I've noticed that when I write about religious matters, lots of people comment; posts about other issues, such as politics, current events, economics, blogging, writing, &c., don't get the same response. If you look at the page of most-commented-on posts, about 20 of the top 50 posts are related to religion.
I don't really write this stuff just to get comments or attention from people, but I am curious as to why you all respond the way you do. Is it because my writing on religious matters is more compelling, more controversial, more informed? Or is it because the topic is more interesting than others? In other words, do those posts get more of a response because it's a topic I'm good at writing about, or does the topic itself just draw more of a response? I hope I'm phrasing the question clearly.
Because religion is the domain of that which can neither be proved nor disproved, passions about it run high. Even those of us who are most devout can't avoid all doubts. Even those who are most dismissive of the supernatural are in the same boat. Since neither camp can frame a conclusive argument, the argument is guaranteed to be: 1) impassioned, and 2) interminable.
By contrast, arguments about propositions to which one can adduce evidence of an objective kind offer the possibility of being settled. When the evidence will ultimately decide, people's glands tend to stay quieter. As Robert Pirsig wrote in Zen And The Art Of Motorcycle Maintenance, people don't mount passionate campaigns to persuade others that the Sun will rise tomorrow.
Which lends an interesting perspective to the behavior of those who make their political positions unfalsifiable -- a matter of faith rather than evidence and logic -- doesn't it?
This happens on my blog also. What's interesting is how many athiests comment on Christian posts. Not that I mind, I'm just curious about it. I generally don't hang around on athiest blogs.
The topic of religion itself just seems to be a popular one to argue about. The most popular threads on my blog are, by and large, ones where I'm writing about religious topics.
I'm not sure why bitweever finds it odd that so many atheists comment on Christian posts, though, as the same is true in reverse. This I can attest to as I am an atheist and my blog reflects such and attracts quite a few Christians who come to show me the error of my ways.
The thing I find amusing is when some of these Christians show up and ask me what I think gives me the right to say what I've said and how deeply offended they are over it. I point out that I'm the one paying for and maintaining the website so that's what gives me the right and if they're so offended then why'd they come to a site that calles itself "Stupid Evil Bastard" in the first place? Did they really expect flowery prose and uplifting stories from a site with a name like that? :-)
Michael wrote about the poll of Americans on religion awhile back and that was discussed some here. I read some more about it in print media* and one of the comments that stood out for me was:
"If one's religion is more about individual identity than doctrine or creed, it's a lot easier to be tolerant," says Egon Mayer, a sociologist at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York. Gallup says that the high degree of religious tolerance reflects, in part, "not only a lack of knowledge of other religions but an ignorance of one's own faith." In some polls, he says, "you have Christians saying, 'Yes, Jesus is the only way,' and also, 'Yes, there are many paths to God.' It's not that Americans don't believe anything; they believe everything."
(emphasis added)
One can see why there would be many comments about religion.
*USN&WR SPECIAL EDITION
Yeah, I think you're all right.
The thing is, I like getting comments and such, but I don't want to write only about religion. Hm.
Religion is too personal and too easily misunderstood to be left to others to discuss.
It's a matter of indifference for me, but you do seem to have attracted, by chance, a good number of posters who can actually discuss their thoughts on religion and philosophy without relying too much on their preconceptions and racial mythologies. Go to some other sites and you'll get posters who specialize in economics (Jane Galt/Asym. Info.) or military stuff (Don Sensing, which is funny because he's the minister and writes well on religion). Perhaps your posts on religion are similar to your posts on politics, etc. Openminded, unlike the preconceptions of some sites which frame the discussion with assumptions. You give citations which leave the reader to draw his own set of preliminary conclusions. There is a subtle difference.
I think GB nailed it.
You notice, Michael, that even when you write about writing about religion, you get a slew of comments.
I wonder what response writing about writing about writing about religion would net you?
Some suggested reading.
S3: I think that guy is right; Gnosticism is very temping, since it's the culmination of our selfish nature.
I think religious writing is one of the things that defines you. If someone visits my blog regularly, he or she will know that I'm going to harp on smoking and suggest people take personal responsibility for their health and level of fitness.
And I'll make fun of PETA. There are other topics and subtopics, but I bet a lot of your readers come here because they really LIKE to read about what you have to say about religion.
hln
Politics and other topics are both interesting and important to daily life, but none comes close to faith in experiencing a rich and meaningful life. Faith strikes closer to our identity. Someone may be able to prove me wrong in one or more political beliefs, or even some tenet of faith, but the core of my identity is not as a conservative or liberal, a Republican or Democrat, or even a Baptist or a Methodist. My identity is centered on being a child of God; specifically, in Christ.
As well, for most (many?) people the faith is an absolute. Tell me my faith is wrong and you might as well also tell me that 2+2=5. But tell me my politics are wrong or ignorant and I might temporarily get bent out of shape because it be important to have one's views validated. But I find validation for my faith primarily in the Scriptures and in my relationship with Christ. So, to attack my faith is to call me not just wrong but to say that I have a totally false identity. That makes me want to defend my faith.
Finally, as strong as my faith is, I do realize that I see as in a mirror dimly. So that makes me more interested in exchanging theologoical understandings that perhaps I would see more clearly.
"On the Meaning of Jesus"
Why are so many people afraid of Jesus? That is the question we must ask ourselves. Jesus represents a world in which we cannot see but in our hearts we know exists on another plane--a spiritual plane. Jesus, having a two-dimensional characteristic, could act in this world and in the supernatural. He did things uncommon to mankind but correlational with His Father. Humans are afraid of that kind of power in anyone. Maybe this is why atheist try so hard to dispute His omniscient, omnipotent, and omnipresent powers. They are afraid of what they cannot control.
Religion is the heart of a believer's existence. It tells a person that they are important to the universe, that death is not the end, and that what they do in this life matters. If you take that away, people feel lost. Humans are so egocentric that it is inconceivable to many that when we die it's over. Someone said in this blog to attack someone's faith is to attack who that person is. That said, when a person is able to free themselves from the burden of religion, so many things become clear. And, peoples beliefs become their own personal convictions. This is a real big deal to me. Instead of not stealing or killing because 'god is watching' I don't do those things because I believe that they are wrong. that is a huge difference in personal judgement - doing what I know is right as opposed to doing what I am told to do or I will be punished.
I suspect that if Eric were to start ignoring the laws of gravity it would make some things clear as well.
The Christian Bible is the only document that has served as a source of truth for 2000 years without being altered. Science changes its mind every day. Politics changes with the season. Your opinion about right and wrong probably changes also. Give me a bedrock written by the Author of Life.
You are right on the target.
Religion, and any belief in any supreme being is idiocy.
This controlling crap has infected mankind for too many years.
I see and hear supposedly intelligent humans speak so unintelligently about current events, as they relate to their religion, that it is most difficult to speak to them about these current events without invoking their master.
Keep writing.
Dan