The God Squad: Starfish story never gets old

Q: Every religion has the same basic beliefs: love, peace, humility and tolerance. So if we all believe these things to be true, why is there so much hatred and destruction in the world? Why have we still not gotten the message?

I can’t understand how people are so out of touch with God. And I mean all people of every religion, because if you truly believe there is a God, you know you have to live a life pleasing to your God to achieve everlasting life. So if you’re killing innocent people in the name of your God, do you really believe that is pleasing?

Some people, like clergy and saintly people, do devote their life to the teachings of God and walk “the paths of righteousness,” but ordinary people only refer to them on important holy days or when they face a crisis. When things are going smoothly, we forget about God. When life is good, who needs the church?

We all need our God in our lives. We all sin — that’s a given — but it is between God and man to reconcile the sin. Why is everything just getting more corrupt and evil? Are we doomed as a society to destroy all that is good and beneficial for our souls? I guess what I’m asking is, does religion really make a difference in the everyday lives of ordinary people?

A: Cheer up. Things aren’t quite so grim as you imagine. I think that how each of us looks at the world really depends on what facts about life here on planet Earth we allow into our soul. There are facts galore that describe a world in chaos and decline, but there are also facts out there proving that goodness does have an edge over evil, and that the world arcs toward freedom and hope.

I choose to see the evil facts, but I choose to let in the good facts. I see the evil as a challenge to do better and an opportunity to help. This is my choice, but it’s a choice taught to me and urged upon me by my religion and my God. The flood caused death, but it ended with a rainbow and a covenant from God never to destroy the world again.

Perhaps God also had a choice early on in the 10 generations between Adam and Noah to live with our flawed but free wills. If God can live with people as they are, maybe you can as well.

I think religion is making a difference — a sacred and moral and hopeful difference — in people’s lives. I see it in soup kitchens run by religious institutions for those who are hungry and beaten down. I see it in the comfort brought to mourners by their communities of faith. I see it in the sacred festivals that insert joyous celebration into the crushing boredom of ordinary time.

I see it in the moral code that gives people the courage to do the right thing in the face of temptation. I see it in the way religion teaches people to say thank you for the gifts of life and to nurture the qualities of gratitude and humility.

All of this — and much more — comes from religious teachings, religious leaders and religious communities and makes a tremendous difference people’s lives. I don’t call them “ordinary people” because I believe that God has given each of us special and unique blessings with which we can improve our lives and our world.

I know that perverted religion can sometimes seem as powerful as authentic religion, but it is not so. The truth and goodness of our common religious traditions will win over time. Be patient and persevere. It’s not our responsibility to complete the task of fixing the world, but it is also not our prerogative to stop trying.

Perhaps the problem is you’re looking at too big a picture of life. Narrow your focus and you may see more hopeful signs of the good that religions do in the world. I’ve often quoted the story of the man on a beach who was throwing starfish into the ocean after a storm.

A young man approached and chided him, saying that what he was doing didn’t matter because there were too many stranded starfish to save before the sun got high and dried them out. The old man just bent down, threw another starfish into the safety of the waves and said, “Son, it mattered to that one.”

Go save a starfish.

(Send QUESTIONS ONLY to The God Squad via email at godsquadquestion@aol.com.)