I don't know how else to put it. Honestly, anyone who reads this blog should take it for what it is, and not presume anything. It is criticism. As such, my criticism of faith, religion, or even the portrayal of god does not make me antireligious or antigod. Quite the contrary. Am I not using the very brain that God gave me? The brain is the most underrated of God's gifts. My problem thus is with people who refuse to use it. Faith has its place, as does spirituality, but they do not supplement intelligence, instead they complement it. For example, one cannot simply work out at a gym, one needs to go to school to become a complete person. In other words, you cannot just work out your body, but your mind also. So it is with faith. The trick for the faithful then is learning to reconcile their faith with their other human attributes.

Nothing distrubs me so much as people who refuse to accept that we are people. We live in a world of people. And no matter your belief in God, I think even the most faithful recognize limits to what God is willing to do. Now arguably, the Christian god (or Jewish or Muslim for that matter) is all powerful, but clearly this deity does not choose to use its power at many points. God does not meddle overtly in the affairs of humanity. God does not prevent wars, give money to the needy, or simply eradicate all disease. These are tasks God leaves to humanity to solve. If you don't agree with me go to bed tonight and pray for a million dollars or no more cancer. See what happens.

With all this in mind, I finally come to what has sparked me to write. My girlfriend is researching child literacy for her graduate program. Part of this has focused on what can interest a child to read. Unsurprisingly, this brings her across the popular Harry Potter books. Sadly, these books that tell of magic, are often seen as threatening to Christianity, who continue to link all supernatural to the devil. The point that these critics miss is that Harry leads a profoundly moral life, and despite his poor upbringings, always seems to do what is right, and instinctively makes ethical choices. There should be a very positive message there for all religions. Yet, even some that look past the mysticism are totally blinded by other aspects of their faith. Consider this quote:

"It bothers me that so much emphasis is on Harry's inner strength, his own abilities," says [a] mother of three. "I want my kids to realize that our power comes from God, not ourselves. We read these books together and talked about how Harry might have behaved differently if he was a Christian. I think it was a good talk."

This woman's children will henceforth live with the disability of doubt. They will forever doubt their own abilities, and simply pray for God to make things right. This is not how the world works. They say everyone is entitled to their own opinion. But they also say that the right to swing your fist ends where someone else's face begins. Make no mistake, this woman has abused her children much deeper than had she actually hit them. The bruises would heal and fade. A single statement from a parent like this might last a lifetime.

Even from a Christian perspective, people must realize, that God will not hit the home run for you; God will give you the pitch to hit. God might open the door, but you have to walk through it. And people will not ante up and have the gumption to take these steps if they do not have faith in their own inner strength and own abilities in addition to their faith in God. I guarantee you, no CEO, no professional athelete, no doctor, lawyer, or professor thinks this way. Of course, I can hear the snappy retort already, "such material ends are not necessary." Of course. Be happy with being a nobody because you have faith. The good old Puritan work ethic that still drives this country. Work hard, be content, and get to Heaven.

These attitudes are the product of centuries of population control. Not everyone can be successful and powerful, so selectively breed that acceptance into people. Live good, quiet, happy lives and don't bother other people. It's a great recipe for order. All in all, a very Roman recipe. Let me repeat: population control. There is a reason it became known as the Roman Catholic church, after all. Protestants should not fool yourselves. All your faith derives from that instance of faith: Catholism. Do you know how your ancestors became Protestants?

They used their brains. The bundled their inner strength and abilities and defied a monolithic Church to fight for their right to not only worship God in their own way, but to interpret the scriptures their own way: deeming these things to be fundamental individual rights, not something a class of priests should dictate to them. Of course, that breeds a bit more chaos that way, less order. So where does this leave us?

Where it always has. On Earth. Surrounded by humans. Regardless of your faith in God or lack thereof, you all need to learn to think for yourselves. To fight for yourselves. I live in a city destroyed by natural disaster. Some had the gall to say God did it. I live in a city that has a high crime rate. Does God do that too? Does God sell drugs strapped, blasting competitors? No. They say Louisiana is corrupt also. But these are not things we should blame on God. They are all done by people. Nor are these things we should read about in the paper and wait for God to take care of. As people, we need to raise our expectations in ourselves and in each other. I'm sick of crime. I want to feel safe. So at the very least, I refuse to shake my head at the morning paper and say oh well, another murder, another rape. i'm going to be sickened every time I read it. I'm going to be active in politics and vote for who I think can make a change. And I will do everything I can to contribute to the rebuilding of New Orleans, because it's one of the greatest cities in the world, populated by mostly honest people, who know how to have a good time. And that's important too. What good is faith, reason, and health, if you can't enjoy it?

I can say only that as I get older, I start to see that Socrates really was right. We will never know all the answers. How could we? There's simply too much to know. But we do start to see our own wisdom in others' ignorance. The more life you experience, the quicker you come to such realizations. We need to let our children have these experiences. And we need to teach them to be strong, to stand up for themselves and others, and to fight for what they want in life. The only strength that matters comes from within because it is the only one that does not falter. If a man's faith comes from his love for his wife, what happens when he finds her cheating on him? If a mother finds her strength in God, what happens when her child is killed and someone tells her it is God's plan? I am not saying that we should think only of ourselves, quite the contrary. But on a consistent basis, we have only ourselves on which to rely. Therefore, it is encumbant on each of us to carry that strength and confidence within ourselves and to be proud of it. Only then, will we have the capacity to make our surroundings a better place.