Religion: Words & Works

¶Death has become a dirty word, writes British Anthropologist Geoffrey Gorer in the October issue of Encounter, and is taking the place of sex as an off-color theme. "Whereas copulation has become more and more 'mentionable,' particularly in the Anglo-Saxon societies, death has become more and more 'unmentionable' as a natural process . . . Our great-grandparents were told that babies were found under gooseberry bushes or cabbages; our children are likely to be told that those who have passed on (fie! on the gross Anglo-Saxon monosyllable) are changed into flowers, or lie at rest in lovely gardens." The reason, says Gorer, is a shift away from religious belief in a life after death. "Belief in the future life, as taught in Christian doctrine, is very uncommon today, even in the minority who make churchgoing or prayer a consistent part of their lives; and without some such belief, natural death and physical decomposition have become too horrible to contemplate."

¶The Second National Conference on Spiritual Foundations met in Washington, D.C., with some 250 religious leaders and laymen—Christian, Jewish, Moslem, Hindu and Buddhist—and heard such potent speakers as Vice President Nixon, Admirals Radford and Strauss. "Civilization," said the conference message, "rests ultimately upon an act of belief. A renaissance of civilization in the 'postmodern' era already taking shape depends upon a revival of faith in God and a fresh synthesis of faith and reason."

¶"God seems to be leading a popularity contest in government circles today," says the Roman Catholic monthly Catholic Men in an editorial entitled "Good Old God." Many a politico who goes in for godly utterances is "inwardly feeling that such pious expressions and, in fact, God Himself and religion in general, are perfectly harmless . . . We are in favor of expressions of trust in God and don't want to appear cynical, but could it be that an appreciable number . . . are motivated by a naive sentiment that by shouting 'Lord, Lord' often enough, and long enough, we will have fulfilled our obligations—and all will be well with the world? We wouldn't have these uneasy thoughts if we could see more evidence that our public leaders . . . really do trust in God and love Him."