Ah, stereotypes. Everyone uses them; they shape our first impressions, social behavior research projects, marketing, movie genres, you name it. Stereotypes can be useful, since they exist because they are or have once been based on truth by majority. However, stereotypes are often misused as fuel for judgment and unfair criticism on a general group, taking one negative stigma and applying it to the usually innocent majority.
Sam Arnold’s Wednesday column in the Crimson White about how religious beliefs are fodder for fools and Jesus-freaks is not only generalizing religion as a whole (and not only that, but focuses almost exclusively on Christianity without explicitly stating so), he’s unfairly imposing his negative stigma of what religion is and what believers are like on the majority of religious people and their institutions.
Now, I’m not from the South. I come from California, and after two years of being here, it really is like living in another country, especially when talking about faith. The University may lie in the Bible Belt, but for Arnold to take out his trauma of having to deal with Bible-throwing evangelists on the idea of any God as a whole is wrong, close-minded and rude.
If he expects people to read his column with an open mind, it’s not unreasonable to expect that maybe he can admit that not everyone religious totes around sermons of “zombie demigods and hellfire.” I don’t know what denomination preaches about zombies, and the idea that he thinks there is one is appalling and, frankly, hilarious. Zombies? Really?
And don’t even get me started on the “death cults, suicide bombers and holy wars” call. My Mormon friend might not drink caffeine, but he went on a two-year mission to Germany to study his faith and simultaneously get involved in underprivileged neighborhoods. Man, that sure was wrong of him. Such a horrible crusade, I’m sure he did a lot of pillaging.
Arnold paints the majority of devotees to faith as so illiterate and inbred that they haven’t read a book that “isn’t written by a theologian.” You can feel his seething prejudice in the line “I didn’t come from no monkey” that he so convincingly writes in a Southern drawl.
A little tip: you might be writing an opinion column, but try to conceal your festering disgust for the opposing side of your piece. Contempt isn’t flattering on anyone.
Religion is useful in a modern world, solely for the purpose that if any individual finds need for it personally, spiritually, mentally, then it is useful.
Peace of mind as you suffer a difficult diagnosis? Science books don’t offer that. Optimism after being dumped? Sure, you have girlfriends for that, but the idea of a never-ending love also helps. It might not solve the economic crisis or create jobs, but it makes people happy. Isn’t that useful enough?
Arnold might have been exposed to only hate-based sign-toting WBC-type religions, but the majority of religions are based on love, hope, safety, and gratitude. Not convinced? The CW runs pieces examining different religions on campus, and their fundamental beliefs. Read them; they’re interesting and encourage diversity. Not everyone is like those crazy people that shout at you about damnation and insist that Obama is Lucifer incarnate here to bring the apocalypse. In fact, most with a religious association despise those people. They obviously give us all a bad name.
Arnold is entitled to his opinion. He is writing on the Opinions page after all, and the point is to be a little biased. But his opinion is based on bigotry.
The sneer with which he writes is offensive, attacking and exposes the way he’s begging to be responded to by letters of hate mail from the same people who pour water on the Atheist and Agnostic chalkings (which is wrong, by the way). But I’m not giving that to him.
Instead, I’ll respond with a polite but disagreeing article. Just because I live in California doesn’t mean I live by a movie star and surf all day. Just because I have faith doesn’t mean I blindly follow rules and condemn everyone who doesn’t to go to hell.
Don’t generalize me, and don’t generalize my faith.
Jessica Bailey is a junior majoring in studio art.
