McGuire’s interpretation of societies being held together and yet at the same time torn apart by religion is something that I can relate to seeing in our world. Being a member of a church, it has become evident to me that there is beauty in community and when we learn to cohesively be amongst each other, peace can exist. On the other hand, I have seen the turmoil religion can bring to a community when people do not know how to accept others views. It can sometimes be extremely hard to understand why someone would believe something that in your eyes seems so wrong. The aspect of religion I believe we tend to overlook is that tolerance is key. Accepting perspectives that are not our own, helps others feel that they have a sense of belonging even though they may be different. Going beyond the fact that religion works when we all work together, comes the idea of our nation having its own “civil religion.”  Our country believes that it has a special relationship with God and that’s why he is a part of our pledge of allegiance. Every single country has a relationship with God though, it just seems unique to us because it is embedded in much of what we do. I tried to connect what we learned in Chapter 6 to the presentations we had in class and I noticed some unique aspects that directly link to God needs no Passport. The book brought up the topic of the joys that come along with coexistence and I enjoyed this group digging deeper upon this topic and expanding on why God loves us all.

The article I found this week, is pertaining to the new pick for Betsy DeVos to become the next Secretary of Education for the United States. DeVos is a believer in using federal taxpayer dollars for private education. The reasoning behind her strong desire for more private education comes from her religious background. The feedback on her viewpoint goes both ways. Some say that her religion comes on too strong as a deciding factor, while others think this would be good to help families have equal choice. I felt that introducing this article was convenient considering we just watched the movie Born Again, that stressed the utter importance of children getting a Christian education. I completely understand wanting to send your children to a private Christian school, so that they can get the education you want them to. I do however not understand the purpose of it, if they are just going to tell you that this is the only way life can be. I believe that elementary aged children are very easily influenced and forcing them to get a Christian education can be looked at as a form of brain washing. As a Christian, it is hard to think of how I will eventually raise my children because I want my family to be full of individuals who make their own decisions, but of course I hope they have faith. The whole idea of religion coming into play with education, creates a big picture of just how much religion can influence a society and how the government tries to play a role in its growth.

Brittany De Lea “Education Secretary Betsy DeVos on School Choice, Vouchers and Religion” Fox Business. Published Feb. 7th, 2017. Web.
http://www.foxbusiness.com/politics/2017/02/07/education-secretary-betsy-devos-on-school-choice-vouchers-and-religion.html

This past week, our viewing of Born Again in class had me asking myself a lot of questions about just how much power a pastor truly has. As I watched the film I was uncomfortable by the presence of the pastor involving himself in personal life situations of everyday people. He was immersed in the relationship between Bob and Emma and was controlling whether or not Emma could see her children. Considering he is not a lawyer and he is not the father of her children, why did she listen to him? If all he is, is a pastor, then why couldn’t Emma just disobey his “order” and see her children? I did not understand why she was so threatened by that order, if it were me I would find a way to see my children. I go to church so I know that you are supposed to respect your pastor, just like any other person, but you do not have to treat him like a God who guides our paths. What I have noticed is that many pastors develop a mindset that they are above everyone else, this may be only pastors from certain denominations but I have picked up on this attribute. If you understand your religion, whatever it may be, then you should understand that as men and women we are imperfect. Only God can be our judge, so I believe Emma should have prayed about her situation, instead of completely leaving her life choices up to her pastor to decide. This documentary is the kind of thing I want to discuss because it left me with a multitude of questions.

The article that I read, Donald Trump’s Muslim Ban Is Cowardly and Dangerous, comes from the Opinion Piece section of the New York Times. I felt a connection and appreciation towards this article because it is so raw. We are in the midst of a time in America where we are witnessing the tragic reality that not everyone seems to be accepting the values that our country has always had. America has always been a country that is about freedom, whether that means you have the freedom to say what you want or practice the religion you want. Now that Trump is working hard to remove Muslims from America, we are yearning for the days when our freedom was something we could cherish. Something that I grew up loving about my country was religious freedom because I know how vital my relationship with God is to my life and I want everyone to have the freedom to have that opportunity. Now that this ban has occurred, it makes me reflect back on all of our times spent trying to define religion. It’s hard to accept that Muslims are being targeted because as a religious person, I sympathize for them. I know that outsiders must look in, judge them and make assumptions on their religion based on stereotypes. I praise these people though, for being strong in their beliefs and culture. It’s better to have pride than to be a coward.

