The Unauthorized Homily

By Bill Dunn

A commentary on the Scripture readings from the Sunday Lectionary

(Scripture readings for Sunday, June 10th: Genesis 14:18-20; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26; Luke 9:11-17)

ANGRY ATHEISTS LAUNCH BOLD ATTACK ON FAITH

This week we celebrate the feast of the Body and Blood of Christ. Regardless of one’s belief about the sacrament (or ordinance) of Communion—whether a symbolic remembrance ceremony or the miraculous Real Presence of Jesus’ body, blood, soul, and divinity—all Christians can agree that the body and blood of Christ are extremely important.

After all, Jesus came down from Heaven and took on a human body for our sake. He did it to become one of us, to walk and talk with us so that we finally could comprehend the true nature and will of our divine Creator. And then He shed his precious blood, again for our sake, offering up His sinless life to pay the price for our sins.

The underlying reason that Christians cherish the body and blood of Christ is simple: we have a firm belief that God is real and that He has communicated His will to mankind.

If I might be so bold, I suggest that those of us who believe that these Christian doctrines are true must begin to take our beliefs much more seriously. I have a hunch that the era of taking our faith for granted is about to come to an end.

The cause of my concern is a rash of atheist best-sellers that have hit the bookstores recently. A few of many the popular titles include Sam Harris’ Letter to a Christian Nation, Richard Dawkins’ The God Delusion, and Christopher Hitchens’ God is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything.

In the past, people who did not believe in God were much more subtle. They would promote their secular, atheistic worldview, of course—mostly in school curriculums and the sciences—but they generally would not directly insult religious faith. The main tactic was to marginalize religion by defining it as a personal matter that was not really an appropriate topic in public discussions. As long as people kept their religious beliefs private, as long as they relegated matters of faith to the Sunday morning ghetto, then the atheists considered it to be OK. I’m reminded of the late Dr. Stephen Jay Gould, a prominent scientist and avowed atheist, who said there was no conflict between science and religion, as long as we understand that science deals with reality, while religion deals with personal feelings.

But now, as demonstrated by this new generation of angry atheists, the gloves are off and the subtly is gone. The main theme of all these best-selling books can be summarized as this: the idea of God not only is a silly superstition, but those who continue to believe in this non-existent God are mentally deranged and are ruining the civilized world. Quite a strong accusation, wouldn’t you say?

Most of these authors employ a similar bait-and-switch tactic. They point to all the death and destruction currently being caused by radical Islamic fundamentalists, and then make the huge leap in logic by portraying ALL religious faith as being similarly hateful and violent. You might have noticed that when Jerry Falwell died recently, the mainstream media described him using pretty much the same words often used to describe, say, Osama bin Laden: fundamentalist, fanatic, intolerant, hateful, irrational, etc.

Naturally, the bashing of religious faith wouldn’t be complete without referencing the Crusades and the Inquisition, proof positive in many people’s minds that the true goal of Christianity always has been to conquer the world through violence and coercion. Somehow the angry atheists seem to forget three important historical facts:

1)     Throughout history there have been many more examples of Christianity inspiring not violence, but instead love and charity and sacrifice. Long before civil governments got involved, it was Christians who built hospitals and schools, ended the slave trade, treated women and children as people and not property, and established orphanages, homeless shelters, and soup kitchens.

2)     Whenever Christians have engaged in violence and coercion, they were doing the exact opposite of what Jesus taught. So something like the Inquisition was not inspired by the Gospel, it occurred specifically because religious leaders ignored the Gospel. Whenever Christians have committed atrocities, they were acting in direct opposition to the teachings of Jesus.

3)     The history of atheistic philosophies is much more violent than the history of Christianity. For example, in just the 20th century alone over 100 million people were murdered by atheists such as Hitler, Stalin, Mao, and Pol Pot—in just one single century of world history. And what is really frightening—and most important to understand—is that when these people committed mass murder, they were not doing the opposite of their atheistic philosophy, they were simply bringing their atheistic, survival-of-the-fittest, might-makes-right philosophy to its logical conclusion. Simply horrifying.

A few months ago famous singer Elton John, angry that most organized religions believe that homosexual activity is sinful, proclaimed that all religions should be outlawed. When Elton John’s views became a news story, the surprising thing was not that he would make such a bone-headed public statement, but rather that a sizeable segment of society agreed with him.

So I’m afraid that it soon will be time for Christians to take a firm stand. (Well, I’m not really afraid, because I know Who is on our side.) I don’t think Christians will have the luxury anymore of passively sitting on the sidelines and assuming the rest of society will let us worship in peace. It seems the forces of secular atheism have been emboldened by recent shifts in the political and cultural realms. They truly see traditional religious faith as wounded and ripe for the final kill.

If we really believe Jesus is who He said He is, if we really believe His body and His blood are the source of mankind’s redemption and the path to eternal life in Heaven, we are going to have to say so and stand up for our faith. The angry atheists and their best-selling books are just the first skirmish in this battle. It’s going to get much worse before it gets better.

©2007