Now and then, we who are Christians are beset with the occasional treatise from the unbelievers around us, those who would aim to show us the medieval abyss we exist in, when we trust in the unknowable and unfathomable power of faith. The following is my response, and I think you can see what issues sparked my reply.
Thanks for the interesting article on Sunni-Shia conflict. Very enlightening.
But your post-script was more than a bit insulting to those of us whose faith is an important part of our lives.
First, your assumption that a world without religion would be at peace is just wrong. North Korea has no religious issue with South Korea. Russia and Georgia have no religious conflict. You fought in Vietnam, a war with no religious overtones. I spent much of my military career in the Cold War: billions of dollars and hundreds of lives spent guarding our freedom from the Soviet Union, a nation that officially espoused atheism. Indeed, a popular Communist organization in the early years of the USSR was the League of the Militant Godless. The Militant Godless? Lack of religion scarcely brings peace.
Second, religion does a lot of practical good. Charity for the poor, education, hospitals, even the will to maintain morality and decency are spurred by people who are trying to follow Christ's example. People care for others through Lutheran Social Services, Faith Mission, St Vincent de Paul, and countless other church organizations for the less fortunate; parochial schools offer good education from the local parish school to major universities; and where would we be without religious based hospitals?
Third, Evolution: If it's a fact, then our notion of "all men are created equal" is outdated. If evolution is a true and inexorable process of nature, then some people are or will be a superior species. The world has already seen what happens when a people are imbued with the notion of being a master race. For one thing, they forget religion and replace it with a zeal to perfect humanity through eliminating the "other." Don't tell me evolution's a fact till you find a missing link. Clearly, you can breed more perfect beagles or tastier beef, but nobody can explain where we made the leap from ape to man. When I consider that a fly has eyes that are in many ways more advanced than mine, yet perfectly suited to its life and role on the planet, while the fly itself remains simplistic, I have trouble agreeing with macro-level evolution.
Lastly, for many people, religion provides a reminder and a reason to behave better toward our fellowmen. My faith tells me "God is love" and that I should do unto others as I would have them do to me. In that, religion slows the impulse toward a brutal, selfish, dog-eat-dog world.
It is true that the storms of life are inexplicable under an almighty god. Tornadoes, cancer, and a million other sorrows occur and we don't know why. I can't explain why the bad things happen. But if we're going to mention that, I ask you to explain the good things that happen by that same inexplicable force: Yosemite, strawberries, the song of the birds just before dawn... We've seen what misused religious fervor does in the world, and it's a sad commentary on the fallibility and folly of humans. A lot of evil has been done in God's name: but that's hardly God's fault. If I rob a bank and tell people that you made me do it or that I did it to please you, does that mean you should be blamed?
I don't believe in conversion by force (as do Islamists) or in badgering non-believers (as do many of my fellow Christians). But if you are right about religion, then I would be better off sleeping in on Sunday and I could spend my money on lottery tickets rather than church. If I am right, you have much more at stake.
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