http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1IAhDGYlpqY&sns=fb
Apparently it is quite the controversy. Some people love it and others hate it. I have seen arguments about the meaning and reason of it as well as an atheist attempting to use it to prove there is no God. For me this is fascinating and deserves a look, because, I actually like a lot of what it says.
Here are some links to some of the arguments.
Atheist that swears a lot(You have been warned that 15 minutes of your life are about to be waisted):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yBo7Z_abiLE&feature=related
Catholic blog that has an interesting interpretation:
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/badcatholic/2012/01/why-i-hate-religion-but-love-jesus-the-smackdow.html
When people interpret poetry I am not sure you can take it literally like a philosophical debate. Poetry is spoken through the heart and leaves a lot of the argument out. The things that make sense are not always logical but come from the emotion or truth that is spoken. This makes it difficult to take it literally, because it is not literal.
So I want to argue from the meaning that I can understand that comes from it.
Religion according to the definition is(This is word for word out of the dictionary):
the belief in and worship of a superhuman controlling power, esp. a personal God or gods : ideas about the relationship between science and religion.
• details of belief as taught or discussed : when the school first opened they taught only religion, Italian, and mathematics.
• a particular system of faith and worship : the world's great religions.
• a pursuit or interest to which someone ascribes supreme importance : consumerism is the new religion.
So to take Jesus out of the equation we would not have a religion called "Christianity". The very belief in Jesus is religion by definition. So at the very start I feel the poem makes a misstep by stating "What if I told you, Jesus came to abolish religion?". However thats is IF we take a poem literally which I have already stated we can not.
I feel this "abolish religion" is actually directed at the "religious". Now, please don't take that out of context I am not saying religious people are wrong after all I am religious for even talking about God. Religious people tend to be overly vocal and state things which tend to separate people rather then unite them. Jesus openly said don't be like the hypocrites. The people that were very vocal about the dedication that they "personally" had. They would proclaim when they were fasting to look better then everyone else. They were the Pharisees that told people what to do and didn't follow it themselves.
Want proof? The poem makes the next statement "What if I told you getting you to vote republican, really wasn't his mission" Have you seen or heard some of the rhetoric that I have that Republicans are the only Christians? That liberalism is Anti-Christian? Even my pastor has made an argument in the past that stated God upheld "Republican" values. Its a pointed response towards individuals. Why? The very next line "Because republican doesn't automatically mean Christian".
I might take it a step further and say that being "Christian" doesn't automatically mean Christian. Just because you say you are something, if you don't act it, it doesn't mean anything. The book of James states that works follow true faith. Faith without works is DEAD.
However, I believe the "religion" part is still important because Religious institutes promote separation and try to make outrageous statements that they have the "one true faith". Such as the article above posted from a member of the Catholic church. Now I am an Ex-Catholic and I am not trying to bash the Catholic church in anyway but the audacity of a statement like that is outstanding from a church still attempting to recover from their own leaders being all too human.
A person might find more truth in it then they do in a Protestant church however the Catholic church is far from perfect. There is not one true religion, there are truths in religion. We are human and by definition, imperfect. Meaning that religion is separate from God. Religion is a belief by definition. God is who we believe in, not the belief of God. God is separate from our belief because our belief is flawed. God however is perfect. The argument is not focused towards any church in particular its focused at ALL of them. I know from personal experience people in the Catholic church are discriminated against by other Christians and vice-versa.
Church is a corporate form of worship it only survives the way it does from money. The money is used for many things. Building large buildings that shelter people on Sundays or giving to charity. It still fails to do everything it can to help people and that is because it is flawed.
Religion is flawed: this is the the over all meaning of the poetry. It takes interpretation to get to that meaning but it is poetry its not a literal argument. If it was it would look a lot more like what I have said rather then a catchy rhyme.
Religious are flawed: We are people, not anyone is perfect and having battles over which church is better or worse is just proof of the overtly religious.
Jesus is the answer to both: This is a constant argument throughout the poem. It comes back to faith. We should be united by Jesus not separated because some people take one interpretation in the bible and others take another. Jesus is the constant and that should bring people closer to one another and this is where religion butts in and says you can't. People destroy relationships because they are going to different churches. Rather then rejoicing in the differences we have and using different strengths to spread Gods word we spend it bickering about the semantics of who is "saved" and who is not. The arrogance of man to decide for God what should be done.
Jesus did not come to abolish religion his coming evolved it. By his coming we became Christian. By his love we were saved. We so often take God out of the equation. Limit his power and authority over all things in Heaven and on Earth. Religion is important because it spreads Gods word to those who might otherwise be unwilling to listen. The poem itself does not abolish religion as being evil. Statements like "I love the church" and "Religion is man searching for God, But Christianity is God searching for man". He does resent it however. The falsehoods it preaches and division it creates.
Then again this is poetry not, philosophical debate.
Its up to interpretation not, just for hate.
It calls you to think
That religion can stink
That religion becomes our God, that hides us from the truth
But God is our saviour, the source of all truth
(P.S.) Please forgive me for my bad poetry.
