My People a Joy
“For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind. But be ye glad and rejoice for ever in that which I create: for, behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy.” Isa 65:17-18
A recent survey has revealed some interesting things about the spirituality of the US population.
The most interesting is that Americans are much more inclusive as a group than those who claim to represent them. We believe that there is not one path to heaven or one decisive revelation of truth. Even though both the Southern Baptist and Catholic religions base significant portions of their teachings on the fact that those of other religions are going to hell, 60% of Southern Baptists and 80% of Catholics didn’t share that portion of their religions dogma.
Similarly only 60% of Buddhists and Hindus claim to believe in central tenants of their religions (Nirvana and reincarnation). That reveals a refreshing honesty about where people are in their own individual search for God. They may identify with a particular religion, but are still uncertain about even the most fundamental elements of that religion.
Contrary to popular belief by fundamentalists, this remains a country that overwhelmingly believes in God (92%). Also most of us claim that our views about wrong an right are based on fundamental principles that are common to us as believers in God rather than members of any particular religion or demographic. Sounds like we Americans are really living the fundamental values expressed by Thomas Jefferson in the Declaration of Independence – everyone has the right to their own interpretation of Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.
I also visited a site that I’d like to share with you called JamesDobsondoesntspeakforme.com. The site was started by some evangelical pastors who feel that James Dobson has confused his political goals with their spiritual ones. I see this as consistent with the survey too. Evangelicals are awakening to the fact their spiritual goals are much more positive than simply standing in opposition to gay rights and abortion. Folks like James Dobson would like the rest of us to believe that Focus on the Family speaks with one voice for all evangelicals, but it just isn’t the case. The very nature of the evangelical movement is a search for personal meaning through a transforming relationship with God and then reaching out to others to share that experience. Because this is so fundamentally personal, it can’t really be defined or contained by any political party.
It is interesting to witness the process of thought being transformed into new and more productive channels. Building a new heaven and a new earth takes time, but the process never stops.
July 8th, 2008 at 8:15 am
this gentleman paints with the widest of brushes. google george barna for research on who is and isn’t evangelical or born again, without being asked if they are either of those. you can find it in many of his perspectives regardles of the issue.
i am not impress with this guys research as he identifies people by denomination or religon. i’ve read much of george barnas stuff and of the many, many folks who claim to be Christian really are not. i am more then sure the same can be said of hindu’s, budists or any other religon. thats the problem with most of the research done on religon. they simply identfy someone as “catholic” who says they are yet does not live by the tenents of the catholic faith. same with Christians. you simply can not be a Christian if you believe there is any way to heaven but through Jesus. He said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life, no one comes to the Father but by me.” i know that’s devisive but a belief in Christ is a belief in Christ that He is who He says He is and He allows for noe other then Him….
July 8th, 2008 at 9:19 pm
Keith,
You may not like the process or the conclusions, but the Pew Forum has been at this for years. They are widely respected for their research and this appears to be another solid professional piece.
I’m familiar with George Barna, but I don’t think he or his firm was involved in this project. Princeton Survey Research Associates International did the work.
People are going to call themselves whatever they want to call themselves. That’s the whole point. Many thoughtful spiritual God fearing people in this country reject dogmatism and embrace the two great commandments, “Love God” and “Love your neighbor as yourself”.
I happen to share your belief that all men have to come to God through Christ, but I also believe that all people will come to that conclusion on their own. God doesn’t need my help and would rather I spend my time working on my own salvation.
July 11th, 2008 at 6:15 pm
Oy. But how are these “thoughtful, spiritual, God-fearing people” going to obtain life-everlasting with a little love here and there? I’m not that privy to what all the “christian” sects have been promulgating of late but the Catholic Church of antiquity teaches, nay INSISTS, theres a lot more to be done than spreading a little hippie-love… One can call oneself a _______ BUT! and be anything but what one claims. A “Catholic” who rejects that Catholicism is the only path to Heaven (including Herr Ratzinger) is no catholic, but a heretic in the eyes of Holy Mother Church.
July 13th, 2008 at 8:04 am
Erich,
I understand your point of view.
The survey suggests that the majority of Americans simply don’t share it.
I also understand the foundation of your view because I was raised in the Cathholic church. I just don’t happen to agree with it.
Since there isn’t any simple way to prove who is right in this particular case, we’ll just have to huddle up after we pass on to compare notes.
Jeff
July 13th, 2008 at 7:32 pm
That’s just the point, Jeff. If one doesn’t agree with/believe all the tenets of whichever religion or sect one cannot claim to belong to that particular group. I fully understand that I don’t KNOW which path is the right one, and which are definitely wrong, but I do have my beliefs which happen to correspond to which christian “sect” has the better chance of being at least more correct than the others - but that is a belief, and I don’t vary from what the Church of old teaches thereby I can actually claim to be a Roman Catholic. Those who say “yeah, but…” (however large a portion of the populace they be) can’t. And the little quip about Herr Ratzinger wasn’t an aside…
July 16th, 2008 at 3:57 pm
You can claim to include or exclude whomever you would like. The bottom line is that you can’t expect to alter the beliefs of those who self-identify as Roman Catholics, for example, just because you don’t feel that they accept the full scope of teachings which you accept.
I understand that you feel it is inappropriate for some to claim to be something that you feel they aren’t.
That doesn’t change the fact that this survey suggests that a very large number of people seem to feel comfortable claiming affiliation with a religious group even though they don’t share all of the tenents of that group.
So, at the end of the day, you can say that this means that there are a lot of hypocrites in this country. Or I can say that there are a surprising number of people who are willing to honestly admit that they don’t feel comfortable with everything their church teaches.
Just depends on how you look at it.
Based on previous posts, your views on the current pope are pretty clear. There are certainly some in the Catholic church that would say, as a result of those views, that you are the heritic, but that’s not for me to say.
I can only observe that, as with many other things, “beauty” is in the eye of the beholder.