Why is there such a fury against religion now? Because religion is the one reliable force that stands in the way of the power of the strong over the weak.
It's also because religion requires that one's actions grow out of one's beliefs. Nowadays many people don't declare their beliefs until they know what's popular. Someone even coined the phrase "virtue signalling" to describe how individuals publically display their right-think without really committing to to a course of action.
I was thinking about this while reading Marie Kondo's The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up. Online reviews contained rude personal comments centered on her Shinto beliefs, like thanking objects before letting them go. Even people who liked her book cautioned others to skip the section devoted to the proper display and disposal of religious items.
When I actually read the book, I thought: How refreshing! Shintoism is the bedrock of her entire process. Everything from sorting objects to folding clothes is based on the interaction between people and objects.
The section about religious items? Very detailed and very sincere. She declares a principal of her method is "transforming the home into a sacred space, a power spot filled with pure energy." If she had replaced "sacred space" with "space for self-actualization" and "filled with pure energy" with "where you can achieve your personal goals", THAT might have been okay.
Excellent point - actions speak louder than words. Actions based on religion signal very strongly that someone has a bedrock of belief that doesn't care if other people have vetted it for correctness. I hadn't carried the thinking that far. Thank you!
It's also because religion requires that one's actions grow out of one's beliefs. Nowadays many people don't declare their beliefs until they know what's popular. Someone even coined the phrase "virtue signalling" to describe how individuals publically display their right-think without really committing to to a course of action.
ReplyDeleteI was thinking about this while reading Marie Kondo's The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up. Online reviews contained rude personal comments centered on her Shinto beliefs, like thanking objects before letting them go. Even people who liked her book cautioned others to skip the section devoted to the proper display and disposal of religious items.
When I actually read the book, I thought: How refreshing! Shintoism is the bedrock of her entire process. Everything from sorting objects to folding clothes is based on the interaction between people and objects.
The section about religious items? Very detailed and very sincere. She declares a principal of her method is "transforming the home into a sacred space, a power spot filled with pure energy." If she had replaced "sacred space" with "space for self-actualization" and "filled with pure energy" with "where you can achieve your personal goals", THAT might have been okay.
But probably not.
-JBalconi
Excellent point - actions speak louder than words. Actions based on religion signal very strongly that someone has a bedrock of belief that doesn't care if other people have vetted it for correctness. I hadn't carried the thinking that far. Thank you!
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