American economist Bryan Caplan once wrote that religious beliefs are irrational and greatly divorced from reality. Richard Dawkins has written extensively on religion as a “virus of the mind.” Really? Religion is irrational and a disease? In that case, everyone is infected and mad.Whenever we hear the word “religion,”we automatically think of sacred books, attending a worship service, praying — even superstitions. We tend to associate such acts with being “religious,” but these acts don’t define religion itself.
Essentially, religion involves beliefs, not necessarily in God or any supernatural or all-powerful being. Religion is ultimately about faith and where individuals invest it.
In the Bible, in Matthew, Jesus Christ rejected the idea of building treasures here on earth, stating, “For where your treasure is, there will your heart also be.” Christ warned believers about making idols unto themselves by placing their trust in the riches they build. Their wealth would become their god if they put their hearts into it and not God Himself. Christ was pointing out that wherever your heart is, there also is your god and therein lies your faith and religiosity.
Everyone is religious because everyone has some form of faith and god. Everyone has someone or something they love and cling to above all else in the world, just as Christians love and cling to the Lord.
Both Caplan and Hawkins have their own faiths and gods as well. They might not be conscious of such knowledge, but deep in their hearts they both have someone or something they always turn to when in need of comfort or help, whether it be riches, work, science, friends, relatives or even themselves.
When you’re frightened, to what or whom do you run? Who or what do you place first and foremost in your life? What do you accept without question? Everyone has an answer to these questions, and those answers reveal who or what god is to them.
This follows Caplan’s criteria for being a religious person. According to Caplan, religious people “accept their religious beliefs with little or no evidence, accept religious beliefs that are contrary to the evidence, accept religious beliefs without studying competing views, are certain about religious beliefs that are dubious at best, and accept religious beliefs not because they are intellectually compelling, but because they are emotionally compelling.”
Who among the human race does not believe or have faith in someone or something whether dubious, contrary to evidence, or emotionally compelling (or perhaps intellectually compelling with little or no evidence)?
There is no one on Earth who can truly claim to be absolutely faithless.
Caplan and Hawkins therefore need to be more careful in their criticism of religion. They too have beliefs that can be considered unfounded or crazy, just like Christians, Jews, Muslims and so on, and only make their arguments seem foolish.
Religion is not restricted to churches and synagogues. Religion is a part of everyone. God is always in our lives, no matter whom or what he, she, or it is.
Andrew Jensen can be reached at [email protected]