A Disagreement

 So, I ought to know better but obviously I don’t. Facebook is a bizarre environment where your “friends” are often not your… well, friends. The story is simple but it prompted me to write this post on my blog rather than directly on Facebook. Here goes.


I saw a post on another FB page and copied it to mine. This is it:



I am not a religious person. In today’s America, polarized over religion and politics, I thought the message had some importance. The story of Christ is 2000 years old. He was a resident of the Middle East and I am certain he did not look anything like the White appearing person depicted in evangelical Christianity in the United States. In my mind this meme makes sense. We are told that Christ was a proponent of peace and tolerance. I guess socialism is the idea that we all care for each other.


No sooner had I posted it than a “friend” commented that Christ wasn’t talking about government. I was told by this “friend” that government defined socialism was different and their prior posts about this (mostly memes) made it clear that socialism was communism. Inevitably the string degenerated, even after I called a halt to it. Now the people involved are both highly religious and conservative -- I would bet my last nickel they were Trump voters in both 2016 and 2020. I have had prior disagreements with them both on FB.


So what did I learn? First, and probably most important, that Facebook is a terrible place for a debate. Second, that many people are so fixed in their religious and political leanings that they cannot set them aside. And finally, that I too get sucked in on the arguments and need to keep my thinking at the frontal cortex level and not at the amygdala level. I do wonder why religion so colors the minds of people that they cannot explore other possibilities. A guess is that they are so afraid of death that they need the mental support of the possibility of an afterlife. That is their right. My right is to believe as I do, that what we are as humans is the sum and substance of our species. 


A final thought. Many Americans identify as Christians. I am ok with that; I tolerate their beliefs. But I will not tolerate their proselytizing and bullying others to accept their belief system. In that sense I find them intolerant. As for socialism -- well, food for other posts here. 

Comments

  1. BobDecember 30, 2020 at 4:41 AM

    I don't think it's fear of death. Rather, most people choose religion because it provides a community of like-minded fellow believers that get together on a regular basis. This is a strong reason when the world seems intractably divided.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thad Zajdowicz, MD, MPHDecember 30, 2020 at 11:45 AM

      Perhaps. There is indeed fellowship in religion. But what to make of the fact that the fastest growing religion in the United States is: NONE.

      Delete

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