Under the Bus
August 23, 2007
In response to some of the comments left on “Would the Real Christians Please Stand Up,” I have decided to throw some people under the bus. Yes, the examples in that post are somewhat blatant and high profile, so let’s focus on the average Joe out there who “practices” Christianity. (Or, at least, professes to.) This will be a rather personal post, as it will deal with some family members and friends. Out of respect for them and the situations involved, their names will be changed here.
Example #1: My wife’s parents are devout Catholics. They had raised their children as Catholic as well. Now, my wife’s sister (we will call her Jody) was quite the party going person who could just not bear to not have a guy in her life. (Seriously, I have known her for almost 13 years and I cannot remember a time since she was 18 that she was not chasing after some guy.) At one point in her younger years, 19 or 20, she had a fling with a guy and subsequebtly became pregnant. Upon discussing this with her parents, Jod’s mother told he that she should have an abortion and that if she wanted one but could not afford it, they would pay for it. (My wife and I were there and I watched silently as her jaw dropped to the floor.)
According to the Catholic Encyclopedia, willful abortion is completely against the faith.
Example #2: Later in her life, Jody married and had a son with her husband. Five years later, she meets a guy that works with her in the same establishment. She is unhappy with her marriage and begins to take an interest in this new guy (we’ll call him Frank). She begins to put herself into a position to become more intrigued with Frank (who is separated from his wife and also has a daughter). Keep in mind that Jody has been unhappy in her marriage for a little more than two years. (Most of the people who have been witnessing this take place feel that she did not divorce her husband earlier because she had no safety net in place.)
She finally decides to separate from her husband and kicks him out. That same weekend, she begins “officially” dating Frank. She calls herself a Christian, and so does Frank. She is Catholic, he is Lutheran. Neither religion smiles fondly on divorce, premarital sex or cohabitation without the benefit of marriage. Yet, this is the path that was taken, and is still continuing today. It has been over two years now.
Everywhere I look in my everyday life, I see the same crap. People who say that they hold themselves to a “higher moral standard,” yet seem to deviate away from that standard every chance they get, as long as it is convenient for them. I feel like Haley Joel Osment, “I see hypocrites. They don’t know that they are. They’re EVERYWHERE.”
So please, don’t tell me that the Religious Right, Christians, Muslims, Jews or any other religion has a “higher moral standard” than a secular humanist, atheist or agnostic.
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My own father calls himself a christian, but has none of the qualities that he should. I have personally met a satanic person who has more “good” in him.
I don’t have to tell you anymore, you know about my family relations already.
But i remember something from somewhere “religion hardly matters when it comes to the love of a family member” This is true to some extent, but sadly, it was not true in mine.
Ruben The AnswerMan
To thine own self be true.
Shakespearely,
Rival
It’s hard to see the forest for the trees when you’re galloping through it on your high horse.
I get that as well from certain family members that know I’m an atheist and choose to tell me I’m going to hell, but fail to recognize all the blatantly “sinful” things, that their religions forbids, that they themselves do.
I’ve been invited to my eight year old nephews baptism this Sunday, so look forward to a hopefully interesting post from in the future.
Later,
Emily