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“The law of religion is the great attempt of humankind to overcome anxiety and restlessness and despair, to close the gap within themselves and to reach immortality, spirituality, and perfection.” --Paul Tillich.
After college and three years in the Marine Corps I went to seminary. I was married, with a young son.
With some frequency, my wife and I look at each other and say – “life is really tough.” In the last 24 hours we have spoken with friends and loved ones hearing of their life difficulties, including: a spouse entering treatment for drug addiction; a first person witness of an attempted murder involving a pistol whipping and dousing of the victim in gasoline; the uncertainty of a possible final treatment option to stem the advance of a deadly form of cancer; and the difficulties of our son attempting to prepare for deployment to Iraq.
The week’s question and all of these incidents raise the problem (as other panelists have noted) of theodicy – how to justify the ways of God to those of us who are attempting to cope with the anxieties, fears, pain, and horrors which are thrust upon everyone by the awful stuff that happens in life.
This week’s question seems to imply there are many persons who are apprehensive about questioning what they believe are the traditions of their faith. Without speculating on the source of this hesitation, I do know from experience that it is a common form of uncertainty.
Last weekend I was involved in two conversations – one brief, one extended – touching the reassertion by Pope Benedict XVI of the primacy of the Roman Catholic Church as the one true church possessing “the fullness of the means of salvation.”
The brief conversation was the recounting to me of an exchange between a Roman Catholic priest from the Vatican and an American nun in which the two were reported to have agreed that the Pope might best be described as an “ass.”
The intense urge of most human beings for most of history to search for ways to satisfy their religious hopes and aspirations is not going to disappear or diminish in importance. Human spirit yearns for an experience of wholeness and meaning that transcends the inherent constraints of the bodily journey from life to death. If Hitchens means that this persistent quest has resulted in powerful religious institutions, religious groups, and religious practices and beliefs that have significantly contributed to the violence, intolerance, bigotry, prejudice, and ignorance of human society, then he is absolutely correct. As a member of the Christian community, I believe that an honest reading of our history largely confirms Hitchen’s accusation.
What Islam Really Says About Violence, Rights and Other Religions
Gomaa, Fadlallah, Mubarak, Khan, Siddiqi, Ellison, others | On Faith
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