Rita's Reflections: Our beliefs are changing, both good and bad

Actor Ed Asner portrayed Lou Grant on "The Mary Tyler Moore Show." My favorite episode was when Mr. Grant told Mary Richards she had spunk. Mr. Grant hated spunk.

In 2017, two years before his death, Asner co-wrote with Ed Weinberger, "The Grouchy Historian: An Old-Time Lefty Defends Our Constitution Against Right-wing Hypocrites and Nutjobs." If you want a good laugh and/or an educational read support your local library and check it out. Be warned; a confident woman may appreciate reading it more than an insecure man.

Asner’s jabs at politicians are hilarious. My favorite is his remark about Ted Cruz's autobiography, "A Time for Truth: A faith-based romance novel in which the hero falls in love with himself at an early age.”

I seek a bigger worldview of God than most. I surround myself with people of other faiths which in turn has enhanced my own. Maybe it is just me, but I am interested in reading about lost scriptures unearthed in Nag Hammadi. Or how scripture about same-sex relationships may have been mistranslated and unfortunately now interpreted as Gospel truth today.

Could it be Jesus spoke in parables because the male disciples were too stupid to understand what he was talking about. Is it remotely possible Mary Magdalene was Jesus’ favorite disciple and married Jesus after he survived being crucified which was planned in advance. Radical thinking yes, but what if that version is the greatest story never told? Closed minds will never know.

Channeling Nancy Kerrigan after goons whacked her in the knee, why, why, why have we become such a close-minded society when Jesus was never a closed-minded man? Why do we act like self-righteous jerks over our faith differences going so far as treating our own loved ones deplorably? I try and walk a straight but often wobbly line. I felt sucker punched to my core being called a disappointment by a grandmother for standing up for same-sex couples then validated when her grandson thanked me for it.

If I remember correctly, Jesus proclaimed "Do unto others, as you would want to be done to you" during his Sermon on the Mount and described by him as the second great commandment. The Mosaic law puts a different spin on it: "Whatever is hurtful to you, do not do to any other person." Today’s motto often resembles the attitude, “I’m going to do it to them before they do it to me.”

I make myself an easy target sharing my unorthodox beliefs, yet I am far from being alone. Although we are looked upon as radical, those of us who have left the church are a tribal community with lone-wolf tendencies. I can’t speak for everyone, but I practice many of the rituals you find in a church setting.

I just don’t wait for Sunday. I burn incense and light candles. I read devotions and have a small altar space. I have prayer rituals and read devotions. I believe God gave us free will and I believe Jesus saves. I have been moved by the Holy Spirit in ways I doubt others have. I believe the devil is of our own making and we act accordingly. My prayer is if there is a hell the ones deserving to go take their God-forsaken enablers with them and fry like burnt bacon.

One study by the Pew Research Center indicates that by the year 2070, the religious unaffiliated will overtake the Christian community. That does not even factor in those who presently identify as atheists. Even more alarming: The percentage of those following other religions is expected to double. It should be noted that Christians are not leaving for non-Christian religions. They are just leaving.

— Rita Wyatt Zorn is a wife, mother, grandmother and lifetime Monroe County resident. She can be reached at [email protected].

This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Rita's Reflections: Our beliefs are changing, both good and bad