Feast of the Assumption

(I dunno, my mama raised me not to speculate without data. Assumption? Get it? Yeah. Fair and Balanced Humor, baby. Right here.)

Believe It, or Not

Today marks the Roman Catholics' Feast of the Assumption, honoring the moment that they believe God brought the Virgin Mary into Heaven. So here's a fact appropriate for the day: Americans are three times as likely to believe in the Virgin Birth of Jesus (83 percent) as in evolution (28 percent).

...The faith in the Virgin Birth reflects the way American Christianity is becoming less intellectual and more mystical over time.

... I do think that we're in the middle of another religious Great Awakening, and that while this may bring spiritual comfort to many, it will also mean a growing polarization within our society.

But mostly, I'm troubled by the way the great intellectual traditions of Catholic and Protestant churches alike are withering, leaving the scholarly and religious worlds increasingly antagonistic. I worry partly because of the time I've spent with self-satisfied and unquestioning mullahs and imams, for the Islamic world is in crisis today in large part because of a similar drift away from a rich intellectual tradition and toward the mystical. The heart is a wonderful organ, but so is the brain.

I don't know what to say aside from such obvious, unhelpful remarks like:

This does not make me feel 'in touch' as an American.
I do understand better how the Bush Administration both came to power and keeps it, in a high-level strategic way.
American Christians are whacky.

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