Belief

[debka_notion]

When I'm asked if I believe in G-d, I answer in the affirmative. And what I presume people are asking is "do I believe that G-d exists". But, to use a comment made rather often- if asked if I 'believed in' a person, the question would have been "do I think that that person is capable of doing the job they're supposed to be doing/are they a good person/etc". So- if I were really serious about my belief in G-d, about my faith, as it were- ought I to be answering this other question? That would imply taking G-d's existance as a given, as you would the existance of a person you were asked about, say, one's sister/colleague/friend/student. On the other hand, the sort of involved answer that I'd like to give to the latter question would be very confusing to someone who wanted an answer to the first question, which is almost always the question that is really being asked in those contexts. I wonder if it would be different in a more theologically oriented society/a more religious society. Certainly I remember learning that people described as "Atheists" before (I think) the englightenment were generally not atheists as we think of the term (people who don't think that G-d exists), but rather people who held "non-standard" ideas about G-d, outside of the approved religion in their area. The way we process this question does seem to prove quite nicely how well we have socially as well as legally separated religion from the rest of public life.

Comments

[jessebeller.livejournal.com]

you should know that most countries, or at least most europeans, view america as an extremely religious society with a public sphere completely saturated with religion

[debka-notion.livejournal.com]

I do know that. And it is, in many ways. Just not in this particular way. America is a very religious country with nearly zilch for workable theology going on in many of its non-institutional religious sectors.