When we speak about religious belief or discipleship, invariably there is a perception of selfless service, of self-denial, and of hope for a better life, to compensate for any discomforts suffered by our faith-based privations in the here and now.
But that’s not the whole story. There is, I think, an element of (perhaps, wholesome) self-interest. I think having faith also brings with it promise of benefits in this present world. I think we need to gain something ‘immediate’ from religion in order to cement our beliefs.
And what could these benefits be? Here I’m not thinking of material benefits, such as wealth or prosperity. I’m thinking more of unseen things. Perhaps, inner peace. The belief that there is something or someone bigger than everything happening around us, and that, perhaps, it is futile to fret about things we cannot control. Or that, rather than feeling powerless, we can entrust our concerns to this higher power. That, by the way, is a completely separate point from whether, or in what way, this power will actually respond to us. But there is benefit in referring matters ‘upwards’, whatever might be the outcome of such an act. I think this benefit is widely underestimated.
There must be other such benefits, i.e. non-material things available to believers in the here and now. I will return to this topic every now and again. I’m interested to see what else I discover.
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