Why?
Good morning,
Why? That is a good question to keep close. Have we all not been driven crazy by a child who continually asks, “Why?” They need to do it a few times in order to learn. For adults, it is a question we all need to ask periodically.
Why do people baptize babies? Why do Catholics and other Protestants call their religious leader father, when Jesus commanded us not to use the title father for any religious leader. Where did godfathers and godmothers come from? Religious roots (often Catholic) have managed to bring many religious tradition into our lives, but why? Why do some people suggest you burn candles for the dead? Why do we urge people to talk about salvation and the forgiveness of sin offered by Jesus Christ? Because God commands us to go and all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature! Spreading the Gospel a spiritual, religious, and biblical command! That is why we do it. It is not a ritual, it is obedience. It is not something we do because it feels good, it is something we do because it is good.
There are many religious traditions and rituals. Mankind likes ritual. If you have never read about the Masons – wow! What rituals they have. Some of their rituals are quite scary, such as pledging to cut someone’s throat from ear to ear. Do not allow anyone to tell you that men do not like rituals.
Observe any culture, especially the more primitive cultures, and you will find dancing, music, painted faces, incense, and all sorts of religious rituals. If you ask them why they do what they do, they will have no idea. It is just what they do – the ritual is enough, they do not need the why. If you ask the Buddhist why they bring food to lay at the feet of an altar or statue, they do not know why it is done. They simply know it is done. It is part of their ritual. Most of humanity does not care about right or wrong, but they do care about the ritual. Show a Catholic that baptism is only for believers and only underwater, and it will make absolutely no difference to most of them. The baptism doctrine from the Bible means little because they love their ritual. The rituals are their Catholic tradition, their life, and their history. Their view on the subject usually states: “Do not mess up my world by showing me what the Bible says.”
The traditions we observe such as turkey at Thanksgiving or fireworks on the Fourth of July (at least there is some historical reason for that from Francis Scott Key and the War of Independence) are national or family traditions – not mandated or religious. We have traditions of birthday parties, family reunions, Christmas trees, or Easter egg hunts. Some of those traditions trace to heathen origins, but most of us really do not care or force those traditions on others.
When it refers to religion, we need to ask, “Why.” We need to ask why we do what we do because these things are eternal. If the Bible says to not do something, such as the Ten Commandments stating not to bow down before an idol – that matters! God says not to do it, yet half the population of the world has statues and idols they bow before.
If your family has a tradition of making homemade ice cream at Fourth of July, what a great tradition! But if your family has a religious ritual that you bring food and lay it at the feet of a statue, and then bow before that statue, that’s wrong, and it needs to be stopped. It is as disobedient as “thou shall not kill.”
“Why” is a good question to ask. If your pastor or parents are not able to answer the reason why, search somewhere else to find out. If it is a common preference, like chocolate versus vanilla, or a family tradition we do each year around this time, that is wonderful. But when people start adding tradition to religion such as godparents, purgatory, or prayers for the dead, those things need to be stopped. Always ask “why.”
Pastor