Decidedly
Musings on decisions and factors that drive them.
Pope in Prague
Mon, Sep 28 2009 12:01
Signing on for Faith, or Religion
The Pope recently visited Prague. It is interesting that, as reported on the BBC, the Catholic Church supposes that the main reason for the loss of followers in the Czech Republic is the prior reign of Communism.
This, of course, would not explain why there has been a decrease in followers worldwide, and a significant decrease in the United States. Nor why a spider made the New York Times' reporting of his visit more interesting than the message he delivered, itself.
A basic difference in how people view religion vs. faith has already been noted in the U.S., where there is a growing trend of people to indicate having a form of faith they refer to as "spirituality." Quite a few persons profess a strong belief in God, but an objection to the many religions who have overlaid basic faith and belief in God with a set of rules not found in the Bible or other mainstream religions' foundational books. Each religion's rules, written by humans with all their fallibilities, seem to distort for a purpose that on examination appears more earthly than divine.
Even more so, many religions, beyond their own rules, appear to have become politicized. The "platforms" of religions, and the belligerent attitude of "my God is better than your God" do nothing to further the faith of those who truly believe in a God. [Overfocusing on Christmas the Commercial Venture, with sales starting in July, and stores stocking Christmas ribbons and paper smack alongside the Back to School specials, has not helped keep one's focus on faith, either.]
It would be an interesting exercise, on one hand, to ask people what is important to them in terms of a "religion". For some I know, the sense of community and belonging is one important aspect. For others it is the disciplined time set aside to open one's heart and connect with the divine. On the other hand, it would be interesting to see how people described "faith" and why it was important to them. I'd, of course, suggest weighting each set to determine their relative importance. In reviewing the differences, it might explain a lot about where religion and faith have diverged.
[Added October 10, 2009: In response to the above, someone sent me in hardcopy PARADE magazine from October 4 on the topic of America and the dichotomy between spirituality and religion. Worth a look.]
[Added October 10, 2009: In response to the above, someone sent me in hardcopy PARADE magazine from October 4 on the topic of America and the dichotomy between spirituality and religion. Worth a look.]
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