Why and how religion still has a big influence on the secular world.

Although the world has become increasingly secular over the past few decades, religion still plays a big part in society. Even many of those who claim that they’re “not religious” are on some level still influenced by religion. I’ve seen this first hand from my own experience. Call it hypocrisy.

I know so-called Catholics who engage in premarital sex, but vehemently oppose abortion because the Catholic Church forbids it. I know secular Jewish people who know little about Judaism and don’t keep anything, but uphold the most stringest orthodox interpretations when you ask the question, “who is a Jew?” I’ve been told by these people that I’m not really Jewish because my father, not my mother was Jewish and I didn’t do an orthodox conversion despite the fact that I observe far more and know way more about Judaism than they do.

I know people who haven’t set foot in a church for over a decade, yet want a church wedding and to baptize or christen their children. It seems like religion is a club for many. A club that people drop in and out of when convenient, or follow the rules which they deem relevant and suitable.

You would think that religion would adapt to suit the increasingly secular world, but why should it have to when people don’t question it. People moan and bitch about the bits that they don’t like, but they don’t do anything to change it. They accept the corruption, the greed, the sexism and the homophobia. They support these institutions. For example people endorse the Catholic Church’s greed by visiting the gold encrusted churches and cathedrals when the money to maintain them could go to help the poorest people in the world. Religious hypocrisy only makes religion thrive.

I myself am not completely anti-religion. I’m against religions that at the core contain extreme and archaic dogma and fuel injustice and inequality. Religion itself is not inherently evil, but the institutions and leaders who interpret religious texts so fundamentally with little regard for the humanity are the problem. Religion needs to be reformed and I’m not talking about fancy mega churches with rock music, chiseled hot pastors and a huge celebrity following to cover up the lies, greed and corruption.

There already are religions and denominations that have evolved to meet the needs of modern society such as Progressive Judaism and certain Protestant groups including the Episcopalian or Anglican churches. However with the exception Reform Judaism in America, these denominations are not as popular as you would expect or hope. In the UK, around 30% or less of Jewish people affiliate with non-Orthodox Jewish movements and although The Church of England is supposedly the main religion of the UK, its membership is rapidly falling.

I’m a progressive Jew. Progressive Judaism openly accepts and welcomes LGBTQ+ members into the community, allows gay marriage, is strongly egalitarian and is strongly focused on social justice. Being a liberal and enlightened person, Progressive Judaism is compatible with my beliefs and values.

Many people I know hold the same liberal views as me, yet have some kind of messed up allegiance to religious tradition. I asked my mother why she identifies as Catholic when she is pro-LGBT, pro-choice when it comes to abortion and heavily criticizes the Catholic Church. Why she still identifies with Catholicism when it goes against everything that she believes in. Why not be Church of England as they hold far more enlightened, liberal and modern views? My mother replied that Catholicism is what she grew up with and it’s all about tradition.

Like my mum I know Jewish people who are open-minded and liberal like me, yet affiliate with Orthodox Judaism, which is as rigid and archaic as Catholicism in its beliefs. Why do people choose to cling onto outdated institutions instead of try to challenge these outdated notions like Progressive Judaism?

Well for most people creating change is inconvenient and time consuming. Just like any other aspects of life they see no point in creating change as “change will never happen.” The reason change doesn’t happen is because people remain attached to these institutions. Also because it doesn’t affect them, they see no reason to really challenge the status quo. They’re not being oppressed by misogynistic tradition personally so it doesn’t matter to them. They may disagree with it, but by pledging allegiance to that religion, they’re allowing it to happen.

Like with many things in life, many people don’t tend to question things and just accept things that way they are. Many people like the comfort that tradition and religion brings because it means that they don’t have to think for themselves.

Religion is like the parent that guides them and makes them feel safe. It can be like a forgiving parent. You made a mistake. That’s ok, you can just pray to Jesus and make it right. You haven’t been to church for a few years. That’s ok, just come when you’re ready to be indoctrinated. You can still be part of the club. You can sin and not be religious, but that’s fine. As long as you don’t question the corruption, misogyny and inequality you’re good. We’ll just make life miserable for those who aren’t as privileged as you.

Religion is a safety net for the secular to fall on when and if they need it. Wanna have that wedding in a beautiful church or send your kids to the best schools which happen to be faith schools? Well religious organizations hold the monopoly. Faith schools especially are extremely common in the UK. In fact faith schools hold the best reputations especially in terms of academia.

I’ve worked in many schools, some of them faith schools. Some parents literally told me that they were only making a show of going to church so that their kids stood a chance of getting into a faith school. My parents were no different. We may live in a “secular” society, but religious organizations still control what schools kids get into. Faith schools are the breeding ground of indoctrination and trauma. I speak from experience.

Religion is still the national identity in many countries. Most people seem unable to distinguish religion from nationality. The two do not go hand in hand. Religion is not a national identity. It shows the power that these religious institutions yield over the world. The results are catastrophic with religious institutions trying to enforce laws based on religion and influence government opinion.

That’s why it’s so important to break away from these institutions and stop allowing them to brainwash you into thinking that it’s all about culture and identity when it’s not. The more masses on board, the easier it is to manipulate and control the world. Look at the situation in Poland where the religious government implemented extreme and archaic laws including anti-LGBT zones and banning abortion on all grounds, even in life threatening situations. As a result of rampant and rabid Catholicism, more and more Polish people are choosing not to be part of the Catholic Church. Many parents express their refusal for their children to attend Catholic religion classes at school and refuse to baptize their children.

Another example where religion and government are in tandem is its prevalence in the majority of Muslim countries. Many of these countries have extremely poor human rights indexes. Of course this is a much wider problem that is extremely difficult to solve because those who do try to protest face death or imprisonment. Also the Western World is less willing to help. This is a prime example where religious extremism has gotten out of hand. The more it grows and the more followers and supporters it has, the more it will spread to other parts of the world. It seems like the Western World is not concerned (as I said before, the extremism doesn’t affect them).

I mentioned tradition earlier. Why are people so hell bent on sticking to traditions that no longer serve society? Perhaps it’s because people are desperate to have an identity and be a part of something. Religion for even the secular, gives people an identity and sense of belonging.

Many human beings are reluctant and scared of change; scared to challenge the status quo. People want to belong even if they don’t agree with the rules of the club. For many, not belonging is worse than belonging to a club you don’t agree with. It’s like hanging out with the popular clique. This makes me think of Gretchen Weiners from Mean Girls- being part of Regina George’s clique makes her miserable and hate life, but not being part of the clique is even worse as she wouldn’t belong anywhere. This is the perfect analogy. Regina is like the religious leader who everybody reveres but also fears. She makes life even more miserable for people not in her circle and bestows certain privileges to those in her clique.

As long as people continue to associate and identify with corrupt and outdated institutions, they will continue to thrive and contribute to world problems. It’s only if people fight back and stop identifiying with these institutions that they can loosen their grip. Are people really prepared to do that though? Not until religious corruption and control affects them on a personal level.

So what will it take? For their raped daughters to be forbidden from having an abortion, or their sons to be persecuted for holding hands with another man in the street? For religion to take over the whole entire world? No traditional religion is not a nice little tradition, it’s dangerous. It’ll keep on controlling the masses as long as you allow it to. Religious fundamentalism and institutions are a cancer and we must try to stop its growth before it kills society completely.