I'm moving...already!

I know I just started this blog, but I just started another one by the same name over at Tumblr.  I am fascinated by the assimilation of blogging and social media over at Tumblr so I'm going to give it a whirl.  Check it our at http://thestepnotbeyond.tumblr.com

Review: Sacred Matters-My Conclusion

In the end the book turns out to be a little repetitive.  Since every chapter explores how some of the same religious activities and thinking are present in the different topics which are explored you sometimes get the feeling that you don't need any more convincing, although each chapters contains interesting stories and data.  Each chapter explores how things like the formation of community, the teaching of ethical and moral values, transcendent experiences, ritual behavior, and life transformations are present in the different communities.  Each is not completely separate from the other, many of them overlap with one another, which proves Laderman's point that we all belong to a variety of religious communities, some complementary and some conflictual.  To avoid becoming bored with the repetitiveness of the chapters this might be a good book to read over a longer period of time possibly reading one chapter at a time.

An interesting theme touched on the book is the myths told by each of these different communities of people.  As a Christian I inhabit the biblical narrative, it's the story which frames the world for me and within which I find myself.  In short the biblical narrative is the story that tells me who I am and what my purpose is in life.  Something not thoroughly explored but hinted at is the myth-making quality of each of the topics explored in this book.  Each chapter highlighted a story out of which people are living their life.  I live my life out of many different stories as well, but the biblical story interprets them all.  My lesser identities are subordinated to my primary identity as a member of the church of Jesus Christ.  I think that all of the topics Laderman explores in this book can function as identity-forming stories in people's lives.  They find purpose in these stories and they find a place in this world.  The question then becomes, what is your meta-story?  Which story gives meaning to all the smaller stories that make up your life?  That is the story in which you most likely encounter the sacred.

Lastly, I think the resurgence of such a plurality of religious commitments in people’s lives is becoming more and more possible as the lines between the sacred and the secular increasingly blur.  I say resurgence because for too long our culture operated with a false dichotomy of secular and sacred, or spiritual and ordinary.  As our culture completes the turn from modernity into postmodernity our awareness of the sacred in our everyday lives is growing.  Although Laderman emphasizes that god is not necessary for many kinds of religious behavior and thinking I am hopeful that many more will find him there where they least expect it.  As secularism is unmasked by pluralism we will be more and more able to speak from where our true allegiances lie instead of from the pseudo-neutral secular horizon.  Only then will we begin to have true dialogue; when our identity-shaping stories are no longer masked and when we realize that we all worship something, the question is who/what.

Review: Sacred Matters-Chapter 9 Death

Religions often seek to give meaning to the unexplainable in our lives, and because of this fact it should be no surprise that death requires religious behavior in all cultures.  Laderman is quick to point out that the religious actions may look very different throughout the varying cultures, but regardless of their diversity death is always sacred whether god is involved or not.  Perhaps it's because it is the most inescapable and yet the most mysterious of all events that we know we will go through.

First on the list of topics Laderman explores are ghosts.  Since what lies beyond the grave is a mystery to us all it’s no wonder that ghosts and myths about people continuing to influence the living after death abound in our culture.  How are we to explain how people who have died still seem with us in some sense?  Could it be that there is not always a smooth transition between this life and the next?  This transition is often carefully watched over by a business, which fulfills a necessary task in all cultures, the funeral home.  Laderman addresses the new landscape such businesses must cross as people of very different cultural backgrounds with very different expectations for their deceased loved ones request their services.

In an interesting connection with the previous chapters of the book we see how venerated people from the other religious arenas discussed, music, celebrity, violence (war), film and more, often have lasting postmortem influence on their followers.  These people range from Christian saints, to dead rappers, to dead celebrities, and more.  Sometimes they have such a significant postmortem influence that they take on legendary status, with some fans even believing their death to be a fabrication or hoax.  Laderman details the postmortem influence of Tupac Shakur and Elvis Presley.

In my understanding the Bible is surprisingly ambiguous about what waits for us on the other side of death; although some people seem to think they can map it fairly accurately.  What most people believe to be Christian teaching on the subject is actually a kind of pop theology, which takes more cues from cartoons depicting heaven and hell or ancient Greek mythology.  Other then the resurrection that occurs at the Parousia we are figuratively in the dark as to what happens in the meantime.  My faith leads me to believe that just as God is lord of my life now he will remain lord over my life after death and because of that fact I try not to fear that inevitable inevitability that awaits us all.  