Firstly, your bad poetry is forgiven lol. Secondly, I am saddened by your leaving of the Church, I suggest that you look into the writings of the early Church fathers. You will see that they are truly indeed Catholic. If anyone got it right, it was the first Christians. Next I would like to say that Catholic Charities, in particular, is the most successful and largest charity in the world. You would do well by seeing first hand. Lastly, you mention the separations that religion causes. I agree. As of now, there are over 35,000 denominations of Protestantism, all claiming to follow the holy spirit. That has been in only a couple hundred years to boot. A man made religion will die just like the man who started it. But, Jesus Christ founded his church, and he came back to life, did he not? That's why despite all the wars and heresies and threats against it, his mystical body on earth, will not die. Again, I stress that you read at least some of the early chruch writings, at least look up the "didache", which most historians put as pre gospel writings. Overall, a well written blog post. I will pray for you.
ReplyDeleteI appreciate the prayers!
ReplyDeleteMy leaving the Catholic church is more a combination of factors, and events that happened in my life as wells as in the Catholic church. I may have a slightly different perspective on it then some people. However, I do highly respect the church and what it does. As charity's are concerned, I am not saying that people don't give. I am saying that its never going to be enough. Sin is ever apparent in all people and religion in general fails to do ALL that it can. I know several people that go to the Catholic church that I am very good friends with. I guess I find flaws in every church and not just a particular one.
Currently I do go to church. I am very active in college ministries. I have been leading a small group and I am starting a new one. I want to make it clear that I don't want to bash the Catholic church. Being raised Catholic I have adopted several beliefs and still hold on to them. The Eucharist is one of those.
I feel often there is a disconnect with people that are from different denominations and faiths. There is a fear or judgement that creeps in with people that go to different churches. I noticed this as a kid going to St. Thomas Catholic school when there was a different prize for Protestants and Catholics. This was in a popcorn selling magazine. I wondered why there was a separation and distinction. When I speak of separations I am more referring to this, then to the many denominations. When I was in my freshman year of High-school I was told that being Catholic was Idol worship and that I was going to hell. When my family left the church two years later, I was condemned by some of my friends worried that, by my family leaving the church, we were going to hell.
My point is, we put up barriers and walls between religion because of semantics.Having gone to several other churches I've noticed there was not a whole lot different aside from some minor details. Lutheran mass, is extremely close to a Catholic mass, same with Episcopalian's. Other Christians are actually fighting on the same side as the "Universal" church I pray that people rather then seeing a perceived difference, embrace each other. Celebrating in the successes rather, then condemning the differences.
I will go and read the material you suggested. It sounds interesting and I have not yet read them.(The Didache sounds familiar though) Thanks for taking the time to read my blog! I will be praying for you as well!
Jake
Jake, I appreciate your thoughtful post! Poetry certainly is an effective mode of communicating emotions, but not a great format for an argument. So, by nature, you are right that it largely fails as an argument. Unfortunately, I would hope that he's trying to convey more than sentiment, because by all other accounts, it seems like he is making an argument. Something like: "Religion is a fallen, human structure, but Jesus is the true savior." With which I would agree. He wouldn't have gotten so many hits, but maybe if he found a more precise mode of communication, his argument would have been more compelling.
ReplyDeleteBut it also fails for other reasons. For example, he says that "In every other aspect of life, logic's unworthy"; but by necessity, what must his argument against logic be based on? Logic. Furthermore, he complains about Christians not caring for the poor because we're so busy building big churches. It has been documented that Christianity has done more to heal, educate and serve our broken world than any other religion throughout the centuries (see Alvin Schmidt's How Christianity Changed the World). Yes, religion has been the cause of wars, including the atrocious Crusades, the Protestant-Catholic persecutions in Ireland, against the Anabaptists, etc. But many of these can be argued to be more culturally than religously motivated. However, it is well-known that far more people were killed in the 20th century alone under Communism (an anti-religious system) than throughout the history of religion. Finally, Jesus simply did not come to abolish religion. I think this can loosely be equated with Jesus' treatment of the Law, which He did not come to abolish, nor to simply uphold. You are right to say He came to make it "evolve" or to reinterpret it. He fulfilled the Law. He fulfilled religion. He fulfilled man's search for God by--as the poet says (quoting Abraham Heschel)--Himself, searching for man. And thank God for that.
Like you said, the church's claims are at times outlandish. It is a good time to remember that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life, and that Christianity is not. However, the Christian church (in its many sad divisions) is the community which lives in response to its Lord.
Thanks for your thoughts, Jake! Keep thinkin'! Let's hang soon.
Daniel! Thanks for reading it!
ReplyDeleteAccording to the author he has stated that he wasn't expecting the response that it got. He also wrote it more from his personal experience with sin. I may not have been clear in saying that its not just religion he is talking about. According to him religion in the context of the poem is synonymous with religious/self-righteous.
I agree with you that Jesus did not come to abolish religion. Thats my reasoning that if we take the poem literally it falls apart from the first sentence.
Here is a recent article that I read about some religious people that take things too far and skew things to their favor. http://shine.yahoo.com/love-sex/unorthodox-womans-journey-repression-freedom-201000868.html
This I think is one of the examples of what he is talking about. The dangers of false religion. Humanity is corruptible so even if they try to do the right thing through the name of religion if God is not beside them in that effort then it will fail even though it has "good" intentions. Abuse scandals in both Protestant and Catholic churches. My pastor has talked about the dangers of such things how they turn people away because after all if the people who run the churches are doing things like that then is God like that as well?
I really do feel that going to church is the right thing to do. But if there is no spirit, truth, or real faith then that church is dead and you must move on.