Religion in General

Growing up, I always had respect for people to stuck to their beliefs, even if they disagreed with mine. I had this atheist friend who was really nice, lived his life, and treated others well. And there was this Lutheran girl whom I talked with a lot about religion. Mostly we just shared what we believed, neither seeking to convert the other.
That said, I have always been annoyed with people who don't know their own religion or are flakey practitioners of their faiths. I can give those who are unsure of what they believe the benefit of the doubt, but those who just don't really care bother me. To me, they seem a bit too self-absorbed. The thing is, if I am going to declare a set of beliefs, I am going to make sure I really believe in them, that they are what I can comprehend as the truth. And if it is the truth as I can best gather, then I will do my best to follow the tenants of my faith.

But not everyone is like me. Not everybody even cares about religion.
Now I am not saying I am perfect. Far from it. But at least I am sincere about what I believe. And I try to do what I believe I should. But here are a few examples of what I consider not so worthy reasons/motivations for religious belief.

A lot of people follow a religious tradition as, well, a tradition. They do it because they always did it. Their fathers did it. Their forefathers did it, and they intend for their children to do it. But people like this, to me, seemed a little dim in the head. That is, they are comfortable with their traditions, but they don't bother to ask WHY. Many such people when asked why they believe what they believe, they just reply that they just do. They even throw out the word Faith, as if it explains all. But the real reason they keep to their faith can be summed up by Tevye in Fiddler on the Roof. "I don't know." But at least it shows them what God expects them to do. A lot of people are comfortable with this kind of religious devotion. But this is also the kind of religious path people like Al Capone have. The dude was technically Catholic...but I wouldn't have considered him a practitioner as I would Mother Theresa.

The thing about religion followed as a tradition, is that often times the followers really don't believe. They might even have conflicting feelings with the doctrines of their faith, but they are more worried about being ostracized by their community than about whether or not the doctrine is right or wrong. That is one of the issues of faith. You can believe you are an alien from another planet all you want, or that you have super powers, or that your Hogwarts letter will arrive any day now--but unless it is true, that faith is worth nothing. Besides, to me, Faith doesn't just mean believing in something that isn't physically provable. For me, Faith is more of an action word. Like a child leaping into her father's arms, trusting her father will catch her. It connotes a personal relationship with God--and therefore a kind of knowledge of him beyond rumors, old records, and hearsay. It also involves risk. I mean, if the child's father were awful, he could just let her fall. So it involves an understanding of the nature of God. After all, if the Christian God were anything like Zeus, I'd expect to be zapped by lightening bolts rather than caught when I leapt.

Which comes to the second type of religious follower that bugs me. The bratty child. What I mean is, some people tend to treat their relationship with religion or God as if God is a servant, or a short order cook. And if God does not deliver what they want, they will no longer believe. It puts in mind Veruca Salt from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. (Though I like her portrayal in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. [Another one]) It goes along with the whole idea that if God really loved us, our lives would not have any kind of pain or suffering. To be frank, this is really childish thinking. This presumes that the center of the universe is yours truly and if you hold your breath long enough, you'll get what you want.

When I think of God (the Christian God, mind you, and not one of the billion other types out there that people believe in), I think of him as a good father. If fact, he has claimed the title Heavenly Father, which means he takes it seriously. And a good father (in comparison to the father who would not catch his child if she leaps) does his best to raise his child right. But that means allowing a child to go without things at times--to teach that child that things are not what is most important, to be grateful, and to take care of what they have. It also means allowing the child to walk on their own rather than carry them all the time--thus allowing them to build up their own muscles to be able to do things on their own... to grow up. A good father also allows a child to make their own mistakes, and deal with loss on their own...so they won't be emotional cripples, but capable of becoming adults. No parent who ever loved their child did everything for them. A good parent teaches skills, gives their kids undesirable tasks like work, cleaning after themselves, and going to school. A good parent expects their children also to follow their example and tries hard to set a good example for their child. In fact, if one really wanted to understand the motives of God, look at a good father and what motivates him. This is why when people talk about God, they say God is Love. Because there is a lot of crap kids put their parents through, and kids often don't appreciate their parents until they are parents themselves.

In other words, cut God some slack. You are just a kid in comparison to him. Your POV is just way too limited. God just might be saying, "Heavens! Stop trying to put that fork in the wall socket, will you!"

The third type of religious person that bothers is me is the flip-flopper. This is the religious believer that wants to be 'popular' and therefore follows the trendiest religions because they don't want to be seen as uncool or prejudiced. But really, let's face it, choosing a religion is choosing sides. It is choosing the ground you stand on. The thing that bugs me about this kind of believer is that their concerns aren't about what God (or whatever deity you believe in, in this case) thinks, it is about what your friends and colleagues think. This is the kind of person who is afraid of conflict, which (admittedly), most peaceful people are. But this fear rules this so-called believer. If the second kind of believer is the bratty child, this one is the insecure teen. And to be frank, no one really wants to stay as in insecure teen forever.

Now, I know there are plenty of other kinds of annoying religious followers out there. This is why a some atheists blame all the trouble in the world on religion. This is ridiculous, of course, because the real problem with the world is human selfishness. And that is in everyone. Human selfishness is what makes any organization (be it governments, religion, family, entertainment, or business0 corrupt, nasty, and downright horrible. Besides, even atheists have their ideologies and defend them dogmatically, so they shouldn't point fingers. See Money Worship part 1 for an example. 

Anyway, we'll talk about the Hypocrite, the Self-righteous Do-gooder, and the Everyone-Else-Will-Burn-in-Hell-But-Me, later. Besides, I think we can all see a little of these three in ourselves from time to time. No one is perfect after all.