Jesus, Lao Tzu, and Bill Nye walk into a bar together....

I have had some interesting conversations with a friend of mine over the last few weeks. Some of these have revolved around the conflict that the religious often have with the non-religious. Before you say I am making up this conflict, think back on how many marriages have ended due to religious differences. Or, if you don't know any, go to the exmormon subreddit and browse for a minute. You can almost always find a few stories about a marriage ending due to someone leaving the faith. And the mormons are not unique in this. A quick google search pulls up lots of results.

Anyway, we know it exists. But realizing that begs the question, why? Why does this religious conflict exist? One may as well ask why there are religious wars. You could easily answer that question with an exasperated, "God only knows." But then the other party may respond with a quip about God not existing, which starts another argument about deity...and suddenly we have an idea about how these conflicts begin.

It seems that, regardless of where you stand on the issue, you stand somewhere. Most people have some kind of opinion about God, and it isn't hard to end up in an emotionally charged discussion. Something in the human causes her to wonder about these things. At some point in our lives, we all wonder and form our own opinions. It may be in your twenties, or not until you are on your deathbed. But the questions will be asked, and the opinions will be formed.

Humans have spend much of their existence destroying someone else's gods, and replacing them with new ones they like better. Or, in the case of the Romans, they just rename the old ones and pretend it's a new pantheon. Kind of like how all the Christian sects claim they are different, and the way they worship Jesus is the best way. I'm not mocking any of these, or saying any is right or wrong. I'm just illustrating how easy it is to find this pattern in human society without even looking hard.

But why do we keep doing it? It is almost like something inside the human needs a relationship with a greater being. For some, they meet that need through a relationship with Jesus. For others, it is a relationship with The Tao. And still others will find it in science, or just the greater potential of human kind. Now, you could argue that I'm making a stretch with this. "But Dan, humanism is nothing like Catholicism!" You're right. But they both serve the purpose of giving the individual a purpose. Of providing that Greater Something that we all find so fascinating. And it is that very universality, I think, that gives us a start point in resolving the conflict.

All of us need to fins some way to fulfill this need, the same way we all need to fill the need to eat. And if we all feel it, why would I begrudge anyone their solution? As a bicyclist, I do not resent the runner for staying healthy on foot. I don't get mad at the vegetarian for not eating a hamburger. The overwhelming variety of people on this planet means that there will be an equal variety of religious preference. The Mormon who drinks caffeine and watches R movies, or the Jehovah's Witness who has a birthday party...all these people trying to meet this spiritual need produce an endless number of religious iterations. Lots of variety. Lots of potential fights.

Well, maybe Science can help. It came up with sanitation, and took us to space, so maybe it can figure out what to do with this hotbed of potential religious arguments. So far, Science has demonstrated  that we are unquestionably linked to our physical being. Everything that I am is somehow connected to my brain and my body. We can show this empirically, in a way that really can't be argued. But, this isn't the whole story. It doesn't explain why so many of us (all of us?) want to connect to some kind of Greater Being. It doesn't explain the mysticism that so often occurs in human lives. It can explain an individual experience, sure. Sometimes. But there is no explanation for the mystical predisposition so often found in people. At least, not that I am aware of.

But...

It doesn't matter.

We don't have to explain why this spiritual urge is so widely manifest in humans. Sure, it would be nice if we could. I would love to really understand it. But the fact remains that we can't. And I would posit that it doesn't matter. It doesn't matter for the simple fact that it exists, and we are experiencing it. This mystical draw is a part of my human experience, and it doesn't care that I can explain it. Telling me that God is calling me has the exact same impact on my life as saying that I'm having a mini seizure in the brainocampo lobe of the brain. Both result in me feeling like God is telling me to rally the French behind King Charles VII. And in that moment when we are confronting the reality of our perception of the world. it doesn't matter why we see it that way. It matters that we do see it that way. Because that is the reality we have to operate in.

And that, I think, is the answer. All of these conflicts stem from a lack of understanding. The come about because we don't realize or have forgotten that everyone is trying to wade through the same shitty swamp we call life, and this thing they have latched onto makes it easier. And that is a beautiful thing. Personally, I don't adhere to any particular religion. I think that some of the claims they make are patently absurd. But I have friends, like my friend I mentioned at the beginning, who very sincerely believe in their faith. For her, religion is integral to her life. She uses it to cope with hard things, and lets it enhance happy things. And her faith is beautiful. I love it. I love it despite the fact that I don't believe the same thing. And I feel that way about so many different faiths. It helps you to be happy, so I love it.

That is my message, I guess. My point. These philosophical differences don't have to be sticking points of argument. They can instead be delightfully varied ideas to share with the people around you, allowing them a chance to taste life the way you experience it. And maybe in all of this sampling and sharing you'll find something new that makes your journey a little easier.