Talking of religion

Parents do find interesting names for their children. I have yet to work out why David and Victoria Beckham have called their latest offspring “Harper Seven,” but there it is. One famous girls name that does not make the popularity charts even today when exotic names have made a come back, is Desdemona, the Venetian beauty and lover of Othello in Shakespeare’s play of that name. If you check Desdemona on Google, you will find 3,760,00 results. They range from comments about Shakespeare’s character to books, operas, a ballet tutu, packets of seeds, and baby bids, to a plush panda and iPhone case with “I love Desdemona” emblazoned on them. So I guess there are people who still get named after Othello’s lover, it’s just that I have not met one and no one has owned up on TV. But who, in any case would want a name that comes from the Greek word meaning wretched, and was made famous by someone accused, albeit wrongly, of adultery?

So what got me looking for Desdemona on Google in the first place? Let me be honest with you. I had mistakenly thought that Desdemona came from a different Greek word, namely δεισίδάίμόνίά which means “reverence for the gods.” It is translated as “religion” in the English New Testament where it only appears once, in the story we read today about St. Paul in the Acts of the Apostles [Acts 25:13-22]. So forget about Desdemona and focus on Paul. He had been arrested for preaching about Jesus in public and, as a Roman citizen, had appealed to have his case heard by Caesar. This led governor Festus to consult King Agrippa about what to do. Festus tells the King that he was surprised that those who originally laid the charge against Paul had not come up with any of the usual reasons, “instead they had certain points of disagreement with him about their own religion.”

There are, I must add, two other Greek words that are also translated as “religion” in the NT but they also only occur very seldom. Isn’t that interesting – we think that the Bible is all about religion, yet the word is hardly mentioned at all. I began to think about this after recently revisiting the Department of Religious Studies at UCT where I spent thirty years of my life. For some of that time I tried to help undergraduates understand the meaning of religion, without too much success. The problem is that the word religion is very confusing and can refer to so many different things. To compound the problem the descriptions of and images about religion in the media are mostly confusing and unhelpful, and that’s generally where we get our ideas about the subject. This week there was a report on TV about a radical Muslim group in Britain that wanted to introduce Shariah law in certain parts of the country. This included banning alcohol and stoning adulterers, women adulterers of course! I can well imagine how ordinary good British folk reacted to the news that from now on Shariah law might be imposed in their borough. No more pub lunches I’m afraid, dearie. We are back to the age of the Puritans, but now they are called militant Muslims. The truth is, religion is bad news, to the delight of the media.

Mention religion at a dinner party, and you either start an argument or you get a few glazed looks! People either feel strongly on the subject and eagerly want to express their opinions, or they don’t think it is worth talking about. In any case it is a topic guaranteed to spoil the dinner, destroy friendships, and break up a marriage. Part of the problem is that the word religion, whether in the Greek, Latin or English means different things. It could refer to what we call a religion, like Buddhism or Christianity; it could refer to certain ritual practices or piety; or it could refer to something to which people are truly committed – even playing golf could be deemed a religion in this sense and it sure is for some people. So it’s no wonder the dinner party conversation seems to get nowhere fast when religion is served. And, in the story about Paul read today, it’s not surprising that Festus was perplexed and said to King Agrippa “I haven’t the foggiest clue what these people are raving about!” Or simply “that’s Greek to me, why can’t they speak simple Latin!” This is more or less what someone is bound to say whenever the topic is discussed.

For such reasons I prefer not to use the word religion in speaking about Christian faith, anymore than I like being labelled religious, because that often means being piously other-worldly or even a bigot. I would rather speak about Christianity as a relationship with Jesus Christ, as a way of life, as that which gives meaning to life, enables me to see the things differently, tells me to love others and forgive enemies and while I am at it, participate in the struggle for a more just world. If that is what religion is about, well and good, but for most people it refers to something else – an institution, a set of dogmas, or otherworldly piety. So next time religion rears its head at a dinner party, take a deep breath, offer a sigh or two, wait your turn, and then simply quote one of the minor characters, not Desdemona, in Shakespeare’s Othello: "Oh! Thereby hangs a tale." And be prepared to tell your story along with St. Paul about what your own faith in Jesus means to you. It’s unlikely you will be arrested, unless you live in Saudi Arabia; the worst would be spoiling a good dinner. But maybe the talk about religion would be more worthwhile. Otherwise you may as well be talking about sport or politics. But as judge Denis Davis says on ETV: “You have to decide!”

(John W. de Gruchy is Emeritus Professor of Christian Studies, University of Cape Town and Extraordinary Professor at the University of Stellenbosch. This is a weekly meditation given at the Eucharist service at Volmoed Christian Community Centre, Hermanus.)