Yesterday, I had a conversation with a young gentleman about what I thought of the newly elected pope. Not being a Catholic, I quickly informed the young man that the pope is the head of the Catholic church, and although a Christian myself, any pope does not have any influence on the way I exercise my faith. The young man, obviously surprised by my lack of regard for the pope, began to bemoan that this new pope, Francis I, was going to set the church back at least a hundred years.
As I pressed him for his proof, he began to recite the same claims against this pope that the American news media has already begun to highlight: he is anti-abortion, rejects homosexuality as an alternative lifestyle, a strong defender and promoter of the traditional family, and believes that Catholics must become more church-centered rather than allowing their faith to become part of the periphery – of their lives. After listening to his rants for about ten minutes, I had a verse pop into my mind that I shared with the young man: For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD (Isaiah 55:8).
Although this young man had claimed to be a Catholic, if one observed his lifestyle as I have had the ability to do since he has been a student of mine in three classes, it’s hard to see where he takes his faith seriously. Unfortunately for him and millions of others in the United States, they have a tendency to approach God and faith as any other aspect of life and do so with their own understanding. This is where the most serious mistakes of all happens as we are warned by God through the psalmist David, Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding (Psalms 3:5). Our understanding, our sense of justice, our sense of right and wrong are not based in absolute right and wrong, but on our own fleshly concepts.
Within our nation and since the end of the nineteenth century, there was an idea promoted that only if Americans could be separated from their antiquated religious fundamentalism then society could eliminate poverty, illiteracy, and even the need by some to resort to crime itself. These people, who called themselves Progressives, began to promote the removal of any mention or influence of God from our nation’s schools, courthouses, and government. They believed that by relegating God to being simply a God contained within the church, they would actually facilitate an intellectual awakening and the improvement of the human condition within the nation. Now, in 2013, we have seen the results of their efforts – society has not gotten better; we are witnessing our society’s breakdown happen at lightening speed.
As both secular and contemporary religious leaders scramble to find solutions to the escalating problems in society, many are leaving out a crucial point of the solution: it’s about obeying God’s precepts and not trying to remake God or his precepts according to our own understanding. In every aspect of the Bible, we see how man has substituted his intellectual understanding rather than to yield to God’s guidance. When this is pointed out one hears the same old arguments: if we followed the Bible, we’d have no science, if we followed the Bible, infertile couples could not have children, if we follow the Bible, we’d be oppressing others, if we follow the Bible, or my favorite – we’d still be living in tents or caves. Statements and observations like this show the world’s ignorance when it comes to God. After all, these are just simply a repackaging of the old question, Yea, hath God said… (Genesis 3:1).
