Losing My Religion… A Closer Look at the Parallel Between Religion and Politics

By Ron Signore

My perception of faith has continued to change. It used to be a simple notion, your faith was tied to the true theology of one’s religion. People would go through their day with either a conservative or liberal notion to the adherence of the theology they practiced.

Through life, raised as a Catholic, though I must admit, non-practicing, I went through the motions of the sacraments through confirmation, and including marriage. In my household growing up, there was a sense of admiration to, for lack of a better description, doing things the Christian way.

There would be comments that would pop up in the midst of punishment discussions, or that of evaluating a potential friend or friend’s family as somewhat of quasi background check parents may do to see who they’re letting their kids be around. The direction always seemed to hold those of a religious nature at a higher standard we should all strive to be.

As time passed by throughout life, it was no secret that we were not really a religious household, but still practiced the reality of a king of kings, a creator of all, that we were meant to still impress. In the modern way of thinking, my reflection is this pushed me down a path in more of a fear of God than questioning the existence of a God.

In my darkest hour, at the end of January in 2021, I allowed myself to let the fear in my mind wander. “Is this happening as a punishment for something I did? Will my kids have to pay for any of my sins…?” With those types of thoughts running through my head, I visited the local Catholic parish, and hat in hand with open communication, I expressed all this to the priest…even did confession. While I wanted to tell myself that I was truly returning to my faith, I should have realized I was lying to myself.

From March of 2020, the world has been in an unusual and unprecedented state for all of us. A pandemic engulfed the world. The effects of the pandemic ripped through like a tsunami. There has been far more time to capture a glimpse of how we live in today’s world. I would argue that the realization I keep coming to is that one’s point of faith is the driver for hate, bastardizing the original purposes of the evolution to modern religion.

As a parent, I had originally made the choice that I would let my kids make their decision on their faith when they were old enough to make a cognitive decision to what they believe in. I still stand by that, but also find myself wanting to deter my kids from organized religion.
If there is anything we have learned, it is that not much is black and white anymore. Religious patrons are the epitome of why in my mind. Throughout history, religion can be found in an impactful and significant number of events throughout history. Killing in the name of God becomes a reality of which falls to the ultimate hypocrisy of what I was led to believe religion was about.

While I feel there are many respectable sources on the matter, the one that always comes to mind is the simplicity in parody that Family Guy puts on the matter. One clip shows two men talking to each other, each saying “I like you and have no reason not to,” then being approached by a third saying, “hey, did you hear about that magic baby in Bethlehem?” The question completes and all three men stab each other to death. While the concept is probably a little lackluster in taste, the point really hit me hard.

We can take a trip through history and see a trend leading to where we are now. However, now is where the crux of religion is at the doorstep of everyone in the United States.

This country continues to divide. Some of it is the extent of wanting to believe it is political, but the argument almost always stems back to the roots of religious beliefs. This has taken time forward to a messy, more personal divide. People came to this great land to avoid religious persecution, be it original settlers, the founding fathers, or even though migrating from different countries since. The understanding of the constitution not implementing a national religion, or allowing for freedom of religion, should have been the saving grace to this country. One could come here, Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Islamic…etc… and live free due to the whole concept of separating church and state. That concept has become so muddy, its nothing more than a pipe dream at this point.

Religion is bleeding so far into our political system that it is hindering our ability to progress as a nation. Maybe it wouldn’t be such a bad thing if there was a realization that our governing law, while maybe has some mixing of basic religious concepts that infringe on other’s liberties (though shall not kill or steal), should not be the end all be all in how we govern.

The irony hits even harder that the basic principle of religion, while serving God, is to really be good to your fellow neighbors. It isn’t to condemn them for not being on the same interpretation of a religious journey. Furthermore, it’s the hypocrisy of what we see people acting out on. I wish I could be as creative as someone like Aaron Sorkin and the writing staff for the show “West Wing,” but they really spilled it out beautifully. Martin Sheen, who plays President Josiah Bartlett in the show is a devout catholic, as well as a Democrat.

While attending an event in the White House, a popular Christian talk show host is noticed at this event. President Bartlett could not resist himself calling out her pro-life, anti-gay point of view by challenging her to see if he’s going to hell for not selling his daughter, asking this person what a fair price should be; does he have to kill his chief of staff himself or can he have someone else do it because he works on the Sabbath…he continues to point out things we really no longer focus on practicing that the bible reads, adding the chapter and verse of the book each rule came from.

We have evolved in so many ways, yet we are set in regressing ourselves as a nation and human race because of religion. We have seen Roe v. Wade overturned and many defending their stance on the matter based on religious views. Slavery ended, we do not legally allow for child trafficking in any way and many other acts of the Bible’s expectations set forth by Christianity have been forgotten, yet people will hypocritically yield to one or two specific points, and typically homosexuality or pro-life. Why? How does who someone loves within the age of consent, or what you medically choose to do with your body impact your right to live? How does a governing body that is supposed to separate itself from religious rule make laws based on scripture. How can they still, since many things from scripture have in many ways been debunked as continued practice as noted in the West Wing?

A religion that has many denominations should have been my first clue. The practicing interpretation of Christianity isn’t the exact same throughout all branches. Does the Lutheran God outrank the Catholic God? The Jewish God? One religion by default cannot be possible even in one branch of Christianity evolving from Judaism to boot. We call our enemies “godless,” but this troubles me more and more as the world sees unrest.

In the democratic practice of governing, I see this as the most real interpretation of the concept of how religion should be practiced within government. The fight for equality, whether by race, orientation, creed, or any other variable. The notion to serve our neighbors by offering programs to relieve student debt, access to healthcare, push for taxing the wealthy so that there is more ability for our government to service it’s people.

On the right we see more examples of the previously hypocritically noted. Current Speaker of the House Mike Johnson claiming the separation of Church and State is misinterpreted, expressing the founding fathers wanted to eliminate the government from interfering with religion, not the other way around.

But I believe the most damning evidence is the support of Donald Trump. A grown child who has consistently made a living off stiffing people, an adulterer, multiple times divorced, a liar, seems to have been anointed as being sent by Jesus. Even for my lack of religiousness, the distasteful prayer last week prior to an Iowa rally praying for his protection and combat his persecutors, made me physically ill.

The more we learn, the less we understand the matter. Many want to acknowledge everything good they believe in and happens to them by thanking God. However, the bad, the evil in the world is either presented as “God’s plan” or an absence of God. As each day comes and goes, I see more that challenges organized religion than encourages it. I see more people use it as a tagline to something than I see people practicing.

Everyone should have the right to believe in the faith they chose. Everybody should have the right to not have someone else’s religion shoved down their throat with some notion of moral superiority. Most importantly, however, our freedoms and liberties should not be tied to a precedent of any one religion. For me, I will keep hoping the future brings better days to live by that statement. Progress is taking away what forever took to find, and the ongoing divide of our country continues from this pivotal topic.

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