Religion, spirituality, politics and you

[avanta7]

I answered this post in christianleft, and wanted to preserve my answers in my own journal. Comments welcome. Or answer the questions in your own journal as you wish.

1. How do you define "religion"?--A standardized set of practices or beliefs, usually involving worship or acknowledgment of a higher power or powers.
   
   
2. How do you define "spirituality"?--An individual's relationship with his higher power.
   
   
3. If you adhere to a faith or religious/spiritual doctrine, does it require belief in the "supernatural"? If so, how do you define "supernatural"?--I do indeed adhere to a faith which requires belief in the supernatural. Specifically, my monotheistic faith tradition requires I believe in an omnipotent Supreme Being. In my circumstance, I define "supernatural" as "outside nature" or "above nature", in the sense that the Supreme Being is beyond my ability to influence: I cannot touch Him, see Him, experience Him in the same fashion as I touch, see or experience people, places and things in the natural world.
   
   
4. If you adhere to a faith or religious/spiritual doctrine, do you believe its founding or supporting texts (such as the Bible, Quran, and so on) are literal truth?--No. I believe the text contains truth as filtered through fallible human experience; it should be interpreted metaphorically and symbolically rather than literally.
   
   
5. If you adhere to a faith or religious/spiritual doctrine, do you practice in a place of worship, or follow a guide/teacher/leader of some sort?--In general, yes. I worship in community and follow the teachings of a single individual; I do my best to carry those spiritual teachings and concepts gained in community into my daily living.
   
   
6. What role should religion or spirituality have in social/political decision-making, and why?--I believe we should make decisions on social and/or political issues based on our core beliefs and how we understand the ultimate purpose of our Higher Power(s). I recognize that another individual's core beliefs will differ from mine because we have differing, perhaps even contradictory, understandings. For this reason, I don't believe we should state publicly "I'm voting this way because it's what God wants." My interpretation of God's will is quite probably different from yours. Instead, we should defend our decisions with sound secular arguments, even if those decisions are made from spiritual biases.

From this post, also in christianleft

1. When I was young I was told that if I wasn’t a Christian I would go to hell. When I asked about whether followers of other religions would go to hell I was told that they would only go to hell if they had heard the message of Jesus and rejected it. I was informed that if they had never heard of Jesus they would automatically go to heaven. So, from a compassionate viewpoint, wouldn’t it be better if the missionaries didn’t tell people about Jesus?--From that viewpoint, yes, indeed, it would be more compassionate to refrain from evangelizing. But Christ Himself gave us the Great Commission, to go out and tell all the world. We are thus obligated by our faith to let others know of Jesus and His sacrifice. I'm not comfortable standing on a street-corner preaching the Word; nor am I cut out to be a missionary; so I tend to "preach" Jesus by showing Him in my daily life to the best of my ability. Some days that ability is very low indeed.
   
   Christ also said "no one comes to the Father except through me." Some of His followers have taken that to mean refusing to become Christian is an automatic ticket to Hell. I'm not sure I agree with that interpretation, simply because it doesn't sit well with my understanding of God; but right now, I don't know that I can give you any sort of Biblical basis for an alternate interpretation.
   
   
2. In Genesis the first humans are Adam and Eve. They had two sons, Cain and Abel. Cain killed Abel. So who did Cain fuck to begat the rest of the human race?--Adam and Eve had other children as well. I don't know Cain's wife's name, but she was from Nod, east of Eden. These sorts of contradictions pop up all the time if one interprets the Bible literally. (I don't, by the way.)
   
   
3. Does God know everything? If so, how come he was stupid enough to leave a talking serpent in the Garden of Eden?--God is omnipotent, which means all-powerful. But God is NOT "The Puppet Master Of The Universe"; he does not control our actions. God gave his creatures free will along with intelligence. The Adversary, here disguised as a talking serpent, was a free-willed creature, just as Adam and Eve had free will. They had a choice, and they chose to disobey God.
   
   
4. If God is all-knowing do you believe he knew Adam and Eve would eat the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil? (I ask this as I am not all-knowing, but I know fine well if I leave a packet of biscuits on the kitchen table and tell my child not to eat them she will, with or without the evil influence of a talking serpent.)--I think God hoped they would choose to obey his order not to eat. I don't think he knew what their choice would be ahead of time, but had contingency plans ready if the choice was to disobey. In my view, it rather makes the "free will" aspect of our makeup moot if God knows what choices we will make. But, truly, I am not well-versed enough in this kind of theological debate to argue my point cohesively.
   
   
5. Do you think God’s punishment of Lot’s wife was a bit mean? Sure, she looked back, but I still think turning her into a pillar of salt was a bit extreme, don’t you?--Symbolism, symbolism, symbolism! Also, an early explanation for the salt pillars found in that neck of the woods.
   
