OPINION:
Faith is innate. That’s the simple conclusion of a poll conducted by England’s Oxford University to discover the dimensions of the human tendency to seek God. The results affirm what most of us already know: Human beings are born to believe. Too bad that here in America, the so-called “progressive” ideology that powers President Obama’s Washington actively impedes the flourishing of faith.
The Cognition, Religion and Theology Project was conducted at a cost of $4 million with more than 40 studies taking place in 20 countries around the world over a three-year period. “We tend to see purpose in the world. We see agency. We think that something is there even if you can’t see it. … All this tends to build up to a religious way of thinking,” project co-director and Oxford University professor Roger Trigg told CNN on Thursday following the study’s release.
A fundamental notion of a religious person is the belief that he’s living under the watchful eye of God. For those of the Judeo-Christian tradition, the tenet is encapsulated in Matthew 7:12 of the New Testament in which Jesus says, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” This concept of a “Golden Rule” in which each individual is responsible for making choices that ensure fair treatment for others is as universal as values get.
Progressivism clashes sharply with this religious tradition by asserting that societal change is the province of government rather than the individual. Inevitably, progressivism results in an overpowering nanny state. It has reached its most extreme - and most virulent - form under Mr. Obama’s administration. Thanks to his destructive economic policies, more Americans are dependent on bureaucratic support than any time in America’s history. For example, 51 percent of American taxpayers owe no federal income tax, according to the Joint Committee on Taxation. Forty percent of Americans receive at least 45 percent of their income from the federal government, reports the Tax Foundation.
Leftists contend government assistance is characteristic of a benevolent society, but there is nothing compassionate about policies that purposely divide the populace into overtaxed workers and underemployed tax recipients. When government usurps the role of God, the imperative to practice the Golden Rule necessarily diminishes, and with it, faith itself. The result is worship of the leviathan state.
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