3 minute readLast month I wrote about how humans are always worshiping, which includes not only Christians but members of other religions. There I presented an argument from Harold Best that all people were created by God as worshiping creatures who pour themselves out in love, adoration, and gratitude to a chosen or choosing god. The outpouring of worship from religious adherents is unmistakable: Christians sings hymns, Muslims pray the Salah, Jews read the Torah, Buddhists chant mantras. Today, however, I want to unpack another vital implication from this description of worship. Specifically, what about those who claim “none of the above” in terms of religious beliefs, commonly known as “nones”? If people are always worshiping, then do nones still worship even if they espouse no religious faith and usually deny the existence of a deity or any kind of supernatural force?
Perhaps it is surprising that many nones actually engage in overt acts of worship with some behaving more religiously than some self-described Christians. This was the conclusion drawn by a Pew Research study conducted a few years ago. The study highlighted “the fact that whereas only 23 percent of European Christians say they believe in God with absolute certainty, 27 percent of American nones say this.” It would seem many American nones still desire a connection with the supernatural that is expressed through spiritual practices such as singing and praying. Many nones also “crave community, enjoy singing with others, and want to think deeply about morality” as detailed in an article from The Atlantic entitled “Atheists Are Sometimes More Religious Than Christians.” The author, Sigal Samuel, introduces two examples of non-religious people engaging with religion and spirituality akin to religious worship: the Catholic-themed Met Gala in May 2018 and the Oasis Network, a community of atheist churches “which brings together non-believers to sing and learn every Sunday morning.” Although they may not be worshiping a deity or supernatural force, they are nevertheless pouring themselves out into this community to fulfill this deeply human need for connection, belonging, and even a sense of mystical transcendence through recurring ritual.
What about people who are entirely secular? That is, what about those nones who reject any form of religious or spiritual expression in favor of strict rationality and belief only in the natural, physical world? Here I point to James K.A. Smith’s profound book, Desiring the Kingdom. Originally published in 2009 as an academic work, Smith later republished the material for a more general audience in 2016 under the title, You Are What You Love: The Spiritual Power of Habit. There is more in this work than can be unpacked in this short-form piece (I hope to share more ideas in future articles here at The Sacred Humanists), but I want to briefly introduce one of Smith’s key ideas.
Smith argues that human beings, at our core, are not rational beings but desiring beings. Homosapiens are a species of deep emotions, strong passions, and continual desires. We long for things. While we do have an immense capacity to critically think and reason together, humans quite simply are not innately logical creatures like the fictitious Vulcans depicted in Gene Roddenberry’s Star Trek. For humanity what we love is what we worship, and what we worship is what motivates us. What shapes this powerful love and motivation? Our habits. What we do day in and day out both forms and reflects what our hearts’ desire. These habits illuminate what our visions of the good life truly are. In other words, our habits reveal what we love and worship. Therefore, I would argue that for both theists and atheists alike, acts of worship are expressed through our daily habits.
