bodhi: Yes, that's a good assessment of what I was trying to say.
DL: binary hasn't been talking to me lately... a distance seems to have grown between us. 
In general, the term "worship" seems to be a big stumbling block in this thread. The idea that everyone "worships" something is quite a common idea among Christians, because for us the word "worship" holds no negative connotations. To non-Christians, though, "worship" is a very religious word, and I have not encountered a single non-Christian who has ever said that they worship someone or something (outside of jesting).
The term originally means "worthiness" or "respect." But that doesn't really help us here, because however fun it might be for a linguist like myself to go rooting around in word origins, it doesn't matter what a word might have meant hundreds of years ago. What matters is what the word means today, and today, "worship" is only used to refer to the act of reverencing a deity (with the exception of the occasional hyperbolic usage in literature, etc.). Since atheists, by definition, reject the existence of God, they will also naturally reject anything related to this God. DL said it all with this:
quote:
I think the problem stems from the fact that you do so strongly beleive in your god and your religion that it's difficult to imagine not having *something* in that place...
For DL (and forgive me if I'm putting words into your mouth), there is nothing in his life that he perceives to be filling the "God" slot that would have the same meaning for him as it does for Christians. As far as he is concerned, there is no "God" slot.
It just doesn't make sense to try to apply a Christian term to a non-Christian and expect them to relate to it. We may be preaching at them, but we are certainly not opening up avenues of communication. Because of the automatic backlash against such a strongly religious term, were are in fact closing those avenues.
How would I put the same idea? Well, I'd talk about it in terms of priorities. For Christians, God is number one in our lives (or at least that's the idea). Everyone has something that they feel is important, that they value over other things. Christians often like to cite things like "self" or "money" as things that non-Christians "worship," but those are just generalizations. Yes, we all know of people who value money above all else, and it is not just a Christian idea that such people usually fail to find happiness. But many of the non-Christians I know do not value money above all else. Many people put their family first, for example. Looking at it in that light, it should be obvious how inappropriate the term "worship" is here.
But the question was "Why religion?" and the more I think about it, the more I am inclined to (at least partially) agree with DL, Emps, et al. If norm has asked "Why God?" I think things might have gone differently, but we're talking about institutions created by mankind here. In that light, a religion is not much different from a political party. And yes, it is easier to go with the flow than to try to swim on your own.
Now that I am honest with myself, I see that this is why I reacted so strongly to DL's statement--because I see the truth in it, and resent the many times I have been pegged as another brainless church zombie. I am not trying to appear wise in the eyes of men--I will readily admit that I do not have nearly as much wisdom as I would like. But I think God knows my heart, and that He does not despise me for questioning and for seeking. Paul says to "work out your salvation with fear and trembling" (Phil. 2:12). What does that mean? Well, for me that means my belief is not a passive thing, but something I must struggle with daily. The moment I stop struggling and feel that I have finally found all the answers is the moment that complacency sets in and decay begins.
I suppose it should be obvious that I draw a distinction between religion and my faith. Not that the two cannot coexist, but one is a man-made institution, and the other is a personal relationship with God (sorry, that's another term Christians like to use). So, I don't know if that answers the question, but maybe it will shed some light on the way I think and why I reacted the way I did.
posted 05-15-2003 23:01
