Over the years I've sort of backed off from giving modern Western wall-calendar Christianity a hard time, the sort of Christianity where you put a decorative cross up in your bathroom or kitchen, an angel up on your Christmas tree for a week or two a year, and occasionally go to church for a special event or if a friend invites you etc. I used to be pretty eager to argue with religious folks when given the chance, in our teens I think we're pretty hungry for self-confirmation, seeking opportunities to prove to ourselves that we're thinking straight.
Since then my mother (who was previously irreligious, along with all of my immediate family) became an evangelical Christian after a stint in the 12-Step Program (a psychological / lifestyle rehabilitation program for alcoholics). It was really frustrating for me at first to see my mother's beliefs pull a 180 at the age of 40-something but it has been probably about 7 or 8 years now and her psychological state, financial stability, and overall health have improved so much, very much a direct result of her involvement in vaguely religious communities.
Over that time I've come to realize how non-invasive that sort of religion (or spirituality or whatever the suitable term) really is in the grand scheme of things, yet it had such a positive net effect in her own life, giving her goals to strive for, hope for the future, and motivation to help other people and improve her own situation. I don't care if she's right or wrong about the origins of universe or the existence of innate morality or free will or souls or the afterlife or whatever, I care that she's in a comfortable and stable state of living, and passive spirituality is a lot more stable than hopeless alcoholism (and I'm not using that as a general dichotomy for others, just that those were her particular options at the time).
If we're going to be concerned about religion's effects on society at large, let's make sure our concern is directed at the right camps, not Hallmark Card Christianity.
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Originally Posted by Bobbycob
There's 3 reason why the Rolling Stones are better. I'm going to list them here. 1. Jimi Hendrix from Rolling Stones was a better guitarist then Jimmy Page 2. The bassist from Rolling Stones isn't dead 3. Rolling Stobes wrote Stairway to Heaven and The Ocean so we all know they are superior here.
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