Bigots, zealots, haters, killers don't want to call themselves religious because everybody would recognize them. That's why they use faith or people of faith, according to Amanda Marcotte.
This really is a kind of fascinating bitch, when you stop and think of it. Faith is a major component of religious thought, and covers both the intellectual aspects of religion and the active physical manifestations. One typically doesn't spend a lot of time working in the church's soup kitchen if you don't have faith.
But this is the sort of problem that secularists have, because, to them, faith is really only another entry in the thesaurus for "steadfast, loyal, true, etc." The real reason "people of faith" has become part of the nomenclature is its inclusive nature, the way it can be used for Christians, Jews, Muslims, Buddists, New Agers, Unitarians, rock worshippers, star gazers and others who use spiritualism to guide their everyday lives.
But, of course, to the "inclusive" being inclusive isn't good enough because by using "people of faith," the people in charge aren't including secularists who don't have "faith" the same way Christians or Unitarians might. Which makes them feel bad. Or something.
Amanda goes through a list of things she thinks people gain from religious belief and how you can really substitute some secular ideal and not feel a hollow, emptiness at all.
Spirituality. I hear this a lot, and I think the needs that get defined as spiritual do exist. But I tend to think those needs can largely be met by having interesting, meaningful work (and if you can’t get that as paid employment, many hobbies offer it), love in your life, and an appreciation for the vastness and complexity of the world. Though many people get spiritual needs met through church, the fact that you can get them met elsewhere means that a lot of people who have these needs are going elsewhere.
Because you can really love, say, model rocketry, with the same fervor as God, and get the same meaning out of it. Or staring at the stars and contemplating the pure coincidence of it will give you the same spiritual meaning as remembering,
"The heavens declare the glory of God"--Psalms 19:1
I'm sure you can find as much spirituality in your involvement with Lost or playing video games, since spirituality is really about filling your time.
Fellowship/community. This is a biggie, because our modern lifestyle doesn’t give us enough opportunities to find community, and churches make themselves very easy to find. That said, this is still a need that most people can find a way to meet elsewhere, so as a draw, this is just the second largest, and pales in comparison to the largest.
So, if you don't want to go to church because of all those icky churchgoers, go to Starbucks, instead. Or maybe Barnes and Noble. It's all the same thing.
Identity. This probably keeps more people attached to a church than any other reason, because it’s tradition and it grounds them in their family and tribal identity. But let’s face it---you get this need met through holidays and the occasional big ritual like a wedding. That level of commitment isn’t the sort of thing that gives a person a reason to declare himself a “person of faith” and demand that the government abandon its constitutional duty to be secular in order to accommodate him. It also doesn’t give the churches enough financial backing to keep their doors open, and if it was left at this, religion would slowly fade away to be replaced by other markers of tradition and identity, such as the completely secularized Christmas that many Americans already celebrate.
Translation: I don't see faith as something practiced on a daily basis. It's really only a couple of days a year and doesn't have any meaning whatsoever outside of the commercial aspects.
You have a bunch of cherished and probably odious beliefs that have no basis in the material world that can be verified by science, and so you need a god to say that you’re right and everyone else is wrong neener neener. Sexism would be a good example of the kind of irrational belief that needs some sort of supernatural justification. “Godidit” works a lot better than trying to concoct even the most hackneyed evo psych theory of why women should be barefoot-n-pregnant. Since other needs are easily met elsewhere without giving up your ties to the rational world, this justification for religion is taking over the “faith” community at a pretty decent clip.
This comes from someone who knows nothing about religous thought other than what some leftwing secularist site tells her.
So, as you can see, there are so many intelligent reasons to not be religious or tolerant of religion and its place in society. This must be about the time Amanda hits the Thunderbird.
H/T to Chuck for finding this gem.
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