"Religious Belief and Disbelief Are Parts of The American Way"

~ by Jim O'Hara ~

To be submitted to the Star Banner "Other Voices", written April 13, 2000

Facing many unknowns about human existence, a singer wails, "What's it all about, Alfie?"
Peggie Lee sings, "Is that all there is? If that's all there is, then let's keep on dancing." Troubadour Ric Masten confronts life and sings, "Let it be a dance we do. May I have this dance with you. For the good times and the bad times too, let it be a dance."

Since the dawn of human existence, people have puzzled about the mysteries of life. Who am I? Why was I born? Why must I die? What happens to me after I die? What purpose is there for my existence? On and on. Writing in the Summer, 1995, Free Inquiry, Timothy J. Madigan says, "This is the birth of metaphysics, the quest for ultimate answers. An impasse occurs: The mind cannot achieve the knowledge it seeks." While some people accepted the absence of ultimate answers to these questions, others founded religions which provide ultimate answers to these human questions.

Famed psychologist, Carl Rogers, in his book, On Becoming a Person, documented his search for religious truth After spending a year at Union Theological Seminary to become a Methodist minister, he had more questions than answers about his beliefs. He and five classmates spent the next year traveling around the world. In every part of the world, people had their own religions. Leaders of each religion claimed their religion was the "only true religion in the world", thus labeling other religions to be false. Despairing of finding truths about religion, Rogers changed his college major to psychology and later founded an excellent system of psychotherapy.

Judging from the presence of so many religions around the word, it is evident many people have a great need for answers to the human questions other than, "I don't know." A focal point of most of these religions is the concept of a personal God capable of doing all things, including hearing and answering prayers and overriding the laws of nature as needed. By providing ultimate answers to the human questions, religions have provided exceedingly valuable comfort and models of desired behaviors to the believers. Consistent with our Constitution, we have no state religion. Each religion is free to grow.

Many believers in God claim only those who believe in their God can be a moral person. Republicans and Democrats cry, "No one is going to out-God us." Alan Dershowitz, the Felix Frankfurter Professor of Law at Harvard, claims, " The most moral people in the world are those who act selflessly without the promise of reward or threat of punishment in the hereafter." Various religious doctrines have helped some citizens be moral persons.

The Ohio University E. W. Scripps School of Journalism analyzed seven national public opinion polls of religious preferences conducted in the 1990s by the Scripps Survey Research Center. More than 11% of survey respondents - equivalent to more than 24 million Americans - reported no religious preference. I have no data on the extent to which those who report a religious preference believe many of the doctrines of their religions.

In a recent survey about belief in a God, 93% of the members of the National Academy of Science said they did not believe in a God. Albert Einstein claimed everyone is an atheist as no one can believe in all the many Gods of the many religions of the world.

Our laws grant us religious freedom; but, increasing limitations to it are evolving for candidates for public offices. In an article, "Taking Disbelief Out of the Closet", Dershowitz writes, "Few people in public life are prepared to disclose that they are atheists, agnostics, skeptics, or humanists...Disbelief in God must become as legitimate as belief in God in every forum of American life." Failure to do this perpetuates the dishonest use of religion for political purposes. It is not unusual for some members in public office to seek support for their positions on issues by claiming they are doing what God wants them to do. Former Congressional House Speaker, Newt Gingrich, was noted for this.

Presidential candidate, Bill Bradley, refused to discuss his religious beliefs publicly and was harassed endlessly by reporters and Christian religious leaders to do so. Wendy Kaminer, writing in The American Prospect, notes, "All the candidates indulging in Christ talk are Christians. Try to imagine a candidate for national office choosing Muhammed as his hero, instead of Christ, or advertising his Hindu heritage."

Freeman J. Dyson, one of the world's leading physicists, says he is an agnostic, defined in The American Dictionary as "One who believes there can be no proof of the existence of God but does not deny the possibility that God exists." He has worked extensively on the meaning of science and its relation to other disciplines, especially religion and ethics. For this, he has been awarded the 2000 Templeton Prize for Progress in Religion. Unfortunately for our nation, based solely on the fact he is an agnostic, Dyson would not be acceptable to many Americans as a candidate for public office.

I join with people of diverse religious beliefs on a common journey seeking more acceptable answers to human questions about our existence than now are available. Some of my colleagues believe in a God. We must be true to ourselves. I continue to study many religions and remain open on my journey through life to accepting the best answers I can find to these human questions.

My studies confirm many religious doctrines which once were considered to be truth no longer are considered to be truth. Of the changes in doctrine in the past 25 years, note, for example, changes by some Christian religions regarding Hell and Heaven. These were considered to be physical locations persons were sent to by God after their deaths. Religious leaders who have changed this doctrine say neither Hell nor Heaven have any physical location. Space limitations prevent further elaboration on the doctrines of Hell and Heaven and reporting on a number of other doctrinal changes which have occurred in some Christian or other religions.

As our knowledge base expands, I can expect many current religious doctrines to be changed or modified at some time in the future. Episcopal Bishop Jack Spong said, "The heart cannot worship what the mind rejects." Lowell Weiker, Jr., former U.S. Senator and Governor of Connecticut advises that once we close our minds to new ideas or knowledge, we may be missing the best and most enlightening information as it unfolds.

I believe every person, including me, has the right to his or her own religious beliefs. I try to understand our differences in beliefs and respect these differences. I believe I am part of the nature of this earth. I am comfortable not having final, ultimate answers to all these human questions. I accept responsibility for giving meaning and purpose to my life and in knowing I will die. I believe in the inherent worth and dignity of each person. I behave in ways so, hopefully, my life has benefitted and will benefit many others.

Religious belief and disbelief are parts of the American way and may this continue to be so.

James M. O'Hara

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