I was born with the not-always-welcomed trait of being the one person in a class to ask the difficult question everyone else wants to ask but is afraid to ask because of possible consequences. To this day I will, more than likely, be the one person in a meeting who names "the elephant in the room". I have handled so many elephants over my lifetime that I should be employed by The Ringling Brothers-Barnum and Bailey Circus Corporation. Handling one more elephant in the room is like breathing out and breathing in.
The elephant is now entering.
There are winds beginning to blow, in several different directions that, to me, signal a disturbing shift in cultural thought, acceptance, and practice. One of these wind shears is blowing from the direction of religion. I would have referred to this as a wind gust but what I am feeling and (more importantly) experiencing is not a gust but a shear.
I just received a reprint from a USA Today article, authored by Veronica Bravo. No publication date is visible on the re-print. The title of this article is "More Americans Customize Religion To Fit Their Personal Needs". The purpose of giving me - and others - this article is probably to justify a major shift in worship styles, content, and focus. The author does bring to light many important point to ponder, but, like any report, her bias shouted to me from the mountain tops: "It's OK to do what you want, when you feel like it, in any manner that makes you happy."
Here is a quote from Bravo's article:
"Sociologist Robert Bellah first saw this phenomenon (the phenomenon of connecting through culture and history in a meaning full way without necessarily religiously practicing) emerging in the 1980"s. In a book he co-authored, Habits of the Heart, he introduces Sheila, a woman who represents this.
Sheila says: I can't remember the last time I went to church. My faith has carried me a long way. It's Sheilaism. Just my own little voice.....It's just try to love yourself and be gentle with yourself. You know, I guess, take care of each other. I think God would want us to take care of each other."
Yes, I understand that with each generation, changes are introduced and adopted, that may be totally opposite from the previous generation's mores, ethics, and morals. This is nothing new and has been happening from the beginning of time. But there seems to be something more insistent about this generation - or those championing it - that says, "Either get on the boat, or we'll leave you onshore. And, oh by the way, we're taking the lifeboat and paddles with us."
Members of my generation and those slightly before mine and those slightly after mine, number in the millions. We have disposable income at our discretion, we have our faculties, and we exist. We deserve to have our opinions not only heard but respected, acknowledged, and - when appropriate - acted upon. We are not deaf, dumb, nor blind. We can read, spell, know our grammar, and are capable of intelligent and cogent thought.
We are not dead yet.
Ancora imparo
