Other Religious Leaders Have Had Stamps?
Mother Teresa is scheduled to be honored with a U.S. postal stamp later this year. And naturally, someone has decided to protest the honor. The organization, Freedom from Religion Foundation, argues that postal regulations prohibit honors for “individuals whose principal achievements are associated with religious undertakings.” I have problems with this story.
First, other religious leaders have had stamps. The Rev. Martin Luther King a Baptist pastor, has a stamp. Malcolm X, an active member of the black Muslim faith had a stamp, and there were others. I do not know what Freedom from Religion Foundation had to say about those, but I do not recall any significant protest about them.
Second, Mother Teresa devoted her life to helping the poor people of India. She worked to help all who came her way without regard to their religious faith. Her work may have been in response to the teachings of the Catholic church, but her assistance was given to people of all faiths.
Now, I am fascinated by people who make such a big deal out of not believing in a God. Why are they so driven to punish those of us who are convinced of his existence? What if they are right? What if there is no God and no afterlife? What if we are the results of a stray cosmic ray rearranging the DNA of an ancient amoeba? If they are right, then we are created by the mixing of genetic material from our parents, we live our lives and simply cease to exits when we die. If so, what difference does it make if we believe or not believe. The results would be the same.
We cannot determine by our senses if God exist or not. If he exist, then the universe is filled uniformly with his presence. There would be no differentiation that we could detect. If he does not exist, then the universe is uniformly empty of any spiritual presence. Again, we have no way to determine if that is true. Believing in God is an act of faith. But non belief is also an act of faith. Therefore, atheism is just as much a religion as any other belief system based on faith.
“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1)
Now back to my question: Why do they make such an effort to attack religious belief? I think they are convinced that they are superior to the rest of us, that they are convinced that they have a right and a responsibility to force their opinions and beliefs on the nation without regard to the opinions of the masses. I think their attacks on people of faith are the results of their desire to have power over the inferior masses, and as long as we see God as the primary power in our lives, they get shut out.
I never try to impose my religious opinions on other people, and I resent those who try to impose their opinions on me. If they are right, it does not matter. If I am right, they have a problem.
_________________________________________________________________________________
Frank Gillispie is the founder of the Madison County Journal in Danielsville and writes a weekly column. For more writings, information and biography of Frank, check out his personal webpage at www.frankgillispie.com
Leave a Reply