On Faith and Reason in the United States

I absolutely despise intellectual dishonesty, and in a sense, I think that is exactly what "faith" in a supernatural being is. For the vast majority of American Christians, for example, faith strikes me as a life-long rationalization of that which one was taught at an impressionable age of naivete and simplicity (ie childhood); for the rest, it's religious humanism in the form of born-again Christianity. On an intellectual level, I find it extremely difficult to respect those who subordinate reason to unflinching faith, especially when that faith precipitates hateful bigotry (for example, the persecution of homosexuals). I guess that makes me a secular humanist, a position that is diametrically opposed to religious humanism. But as clashing as secularism and theism may be, I think there's a single strand of common ground that provides a path to reconciliation for the two.

Atheist or theist, we share some common beliefs: Fight injustice, feed the hungry, shelter the impoverished, et al. Secular humanists do these things according to a moral compass that is entirely - you guessed it - secular. Religious humanism, as everyone who pays attention to issues like stem-cell research and gay marriage knows, is the pursuit of justice according to a canon of archaic texts that preaches an often arbitrary form of "morality." On many issues, such as the relief of extreme poverty in Africa, the two philosophical stances coincide. On some, such as abortion, they do not. As a secular humanist, I am inclined to blame the dogmatic fundamentalists amongst the believers for the lack of harmony between secularists and religious folk, due to their pursuit of selfish ends that have nothing to do with the teachings of men such as Jesus Christ and Mohammed. The type of murderous martyrdom that Bin Laden preaches is not representative of Islam, and Pat Robertson's profit-based charades have nothing to do with Christ's teachings (among them His beliefs on organized religion and usury). I think the same types of people have misled the American public on gay marriage. But that is neither here nor there.




The best example of what I'd call a "good" Christian is Bono. Ignoring the trivial gay marriage debate and concerning himself with post-fetal human beings, he uses his Christian beliefs as a motivativing factor for his do-gooder works. I don't respect any Christian as much as I respect him, because he avoids the more divisive aspects of Christian "morality" and focuses on that which compassionate men and women recognize as a shameful reminder of how we've failed to live up to the standards of the divine. He actually honors Christ's most important teachings: Help the poor; have a social conscience. Such precepts are at the heart of Christianity, and of all the Christians in this country, I think Bono is one amongst a minority that does more than attend church every Sunday, curse gays, and vote for the GOP in the biannual elections.

In short, here is my point for believers of all kinds: I'm willing to forgive the intellectual dishonesty inherent to all believers. I'm willing to forgive what I perceive to be the outmoded dictums of an ancient text. In the name of a better Earth, I can bring myself to respect you and your beliefs so long as your fight is Christ's fight, Bono's fight, and my fight. As Sam Harris suggests in this LA Times Op-Ed entitled "God's Dupes," moderates in the Christian community must control the overzealous urges of the reactionary right. Forget the trivialities, and concern yourself with those who are dying from extreme poverty right here, right now.