"All organized Religions offer some really great things to some people. But it really is pathetic how people use it like a smorgasbord." I was at a restaurant a few weeks ago, and a bunch of teens from a muslim school came in. When they were ordering the food, they were sure to check that what they ordered didn't have any pork in it. "No pork," they said. "We're muslims." And then they ate, ordered some (alcoholic) drinks, and got all wasted.
Now THAT was pathetic.
I understand part of what Sueleen is saying. Too many people practice their faith on a very shallow level. And, as in the example above, even on the shallow level they pick and choose what to follow, without basing their decisions on logic.
I do think, though, that it is important to make a distinction between the 'core' teaching of any religion vs. the cultural aspects of it. The core is the basic message, the spirit of compassion, respect, and so forth, which I believe is universal. But as time goes on, the cultural context changes, and I think it's important for the followers of the various spiritual traditions then to examine the cultural aspects to see how they need to be adapted. Some of these issues that are being examined within Islam are the role of women, separation of church and state, homosexuality, and many others. The interesting thing is, what Sueleen said -- about using religion like a smorgasbord -- has been used against the liberal movements of Islam (and other religions). "This is god's word, guys," they say. "You can't pick and choose. Take it or leave it." But I think those adjustments are absolutely necessary.
PalJoey - Yes, the liberal movements do exist. Thanks for the invitation to start a thread, but I'm not sure how qualified I am to start a discussion on it, as I don't consider myself as part of any organized religion. My background is basically this: I was born a muslim and grew up both in a country that's predominantly muslim (but is NOT an islamic state) and in the US. I recognize Islam as my spiritual root, but I've also explored other teachings, and I find that more useful, personally, than identifying myself with a specific religion. So I fast during Ramadhan because it makes sense to me, and I do Buddhist meditations because that makes sense to me... I guess I'm using this whole religion thing even more of a smorgasbord than Sueleen's example in her post.
Updated On: 7/9/05 at 08:57 PM
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