Article by Gregory S. Paul in "Free Inquiry" December 2008January 200, vol.29 No. 1

"Advanced sociological research has determined that dysfunctional socioeconomic factors are responsible for the origin and historical popularity of religious faith ..."

A must read.

Fascinating how easy it is to cast stones. We should all be careful... evangelicals certainly do not corner the market on "troglodyte" or "intellectual luddite."

Do not be surprised if Cizik is lionized today for his moderation on gay marriage and eviscerated tomorrow for his unequivocal adherence to another evangelical tenet.

Cizik is right about gay marriage. Not because he is somehow spitting in the eye of the evangelical "troglodytes", but rather because, in our post-postmodern, post-christian American culture the error of trying to evangelize the culture at a sociopolitical level is perhaps more glaring than ever... but it isn't new. C.S. Lewis pointed this error out in the 1940s through his radio talks that became the book, Mere Christianity. His point was essentially that of Hillel... "That which is hateful to you, do not do to someone else." A christian would certainly have a problem with the imposition of sharia law... and yet as believers, we (yes, I said we... because as a follower of Jesus, I suppose I must be lumped in with the rest of the so-called "intellectual luddites"...) find it simply incredible that the non-christian world doesn't hold the same morality that we do.

Frankly, there needs to be a redefinition marriage in America and a differentiation between a "Christian Marriage" and a "Civil Marriage"... in the same way that there is already a difference between Hindu, Christian, Muslim, Jewish, Wiccan, etc. marriages. And as some of my fellows have pointed out here, christians should grasp the beams in our own eyes and walk the walk we talk in our own marriages.

Now if they can just get hold of their own tails and swallow the world would be a much better place.

No room for common sense in the Church.

Ask Copernicus.

Religion is the enemy of reason.

I have noticed Richard Cizik's growth as a thinker, a human, and a spiritual being. Long before Terry Gross interviewed him on "Fresh Air", Bill Moyers (another recovering fundamentalist minister) interviewed him on PBS. It was then he spoke about his perception of the spirituality of saving god's natural world.

If the wingnut evangelicals have "lost confidence" in him, it's a compliment. He has outgrown them -- not in ego but in being willing to acknowledge that we are all connected and are all deserving of the love and respect of each other. There are churches and spiritual communities who would welcome him (and any of you other recovering evangelicals and Mormons out there) such as the United Church of Christ or the Unitarian-Universalists.

I wish Richard Cizik the acceptance, respect, love and support from his fellow citizens that he deserves for speaking his truth publicly and at risk to his career. I, too, am sorry that he apologized to his organization. It is they who should apologize to him. Godspeed.

...but I guess the evangelicals don't want anybody speaking for them who can speak sense, reach out to people outside of their little club, or not sound like a total asshole at all times.

This guy also came pretty close to saying he voted for Obama and thought Palin was absurd. I wouldn't be surprised if that, more than the gay thing, was what got him ousted.

Dicks.

The sudden crush of worshipers packing the small evangelical Shelter Rock Church in Manhasset, N.Y. — a Long Island town of yacht clubs and hedge fund managers — forced the pastor to set up an overflow room with closed-circuit TV and 100 folding chairs, which have been filled for six Sundays straight.

In Seattle, the Mars Hill Church, one of the fastest-growing evangelical churches in the country, grew to 7,000 members this fall, up 1,000 in a year. At the Life Christian Church in West Orange, N.J., prayer requests have doubled — almost all of them aimed at getting or keeping jobs.

Like evangelical churches around the country, the three churches have enjoyed steady growth over the last decade. But since September, pastors nationwide say they have seen such a burst of new interest that they find themselves contending with powerful conflicting emotions — deep empathy and quiet excitement — as they re-encounter an old piece of religious lore:

Bad times are good for evangelical churches.

“It’s a wonderful time, a great evangelistic opportunity for us,” said the Rev. A. R. Bernard, founder and senior pastor of the Christian Cultural Center in Brooklyn, New York’s largest evangelical congregation, where regulars are arriving earlier to get a seat. “When people are shaken to the core, it can open doors.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/14/nyregion/14churches.html

ps

"Watch it Dad, you're the highly suggestible type" Lisa Simpson

"Yes, I am the highly suggestible type" Homer Simpson

They never listen to National Public Radio or read the New Yorker.

sonofloud

Religion is above or outside the law. Human "laws" are trivial rules concocted by the imperfect human mind. Religion does not rely on a such flawed foundation. Those chosen by God to speak for Him reveal to the other poor slobs His eternal absolute Laws. God obviously doesn't want His chosen to be bound by the trivial human rules(especially the part about taxes). The crimes of the religious are not really crimes. Criminal rules apply only to the un-chosen. You would know this if not blinded by a lack of faith. I know because the Bible viz. God, told me so!

Who else:

1. does not pay taxes

2. receives tax money to spread their propaganda

3. owns property

4. gets to host a presidential debate

5. gets to remove other people's civil rights

6. enjoys every governmental service that other people's money pays for

?

Richard Cizik is one of the few thinking evangelical leaders. He's also come under fire for educating himself about and addressing the global warming issue. Unfortunately, fundamentalists equate thinking with sin.

It's a shame. I was just considering going back to my evangelical church. As a mother, I now consider it necessary to protect my children from my religion.