Thoughts for the week: People as Religious Beings

Hi everyone!

Yes i know, it's a little early for this post, but i havn't gotten to Mid America Reformed Seminary's library yet to do my summer reading.  ( I know, I'm slacking)  But in my time of looking for a job and trying to figure out things for next school year, I have also been keeping in contact with people.

One such person is Connie. (Name has been changed to protect her identity)  I met Connie over May Term when I was studying the Church of Scientology.  She works in the Pasadena church, and has been sending me e-mails trying to pique my interest in Scientology.  Today I received another e-mail asking if i had more questions and if I would like to join them for a meeting. (Which you have to pay for, by the way)  My response was as follows:

Hi Connie,

I recently visited the Church of Scientology in LA on Sunset.  I took a tour and learned many things that I was able to put into my presentation for school.  However, I was able to read the material that I received and was slightly disturbed by the things said both in the material and in the book Dianetics.  I was able to do thorough research and found many inconsistencies in your religion.  Although you claim that your religion is able to be added on to any religion, it is simply incompatible and impossible to believe in both Scientology and another religion.  I cannot be part of a religion that is so focused on self and ego.  The reason bad things happen is not because of some bad memory in our heads, but because of our wills that are corrupted.  We, as humans, change our minds so much that we run the risk of being inconsistent with ourselves.  It is not our minds that need to be cleaned, it is our wills.  For these reasons we must look outside ourselves for answer that is satisfactory enough to cover and eliminate all the issues of our lives.  Bad things don't just happen to people, they are caused by people.  It is for this reason that we need a savior.  We don't need a pat on the back and a "It will be alright."  Because it will not be alright.  This is where the answer comes.  The answer is simply put: Jesus.  I am a Christian.  I will always be a Christian, and our understanding is that we are not the solution, because we are not perfect.  We all need one to make satisfaction for us.  That is why Jesus came, to save those who need to be saved: us.  I hope you will give this some thought and you have my e-mail address if you would like to keep in contact.  My ear and mind are open if you have any concerns, and my humble advice is always free.  Thank you for your time.

God Bless


This interaction I had with Connie brought something back to mind.  We, as human beings, are religious at our core.  But what does that mean?  What does it mean that we are religious people?

Simply, it means that we must worship, or give priority to something in our lives.  For many of us, that means following some type of religion.  There is a god that gives meaning and purpose to our lives.  But let's unpack that for a bit.

Religion is directly related to salvation in some way.  There are three attitudes to it.  Either you need it and can supply it, you need it and cannot supply it, or you don't need it and it doesn't matter.  I would put Islam, Roman Catholic Christianity and Arminian Christianity in the first group.  (That discussion will come at a later post.)  I would put Reformed and Presbyterian Christianity in the second category.  And in the third group I would put some type of self-help religions, like the New Age Movement of the 70's-90's, and I would also put Scientology in here.  The Problem that I have with the 1st and 3rd categories is one that is crucial to the definition and understanding of evil in the world with respect to man.

Man is not some victim that needs to be saved from some force that makes us ill.  Man becomes part of the problem that we call sin.  Man is the creator of sin.  Just as we are able to create good, we are just as able to create evil.  As such, we cannot be trusted with our own salvation when the standard is to live a full life within the bounds of the law.  I am a Christian and as such, the covenant, or agreement, was stipulated in the garden of Eden in Genesis, Later explained in the 10 commandments, and summarily fulfilled by Christ.  The law, God's commands, were broken by us.  They were broken by our ancestors Adam and Eve, and through their leadership, all of their posterity shares in their penalty.

Due to the problem of sin, we cannot be trusted with our own salvation.This is why it must come from outside ourselves.  Too often, religions will tell their followers that they need to do something in order to be saved.  Whether that is a choice that needs to be made, or an action that needs to be taken; it is all the same.  That element of human involvement, the element that is dependent upon the human acting independently, changes the face of that religion from one that depends on the savior, to one that depends on the one being saved.  The focus is shifted from the one who has done all the work, to the one who must tell God whether or not he is good enough in our own eyes.  This is nothing short of using God as a 911 service.  He only comes when you call, but is able and willing to fix the problem.  But what about when you are not willing for God to clean up your mess?  What about all those times you sin and you don't even realize it?  What about not living up to his standard?

This is why we need a savior that is not dependent upon our feeling like we need to be saved.  We need a God who loves us so much that while we are dead in sin and rejecting him, he loves us and will care for us.  This does not mean that everyone will get to heaven, but means that God will work in the hearts of those he has chosen to save so that we will respond.  This follows from the statement of Christ that he will protect all those that the father has given to him.  It is the Father who chooses and earlier in the same passage, it says that that the Father draws those whom he has given to the Son and calls to himself.  The hypothetical questions do not apply here.  I'm sorry, but it doesn't work that way.  It's like saying, "What if the sun turned blue?"  Sorry, it doesn't happen, and will never happen.  "What if?" questions cause nothing but confusion.  Praise the Lord for his kindness that he gives to us daily.