RELIGION - RELEVANT?

"If religion makes you sad, not glad, it's bad".

Hilaire Belloc, a more or less contemporary European philosopher and historian wrote those words in a book of poetry; he wrote poetry, usually in a lighter vein, as a hobby. Yet he did not write the above with tongue in cheek; he meant what he said; there's a great deal of truth in that statement.

I have found, since re-appraising my own religious beliefs and practices, that religion is a very real source of help. For this reason I would like to share some of my own thoughts and feelings; perhaps they will be of use to you.

Religion should give us an aim or purpose in life, it should provide some of the help and encouragement we need to face the daily ups and downs of life. It should give us the guidance and direction of the striving we need to enable us to grow constantly so as to live relatively mature human lives.

Perhaps we have not been looking at religion in this way. Many of us were taught to see religion as some super-natural force which would somehow transform us into disembodied spirits or angels of a sort. We are, however human and we cannot become anything more, but there is plenty of scope for growth and development before we are fully human. Religion can help us in this area of growth.

Religion is basically a relationship with a Higher Power whom we call God. It is a relationship of dependence, not one of absolute subservience. We must reasonably, not blindly, accept the fact that we have been created by Him, that He gives us as our goal the total developement of our whole human personality. He offers us the encouragement of His support both directly and through His other creatures whom He asks to care for us and help us when we need help - and He asks us to do the same for them.

One way we express our relationship with God is through prayer. This is really a form of true converstation with God; a sincere effort to achieve a personal union with Him. Perhaps we had some ideas about prayer which were neither realistic or helpful. Conversation, if it is to be meaningful, must be an honest open expose of ourselves; our thoughts, our feelings, our aims, our weaknesses. In the same fashion, we accept the person with whom we converse as being open and honest with us. Why should prayer, if it is really conversation with God, be different? Must we mouth someone else's thoughts and words? If this God is concerned about me, He wants to hear me. Why then, shouldn't prayer be similar to a meaningful conversation with friends, modified only by our concept of who God is, how we depend on Him, how we feel toward Him here and now?

Perhaps, like so many influences in our lives, we feel that religion has let us down. When we were drinking or taking pills, we prayed and no one answered; we tried to follow all the rules but it didn't turn us on. Just remember, our work didn't do much for us until, in a sober frame of mind, we rethought our relationship with it and made a more realistic approach to it. How much did our families mean to us until some semblance of sobriety let us see them without distortion? Perhaps we might see religion in a different light if we look at again with our minds a little more capable of sound judgment than they when we were drinking.

A sincere, honest and reasonable relationship with God, and through Him, with our fellow-men is one more asset we can acquire in our efforts to grow and mature ; religion can be a valuable help in this regard. Give this proposition some serious thought - discuss it with a friend. Be honest and sincere in your search; ask God, in your own way, for guidance.

What can you lose?

FATHER TOM COMERFORD

DON SAYS: Father Tom wrote this for the Donwood Newsletter in August of 1971. This is a very deep and comprehensive article outling his outlook on God, what is he? How can we use mental contact with him to air and reach a conclusion regarding our drinking problem. I found it enlightening. It will take deep thought.