Childish Ways

The Rev. Rick Warren's much anticipated invocation at yesterday's inauguration concluded with reference to Jesus not once but four times: "...in the name of Yeshua, Issa, Jesus, Jesus." These Hebrew, Arabic, Spanish, and English renditions bowed to the diversity of Christians, yet failed the world religion inclusivity test. In the end he was true to his Evangelical worldview.

In his Inauguration Speech Mr. Obama said, "We know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus, and nonbelievers."

In my estimation we have a long way to go to fulfill Mr. Obama's broader vision. I write this as I watch a Wednesday morning National Prayer Service at the National Cathedral. The words and songs, not unexpectedly, are taken from the Jewish-Christian tradition.

I reflect on Scriptural words that Mr. Obama incorporated into his Inauguration Speech, that it is time to give up childish ways. A narrow religious outlook, that fails to embrace pluralism of belief and non-belief, relatively speaking, is childish. It's childish relative to First Amendment rights and it's childish relative to the rich and yeasty faiths and philosophies we hold in dynamic community in the American experience.

Beliefs 1968-2008

On December 20, the New York Times had a fascinating "op-chart" titled "The Way We Were, 1968," that included "Beliefs 1968-2008."






In my estimation there couldn't be a more revealing scan of American society and our religious beliefs than this simple chart. There has been some shift in the forty years, but these statistics illuminate core beliefs that underlie broader religious beliefs. Interestingly, the five per cent loss in belief in Life After Death is nearly compensated by a four per cent increase in belief in Reincarnation.