Being Religious
Jul. 14th, 2005 09:39 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
poliphiloIt 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.
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.
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no subject
Date: 2005-07-14 06:31 am (UTC)Function: adjective
Etymology: Middle English, from Old French religieus, from Latin religiosus, from religio
1 : relating to or manifesting faithful devotion to an acknowledged ultimate reality or deity
2 : of, relating to, or devoted to religious beliefs or observances
3 a : scrupulously and conscientiously faithful b : FERVENT, ZEALOUS
- re·li·gious·ly adverb
- re·li·gious·ness noun
How strange that words invested with so much emotion, when you boil them down to dictionary entries, become rather puny.
I've known some people who have rock solid faith - come by with great difficulty - but I don't believe I'd ever use the word 'religious' to describe them.
no subject
Date: 2005-07-14 07:09 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-07-14 01:43 pm (UTC)(Is that right? Perhaps a state of transition.)
For example, the hard-line Christianity being promoted by some Evangelicals is moving farther away from the original Christianity and is more and more rigid and hostile...
Our own church is dying--the survey sent out by our parish recently was sent to 900 families, and only 200+ sent them back in.
What will be next? Hopefully (since no religion can be entirely new, I guess) we will begin to remove the encrustation, anger, prejudices, and misunderstandings to find a new way to enjoy and wonder about God.
Without using "religion" as a way to justify killing each other off.
Good Lord.
no subject
Date: 2005-07-15 01:05 am (UTC)People are attracted to liveliness. Which is why the evangelicals are gaining ground.
The other night there was a TV report on the New Age and how more and more people are turning to crystal healing and circle dancing and all that sort of thing.
The New Age is silly, but at least it dosn't have very much to do with bombs.