On Thu, 1 Mar 2001, Rick Froman wrote:
> My question is: if the whole idea of religious belief is such a ludicrous
> delusion, why would anyone feel insulted or condemned? I wouldn't feel
> insulted if a psychotic individual held the delusion that I was going to
> burn in Hell unless I performed a solo tango at midnight (everyone knows
> this is a delusion since it obviously takes two to tango). I would just
> consider the source. I guess people are just more easily offended today.
>
First of all, I do want to make it clear that I, at least, don't
necessarily consider religion a "ludicrous delusion." Some
atheists/agnostics (the fundamentalist ones, you might say) do; some of
us, and some liberal religious folk, see it as one of those areas where
what is true for one person may not be true for another. It's not
irrational--it's a-rational. Sort of like being in love. *I'm* in love
with my boyfriend--that's my truth, which no one else has to share. It
doesn't make me deluded that others don't feel as I do. It's not the kind
of truth that requires consensus.
I'm not particularly offended or insulted that there are people who
believe I'm going to be tortured forever. I just don't know how to go
about having a relationship with them. I mean, if I thought that about
someone I cared for, I think I'd go nuts. So I never feel like I can be
truly honest with a biblical literalist.
> If I believe that there are many people around the world tonight who will
> die by tomorrow from starvation and exposure to the elements, does it make
> me hateful or condescending to believe that I will not suffer the same fate
> tonight. Of course, it would show a lack of compassion if I did nothing to
> attempt to reach out to help those that were condemned to die. And my belief
> about their sorry state certainly wouldn't translate into my hatred of them
> although some of them might think my efforts condescending or even
> Euro-centric.
Well, you might be tempted to be hateful and condescending if you thought
that they were refusing food and shelter out of spiteful pride or
wickedness. If *your* "belief
> about their sorry state certainly wouldn't translate into my hatred of
them," then that's good; many fundamentalists (not just Christian ones)
aren't so reliably compassionate.
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Robin Pearce "The wit of a graduate student is like champagne.
Boston University Canadian champagne."
[EMAIL PROTECTED] --Robertson Davies
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