No matter what your opinions are about religion, ‘tis the season when religion is all around.
I have mixed feelings about religion. I grew up in an Orthodox Jewish household and have observed many benefits of religion, including life-organizing traditions, strong family and social connections, important moral codes, explanations for troubling questions, and sustenance and comfort during darkest days. I’ve also observed, throughout my life, how many people have been hurt and divided by religion.
Whatever our religions are, I think we can agree that people have very strong feelings about religion. My son, who grew up with a lapsed Orthodox Jewish mother and a lapsed Roman Catholic father, once upset a librarian in the children’s room of our local library by asking her what her religion was. This was around the time when Aaron was formulating that God might be a giant goose and we had noticed children’s books about religion in the library that day, so I think he was just honestly curious about her experience. He and I were both taken aback by her obvious discomfort and annoyance, so I quietly explained to him that religion could be a sensitive subject for some people.
Yesterday, my son, my ex-husband Leon, my husband Michael, and I were discussing another sensitive subject — politics — trying to make sense of Trump’s appeal to millions of people, wondering if religion played a part in that, also.
Do you see religion in today’s images?






















If you had to answer any questions about religion, would you choose to answer the ones included in this blog post?
When I search YouTube for “religion,” this comes up:
So does this:
Ricky Gervais and Stephen Colbert — despite their differences about religion — share a great gratitude for existence and so do I. Thanks to all who helped me create this post about religion, including YOU!
