Religion Matters in Human Affairs

Re “The New Gospel of Academia,” Oct. 18: So academia has awakened to the fact that religions, or spiritual belief systems, shape entire cultures, not just private lives? As the kids say: “Duh!”

Democracy, the major political force of our modern age, is founded on these truths that we believe to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that government is by the governed, that is, the governors have no special status beyond that of ordinary citizens. Our entire legal culture is built upon the concept of individual rights and the due process to protect these.

None of this is possible without a certain religion called Christianity, which had as its cornerstone the sanctity of each individual as a creature of God and that no one, even Caesar, was greater than the next person in this grand scheme. Without this fundamental belief system, embraced by the peoples of Europe and exported to the Americas, none of the above would have been even thinkable, much less possible, nor would this system of government have been so embraced by our “culture” that many would gladly die for it.

In parts of the world that do not embrace these beliefs, the concepts of democracy and legal society remain empty words on grandiose documents. Yes, religion truly matters in the sphere of human affairs.

MAUDE HAM

Burbank

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Religious faith through the centuries (not just the 20th) certainly deserves more scholarly study. But there is a danger that each researcher, whether he or she realizes it or not, will look at the data through the lens of whichever religious faith he or she happens to be equipped with. It’s much easier to be objective when doing scientific research--many questions can be settled through repeatable observations or experiments. In the area of religion, since such observations or experiments are not possible, “truth” is much more elusive.

A truly unbiased investigation should attempt to weigh the negative effects of religion as well as the positive ones. I believe such a study would demonstrate that religions that give more weight to our actions than to our beliefs in general have had a more beneficial overall effect upon the societies in which they have been practiced.

BENITO FRANQUI

Orange