The God Virus: How Religion Infects Our Lives and Culture by Darrel Ray Read Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Darrel Ray
be against this war and those who did destroy peace.
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7 John O'Sullivan, “The Great Nation of Futurity,” The United States Democratic Review, 6, 23, (1839): 426-430. Also see John O'Sullivan, Manifest Destiny [article on-line] (1839, accessed 20 November 2008); available from http://www.civics-online.org/library/formatted/texts/mani-fest_destiny.html ; Internet.
The civil religion also imbues religious power to the president and expects certain religious acts from him (or her) in the name of the nation, like prayer breakfasts, regular references to god and conspicuous church attendance. As a result, the president is seen as the high priest of the civil religion by much of the nation. When disaster or national tragedy strikes, he is expected to call for prayer and attend services at high-profile churches like the National Cathedral in Washington, DC. The very existence of a church named “The National Cathedral” is a testament to the power of the civil religion. All recent presidents have attended services at the National Cathedral in times of national crisis or grief, even when they are members of some other church.
The civil religion is bound so strongly with American culture that many Americans cannot conceive of America without reference to this religion. George H. W. Bush illustrated this in an August 27, 1987 news conference: “No, I don’t know that atheists should be considered as citizens, nor should they be considered patriots. This is one nation under God.” Implicit in the statement is the idea that only those who believe in the god of the civil religion can be citizens. Those who have no god or those who worship something other than the Judeo-Christian god are not equal citizens. 8
Another example of the expression of the civil religion happened in the U.S. Senate in 2007. It is the custom and privilege of each Senator to invite religious leaders from their home state to serve as guest chaplains and lead the Senate in prayer and meditation. On July 12, 2007, Rajan Zed of the Indian Association of Northern Nevada (Hindu), was invited by Senate Majority leader Harry Reid to lead the U.S. Senate in prayer. This did not go unnoticed; Christian fundamentalists were in the gallery ready to disrupt the prayer. Zed was interrupted twice, before the Senate gallery was finally cleared. As an expression of the civil religion, all chaplains have been Christian or Jewish since the tradition began in the 1790s, and none of them have ever been interrupted. The fact that the Hindu chaplain was invited was a milestone and a challenge to the civil virus and not surprisingly caused a reaction. In the following days, there was an outcry among manyfundamentalists about the protesters being kicked out of the gallery. 9 To date, the American civil religion does not have room for full Hindu citizenship and less room for the Atheist. When will the Senate invite a Wiccan, Pagan or Atheist to lead the Senate in prayer or meditation?
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8 Being from Texas, President Bush may have been influenced by the Texas Constitution, which states in Article I, Section 4; Religious Tests: No religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office, or public trust, in this State; nor shall any one be excluded from holding office on account of his religious sentiments, provided he acknowledge the existence of a Supreme Being. The author of this book could not hold public office in Texas. A Buddhist or polytheist might not meet the criteria either.
Infiltration of the New Civil Religion
With the rise of sexual freedom, a dramatic increase in divorce, legalization of abortion and growing use of birth control, many of the more fundamentalist viruses in the United States felt threatened. The reproductive rights movement of the 1960s and 70s was a direct threat to god viruses of all kinds, including Baptist, Nazarene, Catholic and Mormon.
The Moral Majority was a mutation that allowed many disparate viruses to find common
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7 John O'Sullivan, “The Great Nation of Futurity,” The United States Democratic Review, 6, 23, (1839): 426-430. Also see John O'Sullivan, Manifest Destiny [article on-line] (1839, accessed 20 November 2008); available from http://www.civics-online.org/library/formatted/texts/mani-fest_destiny.html ; Internet.
The civil religion also imbues religious power to the president and expects certain religious acts from him (or her) in the name of the nation, like prayer breakfasts, regular references to god and conspicuous church attendance. As a result, the president is seen as the high priest of the civil religion by much of the nation. When disaster or national tragedy strikes, he is expected to call for prayer and attend services at high-profile churches like the National Cathedral in Washington, DC. The very existence of a church named “The National Cathedral” is a testament to the power of the civil religion. All recent presidents have attended services at the National Cathedral in times of national crisis or grief, even when they are members of some other church.
The civil religion is bound so strongly with American culture that many Americans cannot conceive of America without reference to this religion. George H. W. Bush illustrated this in an August 27, 1987 news conference: “No, I don’t know that atheists should be considered as citizens, nor should they be considered patriots. This is one nation under God.” Implicit in the statement is the idea that only those who believe in the god of the civil religion can be citizens. Those who have no god or those who worship something other than the Judeo-Christian god are not equal citizens. 8
Another example of the expression of the civil religion happened in the U.S. Senate in 2007. It is the custom and privilege of each Senator to invite religious leaders from their home state to serve as guest chaplains and lead the Senate in prayer and meditation. On July 12, 2007, Rajan Zed of the Indian Association of Northern Nevada (Hindu), was invited by Senate Majority leader Harry Reid to lead the U.S. Senate in prayer. This did not go unnoticed; Christian fundamentalists were in the gallery ready to disrupt the prayer. Zed was interrupted twice, before the Senate gallery was finally cleared. As an expression of the civil religion, all chaplains have been Christian or Jewish since the tradition began in the 1790s, and none of them have ever been interrupted. The fact that the Hindu chaplain was invited was a milestone and a challenge to the civil virus and not surprisingly caused a reaction. In the following days, there was an outcry among manyfundamentalists about the protesters being kicked out of the gallery. 9 To date, the American civil religion does not have room for full Hindu citizenship and less room for the Atheist. When will the Senate invite a Wiccan, Pagan or Atheist to lead the Senate in prayer or meditation?
----
8 Being from Texas, President Bush may have been influenced by the Texas Constitution, which states in Article I, Section 4; Religious Tests: No religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office, or public trust, in this State; nor shall any one be excluded from holding office on account of his religious sentiments, provided he acknowledge the existence of a Supreme Being. The author of this book could not hold public office in Texas. A Buddhist or polytheist might not meet the criteria either.
Infiltration of the New Civil Religion
With the rise of sexual freedom, a dramatic increase in divorce, legalization of abortion and growing use of birth control, many of the more fundamentalist viruses in the United States felt threatened. The reproductive rights movement of the 1960s and 70s was a direct threat to god viruses of all kinds, including Baptist, Nazarene, Catholic and Mormon.
The Moral Majority was a mutation that allowed many disparate viruses to find common
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