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Last Updated December 6, 2003
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History of My Involvement in Organized Religion
How did strong feelings on this subject arise in me? Well, as usual, I blame eight years of Catholic school. It let me see just how bad organized religion can be.
I first started attending Catholic school in the fifth grade. I really didn't start having problems with my faith until high school, though. Religion in grammar Catholic school is consistent mainly of Bible quizzes. It was indoctrination, to be sure, but not to the level that high school had it.
The first two years of Catholic high school "Theology" classes were indoctrination of the worst form. Near the end of my senior year, I found a freshman's theology notebook lying in the hall. After peering through it, I was stunned. There were notes in there that read "We reach salvation by praying and opening ourselves to Jesus." I'd largely forgotten my first year of theology, but, as I reflected upon what I did remember, I was utterly disgusted at the waste of classroom time I was observing.
Yes, I know it was a Catholic school, and that Church teachings were a part of that. I have no problem with Catholic schools educating kids on the Catholic faith, but I do have a problem with them using the classroom setting to make it seem as if they have all the answers. Handing out grades that have an effect on a student's grade-point average based on how well they know their religion is wrong. What if a student applies to a public college, and his transcripts show a low grade in Theology? The student's class-rank could be considerably lowered based on his grade in theology. Mine certainly was in my senior year. I consider the act of grading a student in a mandatory, non-state required course like Theology and then including that grade in the student's GPA and class rank calculations that are to be handed out to public university admissions offices to be a violation of the First Amendment. Catholic schools should be allowed to teach theology, and, even grade students on it, if they want. However, they should have two sets of transcripts for the student. One without the class listed and with its effects nullified, and another with the class included, to be handed to public and other private or Catholic institutions, respectively. Furthermore, I consider the fact that theology is required to be passed in order for a student to graduate at my former high school to be another violation of the First Amendment. For, if I am accepted to a public university, but am not allowed to receive my high school diploma based on a failure of theology, then the class has a direct impact on my standing in the eyes of the state. This is an example of the state respecting one religion over another, and it is wrong.
The only really positive theology experience I had at my high school was in my third year of Theology. Theology III had almost nothing to do with what the Church taught on an issue, and that is mostly due to the excellent teacher I had for that course, Mr. Tom Kanies. The first semester was on Church history. Nothing else. Not what the Church said was right. Not what political matters the Church felt it should stick its head into. Just the history, from an objective standpoint. This meant that we looked at the Spanish Inquisition, the Crusades and other Church injustices for what they were: prime examples of what can happen when an organized religion grows powerful. The second semester was on world religions and then social justice. The social justice segment was enjoyable because we studied the lives of civil rights activists like Martin Luther King, Jr. We looked at various social issues, and not once did we ever mention what the Church thought of them. We were free to debate the issues from more of a humanist standpoint.
The other major influence on my opinions regarding organized religion comes from my senior English class. It wasn't so much an English class as a philosophy and history class. This class was taught by another excellent teacher I had the privilege of studying under, Mr. Don Haefliger. He exposed the class to a variety of philosophical works from Plato and Socrates to more modern philosophers such as Tilich.
That's a short history of all the events that have lead me to my current opinions on organized religion and why it's such a dangerous thing. Please note that I don't hate Christianity or religion in general; I'm just very bitter about my experiences with it.
