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<\/a><\/div>\nLast night, the pop\u00a0juggernaut\/variety show\/karaoke\u00a0hour that is the TV show Glee decided get religion. \u00a0If you don\u2019t follow the show, the title of the episode \u201cGrilled Cheesus\u201d may give you a hint about the taste level of the show.<\/p>\n
In brief, one of the students makes a grilled cheese\u00a0sandwich that appears to be imprinted with the face of Jesus. \u00a0\u00a0He takes up prayer and tries to express gratitude for his sandwich\u2019s wish-granting powers by leading his show choir team in songs about religion. \u00a0This leads him into conflict with Kurt, another student in show choir who is gay, an atheist, and whose father is in an aneurysm-induced coma for most of the episode.<\/p>\n
<\/a><\/div>\nAtheists<\/a> in the blogosphere<\/a> have already registered some complaints about the episode, and I share a number of them. \u00a0Personally, I don\u2019t think much of the Problem of Evil as a justification for atheism, so I was frustrated that it seemed to be a large part of the rationale behind some of the character\u2019s beliefs. \u00a0Although there was a good dialogue between a Christian teacher and the atheist cheerleading coach, it\u2019s awkward to place one of the best defenses of atheism and secularism in the mouth of the undisputed\u00a0villain\u00a0of the show. \u00a0Worst of all for me as a civil libertarian<\/a>, was the way that the show\u00a0blatantly\u00a0misrepresented\u00a0the church\/state divide as being much more restrictive and unreasonable than it is in actuality.<\/p>\n I\u2019m inclined to say that people of faith have more to complain about than I do, however. \u00a0If the atheism presented on Glee was standoffish and cold, the Christianity was so empty as to be completely uncompelling. \u00a0Richard Beck\u2019s post yesterday<\/a> on \u201cMortalistic Therapeutic Deism\u201d pegged the empty religion of the Glee characters perfectly. \u00a0Christian Smith outlines the basic creed of Moralistic Therapeutic Deism in\u00a0Soul Searching: The Religious and Spiritual Lives of American Teenagers<\/em><\/a>:<\/p>\n This is not a religion of repentance from sin, of keeping the Sabbath, of living as a servant of a sovereign divine, of steadfastly saying one\u2019s prayers, of faithfully observing holy days, of building character through suffering, of basking in God\u2019s love and grace, of spending oneself in gratitude and love for the cause of social justice, etcetera. Rather, what appears to be the actual dominant religion among U.S. teenagers is centrally about feeling good, happy, secure, at peace. It is about obtaining subjective well-being, being able to resolve problems, and getting along amiably with other people\u2026It is thus no wonder that so many religious and nonreligious teenagers are so positive about religion, for the faith many of them have in mind effectively helps to achieve a primary goal: to feel good and happy about oneself and one\u2019s life.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n