{"id":168,"date":"2012-01-05T11:55:00","date_gmt":"2012-01-05T11:55:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/2012\/01\/a-steve-jobs-of-religion\/"},"modified":"2012-01-05T11:55:00","modified_gmt":"2012-01-05T11:55:00","slug":"a-steve-jobs-of-religion","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/2012\/01\/a-steve-jobs-of-religion.html","title":{"rendered":"A Steve Jobs of Religion?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>
<\/a><\/div>\n

Early last month the New York Times<\/i> published an essay by Eric Weiner<\/a> on the rise of the religious Nones \u2013 as in None of the Above. I\u2019ve been critical of the \u201cspiritual but not religious\u201d crowd, but Weiner appears to be a None who is sincerely searching and not just being spiritually lazy.<\/p>\n

The Dallas Morning News\u2019<\/i> Texas Faith panel addressed Weiner\u2019s essay this week<\/a>, in particular his claim that \u201cwe need a Steve Jobs<\/a> of religion.\u201d Their responses ranged from thoughtful to dismissive to wishful thinking that what Weiner describes already exists in their own religions. Here\u2019s Weiner\u2019s last paragraph, which Texas Faith used as their jumping off point:<\/p>\n

We need a Steve Jobs of religion. Someone (or ones) who can invent not a new religion but, rather, a new way of being religious. Like Mr. Jobs\u2019s creations, this new way would be straightforward and unencumbered and absolutely intuitive. Most important, it would be highly interactive. I imagine a religious space that celebrates doubt, encourages experimentation and allows one to utter the word God without embarrassment. A religious operating system for the Nones among us. And for all of us.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

EarthRhythms<\/a>\u2019 Amy Martin<\/a> had two excellent points in her response. The first was \u201cwhatever the future of religion is, it will be done bottom-up Wikipedia style, generated from shared concepts rather than the revealed word of a transcendent personality.\u201d And second \u201cwhat is emerging must be articulated, but not defined.\u201d<\/p>\n

Amy\u2019s right. New religions \u2013 or new ways of being religious \u2013 are a response to the needs of a particular group of people living in a particular place and time. No one or two or five persons have the breadth of experience and depth of intuition to coalesce those needs and responses into a set of beliefs and practices. A new religion will not be created, it will evolve.<\/p>\n

While Weiner\u2019s call for a Steve Jobs of religion is off base, his call for an Apple-ish religion is right on target.<\/p>\n

First, a new religion for the 21st century will be like Apple because it will be intuitive. More importantly, it won\u2019t be counterintuitive. It will not ask people to believe what their experiences tell them is false. It won\u2019t claim that good people are damned because they can\u2019t accept someone else\u2019s special revelation. It won\u2019t claim that who you love is more important than that you love. <\/p>\n

To paraphrase Abraham Lincoln<\/a>, it will be a religion that makes your dog and cat \u2013 and your neighbor \u2013 better for it. <\/p>\n

It won\u2019t make claims we wish were true but intuitively know are false<\/a>: that humans are really perfect but just don\u2019t recognize it. Our experiences of violence, cruelty, and addiction, of guilt and shame tell us we are far from perfect. As William James said over a hundred years ago: \u201cHere is the real core of the religious problem: Help! Help! No prophet can claim to bring a final message unless he says things that will have a sound of reality in the ears of victims such as these.\u201d<\/p>\n

Instead, it will teach spiritual practices that help us find wholeness and live in integrity according to our highest values.<\/p>\n

A new religion will be like Apple because it will be interactive. It will be participative and it will appeal to the body as well as the mind. There is a time to sit and listen but religion isn\u2019t entertainment \u2013 it\u2019s something you do<\/i>. Sing, drum, dance, and feast! A new religion will also be experiential \u2013 it will encourage religious experiences by everyone, not just a special few. While it is true that mystical unity with God \/ Goddess \/ The Universe comes when it will and cannot be controlled, it can be facilitated with proper training and techniques. The leaders of a new religion must master these techniques so they can be demonstrated to all.<\/p>\n

A new religion will be like Apple because it will be expensive. Cheap and easy religion is weak religion. If it is to be any good a new religion will require a significant investment of time: daily meditation, prayer, reading and contemplation. Regular meetings for group study and practice, and periodic intensive retreats. Work to put beliefs into action and make the world a better place. And money to support all of those activities. <\/p>\n

Like Apple, there will be those who find it too expensive for their tastes. So be it.<\/p>\n

Unlike Apple, though, a new religion for the 21st century will be humble. It will recognize that its religious experiences are unverified personal gnosis<\/a> \u2013 meaningful for those who share them but not binding on those who don\u2019t. It will freely acknowledge that doubts and uncertainty accompany any exploration of the limits of human understanding. <\/p>\n

At the same time, it will not be paralyzed by those doubts. In the absence of certainty it will confidently proclaim \u201cthis I believe\u201d and move forward boldly. And when some of those beliefs and practices are found to be incorrect or unhelpful, it will change them and try something else.<\/p>\n

This religion is evolving even as we speak, but it is unlikely to become a wholly new religion. Instead, these new ways of being religious are being incorporated into existing religions both large and small. People are reinterpreting their sacred stories in new ways to fit our needs here and now.<\/p>\n

This new way of being religious doesn\u2019t need an inventor. It needs evangelists. <\/p>\n

Lots of them.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Early last month the New York Times published an essay by Eric Weiner on the rise of the religious Nones \u2013 as in None of the Above. I\u2019ve been critical of the \u201cspiritual but not religious\u201d crowd, but Weiner appears to be a None who is sincerely searching and not just being spiritually lazy. The […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1129,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-168","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nA Steve Jobs of Religion?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Early last month the New York Times published an essay by Eric Weiner on the rise of the religious Nones \u2013 as in None of the Above. 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