The Role of Religion in Society

The Role of Religion in Society

So what is the proper role of religion in society?

• "And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world." - Jesus as presented in Matthew 28:18-20.
"And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover." - Jesus as presented in Mark 16:15-18.
"And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power. But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth." - Jesus as presented in Acts 1:7-8.

• "If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man's religion is vain. Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world." - Words of Paul as translated in James 1:26-27.

• "...priests, bishops, or popes, are neither different from other Christians nor superior to them, except that they are charged with the administration of the work of God...which is their work and office."
"...In fact, the pope's office should be nothing else but to weep and pray for Christendom and to set an example of utter humility."
"...no temporal matter is to be referred to Rome, but that all such cases shall be left to the temporal authority...the judges in the bishops' courts...judge...matters of faith and morals, and leave matters of money and property, life and honor, to the temporal judges." - Atkinson, James ed. The Christian In Society by Martin Luther (1520). pp. 130,140,160.

     Christ never talked about a church or religious institution that should be created in His absence, but spoke of the duties and obligations of the individual. Of course, those that came after Him had different ideas - and so the Christian faith is now an organized religion. And since religion, Christian or not, plays a huge role in the lives of many members of society, it cannot be ignored in attempts to build an ideal society.

Contra Marx who saw religion as "the opiate of the people" - simply a mechanism of the ruling class to keep the masses submissive and obedient, history shows us that religion can also be a powerful force for change. With "the Will of God" on his side, any revolutionary is justified in his rebellion against legitimate (or illegitimate) authority.

The above quotes from Jesus, Paul and Martin Luther mesh well with our working model of society. Jesus speaks of teaching (not legislating or forcing people to obey) His teachings to all people and setting an example; Paul speaks of showing compassion on the less fortunate and every religious believer following the religious teachings; Martin Luther speaks of setting an example of humility and being in charge of faith and morals, but leaving everything else to the proper authorities.

As one of the main tenants of the Social Control System in a society, religion is separate from the Political System, but plays a very important role in maintaining order and providing smooth transitions for change. Religion and family are the key players in socializing our youth to our current concepts of right and wrong. We learn such mundane mores as we shouldn't pick our nose or cut in line, all the way to the more important concepts of respecting other persons and property, being honest and obeying the proper authorities. To the extent that the church and family have not performed this duty or have tried to push this responsibility onto the Political System, they have failed.

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3/22/97

•	"And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world." - Jesus as presented in Matthew 28:18-20. "And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover." - Jesus as presented in Mark 16:15-18. "And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power. But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth." - Jesus as presented in Acts 1:7-8.
•	"If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man's religion is vain. Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world." - Words of Paul as translated in James 1:26-27.
•	"...priests, bishops, or popes, are neither different from other Christians nor superior to them, except that they are charged with the administration of the work of God...which is their work and office." "...In fact, the pope's office should be nothing else but to weep and pray for Christendom and to set an example of utter humility." "...no temporal matter is to be referred to Rome, but that all such cases shall be left to the temporal authority...the judges in the bishops' courts...judge...matters of faith and morals, and leave matters of money and property, life and honor, to the temporal judges." - Atkinson, James ed. The Christian In Society by Martin Luther (1520). pp. 130,140,160.