j_alfredsephiroth
(?)Community Member
Offline
- Posted: Sat, 24 Dec 2005 06:33:56 +0000
Lately here I have noticed on Gia many posts about people and their hatred of Christianity. I was thinking about this and I came up with an interestering realization!
It started out with a question, "Why do so many people who are not Christians dispise Christianity so much?" I came up with the conclusion that when you grow up living in a Christian society (like America, where I live) and have beliefs that are drastically different from the norm, then you will undoubtably feel alienated and shunned. People that are not Christian will see all the Christian influences traced throughout the society and feel like they are a stranger in their own land. So many non-Christians attack Christianity not because it is evil, but because they grow to see it that way. Let me elaborate . . .
We are led to believe through our churches and our society that certain things are essential to our way of life and indeed we would not be "civilized" people without them. If you've grown up in America you will know what I mean. Life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness (and the fear and worship of the Judeo-Christian God), are all part of the America we grew up in. Indeed I've realized recently just how "Christian" our great America really is. Most of our morals and many of our traditions and rituals are rooted in Christian belief.
Consequently, because many of the basic foundations for our country are laid on Christian principles, we are instilled with one very distinct idea from the moment we start our lives here, "Christianity is the one right religion." This can be seen echoed throughout our entire culture and indeed it gives rise to ideas such as "America is the greatest of all lands[because of our God given freedoms, that are protected and ensured]," and also, " America will go on thriving forever [most likely this idea springs from the fact that if we are a God-fearing nation then surely we will not fall, another words God has our back]."
The idea that Christianity is the one right religion can be quite scary (especially to those Athiests and Agnostics who are vastely out numbered by Theists here in America). So I think that many Agnostics and Atheists feel that Christianity is slowly taking over and abolishing one religion after another on it's goal to becoming the one "True" religion. And of course once it has accomplished it's goal then we would live in a world completely centered on a Christian idealogy.
Here's the punch line: I realize now that Christianity (athough still the largest player) is not some evil giant trying to rule the world, but here in America it only seems that way. There are countless religions spanned all across the globe. If I grew up in the Middle East I might feel that Islam was the crushing world idealogy. If I grew up in India I might feel that Hinduism was the world view that everyone was following.
Christianity is simply one of many explanations of our place in the universe; it is not right or wrong, it simply is.
It started out with a question, "Why do so many people who are not Christians dispise Christianity so much?" I came up with the conclusion that when you grow up living in a Christian society (like America, where I live) and have beliefs that are drastically different from the norm, then you will undoubtably feel alienated and shunned. People that are not Christian will see all the Christian influences traced throughout the society and feel like they are a stranger in their own land. So many non-Christians attack Christianity not because it is evil, but because they grow to see it that way. Let me elaborate . . .
We are led to believe through our churches and our society that certain things are essential to our way of life and indeed we would not be "civilized" people without them. If you've grown up in America you will know what I mean. Life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness (and the fear and worship of the Judeo-Christian God), are all part of the America we grew up in. Indeed I've realized recently just how "Christian" our great America really is. Most of our morals and many of our traditions and rituals are rooted in Christian belief.
Consequently, because many of the basic foundations for our country are laid on Christian principles, we are instilled with one very distinct idea from the moment we start our lives here, "Christianity is the one right religion." This can be seen echoed throughout our entire culture and indeed it gives rise to ideas such as "America is the greatest of all lands[because of our God given freedoms, that are protected and ensured]," and also, " America will go on thriving forever [most likely this idea springs from the fact that if we are a God-fearing nation then surely we will not fall, another words God has our back]."
The idea that Christianity is the one right religion can be quite scary (especially to those Athiests and Agnostics who are vastely out numbered by Theists here in America). So I think that many Agnostics and Atheists feel that Christianity is slowly taking over and abolishing one religion after another on it's goal to becoming the one "True" religion. And of course once it has accomplished it's goal then we would live in a world completely centered on a Christian idealogy.
Here's the punch line: I realize now that Christianity (athough still the largest player) is not some evil giant trying to rule the world, but here in America it only seems that way. There are countless religions spanned all across the globe. If I grew up in the Middle East I might feel that Islam was the crushing world idealogy. If I grew up in India I might feel that Hinduism was the world view that everyone was following.
Christianity is simply one of many explanations of our place in the universe; it is not right or wrong, it simply is.
