Alex’s Heresies – embracing a physical reality

While religion is becoming less important to Australians, it still is big part of the US daily life. Here’s a state by state breakdown (10 top and 10 least plus overall) from the Gallop poll article.

Alex McCullie

According to Australia’s Herald Sun newspaper more young Australians are reflecting increased secularisation. To quote the web site article:

In 2006, 7.9 per cent of Australians 65 and older did not specify a religion, compared to 23.5 per cent of those in the 15-34 age group.
An affiliation with Christianity has dropped since 1911, when 96 per cent of people called themselves Christian compared to 64 per cent in 2006.

At first blush it seems surprising that young Catholic people have reversed the overall trend with a slight increase in their religious affiliation. However this is explained by increased migration from traditionally Roman Catholic countries.

Alex McCullie

Why do many religious believers insist that faith should usurp humanity? Why should 2000+ year old pronouncements allow or encourage misery in the lives of people today?

That seems to be the instruction of Pastor Tom Holladay from megachurch Saddleback Church in southern California. This church was founded by best-selling author Rick Warren. Holladay says that violence in marriage does not provide grounds for divorce. Apparently the Bible only specifies abandonment and infidelity. By violence Holladay is means:

 ”Physical abuse, he defined, is someone “literally” beating another person up regularly.”

Even this isn’t enough for divorce. (See article at Christian Today web site.)

Last Sunday I attended Sunday service at St Michael’s Church in Melbourne, Australia. It’s a Uniting Church with Dr Francis Macnab as its executive minister. I’ve mentioned Macnab before as a leading light for progressive Christianity in Melbourne, if not Australia. He preaches a new kind of faith with the welfare of humanity as more important than mindlessly enforcing 2000-2500 year old rules. Macnab’s vision of positive faith makes an interesting comparison with Holladay’s ancient rights-and-wrongs approach to marriage counselling.

Alex McCullie

Macnab replaces 10 commandments (news article)

St Michael’s Church web site

A different theological response from the Uniting Church to Macnab

This is the major problem evangelists, creations and other devout religious believers have with evolutionary theory. They usually then vilify Charles Darwin and Darwinism as something from Satan.

PA PHOTO/THE NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM

Despite the reluctance of scientists to comment on religious matters, the accidental implications of evolution have enormous implications for people’s understanding of themselves in the world and on the foundations of most religious beliefs. Moving from “God’s children” to “accidental outcome” is unpalatable for traditional religious believers. So it is not surprising that 200 years after Darwin’s birth there are concerted attacks on Darwin and vehement denials of the most diversely validated scientific theory we have today – one that is accepted by virtually every scientist working in the field of biology.

Liberal-minded believers try to accommodate evolution without losing the God’s children myth. They say that God works mysteriously through evolution processes to achieve the outcome they seek, namely special divine position of humankind. So they take evolutionary processes that provide the best explanation we have of the diversity of life and add a magical “God” factor. Unfortunately this addition is totally unnecessary as it offers nothing extra in explanatory terms nor in predictability. In fact the religious magic only complicates unnecessarily. These religious people should read the great axiom from Franciscan friar, William of Ockham, that essentially says one should minimise unnecessary assumptions.

Mark Steel writes about our accidental evolution in The Independent (article 7 Jan 2009). Also philosopher Philip Kitcher explores the metaphysical implications of evolution in Living with Darwin (see Amazon link below).

Alex McCullie

A cute Christmas message from the blog, Unreasonable Faith

Alex McCullie

In Australian newspaper, Courier Mail , Colette Livermore talks about the nasty aspects of Mother Teresa’s mission in India. The public image is of self-sacrificing that brought comfort to thousands of India’s poorest sick. Colete Livermore describes the dark-side of religious faith – a faith that takes precedence over human welfare.

Livermore’s disaffection with Mother Teresa peaked when she clashed with her superiors over a decision not to treat sick children on a holy day.

“A ruling was made that on this recollection day, this day of prayer, children were not to be admitted to the Home for the Children.

“This really sick child came in with stick arms, breathing really fast and dehydrated and I was told he couldn’t stay. I had this internal conflict and eventually the child was admitted but only after I’d had a big fight.

“These sorts of things happened time and time again because there was this rigid obedience and timetable, so I wrote to Calcutta and said: ‘This can’t be right.‘ (full article 16 Dec 2008)

Also Christopher Hitchens published The Missionary Position in 1995 highlighting the appalling treatment decisions and dubious money transactions associated with the Teresa mission.

Alex McCullie

PS. Of course ‘faith before humanity’ belief has an ignominious tradition of violence even as recently as the so-called ’9/11′ attacks on New York.  Perhaps Jesus of Nazareth, the Christian messiah, expressed this belief well with:

And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or lands, for my name’s sake, will receive a hundredfold and will inherit eternal life. (Mat 19:29 ESV)

According to the latest Pew report the largest religious groups in the US are represented in roughly the same proportions in the US Congress. There is one exception – Unaffiliated – non-religious, agnostic, atheist.

16.1% of the Unaffiliated US population is represented by 0% of US Congress.

Alex McCullie

BBC News reports that hundreds of Muslims and Christians have been killed during clashes over local elections in Nigeria.

Hundreds of people are reported to have been killed in central Nigeria after Christians and Muslims clashed over the result of a local election.
A Muslim charity in the town of Jos says it collected more than 300 bodies, and fatalities are also expected among Christians.
There is no official confirmation yet, and figures are notoriously unreliable in Nigeria, says the BBC’s Alex Last.
Police have imposed a 24-hour curfew and the army is patrolling the streets.
They have been given orders to shoot on sight in an effort to quell hostilities that mark the worst clashes in the restive West African nation since 2004.
For the second straight day on Saturday, angry mobs went through the town burning homes, churches and mosques.
The Nigerian Red Cross says at least 10,000 people have fled their homes. (full report 29 Nov 2008)

Alex McCullie

A paid-for Imagine No Religion billboard in Ontario, Canada threatens the faith of the religious. Well that’s why it’s been removed much to the relief of the somewhat faithful.

Judy Rooze, administrator of First Baptist Church of Rancho Cucamonga, which is two blocks from the billboard, was relieved it was coming down.

Rooze said it was unsettling.

“I understand people have freedom of speech, but this is taking it too far,” she said. “It’s very jarring.”

Nothing more dangerous than a “jarred” Christian (PE.com full article 20 Nov 2008)

Alex McCullie

The economic crisis has given a whole new philip to apocalyptic doomsayers and they love the Book of Revelations. Here’s one from down-under in the heart of our government.

LABOR MP James Bidgood, the first-time MP under investigation for selling pictures of a protester attempting to set fire to himself outside Parliament House, has declared the global financial crisis an act of God.

Mr Bidgood, who was carpeted by Prime Minister Kevin Rudd over his actions yesterday and apologised to parliament, makes the claims in a DVD.

In a speech to a function held in parliament he argues that Christian marches for Jesus in London caused the October 1987 stock market crash.

He also predicts the end of the world and one world monetary system.

“We have to say ‘What would Jesus do?’,” he says.

“In 1987 there was another march for Jesus. That took place in April. And guess what happened in October 1987? The stock market crashed. All property values lost one third of their value and over a million people lost their homes.

“I believe when Christians pray, God does things. I believe what is happening today is as much to do with God in economics bringing judgement.” (Australian 4 Dec 2008)

Alex McCullie