Review: Sacred Matters-Chapter 8 Sexuality

Spend an evening watching a popular prime-time drama as well as the commercials and you will quickly get a sense for how deeply sex is embedded in today’s American culture.  Laderman doesn't shy away from this topic, in fact he addresses one of the most taboo topics related to sexuality right from the start, the pornography industry.  Although he does not offer any direct opinions as to the health or morality of the porn industry I think it is possible to pick up on whispers of a cautionary sort with regard to pornography and its effects on participants and viewers.  Regardless Laderman seeks to understand why so many Americans are so committed to consuming pornographic media.

I was disappointed in Laderman's summary of what he felt is the traditional Christian 'take on sex' which included a low view of the physical body and an understanding of sex as being purely for reproduction.  I believe this view of sex is one which was historically part of the Catholic church since the time of Augustine and I'm not sure it still holds true today.  I know that within my own part of the Christian tradition the body is not viewed as evil and sex is celebrated when it is part of a healthy monogamous marriage.  I have no problem admitting that the church for many centuries spread some damaging teachings when it came to the body and our sexuality, and while some continue to do so many Christians have begun teaching a much more healthy understanding of sexuality and its connection with our spirituality.  Tina Schermer Sellers has an excellent article, which addresses this very topic.

Along with pornography Laderman examines the ways in which many Americans seek sacred sexual experiences in same-sex encounters, sadomasochism, New Age wisdom, Kama Sutra, and just more adventurous sex.  I think the connection between sexuality and spirituality is a very healthy one, that highlights the healing possibilities inherent in a healthy sexual relationship.  Relationship is the key in that phrase.  I do not believe that random sexual experiences can provide the same kind of healing available from a committed physical, emotional, personal relationship.  The connection experienced in a sexual encounter is available because in that moment we are completely vulnerable.   When people buy the lie that sex is purely physical, that we need only make sure it's 'safe', they practice an inappropriate vulnerability which wounds them and their partner.

While the sexual revolution has taught us that our bodies are not bad and that sex is as much if not more spiritual than functional we should not be too quick to leave behind the wisdom of religious traditions which have understood this for a long time.  Could it be that the oneness we so desperately desire with God is glimpsed in a healthy committed relationship with another person?  If so, then it is no wonder that sexuality and the industries connected to it are full of religious communities seeking this connection in the easiest way possible, sex.

Review: Sacred Matters-Chapter 7 Violence

Violence has been part of the human story from Cain killing his brother Abel to the daily violence we witness/experience in our lives, on TV, or in the news.  Laderman begins the chapter with an examination of the intrinsically sacred nature of war.  He makes the point that whether god is invoked or not war is necessarily religious because it invokes ultimate loyalties, it requires potentially making the ultimate sacrifice.  The death of soldiers is the closest thing we have today to ancient rituals of sacrifice, in which certain individuals or animals were sacrificed for the good of the greater majority.  We impart sacred significance on the death of fallen soldiers.

The next arena of violence examined by Laderman is one that will forever be tied to the American spirit, the life of the cowboy.  Whether or not the Hollywood versions of cowboys' lives are true to the lived experience of such men (and women) is not important since it is the Hollywood cowboy which comes to mind whenever ones talks about such things.  The violence often associated with such fictitious cowboys as those played by John Wayne is a justified violence.  Cowboy violence breathes this redemptive spirit because it functions to restore law and order or bring justice to oppressed peoples (unfortunately not usually the Native Americans).

With war and cowboys being part of American DNA it is inevitable that the gun would take on sacred significance.  Laderman turns next to guns and to that most hallowed of organizations (at least to those who belong to it) the NRA.  Just as in previous chapters the author shows how an organization like the NRA provides it members with community, ethical instructions, transcendent experiences (shooting guns) and quite possibly experience life change.  So real guns can be religious, but what about virtual ones?  Does virtual violence fulfill a religious function in the lives of gamers worldwide?  With the success of such games as World of Warcraft and Call of Duty, including the communities they create, the answer appears to be yes.  The troubling question becomes at what point should we worry about gamers being unable to distinguish between the virtual ethic taught by the game and a real life ethic practiced outside the game?  The conversation surrounding video game violence, while very interesting, left me with more questions than answers.

There is no question in my mind that violence involves sacred experience of many kinds and in many ways for many Americans.  My hope as a Christian is that people would come to see the lie behind the myth of redemptive violence; that somehow violence can set things right without perpetuating the cycle of violence we find ourselves trapped in.  As a Christian I think that one of the most powerful parts of our witness to the gospel of Jesus Christ is that in his death and resurrection the justification for violence has been negated, and as the Church we should be a preview of the peaceable kingdom made available by the inauguration of the kingdom of God.

