I was listening to Christopher Hitchens’ debate on religion with Tony Blair on the radio and had to agree with many of Hitchens’ examples of religious excess and hubris. Human history is littered with examples of abuses in every institution.
But do poor marriages mean the institution of marriage should be banned? Do corrupt political leaders mean that we should abandon politics? Hopefully abusive teachers and doctors do not mean we should close all hospitals or schools. And one can argue that a fundamentalist interpretation of faith does not mean that religion must be narrow-minded and exclusive.
Hitchens can point out the lack of logic and common sense of much religion but he cannot negate the powerful effect of a spiritual leader like Gandhi.
A poster that hangs in my home office is graced by a quote from Gandhi. He lists the 7 deadly social sins:
politics without principle
wealth without work
commerce without morality
pleasure without conscience
education without character
science without humanity
worship without sacrifice
Will that kind of critique and reminder of what truly matters to human beings ever lose its power to transform life?
Peter
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1 comment:
Very moving.
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