Is Religion Dangerous?

Those who have little or no religious faith and are hostile to God and religion are fond of justifying their condition by pointing out all the evil done in the world in the name of religion or God. Christianity is criticized for the Crusades and The Inquisition. Some will point to Islamic fanatics as another example of the evils of religious belief, never mind that these terrorists are breaking many of the rules of their own Scriptures.

Have bad things been done in the name of God throughout history? Of course. Is God or “religion” to blame? No. Is religion dangerous? Only when misused for evil purposes. Anything, no matter how good, can be misused by evil people for evil purposes. In addition, religion or Scripture have been grossly misinterpreted, abused or wrongly applied by often well-meaning but misguided people. Nevertheless, these don’t make all religion evil or make God to be somehow bad.

In other cases we blame religion when that isn’t the main cause. For example, in Northern Ireland, the conflict there was defined as a Catholic-Protestant controversy. However, it wasn’t a religious issue, but rather a conflict between the natives (the Irish, who were Catholic) and the settlers who wanted to remain a part of the United Kingdom (the Orangemen who were Protestant). Some practices against women done in some Muslim countries are more culturally-defined than religiously. While the religion often informs the culture in Islamic countries, the Qur’an doesn’t promote activities practiced in some Muslim countries.

All the evil you can think of that has been done (and in some cases continues to be done) in the name of God or religion is miniscule compared to all the good that has been done. For centuries before governments became more benevolent in Europe, it was the Church that ran hospitals and orphanages, and provided some social services. Even today we have Christian organizations caring for people locally and worldwide, such as The Salvation Army, Catholic Charities, Samaritan’s Purse, Goodwill Industries, and many others. Some local churches have food pantries and thrift shops to help the needy, and some send teams all over the world on short-term mission trips to help desperate people in poor countries. And then think of all the unseen good done by individuals of faith.

In the West we have generally benevolent governments that value justice, individual freedoms, and life (“life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness”). Why is that? It’s because our country was established on the foundation of Judeo-Christian principles and the best of Enlightenment thinking. So I think we can give a little credit to God and Christianity for the freedoms and life we have.

If you don’t want to believe in God or be involved in a religion, that’s your business, but don’t use the lame excuse that so much evil has been done in the name of God and religion. That just doesn’t line up with the facts.

A New Opportunity for Identity Thieves

According to a news report I recently saw on the Internet, banks are now issuing credit cards that can be waved over a reader rather than swiped (similar to a key card that unlocks doors to buildings). I guess swiping a card is just too much trouble. The only problem is, if a person with a portable card reader can get close enough to you, your information can be read and recorded on a small computer. Somebody has just stolen your credit card information and can order thousands of dollars worth of stuff and you don’t even know you’ve been robbed! It’s high-tech pick-pocketing, thanks to the banks who issue such cards.

This makes me wonder, what are the banks that issue credit cards thinking? Everybody is concerned with identity theft, yet every month we get blank checks from our credit card carriers in the mail. I don’t want them, I’ve never used them, and I can’t make them stop sending them. Not only do these checks provide a temptation for people to spend money they don’t have and may not be able to pay back, but they also provide an opportunity for identity theft or forgery. Every month I must shred these unwanted checks for my own protection as well as the bank’s.

Now the geniuses at Bank of America, Chase, and other credit and debit card issuing banks have come up with a new way for people to be robbed. Don’t these folks consult their security people about potential risks of new technologies? Given the history of banks over the past few decades (remember the S&L crisis and the bad loans to Latin American countries of the late 20th century?), I just don’t understand how bank executives make decisions. One positive thing, business schools can use these cases as opportunities to teach their students what not to do!

Euphemisms

It’s amazing how groups try to manipulate people’s opinions through the subtle use of language. For example, the pro-Palestinian media typically refer to Palestinian terrorists as “militants” rather than what they really are – terrorists. Terrorists terrorize people, and that’s what these Palestinian “militants” have been doing to Israeli citizens within rocket range.

Now a new euphemism has emerged. Rather than calling illegal immigrants what they are – illegal – a group now wants to drop the “I-word” because they feel it is racist and judgmental. It’s unclear what this group wants to use instead of “illegal” – I presume it’s some euphemism such as “undocumented.” If you are breaking United States law, isn’t that illegal? If you are in this country illegally, isn’t that illegal? Why sugar-coat the facts? Call it what it is and then deal with it.

