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The Allure of Ideology
Christianity was not my first ideology.
My parents are devout, and they raised me to view church like school, home, and the library: one of the fundamental places, with routines that define “normal life.” I believed everything I heard in Sunday school. But an ideology is not just a worldview. As a child, Christianity was not an ideology — it was merely fact. It was exhilarating and terrifying fact, yes, but so was the solar system. So were tornadoes and Siberian tigers and the Middle Ages. As exciting and profound as I may have found each of those, I accepted them all as plain descriptions of features of the physical universe. The Grand Canyon was a real place, not a philosophical proposition. So was Hell.
Then, as an adolescent, I learned about the US’s history of genocide. I decided I wanted nothing more to do with America. Once I started refusing to say the Pledge of Allegiance, my Scout troop kicked me out. Scouting was deeply important to me — the opportunities I had to master outdoor skills, learn small-group leadership, and spend time in nature continue to influence me, decades later. That made getting told to leave feel amazing. I was suffering for my principles — what an ennobling experience! Without even the trouble of actual physical hardship! Later, as an activist, I kept that story in my back pocket, just in case I felt like bragging about how courageous and…