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/28/opinion/donald-trumps-muslim-ban-is-cowardly-and-dangerous.html?_r=0

Last week in class we focused our discussion on the difference between official and non-official religion. In order for a religion to be seen as official it needs to be legitimate in the sense that there is a location to meet at, a leader, a doctrine to follow, and rituals to practice. When a religion is seen as non-official that means that the setting is casual it can be anywhere and anybody could lead whatever they want. In my opinion I still believe that even if a religion is non structured or practiced in someone’s home or car it still can be official. It is official in the sense that it is very real and has meaning to them. I have had trouble understanding exactly how you can tell a person that their religion isn’t official, so this topic has been more challenging for me.
In Chaves’ readings, he brings up the point that the amount of people going to church has become a very stagnant number and not increased. Part of the reason for this is that the demographics of America are changing. Traditional married families, and small families are not the norms anymore. People form families in many ways now with different traditions than the church looks for. Things that have changed are organizational ties, denominations, and congregations. We see talk about this too in McGuire’s Chapter 5, where she brings about the idea of denominations breaking down and new groups being created like “cults.” By the end of these readings all that comes to mind is that religion is not at all what it used to be and one thing I have come to know for certain about defining religion, is that it is ever changing.

The article I came across is from the New York Times and is titled ‘The Last Jedi’? In Real Life, Jedi Can Be a Religion. I instantly was intrigued by the title because in one of our first classes you mentioned that because of the complexity of defining religion, some people have written things like Jedi on their census’. Even though for many it was a joke to identify as a Jedi there were many people who took that seriously and decided to actively start expressing their religion. This article focused specifically on talking to directors for the Jedi church, Temple of the Jedi Order where they practice Jediism. For them the religion is just the same as any other. I researched the religion just a bit more to discover that in fact they do see themselves as having similar connections to other mainline religions. They say in the article that Jediism is all about “taking a journey” and having “a better life and a better death.” When you read about some of their key beliefs it seems to be a serious and concrete religion. This all ties back to what we have been trying so hard to do in class, define religion. It’s extremely difficult to try and tell someone else what religion is because you may never be able to see eye to eye. For example, I myself would never identify as practicing Jediism, I would identify as practicing Christianity. If practicing Jediism makes someone comfortable and its fulfilling to their life then I have no right to tell them their viewpoint is wrong. Like Chapter 5 in McGuire’s book stated, the dynamic in all religions is going to differ. Putting all religions together is taking a risk because they aren’t all the same but it is also empowering individuals to feel comfort in the decisions they make.

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/23/movies/star-wars-jedi-temple.html?_r=0

I thoroughly enjoyed reading the first three chapters in Mark Chaves’ American Religion this past week. The Table showing the continuity in American Religion was one of the aspects of the chapter I was most intrigued by, because I find the idea of compiling data about religion so complex. I believe that it is very hard to establish a meaning to certain beliefs. Belief in God, Heaven, Hell, Faith, Prayer, each one of these aspects expresses a different definition and meaning depending upon the person whom is in question. In class you mentioned that a situation occurred, in which a census asked two very similar questions. The phrasing was different and both received about 30% of people saying they believe in it, but those groupings were completely different people who seemed to hold different beliefs. A simple change in phrase can result in a person unfollowing you and thinking that you are crazy. Religion draws lines that are not very neat and crossing over into someone’s line will cause them to quarrel with you.
Chapter four in Religion: The Social Context by McGuire, discussed the roles that woman play in religion. The ideas of the power complexity in allowing women too much power was connected to the idea that their sexuality is something men fear. Certain religions have given woman more leeway in playing bigger roles, because it doesn’t go against their strict traditions. Most of my close family members are part of the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod and I see first hand, the restrictions of what a woman is allowed to do in the church. Women are not allowed in certain meetings and are not allowed to be pastors. The idea of controlling a woman can result in turning so many women off about religion.
Both of these authors have offered new concepts to my way of thinking. It is interesting to understand how different each religious establishment is and it also makes you wonder how similar each organizations are.