House of Cards

House of Cards

With a house of cards, every card props up the others around it. The house is fragile because the cards are merely leaned against one another. There is no bedrock and no concrete foundation. A house of cards collapses when a card or two is pulled from the bottom. The church is like a house of cards. It has no bedrock beneath it; no concrete foundation. Oh the buildings do, but I’m talking about the very basis for belief. In order for the church to stand, a few foundational premises must stand. 1. Man is inherently sinful and needs salvation. 2. Blood sacrifice is a good way to bring about salvation. 3. There is an afterlife. Let’s look at each one of these: 1.  Man is inherently sinful and needs salvation. The creation story of Genesis is a myth....

When and Where Religion is Useful

When and Where Religion is Useful

I wrote this for an online discussion for one of my classes. The prompt was about how religion helps maintain stability in societies. I think in small, non-literate societies, religion is useful for stabilizing the society and perpetuating the culture. Some of its institutions can facilitate education by traumatizing children enough that they remember everything they’re taught. It puts a name on shared beliefs and values and gives people something in common and a reason to gather and work together. It also incorporates myths about how and why the natural world works for people who don’t know or understand the scientific explanations, and addresses the supernatural, which natural science can not explain or prove even exists. It can also placate...