Poison or Preference

Imagine, if you will, the largest oak tree you can possibly conceive in your mind, and at the base of this tree is spread a blanket on which is strewn with careful decadence the tastiest picnic ever dreamed. Now imagine that you are an ant on the farthest leaf on the farthest right side of that giant oak tree. I, also an ant, am on the farthest leaf that I can possibly be from you. Is it possible for us to take the same path to the picnic?

A short time ago I read a blog entry of someone whom I have admired from before the time that I could walk. Through the years of our lives our friendship has grown and blossomed into a monolithic icon of what I interpret friendship to be. Although we have not always seen things in the same light or from the same point of view, I hold this person in the highest of regard for her insight and intuition. However, after reading her short essay entitled, “Faith at Forty”, I felt compelled to write a few lines in response to a comment that has been somewhat troubling to me, yet non-offensive, as I do not believe that she meant it that way.

She writes, “People need faith, it seems, but I think that religious faith is a poison, an armor, a chemical weapon that destroys everything and everyone in its path, even its perpetrators.” Now, while I understand her point of view because I have known her all of my life, I can not agree with her on this subject.
First, I would like to comment on the first statement. I do feel that people need faith. Faith, no matter what the object of it is, is essential to human existence. Now, while I am not a believer in the Bible as the inerrant word of God, I do feel that it, as many other religious and non-religious texts, has wisdom that can be applied to everyday world knowledge. One of my favorite definitions of the word faith comes, unfortunately as some may feel, from the Bible. It states that, “…faith is the assurance of things hoped for; the conviction of things not seen.” The overdone analogy of the chair is probably my favorite, although my take on it may be a bit different. When one looks at a chair, it is his or her hope that the chair will assuredly hold them up. When one sits in the chair, one puts his or her faith in the idea (the unseen or the conviction thereof) that the chair will hold him or her up not necessarily the chair itself, for it is a common ideology that chairs, when sat upon will most assuredly hold one up. While it is easy to have faith in something that you can see, it is much more difficult to have faith in the things that can not be seen. Furthermore, it matters not in what one chooses to put one’s faith; faith must abound regardless, even if one chooses not to believe in anything at all, it still requires being assured of the non-existence of that nothing or that something.
As far as religious faith being a poison, I must say that I feel that this, although it may not have been meant this way, is somewhat of a blanketed statement that should not be blatantly applied to everyone, which, of course, is how I perceived it, for what may be considered poison to some may very well be preference to others. I would like to indulge two examples, if I may. And since I am the one writing this…well.

First, look at the animal kingdom. Sheep, an otherwise dumb animal in my humble opinion, can not eat clover, for if they do, it is poison to their system and they may die. However, a donkey or mule, a much underestimated animal in my humble opinion, can eat clover all day and considers it a tasty treat. Poison for some, preference for others.

Second, there are many people who have certain food allergies. Now, I happen to love most shell fish such as lobster, shrimp, and crab. However, there are those with an allergy to shell fish so severe, if they eat just one bite, it can literally kill them. Once again, preference for some, poison to others.

One of the greatest pieces of wisdom that I have ever heard is this. Many of the truths we cling to depend greatly on our point of view. Now I am not saying that my point of view is right and another’s is wrong. But the realization I believe that this world needs to come to is to understand that while one thing works for some, it may not work for others. We are not cookie cutter beings in a giant bakery. We are each unique in our own individual ways. Blanket statements such as, “All people should become a Christian” or “…religious faith is a poison…that damages everything and everyone in its path…” are both, in my opinion, the same in stature and in nature only from different sides of the pendulum swing. Furthermore, statements of this kind have the potential to be toxic, if one allows.

Many of the truths we cling to do depend greatly on our point of view. In my sister’s point of view, religious faith is a poison, for someone else it may be preference, and yet for another it may be benign. One thing is for certain, each one is true…from a certain point of view. And perhaps that is all she meant by her statement, was her point of view. It was not my intent to disqualify her feelings or statements in any way.

In closing, I would like to reflect back to the beginning of this essay, for lack of a better term, to my question. Here is the answer…from my point of view, of course. We are all different ants on different leaves, and though our paths may cross, we can not take the same route to the picnic. Of course, this is just my point of view ;-)

Copyright 2008 Daniel D. Domain