The Saturday (January 8, 2011), New York Times ran an article that compels me to write. Titled, Religion and Representation, it was written by Charles M. Blow.
In it, he points out that a full 16.1% of the American population is non-religious. They are not necessarily non-spiritual, or without some religious connections, but they are not affiliated with any established church organization and consequently, are unrepresented by Congress.
It resonates with me because 16.1% of the nearly 312,000,000 of the US population is a lot of people to have no representation, (about 4,9920,000 people) and I am one of them.
For a politician, being without a brick and mortar established church/synagogue/place of worship is like a political kiss of death. And even so, if it isn't the 'right' religion, they'll always have some explaining to do. Politicians don't necessarily believe in their affiliations, but they are smart enough to know they'd better have one and it better be the most politically correct one. Consequently, the 16.1% of us without a brick and mortar church are a huge minority whose lives are imposed upon by people with religious/political agendas. That's nothing new, and has been going on since forever.
In example, by modifying history, men in powerful positions took the opportunity to remove the blame of Christ's death from the Romans, who clearly killed Christ, to start a hatred of Jews trend which persists to present day. Once they gained power by 'owning' Christianity, they manipulated the masses to follow by associating the details of Christ's birth with pagan ideas and celebrations which were just too popular to shake. Hence, the virgin birth and coinciding the birth during the huge winter festivals of the pagans. Isn't it known that Christ was born in April? Even King Henry VIII killed two wives for bogus reasons to avoid falling from grace with the new branch of Protestantism that he himself invented to justify getting rid of his first wife when he couldn't because of religion. I mean, come on people, hasn't anyone noticed that Jesus ran around with a woman named Mary Magdalene, with whom he was probably intimate? She was his most intimate apostle. But somehow, through history, her power (as a woman) had to be denied by the church, and she suddenly became a whore? I don't really think that Christ would appreciate how people celebrate and observe his life, and I think he'd be appalled by the get ups worn by the Pope.
My gut instinct, even as a kid, told me that Judas was an historical patsy. I never believed he betrayed Christ. It came from a gut belief, maybe you can call it faith.
I was raised in a strict Roman Catholic upbringing including Catholic school for three years. By the first or second grade, I remember thinking, how does anybody believe this stuff? But the defining moment when I knew I fell from grace so to speak, was when I was taught that if I didn't follow Jesus I would burn in hell. What if I was born on a desert island and never heard of him? How could I burn in hell for that? It just didn't make sense. Ok, maybe it was due to the whacko nuns at that particular parochial school, but I don't think my Catholic school experience is atypical. And honestly, there are some really strange extremist protestants and muslims out there as well. And don't even get me started about pedaphile clergy members of all faiths.
People will argue that their belief in religious dogma is based on their faith. Which is fine, but my own faith based on my own perception is no less valid. Nor is the faith of the 16.1% of Americans who have become disenfranchised from mainstream religions less valid.
Why do so many of us tolerate religious discussion in Congress, (Representative Steve King of Iowa who justifies his views on healthcare based on what God would want) or allow our tax dollars to be spent arguing evolution vs creationsism in public schools? Isn't that what religious schools and homeschooling are for?
We lack representation because those of us who tend to live and let live, are so liberal that we allow other people to deny us our own decision making as well as our own credibility and being heard. (When my former husband and I decided to get married, we wanted to be married at the beach. But the Catholic Church, where I agreed to be married to appease my parents, would not recognize our marriage if we were married outdoors, even if we were married by a priest. So we had to compromise our wishes and settled on being photographed on the beach as newlyweds instead.) Why is that ok?
For that and many other reasons, I no longer follow the faith of my upbringing and until recently, I've kept my own personal religious beliefs private. I have been guilty of worshipping in my own closet and not being vocal about it. And this is exactly why I and the 16.1% of other spiritual yet non-religious Americans have given away our power and rights as citizens and have no representation in our own country.
I cringe everytime one of my facebook friends post things like, "Repost this if you think Jesus is our lord and savior." I never respond either way. It's what they believe, and that's fine. But some of them are the same friends who chuckle or worry when they learn that I am pursuing a path as an ordained wedding celebrant, because they cannot accept that the only dogma of my faith is to believe and worship the way I want to, so long as it harms no one.
Why am I the strange one?
Here is my one little voice for whoever happens upon it. I hope the other 16.1% speak up too, and soon.
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