The Bible has some interesting, and for some people surprising, things to say about being religious. This is the story …
Meaning of Religious
The word ‘religious’ can mean various things to different people. For many individuals being religious means having a faith and practising it. When some persons are seen as being religious it’s seen in a positive light, especially after they are loving, wonderful individuals who help others locally. However people outside the Church, and even sometimes inside it, see being religious in a negative light as being dogmatic and judgemental.
In colloquial English the word ‘religious’ has come to mean doing something commonly because you’re feeling you’ve to, or since it is a matter of habit or belief. For example we’d say ‘he religiously watches his local team every Saturday’ or ‘she does her exercises religiously’.
For people of religion, being religious is usually related to attending a spot of worship, normally once per week, whether that could be a church or chapel, synagogue, mosque or temple. People are also seen as religious in the event that they wear a non secular symbol or clothing comparable to a cross, skullcap or hijab. Actually the Bible has some surprising things to say about being religious.
Isaiah
In the book of Isaiah, he says, ‘I’ll let you know what it really means to worship the Lord.’ He then goes on to say, ‘Remove the chains of prisoners who’re certain unjustly. Free those that are abused! Share your food with everyone who’s hungry; share your private home with the poor and homeless. Give clothes to those in need; don’t turn away your relatives’ (Isaiah 58:6-7 CEV). Then he says, ‘Don’t mistreat others or falsely accuse them or say something cruel. Give your food to the hungry and look after the homeless’ (Isaiah 58:9-10 CEV). Isaiah explains that that is what it means to worship God.
Amos
In the book of Amos, it says, ‘I hate, I despise your religious festivals; your assemblies are a stench to me. Even though you bring me burnt offerings and grain offerings, I won’t accept them. Though you bring selection fellowship offerings, I can have no regard for them. Away with the noise of your songs! I won’t hearken to the music of your harps’ (Amos 5:21-23 NIV).
This sounds slightly surprising but then it goes on to say: ‘But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream!’ (Amos 5:24 NIV). The point is that religious ceremonies are worthless unless the faith is put into motion. If the people weren’t being just and righteous then, in that case, God wouldn’t like their religious festivals.
Micah
In the book of Micah, he asks the rhetorical questions: ‘With what shall I come before the Lord and bow down before the exalted God? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a 12 months old? Will the Lord be pleased with hundreds of rams, with ten thousand rivers of oil? Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?’ (Amos 6:6-7 NIV).
The answer is then given, ‘He has shown you, O mortal, what is nice. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to like mercy and to walk humbly] together with your God’ (Micah 6:8 NIV).
Jesus
In the New Testament we see that Mary and Joseph observed the religious rites with Jesus who was taken to the Temple as a baby, circumcised and dedicated. Later he was baptised by his relative John the Baptist. Jesus attended the synagogue and the Temple himself and observed religious festivals.
He doesn’t condemn being religious on this sense, but we see that Jesus didn’t like religious hypocrisy. He didn’t prefer it when it was just show. He overthrew the tables within the Temple when the religious authorities were abusing their power financially. Jesus didn’t just like the legalism of the Pharisees. He warned people from judging others (Matthew 3:1-3).
Paul
In Acts, St Paul went to Athens and stood up at a gathering of the Areopagus and said: ‘People of Athens! I see that in every way you might be very religious. For as I walked around and looked fastidiously at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: To an unknown god’ (Acts17:22-23 NIV). They were religious, but their religious worship was misdirected. He didn’t condemn them for being religious but he tried to redirect their worship and explained who that unknown god was.
Which religious festivals are partaken of are a selection. In his letter to the Colossians St Paul wrote, ‘Therefore don’t let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a non secular festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day’ (Colossians 2:16). In Romans 14, St Paul says that Christians should hold their very own views with good conscience, and never judge our fellow believers because they think in a different way.
James
In his epistles, James echoes among the words of the prophets. James was Jesus’s own brother who became leader of the church at Jerusalem, so his words hold authority. He asks in his letter: ‘Do any of you’re thinking that you might be religious? If you don’t control your tongue, your religion is worthless and also you deceive yourself’ (James 1:26 GNB). He then explains, ‘What God the Father considers to be pure and real religion is that this: to handle orphans and widows of their suffering and to maintain oneself from being corrupted by the world’ (James 1:27 GNB). By ‘orphans and widows’ we will include the homeless, the hungry, refugees, asylum seekers, the unemployed, single parents, the abused and others. Later James explains that faith without actions is meaningless (James 2:26).
The Message phrases it like this: ‘Anyone who sets himself up as “religious” by talking a very good game is self-deceived. This form of religion is hot air and only hot air. Real religion, the type that passes muster before God the Father, is that this: Reach out to the homeless and loveless of their plight, and guard against corruption from the godless world’ (James 1:26-27 The Message).
Being religious
So within the Bible, being religious can mean performing religious duties, however it is greater than that. Too often people view lots of those of religion as religious because they’re being narrow-minded, legalistic, dogmatic and judgemental. This is a negative way of being religious.
Rather, for Christians, the Bible explains that being religious is about being humble, caring for others, showing hospitality, standing up for justice, and keeping a holy lifestyle. It might be summarised as the necessity to look after others, share with others, bear with others, and being fair to others. This is a positive way of being religious.
What God considers to be religious
To be truly religious in God’s eyes we’re required to not be judgemental, intolerant, dogmatic and legalistic. Rather Amos said that we’re required to ‘let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream’. Micah said that we’re required to ‘act justly and to like mercy and to walk humbly’ with our God. James wrote that ‘What God the Father considers to be pure and real religion is that this: to handle orphans and widows of their suffering and to maintain oneself from being corrupted by the world’ (James 1:26-27 GNB).
The way we’re religious could make all of the difference as to if others are attracted or repelled by our religion.