   
6. Regarding homosexuality, do you think it is right to quote a few random texts from the Bible to back up arguments that homosexuals shouldn’t have equal human rights to heterosexuals, especially regarding the right to marriage? If so, can you tell me how many chickens and goats the Bible tells you to sacrifice for committing adultery? Working on the premise that the entire Bible is the inspired word of God, can you tell me why homosexuals are still being discriminated against, but chickens and goats are no longer being sacrificed to atone for sins?--No. No. And, although I believe the Bible was inspired by God, I do not take it literally; therefore, no.
   
   
7. Do you ever consider the possibility that Mary made up the story about the immaculate conception? After all, Joseph was pretty old and they didn’t have viagra in those days.--Since Mary was the child of the "Immaculate Conception" (see this Wikipedia explanation), the answer is no. Now if you're referring to the "Miraculous Conception" or "Virgin Birth" (see this other Wikipedia explanation), then, yeah, I've considered it.
   
   
8. Do you actually think Jesus died for our sins? Wouldn’t it have been easier for God just to forgive without the human sacrifice thing?--To quote Patti Smith, "Jesus died for somebody's sins, but not mine." Seriously, yes, I do believe it. It's crucial to my faith tradition. At the same time, I question it. I'm a paradox and a possible heretic. As for the rest of your question: again, symbolism, symbolism, symbolism.
   
   
9. Do you ever worry about God saying he’s a ‘jealous God’? A pretty primitive emotion for a God, don’t you think?--No, I don't worry about it. Such a statement had more meaning to the wandering nomads who became the Jews as they turned from a polytheistic to a monotheistic worship tradition.
   
   
10. Do you think I will burn in hell for writing this? And do you actually believe in hell?--No, I don't believe you're going to hell. I believe God gave us brains and wants us to use them. And I'm not entirely sure I believe in Hell as a destination. I think it's more like eternal separation from God.
    
    
11. Does God have genitals? If not, what makes him a HE?--Since God is not corporeal, He doesn't have genitals. She is generally referred to as He in the Judeo/Christian tradition because that tradition descends from a patriarchal society.
    
    
12. If the bible says ‘thou shalt not kill’ quite emphatically in the ten commandments, how can George Bush call himself a Christian when he sent soldiers over to Iraq and caused the deaths of 100,000 Iraqis? By the way, a small addition to this, in my Bible (Exodus, Chapter 20, Line 13) it says quite clearly: Thou shalt not kill.--The correct translation of that commandment is "You shall not murder." Casualties in war are not considered murder. Other than that, in my view, I have no idea how GWB can call himself Christian, especially since he attacked and ravaged that particular country without provocation. But I cannot judge him. Ultimately, his faith is between him and his God.

Comments

[grendel1031.livejournal.com]

Whenever you write about theological matters, I am amazed and pleased. But most of all, I feel less lonely. Christians who can think. What a concept! The Lord gave us cognitive ability and actually allows us to us it.

There are so few people who could answer those questions in a way that I could not have anything but respect for.

Thank you.

[avanta7.livejournal.com]

Christians who can think. What a concept!
~~~~~~~~
Yep. The lock-step group-think mentality out there frightens me.

[madame-urushiol.livejournal.com]

Yep. The lock-step group-think mentality out there frightens me.

Indeed--you are becoming quite the rarity among your kind. It's quite lovely (and a great relief) to know that there are some people out there who view religion as a living, breathing, changing thing worth approaching with a questioning mind and a searching heart instead of blind belief. I enjoyed what you wrote--it made me feel hopeful.

[mojosmom.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the post! I went over there, and answered her questions (and that dipshit who called her a plagiarist because she respects people's privacy). Interesting stuff!

[avanta7.livejournal.com]

that dipshit who called her a plagiarist
~~~~~~
*snerk*
Yeah, that was entertaining. Didn't you just want to smack that person for being stupid? (Hey, I never said I wasn't judgmental about everything. I reserve the right to point out stupidity when necessary.)

[madame-urushiol.livejournal.com]

I was thinking that person is probably very big on "tolerance" in other arenas. A frustrated hall-monitor or something. If the premise of a survey makes you uncomfortable, don't answer it.

I've always believed one should never ridicule someone for something they cannot help. Supidity is a choice, and therefore always fair game in my book.

[buffra.livejournal.com]

I love your answers. I even agree with most of them. And I do, probably, have the theological background/education to back them up! But I'm not up to it right now.

I posted my sermon notes from today in my journal. Just because I felt like it.

[avanta7.livejournal.com]

I saw your sermon notes. Thanks so much for sharing them!

[shendoah.livejournal.com]

I always like reading your answers.

[avanta7.livejournal.com]

*beam*

[alicefanclub.livejournal.com]

Thanks for sharing those. I may be on the "outside" but it is always enlightening and encouraging when I read these kinds of things.