Never Give Up

I encountered something of note in my readings today. Apparently it was a crime to be an atheist in the 1st-3rd century Roman Empire. But, strangely enough, Christians denied the pantheon, and were thus considered to have no gods. They were never actively sought out for persecution, but when accused in court, were executed for their refusal to accept the Roman belief system.
An early Christian Philosopher, Justin, argued that there was a double standard, namely that many of the greatest philosophers in Greek culture were… bompbompbomp… Atheist.

“…the ancient writers … affirmed that the gods were human inventions, and that their vices were worse than those of their worshippers. Aristides suggested that such gods had been invented precisely in order to give full rein to human vice.”

Religions being used as a justification for behavior? Sounds familiar. In a class yesterday, a professor cautioned us to keep our developing theologies grounded in human life and the world we live in. Many Christians use the spiritual realm as an excuse to live however they desire in this life, and to treat the world and environment however they like. In short, many Christians use church as an excuse to justify their own mistakes and wrong-doings. It relenquishes their responsibilities for their bodies, actions, and the world around them. Church makes us feel good about ourselves, no matter how injust or harmful our actions may be in our day-to-day lives.

We need to be careful how we use religion to justify our own actions - a flaw every generation faces.