Today's Thoughts On Religion

I learned that some sociologists believe that Europe is shrinking. Not coincidentally, Europe is becoming less religious and more secular. For whatever reason, less Europeans view religion as an important part of their lives than was the case a decade ago. Church attendance has steadily decreased over the last ten years among Europeans. The current generation is more interested in what "mortal" life has to offer, and has little interest in an "afterlife." There is a disconnect between the church and today's Europe; a rift that continues to widen. The theory is that with a de-emphasizing of a religious lifestyle, couples are foregoing sex for reproductive purposes and are engaging in sex for recreation. Abortion is available if unplanned pregnancies occur. The absence of a fear of an "eternal hell" results in the abandonment of traditional, moral behaviour and a surrender to the temptations of the secular, modern world. Personal restraint gives way to the temptations of lust, avarice, power. The traditional temptations that the Bible warns of have in essence become man's subconcious goals. One can see this happening by simply reading the news: CEOs pillaging their companies for personal greed; congressmen like Rep. Duke Cunningham whoring themselves out to the highest bidder; lobbyists and lawmakers like Tom Delay curry favoring to each other in order to gain more power without the peoples' vote; and of course, all the trash you see on TV: the Paris Hiltons of the world. The current birth rate in Europe is not sufficient to perpetuate the culture. Spain, France, England, and Germany have declining birth rates. For a country to grow, new blood is needed to advance technology, maintain the infrastructure, and contribute to the GDP, and of course, pay for social security for the rest of the population. By 2040, over 40% of Europe will be over 50 years old. Hence, the belief that Europe is "shrinking."

In 2001 Pat Buchanan, the staunch conservative, charged that liberals in the US are attempting to model American society after anti-religious Europe, and are succeeding. He cites the classic liberal stances on birth control, casual sex, abortion rights, gay marriage and separation of church and state. The controversy surrounding the celebration of Christmas can be added to this list. Can he be right? This begs the question, does man in fact need religion to save him from himself? Some will argue that there are many cases of perfectly normal, moral people who make it a part of their lives to do good deeds, like helping a fellow in need, caring for the environment, contributing to charity, and so on, who are not religious. They will also cite the fact that being religious does not make one immune to the dark behaviour that is found in non-religious individuals. John List was a devout Christian family man, a leader in his church somewhere in the Midwest. One day, he systematically shot his wife and three children, one by one, left their bodies in his living room, and moved to another state. He was apprehended almost 25 years later. Yes, criminal behaviour can penetrate even the most religious individuals. This group will also argue that many wars and genocidal actions in the world are religious-based. So to them, religion is not the salvation to the world's ills.

I used to hold this belief. But, as I see what is going on, I am forced to reconsider. If a statistical analysis was done on the number of murders, rapes, and other violent crimes that were comitted in the last ten years all over the world, I'm sure that the majority of the perpetrators do not consider themselves religious. I would love to know that percentage. Can it be over 90%? The same study should be done for white collar crimes. I think the result would be the same, but a lower percentage. So, if 90% of violent offenders are non-religious, this would show a negative correlation between crime and religion. This would serve as strong scientific evidence that religious beliefs may in fact curb violent behaviour.

To the progressives and liberals out there: don't hold prejudices against the practice of religion. The greatest of men had their faults, but they were still great men. Religion can be used in a positive manner. Seek it out, and become a better person. What good is life if, after all is done, everything ends? What's there to look forward to? Let religion help you find the answer to this question.

DP