Comment

Rifqa Bary and the Religious Right

38
Guanxi889/30/2009 4:41:35 pm PDT

I think we expose ourselves to a real danger by ridiculing their modes of prayer. There are many faiths with profoundly ‘enthusiastic’ practices, and few of them catch the flak that these “spiritual language’ prayers do.

I’m not a Christian, nor was I raised one, but was raised in proximity to a sect of ecstatic mystics known as “The Church of G-d with Signs and Wonders”, a/k/a “snakehandlers,” and while one can make sport of them (channeling Karl from Slingblade) doing so overlooks the profoundly interesting aspects of it.

This sort of glossolalic prayer is not unheard of, and is not necessarily a sign of whackiness. In short, I worry more about their politics and respect for the rule of law than I do their unorthodox prayers.