Thursday, January 16, 1997
FAITH:
Many people only follow religions out of fear of damnationMy
aunt passed away shortly after Spring Quarter of my second year
ended. While at the wake, I tried to focus on the solemnity of the
moment and the grief that I felt obligated to possess, as though
not having enough of it made me guilty of some moral crime.
However, the monotone drones of the Buddhist monks chanting and the
overpowering scent of the burning ceremonial incense both combined
to lead my mind astray.
I thought about death, the afterlife and the fact that no one
alive on this planet can prove to me what happens to us after we
die. I questioned the usefulness of religion and the sincerity of
its followers.
Experience leads me to believe that the two forces of love and
fear fuel most personal devotions to God and religion. While I
question whether the majority of people attached to an organized
faith savor a sincere compassion and undying love for a vaguely
defined god or higher spiritual power, I can acknowledge the fact
that fear of eternal hell and damnation might prompt a large mass
of individuals to convert to the side of the righteous.
According to Blaise Pascal, one should play the odds and
convert, since belief in God won’t hurt you while skepticism might
mean a one-way ticket to the Lake of Fire. This philosophy more or
less reflects the act of taking an insurance policy out on the
afterlife. By entrusting one’s soul and everlasting loyalty to God
(the act of buying insurance), one can secure eternal peace and not
worry about the foreboding consequences (say, getting into an auto
wreck uninsured).
However, even this pragmatic approach to belief requires a
certain measure of faith. Some people possess inordinate amounts of
it while others have none. Furthermore, I believe that we as human
beings cannot achieve faith through any effort on our parts. We
can’t study for it and we can’t take prep courses to earn it. And
if we don’t have it, then we don’t and can’t believe in God.
Consequently, those without faith forfeit their chance at eternal
happiness, according to Christianity.
I’m reminded of a "Twilight Zone" episode in which the
protagonist held a job delivering souls to hell. At one point, he
converses with several of his "deliveries." Finding them to be
decent people whose sole fault was a lack of faith, the driver
released them, saving them from their unfortunate sentence. If
individuals were judged on their actions and not on their religious
orientation or (lack thereof), I wonder how many would truly end up
in heaven. It’s easy to maintain blind faith if you’re born with
it. It’s harder yet to be magnanimous and patient toward one’s
fellow human beings.
One thing I’ve noticed in the past several years is how divisive
religion can be. As there is only one God in the Christian faith, I
really can’t comprehend why over a dozen Christian groups exist on
campus, most of them devoted to the Asian ethnic make-up of your
choice. For a religion which prides itself on the concept of
brotherly love and communal happiness, the followers (at least on
this campus) seem to have gone out of their way to segregate as
much as possible. This aspect of campus fellowship leads me to
understand these organizations as a means to socialize and gain
acceptance with peers of similar ethnic and social standing rather
than as a tool for spiritual growth  not that I have a
problem with any of it.
As far as I’m concerned, these groups can do anything they want.
I only wish that these organizations and their representatives
would be more honest with their goals when they approach me on
campus.
I would much rather hear a roving evangelist say outright, "Hey,
why don’t you come and join our religious clique and hang out
exclusively with our friends" than give me the usual lines.
These days, my corroded faith negates any incentive for me to
join the religious club of my choice. My faithlessness doesn’t
pertain to a mere disbelief in God, though. I’m well aware of the
possibility of hell and, given my incredibly low threshold for
pain, would most likely make the Pascal decision before my time is
up. However, I don’t want to have to believe in God out of fear,
and I don’t want religious fellowship disguised as organized
friendship. If I desired the latter, I would join a frat.
Rather, my skepticism concerns whether I’m even qualified to
refer to myself as a follower of any religion. As a student at UCLA
with career plans and materialistic goals, I wonder whether my
secular plans for life would compromise my loftier spiritual goals
of religious growth and development, should I choose to pursue such
goals. The problem with religion is that most people don’t realize
what true religious devotion is. Weekly church meetings, religious
social activities and public proselytizing do not make a devout
follower. If one holds to the Christian concept of seeking "rewards
in heaven", then we should all drop our classes, go to some
monastery in some obscure corner of the world, and meditate on
spiritual matters. But that wouldn’t be the sensible thing to do.
That won’t help us ace the MCAT, get into a good law school or find
a practical career.
True, some people affiliate themselves with religion for reasons
other than fear of punishment and a yearning for acceptance. In
fact, athletes exhibit their spiritual attachments all the time
when they praise the Lord for blessing them with such incredible
talent or helping them win a ball game. Evander Holyfield’s
post-Tyson fight news conference was practically the Sermon on the
Mount. It’s curious that God is mentioned only when He bestows
victories. I’ve never heard an athlete blame God for making him
lose.
The truth is, religion just isn’t practical enough to keep up in
this day and age. Rather than being a medium through which
individuals gain personal enlightenment and maturity, religious
faith has grown to a form of cliche. Empty-headed athletes mention
it as a footnote in television interviews and award acceptance
speeches. People grope for it often only in times of desperation
and tribulation, in hopes of explaining away certain harsh
realities of life. Politicians utilize it to further their own
platforms.
Given the option, I would love to sit on a remote island and
devote myself to spiritual matters. However, given also that I live
in a country in which one needs a stable career and a quality
education to survive, I wonder how people can expect to compromise
religious devotion with societal sensibilities.
Chieh Chieng
Chieh Chieng is a third-year English student.