Being Religious

[poliphilo]

It is said of one of the London bombers that he had recently "become more religious."

I grew up in a society where "religious" was always a praise word.

Going to church a lot, being a pal of the vicar's, helping to run some militaristic church youth group- these were all, in and of themselves, things worthy of praise. They were moral. They were good.

Morality and religion were all scrambled together. You could be sour, nasty, intolerant, ignorant, snobbish, small-minded, cruel, power-mad, not to be trusted round children, but if you were also "religious" you were automatically on the side of the angels.

It has taken me most of my life to undo this early conditioning.

And to realise that "being religious" is just a compulsion, taste or hobby like any other- and that "religious" people are no more to be counted on for moral behaviour than football supporters or stamp collectors or any other gang or group.

Comments

[cdpoint.livejournal.com]

It's always the bloody people that ruin a religion.

Ergo, the best religion is one with no followers.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

If you read the gospels as a text full of morally provocative- not to say- cheeky statements, that's fine, but if you then try to convert them into a rule book and raise an organisation on the back of that rulebook- well, you're in exactly the sort of mess we're in at present....

[jackiejj.livejournal.com]

Rule book--yes.

Religious feelings can be very distracting and misleading (that is expounding the obvious, I know), which is why once feelings are involved one must revive them to feel religious again.

I understand that people being lured into the Moonies (whatever happened to that cult?) were kept up late at night and given brownies and hot chocolate (caffeine) and made to exercise until they were jangled and exhausted and open to anything.

However, one can't just be overtaken--there's a component of interest, like a little ember that is fanned.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I became a charismatic Christian for a while. It was all down to meeting a girl on a train. She was a lot happier than I was and I wanted whatever it was she had.

Also she was rather pretty.