Gotta Have Faith
Another doozy from the letters to the editor. Once again, a presumptuous, arrogant fanatic made me ashamed to be labeled a Christian. Yay.
You know what other word is slippery? 'Christian.' Supposedly, it's a word used to describe a person who follows the teachings of Jesus of Nazareth, who emphasized humility, generosity, kindness, charity, peace, brotherhood, and a non-judgmental outlook. It has been embraced, however, by nationalist war hawks, violent racists, greedy corporate kleptocrats, and nosy, judgmental assholes who are more concerned with whom someone else has a relationship with than their own failings at humility and non-judgmental acceptance.
First of all, it seems strange to me that Rachel would have first-hand knowledge of the spiritual beliefs held by Brendan Fay and every other Irish homosexual in New York City. She seems pretty comfortable assuming they're not Christians, when I would bet you a good number of them are. The tone in her written voice is unmistakable. You can almost feel a wave of arrogant superiority wafting off the newspaper page. Rachel is a Christian, and she's certainly better than a bunch of dirty queers, so they must NOT be Christian. For Rachel, Christianity isn't a set of tenets. It's a way for her to feel better than others, sure in the knowledge that if they don't do what she tells them to and become like her, they will burn in hell. I happen to be a Christian, but my beliefs are based on a study of scripture and philosophy, not on the self-important ramblings of people like Rachel, who lord their beliefs over others as a means of shameless ego masturbation. I can't quite imagine that anyone would be attracted to a faith by Rachel's haughty arrogance.
I am embarrassed by people like Rachel, because they just don't get it, and they've created an environment in which I'm often ashamed to tell people I'm Christian, out of fear that people will lump me together with folks like her. Every devout follower of every branch of Christianity, let alone other religions, believes they've got it right, and everyone else is wrong. The lack of empathy people have when it comes to spirituality is rather stunning. Given the stature and teachings of Jesus as presented in the four books of the Gospel, you'd think it would set off all sorts of alarms when following a sect of Christianity causes one to feel superior to everyone else, but in fact, it seems to be a lot of people's favorite aspect of their chosen denominations. Despite the importance of spiritual superiority in their own belief systems, however, they don't seem able to comprehend how anyone else could possibly believe they have it right. What seems to ultimately escape, say, a devout, fanatical evangelical Christian is that a devout Catholic or Mormon or Lutheran or Muslim or Buddhist or Wiccan could feel just as strongly about their beliefs as she does her own, and are unlikely to be converted by someone who belittles what they believe. You're never going to convince someone that your belief system is superior to theirs if that belief system causes you to act like a spoiled, petulant, selfish child.
The question I usually pose to these people, when they ring my doorbell or hand me a Chick Tract at the grocery store, is exactly how they know that their own interpretation is the only valid one. Almost invariably, they say that they have prayed for the truth and feel that God has led them down the path they are on. Strangely, however, I get this answer from evangelical fanatics, Jehovah's Witnesses, Mormons, and just about everyone else. Once I started noticing the trend, my follow up question became, Okay, that's great, but I've heard followers of other faiths say the same thing. How is it that people are getting different answers from the same source? If this question is directly answered and not danced around, I usually hear that the powers of Satan are strong and constantly trying to corrupt people by leading them astray. This, of course, leads me to ask how they know that their answer came from God and not the corrupting power of Satan. Well, they put their trust in God, who protects them from Satan's corruption. Thus the circular argument is completed, rolling them into an armadillo-like ball of pseudo-scientific spirituality that no amount of logic or empathy can penetrate.
I'm sure Rachel thought she was writing a letter about homosexuality, but she really didn't say much about the issue. She did, however, accidentally say a lot about her own beliefs and the intrinsic problems with a belief system that emphasizes evangelizing while simultaneously devaluing the empathy and compassion required to engage people meaningfully about faith. The truth is, faith means believing without proof, and nobody has verifiable proof that their religion is superior to any other. If you believe that you have all the spiritual answers, and that your belief system is above reproach and beyond criticism, then you do not follow a faith, you buy into a pseudo-science. The best a Christian can do is read the Gospel, try to absorb what the teachings therein mean for their lives, and exemplify the love, peace, and acceptance taught by Christ while keeping an open mind, and not only teaching others, but continuing to learn, not only lecturing, but discussing. You might just find that the message of the Gospel has very little to do with the judgmental, vain, egotistical rantings of James Dobson and Pat Robertson, and that Christianity, in a form that reflects the actual teachings of Christ and not a fascist, theocratic control mechanism based on Old Testament laws, will attract people who currently feel, and understandably so, that they are excluded from what should be an all-inclusive faith. They believe that they are more worthy of divinity than anyone else, and that if only others would concede their obviously superior faith, they too would be wholly in the right and above critique. The self-important moralizing of fanatical Christians has done much to turn Christianity into an exclusive country-club religion, and in doing so, they have actually anti-evangelized. They are loud, but they are not the majority, and I believe most of people who actually study Christianity as a faith are willing to accept all people who strive for goodness. Yes, Rachel, even homosexuals.
To the Editor:
Some words are slippery - they change meanings over the years. Take the word "gay." Oh, wait! Someone already took that one and twisted it to mean "homosexual."
A homosexual activist named Brendan Fay, upset that the New York City Council chose once again to bar Irish lesbians and homosexuals from their St. Patrick's Day parade, quoted the song, "When Irish Eyes are Smiling."
