A CNN opinion piece recently highlighted the growing trend of people identifying as spiritual, but not religious.
Writer Allen Miller believes the trend "highlights the implosion of belief that has struck at the heart of Western society." Young people in particular are moving toward this philosophy -- a belief system that takes a little Buddhist meditation here, a little Sermon on the Mount there -- and are drifting ever so steadily away from religious institutions.
If you were to see the Gothic, breathtakingly beautiful cathedrals of Europe on a Sunday morning, you wouldn't be surprised. They're mostly empty. Postmodernism hit Europe after WWII, causing a generation to feel abandoned by a personal Creator. (Not the only contributing factor, but one of them.)
Two questions here: why are so many people jumping on the "spiritual but not religious" bandwagon? (This includes more than just the yoga-loving, existentialist under-30 crowd here. This also includes the mega-church members who go to hear a "lite" sermon that makes them feel good but rarely refers to a theological tome. And Oprah.)
And do you consider yourself one of the spiritual ones? If so, why?
Ms Pingel, Thank You for confirming my point and opinions on the matter.
Yes, in my experience the Christian groups that cry persecution are generally the same ones making the negative headlines. Christianity is the majority religion in this country. The vast majority of elected officials at the state and national level are professing Christians. Christians are objectively not persecuted in this country.
In my opinion, this is why an alarming number of citizens continue to distrust the American media. Why would so-called Christians be in the news on a routine basis if the media didn't cherrypick the stories to bring you on a daily basis? The majority of Christians remain silent for a reason.
Gail - where, in any of my posts, do I say that I am a Christian? My words might have been harsh, but where did I "bash" his Christianity? I was simply trying to point out how he seems to avoid the Christian label by calling himself a liberal. Like it cancels out bad (Christian) with something good (Liberal). Safe. Dude? Thank You for your input as a member of the media.
"More than anything, the predominant theme of this book is a focus upon Jesus Himself in the context of the times in which he lived and ministered. An examination of the Gospels (from which is where most scripture in the book is drawn) shows Jesus as someone who if anything, was a subversive figure, challenging the religious norms of his time and proclaiming that religious forms had come to replace the substance of genuine love for God. Extending this forward to today, Bruxy shows the irony that the 'religion' that Jesus came to overthrow has in many regards come to be established and continued under the name of Christianity but completely foreign to the values and teaching of Jesus Christ and even more-so, the person of Jesus Christ." Smart guy :) Thanks for the great comment, Rachel...and the book recommendation. I placed my order. http://www.amazon.com/review/R1GN5JP7Q1J2VF/ref=cm_cr_pr_perm?ie=UTF8&ASIN=B001BQIYUK&linkCode=&nodeID=&tag=
"Know this first of all, that there is no prophecy of scripture that is a matter of personal interpretation, for no prophecy ever came through human will; but rather human beings moved by the holy Spirit spoke under the influence of God." (2 Peter 20-21 NAB) These are just two of many quotes attributed to Jesus that suggest he was in favor of Old Testament law.