I absolutely believe fair and humane solutions to the illegal immigration (there, I said it) problem must be found, but to play games with words is just a bold attempt to obfuscate the issue and sway public opinion. I think we should all pray for God’s guidance to our leaders in government for this very tricky problem, because we are talking about the well-being of millions of people, the security of the United States, and many other factors.

Etiquette

I recently saw a news item about a school in the metro New York area that is teaching the kids proper etiquette. I think that’s a great idea. Today, people don’t know proper etiquette, mainly because most parents don’t teach it. Rudeness is a real problem with cell phones. You have people texting when in class, when out somewhere with others, or maybe even while in conversation with you. Of course texting while driving goes beyond rude, to dangerous and life-threatening.

One particularly annoying use of the cell phone involves using one while in a darkened theater. I’ve been watching a play and all of a sudden there’s an annoying light coming from a row or two in front of me. In a darkened theater that little telephone light is quite bright. Even if they are only texting and there’s no sound, that light is distracting.

Today kids aren’t taught the common courtesies such as taking off your hat while indoors and in an elevator, how to set a table, which fork to use, etc. Cell phones and lack of etiquette are contributing to a ruder and cruder society, which is too bad. Maybe that school is on to something.

Importance of Christmas

What’s the big deal about Christmas? For Christians, Christmas celebrates one of the most important events in the history of the world, so they shouldn’t take it lightly. We should not let the significance of the holiday become overshadowed by all the commercialism, sentimentality, and secular aspects of the season.

I just made what some may consider a rather radical statement, that Christmas commemorates one of the most important events in history. Let’s think about that for a minute. What makes that first Christmas so momentous?

The God who created the universe, who is all-powerful, and who is majestic beyond our wildest imagination, did something radical and unheard of. The highly paraphrased version of the Bible called The Message puts it this way (Philippians 2:5-8a):

Think of yourselves the way Christ Jesus thought of himself. He had equal status with God but didn’t think so much of him-self that he had to cling to the advantages of that status no matter what. Not at all. When the time came, he set aside the privileges of deity and took on the status of a slave, became human! Having become human, he stayed human. It was an in-credibly humbling process. He didn’t claim special privileges. Instead, he lived a selfless, obedient life and then died a selfless, obedient death. (by Eugene H. Peterson)

We read in the majestic words of the first chapter of the Gospel according to John (John 1:14):

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. NIV

If that wasn’t significant enough, Jesus came to earth to give the entire human race the opportunity to get back into right relationship with God (to become children of God once more). This could not have happened if Jesus hadn’t been born of a woman for the ultimate purpose of paying the penalty for our wrongdoing. Again we read in John’s Gospel (John 1:12-13):

Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God—children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God. NIV

That’s pretty significant, don’t you think? Without that birth 2,000 years ago, there would have been no debt payment on the cross, and of course there wouldn’t have been the glorious Resurrection on that first Easter. While the sentimental, family, and goodwill aspects of the season are nice, we Christians mustn’t lose sight of the true meaning of Christmas.

Recognizing Christmas

I watched the last half hour or so of the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree lighting program on NBC on Tuesday, Nov. 30. It was refreshing to hear Christmas carols sung and the word “Christmas” actually used instead of the generic “holiday.” Obviously this celebration was of a secular nature, but they didn’t shy away from the traditional carols that refer to Jesus. I give NBC credit for not watering down the celebration of Christmas.

Unemployment Benefits

As of this writing, Congress hasn’t extended unemployment benefits. This lack of caring for those who have worked hard all their lives demonstrates once again that our government’s priorities are not right. People have lost their jobs through no fault of their own and can’t find work because our government allowed jobs to be moved overseas. Now that same government refuses to extend unemployment benefits to these families.

Yet our “benevolent” government provides benefits to those who are able-bodied yet abuse the system. For example, a common scam is to work just long enough to be eligible for unemployment, and then get yourself fired so you can live on the government dole for a while. Then there are those who live on welfare and have no intention of becoming productive members of society. While I firmly believe there must be a “safety net” for those who are unable to work for health reasons, we’ve got to do something about fraud and abuse of the system.

Please write your senators and congressmen and let them know you are outraged by this lack of caring for those who have been, and want to be, productive members of society. Let’s get our priorities straight in this country and stop always hurting the middle class.