I sometimes question the effectiveness of my position. Am I Boo Downs, somewhat renowned Collegian Columnist, or Shawn Downs, 21-year-old college student on an ego trip? I’m usually not ignorant enough on a subject to generate any sort of productive backlash. So what should I do to up my credentials so that people will heed my words? Of course, I’ll become an ordained minister!
After a few clicks on my computer, an e-mail or two and my full name, I was formally ordained a minister in the Universal Life Church. I don’t feel any different, but now I have an official certificate in the mail. So I am now legally a minister, with rights pertaining thereof. Did I spend years of training to become a Priest or a Rabbi? No. I spent five minutes. As a legal reverend, I have a title and the moral authority to preach morality to the masses. Last week, I could only preach my views on social issues. Now I can preach with style.
Have I seen the light? Has this position brought infinite wisdom or virtue to my being? Should you take me more seriously? Of course not. To take me more seriously just on the account of this title is nothing more than shallow faith. People will flock, as the title “Reverend Shawn Downs” has a weight that “Collegian Columnist Boo Downs” lacks. With a strong religious influence to our culture, the title carries prestige, intelligence, and wisdom. Does this title do anything to actually make me intelligent, wise, and prestigious? My apologies to the Presidential candidates, but it’s the person, not the title, which carries the favorable traits in their position.
It is written in the Book of Boo that, “Self-righteousness is the greatest ignorance.” We the people give people authority over us. We invest some of our freedoms in our government, and we invest our lifestyles into religious institutions. In return, these institutions are supposed to provide us with securities. Our elected officials are supposed to serve the people. Likewise, religious institutions are supposed to answer some fundamental life questions, and to provide us hope in times of hardship and ultimately at the hour of our death. When this system works, we benefit and prosper from our investment. When money and power are involved, whose best interests are actually being served?
I fear that too many people are using the mantle of God to hawk their own, material interests rather than encouraging spirituality and a healthy lifestyle. With Hollywood cashing in on our beliefs in a number of badly made movies, religious leaders enjoying favored political status, and television preachers selling hope, one could wonder what happened to old fashioned beliefs. Simple spiritual relationships between people and their respective deities/philosophies are overshadowed by huge organizations, spoon-fed mass culture, and commercialism. While many people sincerely have strong religious beliefs, the religious system as a whole has become watered down.
The last time I checked, Jesus never had his own cable network, Abraham didn’t own a Hollywood studio and Muhammad would never bomb anybody. However, there are plenty of Jesus network specials, neurotic Jews in the movies, and fundamentalist terrorists in the news. Religious founders are celebrated in today’s religion, but they as historical people had to suffer to get their message across. Once established, these creeds still had suffer through persecution. What about the Pagans, who suffered immensely both because of their worship of Nature and their gender? Countless innocents have been massacred and persecuted in the name of Institutional religion. I, both an upper middle class white male and an official Reverend or a Christian church will never suffer like the Pagans or Jews or Muslims or any persecuted faith.
If any of these historical people came back today, I would be certain that they would be shocked and dismayed at what they saw. Judaism and Islam, both related and supposed to co-exist, are destroying each other in Israel. Christianity and Islam, also supposed to co-exist, clashed during the Crusades, where thousands died in the turmoil. Judaism and Christianity, directly related (Jesus was a Jew after all), have been at odds for centuries. These three major religions, the progression of the same line of thinking, have been at each other’s throats. So much for morality, welcome to hypocrisy.
Spirituality, appreciating a greater unknown world around us, is inherently good. Due to human frailties, the message becomes flawed. In this, large, institutional religion is then inherently flawed. History speaks to this over and over again.
Does this mean that you should abandon institutional religion? Of course not. In fact, some of the wisest and most benevolent people I’ve ever met were priests from my local church. Religion is a focus of spirituality, not a political machine. Each creed has its own rituals that satisfy that focus. However, to implement these beliefs into secular arenas (e.g. politics) and to force others to partake in those beliefs betrays the foundation in which religion is founded.
I have preached enough, which seems to befit my position. However, I know that having some title does not give me any more authority that what I already have. I will hang my certificate on the wall as a reminder that this is yet another excess in a world bent on excesses. And that’s the Gospel Truth.
Rev. Shawn Downs is a Collegian Columnist
