When Religion Goes Bad

This is a snippet of what I preached on yesterday. You can read the rest of the sermon by visiting my church's website at www.bwayucc.org/Sermons.html

Today our national leaders are standing behind their Christian faith to articulate an economic message that neglects the responsibility to those who were given much in order to care for those with less. When we cut educational programs for the poorest of children, or cut funding to medical hospitals who care for the aged, or we support a government that guts AIDS funding for the very sick in the name of God, we become like the Judeans who used their faith as a justification for their interpretation of divine economic entitlement.

Yet, that mentality is exactly what Isaiah is confronting. A religion that neglects to do good and seek justice for those who have received injustice is a sham. This sort of religious expression infuriates God. Those who use their religion as a justification for their inhospitability, their message is the complete antithesis of what God stands for. When such a mentality exists, when religion not only overlooks the poor but even more so, justifies doing so, then religion has gone bad and it is better for that religion to end than for it to continue. When religion neglects those to whom it is responsible, it is an alcoholic who doesn’t know its an addict.