About Religion

From Andrew Sullivan,

ANOTHER CHRISTIANITY: Maybe blogs shouldn't link to homilies, but there are so few good ones any more, and so many more available online, that when I'm sent a great one, I can't resist. Here's one about the true spirit of Christianity, of the Gospels' Jesus, that seems to me somewhat lacking in some of our most public disquisitions on Christian faith. Money quote:

"We have to be persons who are there for giving life to others... We are not interested in punishing others. We are not interested in condemning or criticizing others. We may use harsh words to point out something they are doing wrong, and that may not be easy for them to receive. But it's our disposition toward them that is so crucial. If judgment toward our brothers and sisters is condemnation, hatred, loathing or disgust — that isn't Spirit. That is something else. That is the opposite of what Christ came to do. When he said, "You will free people when you are there for giving life," that is the mightiest work of God. God's mighty act is to love every single human being exactly as they are, in this moment, with the hope and the desire that they move in the direction of the truth.
Wanting people to move in the direction of the truth — and taking them for who and where they are — is such a different disposition than condemning and criticizing. It is so different from excluding people. What is so frightening about 'toxic' religion is that it becomes exclusive: 'Get rid of those people who aren't like us.'"

This isn't just about the religious right. It's about the entire religious debate right now on public issues such as marriage or the end of life or the origins of the human person. If we are going to get somewhere as Christians, we have to change our tone. That goes for me sometimes, too. And here's an idea: if you hear an inspired sermon or homily, and it's posted somewhere online, why not send it to me? Maybe I could post one each Sunday, to make up for the probably dreadful one you had to sit through yourself.