is.
This is my problem with religion is that you can completely lose touch with rational thinking and you come to see the world in an us & them fashion. Let's say a jailer at Guantánamo (she's careful enought to put an acute accent over the name but did not check the basic facts of her story) flushed a Qur'an down the toilet. It's a book, nothing more. Any value Muslims ascribe to it is pure superstition for a disinterested vantage point. The irony is that news of the story led to the death of Muslims at the hands of fellow Muslims in riots in Afghanistan. While I find such blatant disregard for Muslim feelings unfortunate in American personnel, it may have everything to do with the military's intelligence-gathering objectives (however ridiculous) and nothing to do with the jailer's religion.
Ultimately though comments like this indicate and all to common attitude among liberals and leftists (otherwise my kind of people): Ms. Miles is more concerned that some guys feelings were hurt over an alleged material desecration of his holy book than the actual deaths of 15 people.
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infected by a religious meme
This excerpt was fascinating as an example of how religious memes take hold of the human mind.
The first myth that pressured Sara into this “quest” is just that: That there IS anything else besides the here and now and our current life. Once a person comes to believe that we are somehow “missing” the “meaning of life”, they become open to religious memes as Sara was.
In the end I was left with a feeling of sadness for Sara, who is now ensnared and will, if she ever decides to do so, pay a high cost for extricating herself.
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The Tao & Confucius
Boy, the unhappy skeptics turned out for this one. Not that we might not yet hear from the unhappy fundamentalists. But the whole thing’s really boring, has been for a long time now, that fool Jerry Falwell and that fool Richard Dawkins banging heads.
Neither understands egolessness. You want reason, stop thinking. That’s where Einstein got the theory of relativity. From intuition, which can turn out to be more rational than anyone supposed. You want morality, stop believing and stop trying to be good and faithful. Don’t do it by ideas, but by experiencing the ground of being, and then see soup kitchens without proselytizing and shaming, and with people making their own soup.
I’m on the Taoist side of its several thousand year old difference of opinion with Confucianists. Here we have atheist Confucianists and religionist Confucianists wasting our time duking it out in the public square over the not-real. Don’t mind if the atheist Taoists and agnostic Taoists and the non-personal higher power Taoists and the theist Taoists - who all get along just fine - ignore the ignorant out-of-touch loud-mouths.
Excuse me – I let a little attachment sneak in there. It happens.
And as for the book in question, there’s not enough here to know where she’s going with her adventure. Good luck.
Best,
Monty
(more, for free: Google “Rabid Fanatic” +”Monty Johnston”
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Shining Light on Nontraditional Prejudice
I'm grateful that Salon published this piece because it brings to light the strong prejudice against Christianity that is often felt in leftist circles. I frankly am tired of defending my religion. I am tired of being accused of joining the Christian Coalition simply because I attend church (an actual comment by an antiwar campaigner). I don't experience any such prejudice outside leftist circles; yet, the minute I join the cause against the war, or a democratic campaign, I'm sure to run into some snide comment.
I don't quite understand why so many liberals cannot accept that there are countless nuances to christianity and the way it is practiced. I don't understand why they cannot respect that the practice of christianity - like any other religion - can help to add meaning to someone's life in a positive way. How conveniently they forget the role of christianity in the civil rights movement. Or that priests and nuns were among the first protestors against the Iraq war to be thrown in jail. Of course terrible things have been done in the name of christianity, particularly in the name of my own religion, catholicism. But terrible things have been done in the name of other religions as well, and atheist dictators, such as Stalin, Hitler, Mao and Pol Pot, haven't exactly proven that a world without religion would necessarily be much better.
Ironically, I rarely attend church. But perhaps because I had a religious upbringing, I can identify the problems with christianity while still appreciating its benefits. And if Sara Miles finds meaning and happiness in going to an Episcopal church, then I don't see why anyone should have a problem with that.
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the word of God, except...
"I don't quite understand why so many liberals cannot accept that there are countless nuances to christianity and the way it is practiced."
actually, that is one of the things many people find so laughable about it. Well, either laughable, or scary, depending on the sect.