Bridging The Gap Between Secularism and Religiosity
The maxim "there is your side, my side and the truth" speaks to the dichotomized opinions of our world and the right of individuals to find their own space. Whether Universal Truth exists is a matter of individual perspective and, often, those who posit the view that there exists an overriding, dominant Power in our world can defer to nothing else but that reference. To say that such a philosophy is "wrong" or "right" is to undermine the inherent gift of expression. Holding up to ridicule the view that a Deity created the world 6,000 years ago in a paradise gone bad is to proclaim that we were there and saw empirical evidence of the nonexistence of Genesis. The problem with this stance is that a negative cannot be proven. The contrary also merits consideration: the notion that the literal, unquestionable existence of Adam and Eve led to our fall and permanent dissociation from a "Creator," that those who do not seek such Source are relegated to doom sets up a paradigm of unjust exclusivity, narrowness, and disregard of metaphor.
Dogma is the root of discord. All belief systems, theistic and secular, harmonize in the propensity of rational human beings to act righteously for the good of others. Deed supersedes thought. If one seeks to act in a spirit of goodwill, the particular reference point becomes subsumed in the good act, whether such arises out of "faith" or, simply, a genuine inclination to do good works, irrespective of so-called salvation or reward.
What happens to a life after life is anyone's guess. Some posit the transmigration of spirit, others see corporeal life as a finite phenomenon. People hanker after symbolism, and naturally interpret and interpose individualized viewpoints upon the world in order to exist comfortably and to be able to accept the imminent, indisputable fact that everything in our realm swings between existence and decline. Through interpretation and lore, passed down through time, life in all its phases becomes endurable.
Human need must be respected and acknowledged as a fundamental impetus for belief or non-belief, notwithstanding (and quite apart from) levels of intellect and socio-economic standing. No matter who an individual is or what she does, if religion propels her to live a full life, so must that individual live freely in the space of faith, whether it be "blind" and unquestioning or a probing practice. If, on the other hand, self-actualization motivates joyful continuance, such that the individual utilizes himself as a receptacle of kindness, a catalyst for virtuous action, without mention of any extrinsic omniscience, then so he must live, unshackled by deistic doctrines to which he cannot relate.
Understanding and acceptance are the building blocks of unity. Love is the bridge. A loving secularist can stand in any house of worship and, while others bow their heads in prayer, silently remember a loved one, think of what he or she did recently to make another smile, or ponder any private introspections. A loving person of any religious denomination can, in turn, be in the presence of secularists and quietly engage in personal supplication. In so doing, even unbeknownst to themselves, individuals then dwell on common ground, in the area of goodwill and tolerance, where love reigns and, however we label that love, either as "God" or "Self" or "Love," we convene as one, in Humanity.