The God of Unwieldy Gigantic Things

Religious identity - what a minefield it has become! What has happened to the concept of religious tolerance in the 21st century? Why has the notion of "your god" vs "my god" ascended to such prominence lately?

I don't remember when the topic of religion was of such fervent discussion [no pun intended]. The excitement over religious differences and the political significance of them seem to have grasped people by the throat with a garrotte that is getting tighter by the moment.

I'd like to believe I practice a certain religious tolerance. Living in New York, which is by no means a religiously homogeneous society, it still is assumed that there are clear prohibitions to polite conversation on the topic of religion - unless you know the person very well.

I'd like to believe that most folks, save fundamentalists of any stripe, pretty much believe in religious tolerance. But sadly I've found that belief and practice are sometimes out of sync, as illustrated in the following.

Occasion #1 - I was at a friend's house for a casual drinks and dinner evening with her and a few of her other friends. Somehow the "God" issue was brought up and I stated that not only didn't I believe in the existence of God but that I didn't believe that Jesus was anyone other than an obscure Jewish prophet whose life had been magnified way beyond his actual existence and influence.

Well. Watch the fur fly. While I didn't denigrate the other's belief in the existence and benign watchfulness of either the deity or his son, I was automatically treated as if I'd just sprouted horns and suggested a dandy Black Mass be performed on the coffee table. None of the mainstream Christians present could find a way to intellectually process what they perceived as outright heresy. To think that they may have simply tolerated my beliefs (or lack of belief in their God) was apparently too much to ask.

Occasion #2 - I sat at the age of 18, across the desk of my nominal Religious Superior in Tediously Repressive Religion (TRR), and said out loud that I wanted nothing more than to be free of said TRR, the sooner the better. I added that I was emphatically uninterested in any crumbs TRR had to offer and wished to wipe the dust of its precepts from my feet.

I never told Religious Superior that in my opinion he was involved in a batshit crazy cult and would be better off thinking for himself. Oh I could have done so, perhaps, but at the time it seemed churlish in the light of the freedom I was seeking and the tolerance I expected from him.

Religious Superior replied in what I now know to be a textbook response of "don't do anything hastily, you may change your mind." I never set foot in one of their churches again, and 14 years after that encounter formally severed all my ties. Members of my immediate and beloved family are still involved with TRR; I don't denigrate their involvement but it's understood that I'm not interested in hearing about it. Surprisingly, perhaps, we all comply and find a way to get along as a family without castigating each other for our beliefs. Now quite frankly, if my family can manage this I'd like to think all the rest of us could.

My belief in the inherent random chaos so beautifully illustrated daily if not hourly by the Supremely Indifferent Universe could constitute a religion unto itself, were it not so very hard to pin down and dress satisfactorily on Sunday.

Perhaps it's not a matter so much of a God of Small Things as it is a God of Unwieldy Gigantic Things that occupies us so much, but in any case if I must place a bet I'll call you on random events and raise you on indifference.