I was raised in another state going to Pentecostal churches, I didn't agree w/ all their beliefs, but I didn't have much choice to attend. I went to some other churches on occasion w/ friends Baptists, Episcopalian, Presbyterian, Catholic...enjoyed myself, but didn't care much for any of the churches, but still better than the churches "I tried on" once in GA. cont'd
Attended a cute little Baptist church in Snellville & thought that it could possibly be a nice fit except I got tired of giving money only to have none for gas to work all week while the pastor told of all his trips to Hawaii, one of my children was terrified to go to Sunday school class after one time & that sent red flags about possible child molesters whom hide in churches everywhere, I got tired of being told I was a sinner EACH service (well deh why do you think I'm trying to go to church) & the women making snide comments about the slight cleavage that wasn't showing any more than any of theirs. Then we went to a mega church around Snellville & that was quite frightening! Traffic was backed up w/ police actually directing traffic & a band playing on the lawn w/ tents & booths selling books, tapes, shirts...are we at church or the fair?! So went inside & there are more booths selling things & a Starbucks w/ every creamer flavor imaginable, then go into the church part & the doors LOCK until after the service, not exactly comforting to be locked in & forced to stay. So never went back there. cont'd
Went to another church because my kids were excited about all the "fun" things their friends said they do, but everyone & their dog felt the need to hug us constantly & the sad organ music always starts up when it's offering time & so on. No thanks...my "tithing" will go to good deeds in the community to help others & I'll just be like Tom T. Hall & kneel at that tree stump in my yard. God's got my (our) back & that's no cop~out! <3 :)
Whether or not you believe in a God or a different God than I or no God at all, it is my belief that self-responsibility and mutual respect for other human beings is the best method in life. I am old and my health is poor. I reckon I will be dead here soon but my faith tells me that I live again in the Kingdom of Heaven and without that faith, I can only imagine the misery and pain in which I would experience each day. Faith is a strong medicine. With it, you may see light. Without it, you may see nothing. Thanks to my beautiful Granddaughter Mary for reading to me and asking me to comment and also for typing for me.
For me, I just say I'm "secular humanist." It's functionally identical to being atheist or agnostic, but without all the stigma created by angry kids who just discovered the word "atheist."
I read no bashing in Robert's comment. He was just offering his perspective. Brian has a point because many "Christians" you hear from on blogs, etc are from the Far Right. Brian does err in thinking that the vast majority of Christians are that way, when in reality, most are actually not, which is what Robert was saying. Christianity is a good thing. Conversely, CJ was right too. The perception is often that Liberals think Christianity is bad. This due to the fact that many of the "Liberals" you hear from on blogs, etc. are from the Far Left. Reality is that many Liberals are great Christians, many of whom I call dear friends, despite being a Conservative. There are a great many Liberal and Conservative Christians who see eye to eye on most issues. The Far Left and the Far Right serve to divide us when, in fact, we could stand together as one. My uneducated guess is that 15 % on each end of the spectrum divide the 70% of us in the middle who can agree with, or at least understand, each other's point of view. Personally I do not attend church because my life is so busy, but I to still try to be a good Christian. Given the current state of affairs, however, I do plan to start going to church again soon. I feel the need now, more than ever, to make the time. I wish we could reject the Republican and Democratic parties and have a third party to represent the 70% of us in the middle. I would call it the American party.
You are AWESOME and so is your Granddaughter. What you have said is all that matters. Thank you, Mike
I think the religions we have now will slowly die out. It used to take war and extermination to kill off religions. Convert or die. That doesn't happen as much these days, except in Africa. As more people have free and easy access to information and rely less on superstition, we will see the end of organized religion.
In my life, God introduced himself to me as Jesus. I'll stick to that, but who am I to say how he'll introduce himself to you? And for those who have lost faith... well, it's like losing your best friend, really. So take your time and rekindle that connection. It may lead you back to your roots, or it may not, but it's worth pursuing. Just my two cents on this foggy morning :)
But the Christian Church...it isn't about what we as individuals want. It is about communion, community. We don't do that very well in the US. We are individualistic. It is difficult for us, as individuals, to put aside our personal beliefs and embrace established dogma. We don't like to be constrained and we prefer to modify our dogma to meet our own thoughts about God. We rationalize, "God couldn't possibly mean...." We also come up with all kinds of excuses why Church is bad but individual spirituality is good. There are bad people in Church, they do bad things, they make us uncomfortable, they make us angry, they put a bad mark on the collective whole. I think CS Lewis characterized that well in his Screwtape Letters. If Christians truly lived out the faith...everyone would want to be Christian and this whole "spiritual but not religious" notion would not have any appeal. But such is the work of Saints and of faith. I will say one thing for "spiritual, not religious". It at least admits that humans seek something beyond their fact-based intellect. There is a dimension to our being that basic science cannot satisfy. It is a start...