Bigger, Better, Faster, Stronger

Religion is not the same as the American Dream. The sooner we admit that, the better off we will all be.

Religion is about making broken pieces whole. The American Dream is about doing life bigger, better, faster, stronger ... whatever "it" may be.

The American Dream works very well with some things. That notion has created much of what we, as Americans, see before us today (perhaps we should save whether what we see is good or bad for another day). Unfortunately, the American Dream has also worked hand-in-hand with Christianity, in many cases, to produce what is often misunderstood as religion, things like:

*Churches whose sole purpose is to pack as many people as possible into its building, inevitably giving into the temptation to attract so-called non-believers in any way possible.

*Summer camping organizations that try to do outdo last year's and other camping organizations' salvation and re-dedication numbers. (Have you ever been a part of a fifteen minute-plus altar call?)

*Evangelism tracts filled with hate and fear, distributed by people yelling on street corners.

As with so many other things, if people and groups want to do this, okay, they are absolutely free to do so. But that does not make good or right.

And it sure does not make it religion.