The meaning of the word "gay" in the song is the wonderful, old-fashioned one - happy, cheerful, lighthearted. Perhaps if Mr. Fay and his friends would heed St. Patrick's message of salvation by God's grace through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, they would become truly gay - happy and lighthearted - knowing their sins were forgiven and they were at peace with God and on their way to heaven.
It's not homosexuality that keeps a person out of heaven. It's rejecting God's gift of salvation that will do the trick.
Rachel
You know what other word is slippery? 'Christian.' Supposedly, it's a word used to describe a person who follows the teachings of Jesus of Nazareth, who emphasized humility, generosity, kindness, charity, peace, brotherhood, and a non-judgmental outlook. It has been embraced, however, by nationalist war hawks, violent racists, greedy corporate kleptocrats, and nosy, judgmental assholes who are more concerned with whom someone else has a relationship with than their own failings at humility and non-judgmental acceptance.
First of all, it seems strange to me that Rachel would have first-hand knowledge of the spiritual beliefs held by Brendan Fay and every other Irish homosexual in New York City. She seems pretty comfortable assuming they're not Christians, when I would bet you a good number of them are. The tone in her written voice is unmistakable. You can almost feel a wave of arrogant superiority wafting off the newspaper page. Rachel is a Christian, and she's certainly better than a bunch of dirty queers, so they must NOT be Christian. For Rachel, Christianity isn't a set of tenets. It's a way for her to feel better than others, sure in the knowledge that if they don't do what she tells them to and become like her, they will burn in hell. I happen to be a Christian, but my beliefs are based on a study of scripture and philosophy, not on the self-important ramblings of people like Rachel, who lord their beliefs over others as a means of shameless ego masturbation. I can't quite imagine that anyone would be attracted to a faith by Rachel's haughty arrogance.
I am embarrassed by people like Rachel, because they just don't get it, and they've created an environment in which I'm often ashamed to tell people I'm Christian, out of fear that people will lump me together with folks like her. Every devout follower of every branch of Christianity, let alone other religions, believes they've got it right, and everyone else is wrong. The lack of empathy people have when it comes to spirituality is rather stunning. Given the stature and teachings of Jesus as presented in the four books of the Gospel, you'd think it would set off all sorts of alarms when following a sect of Christianity causes one to feel superior to everyone else, but in fact, it seems to be a lot of people's favorite aspect of their chosen denominations. Despite the importance of spiritual superiority in their own belief systems, however, they don't seem able to comprehend how anyone else could possibly believe they have it right. What seems to ultimately escape, say, a devout, fanatical evangelical Christian is that a devout Catholic or Mormon or Lutheran or Muslim or Buddhist or Wiccan could feel just as strongly about their beliefs as she does her own, and are unlikely to be converted by someone who belittles what they believe. You're never going to convince someone that your belief system is superior to theirs if that belief system causes you to act like a spoiled, petulant, selfish child.
The question I usually pose to these people, when they ring my doorbell or hand me a Chick Tract at the grocery store, is exactly how they know that their own interpretation is the only valid one. Almost invariably, they say that they have prayed for the truth and feel that God has led them down the path they are on. Strangely, however, I get this answer from evangelical fanatics, Jehovah's Witnesses, Mormons, and just about everyone else. Once I started noticing the trend, my follow up question became, Okay, that's great, but I've heard followers of other faiths say the same thing. How is it that people are getting different answers from the same source? If this question is directly answered and not danced around, I usually hear that the powers of Satan are strong and constantly trying to corrupt people by leading them astray. This, of course, leads me to ask how they know that their answer came from God and not the corrupting power of Satan. Well, they put their trust in God, who protects them from Satan's corruption. Thus the circular argument is completed, rolling them into an armadillo-like ball of pseudo-scientific spirituality that no amount of logic or empathy can penetrate.
I'm sure Rachel thought she was writing a letter about homosexuality, but she really didn't say much about the issue. She did, however, accidentally say a lot about her own beliefs and the intrinsic problems with a belief system that emphasizes evangelizing while simultaneously devaluing the empathy and compassion required to engage people meaningfully about faith. The truth is, faith means believing without proof, and nobody has verifiable proof that their religion is superior to any other. If you believe that you have all the spiritual answers, and that your belief system is above reproach and beyond criticism, then you do not follow a faith, you buy into a pseudo-science. The best a Christian can do is read the Gospel, try to absorb what the teachings therein mean for their lives, and exemplify the love, peace, and acceptance taught by Christ while keeping an open mind, and not only teaching others, but continuing to learn, not only lecturing, but discussing. You might just find that the message of the Gospel has very little to do with the judgmental, vain, egotistical rantings of James Dobson and Pat Robertson, and that Christianity, in a form that reflects the actual teachings of Christ and not a fascist, theocratic control mechanism based on Old Testament laws, will attract people who currently feel, and understandably so, that they are excluded from what should be an all-inclusive faith. They believe that they are more worthy of divinity than anyone else, and that if only others would concede their obviously superior faith, they too would be wholly in the right and above critique. The self-important moralizing of fanatical Christians has done much to turn Christianity into an exclusive country-club religion, and in doing so, they have actually anti-evangelized. They are loud, but they are not the majority, and I believe most of people who actually study Christianity as a faith are willing to accept all people who strive for goodness. Yes, Rachel, even homosexuals.
"Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, 'God, I thank You that I am not like other men -- extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I possess.' And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, 'God be merciful to me a sinner!' I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted." - Luke 18:10-14
posted by Zafrod at 11:26 AM
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