Review: Sacred Matters-Chapter 6 Medicine

The question of what qualifies as medicine is a hotly debated topic at the moment containing issues such as the legalization of marijuana in California. It is becoming more and more obvious that the medicinal value of many drugs depends on a person’s perspective. Like the rest of the chapters in his book Laderman does not make any proscriptive judgments about the use of medicine or drugs, he simply argues that medicine is a source of religious experience for Americans. Whether drugs are taken to achieve a transcendent experience, live free of pain, or cure an illness they are consumed in order to have a certain kind of lifestyle.

Laderman spends a significant amount of time exploring the advertising connected to the pharmaceutical industry. Pharmaceutical companies are very careful to connect attractive lifestyles to their product thereby promising such lifestyles to people who would only have to take a pill. Whether we know it or not much of what Americans think of as health has been influenced by the prescription drug industry; we have been brainwashed to think of health in the very narrow sense of lack of disease. One of the things Laderman discusses in the chapter is the recent influence in the West of Eastern conceptions of health. These conceptions of health are often much more holistic involving emotional and spiritual health along with physical health, and they often emphasize lifestyle changes over drug therapy. We are coming to the realization that the pursuit of good health and a long life is a religious one and that many cultures and traditions have approached it quite differently. We are realizing that doctors are not the gods we once thought they were and that we might have something to learn from cultures other than our own.

In the end medicine seeks to control aspects of our lives to change them from some deficient existence to our desired end, that end being health. So what is health? Who gets to say what it means to live a healthy life? Is it defined by drug commercials? I would hope not, since their idea of health is largely formulated around a fantasy that they hope will motivate people to buy their product. While Laderman recited the now familiar refrain that god is not a necessity in the religion of medicine he did not address how the presence of gods or a god, and quite possibly some kind of afterlife, changes a persons understanding of health in this life. The belief in some kind of afterlife changes a person's motivations to extend their life or accept a natural end. Not only length of life, but the definition of life comes into play when talking about modern advances in medicine and the ability to keep people 'alive'.

Stanley Hauerwas has written a very helpful book on this particular subject from a decidedly Christian perspective. In God, Medicine and Suffering he points out the fact that we not only allow pagan cultures to shape our understanding of health and life, but we are often misguided in our attempts to achieve 'health'. Hauerwas argues that the attempt to provide a theodicy, or explanation for the presence of evil in the world, is pagan pursuit which distracts from the traditional Christian response to the presence of evil, which is a community of people able to absorb its effects. He comes to the conclusion that modern medicine is another form of theodicy, but one that usually fails to actually contribute to person well-being and only succeeds in making the person feel better. This is a great little book which would be an excellent supplement to Laderman's chapter on medicine.

Review: Sacred Matters-Chapter 5 Science

The place of science in religion has been a long debated issue. For over a thousand years now scientific discoveries have challenged both previously held religious beliefs as well as worldviews through which human beings understood their place in the universe. These challenges have not gone over smoothly, I'm thinking here of Galileo Galilei and Charles Darwin. These encounters which pitted organized religion against scientific advances have led to a popular belief that science and religion are incompatible. In this chapter of the book Laderman argues that science may not be regarded as a religion but it often fulfills a very religious function the lives of scientists.

Laderman's first exploration of this phenomenon is in the work of Ursula Goodenough who calls herself a religious naturalist; a view of nature that does not succumb to reductionism but instead finds mystery and meaning among scientific discoveries which do not included god. Laderman contrasts Goodenough's position to evolutionary fundamentalists who often rival the most outspoken Christian fundamentalists in their demonizing of their 'opposition' and their charged rhetoric.

This chapter also recognized that some scientists see religion and science as partners being able to benefit from one another while also opposing each other at times. These scientists include the likes of Albert Einstein and Niels Bohr. Even though science and religion can help one another I believe they are both myth-making systems of thought. Science is not always purely secular, and this may be the true source of conflict between science and many of the established major religions. The myths of science may conflict with the myths of a particular religion. The question is which myth will you allow to interpret the other? In our society where scientific conclusions seem to be the ultimate measure of authority the seemingly lesser myths often told by religious texts and traditions are subjugated and sometimes thought to be discredited.

Many Christians fear the influence of scientific discoveries on their religious beliefs and yet science has so much to offer when it comes to discovering new experiences of the sacred in the world which surrounds us. Fear only prevents us from having a good conversation, instead fear drives us to demonize the other and entrench ourselves in our positions unwilling to have our minds opened to new vistas. Science is not the enemy of religious belief; in fact it may encourage its own kind of religious devotions and doctrines, quite possibly sensed as a threat by many people in more traditional religious communities.

Here's a clip from the movie Nacho Libre which makes light of the tension between belief in science as opposed to belief in traditional religion. You can ignore the baptism announcement info at the end; it was the only clip I could find on YouTube.