Religion, Death and the Consequences of Not Believing!

I have no idea if there is a God in man’s terms or not. I’m just a poor sot trying to make it day by day in a reality play.  I truly enjoy the community aspect of religion, the great gospel music and onus on family and honesty but somewhere in that pipe dream a whole lot of folks take it on the shin.

 I’ve always marveled at the faithful in many cases women who are soul and backbone of the single parent family. Their governance, faith and superior strength in the face of unrelenting poverty and life tunes up the odds makers. Raising a handful of kids and keeping them in line and educating and nurturing is to me as close to God as any human being ever gets. Nurses  keep me near tears. I've had my medical run ins and the first person you see after a physical calamity is the friendly or heavenly face of a nurse. I just want to read their souls and find some of that goodness for myself.

 I was raised in the church – in fact evangelicals. Tolerance for life outside a narrow reading of the scriptures offered rare freedoms and much suspicion. I for one don’t regret the experience – in fact experience has a way of bringing clarity.

 Atheists like communist make me uneasy. I don’t know if it’s my mid-western upbringing or fear I don’t know shit!

 I’m a science guy! I can find greater truths and validation through science , research and enlightenment than through archaic thinking. I guess it comes with old age and bad knees. You either slog along with the times or get buried in dogma.

 I attended church, was song leader and did the young man training for ministry. All of it never proved much other than the church elders put a modest amount of faith in young ones become apostles for the cause.

 I think what really threw me off course was the 60s. Civil Rights – some churches with liberal thinking supported big change. Free sex – not really - the cure was a trip to a clinic. The war in Vietnam. Oh man, don’t get me started on that!

 During the eighties guys like pretend evangelist Jerry Falwell rose to power with his Moral Majority. This was the pollicisation of God’s will. I think for many of us who rebelled against authority Falwell was as transparent as glass – a fraud – easy to read but not to the masses. When the evil prick got in Reagan’s face, I knew we were in for trouble and people’s faith would be formally tested. Falwell made religion a ballot issue and barnstormed the country sneaking his divisive message through subservient media spreading lies and fear. How does one get a positive read on the Tibetan Book of the Dead?

 I`m always amused and alarmed at organisations and false fronts that use religion as verification for hostile and often ruthless intention. Truthfully, there is so much human goodness out there; being ordered around by these fraudulent suspects only confuses and keeps us from tackling that which poisons and kills both the spirit and lives of millions.

 I truly celebrate a moment of prayer. I have no idea what many are saying but the fact that anyone pauses long enough to think beyond today`s entertainment news gives hope. When a person goes inside and evaluates a day lived and sees tomorrow and grand possibility, I won`t be the one to criticize or write them off as religious loons. All I have to do is put on a hundred years of gospel music and I find myself shaking at the bones and realize something greater exists beyond conjecture, fear, falsehoods and earthly manipulation. Something curiously far reaching and too gracious for words or ad man description!