[3rdEye]

Already witnessed in this thread, there are several possible meanings of "religious". It is often used in a derogatory sense, as a bad word, both by Christians and secularists. One way of being negative to it from a faith perspective, that we have seen a glimpse of here, reminded me of what Pentecostals, Baptists and other Christians have said to me. There is a point to it, but I see it as something that comes down to different levels. Most importantly, there is of course a difference between believing strongly and just joining like you would join the local football club. On another level I think it has something to do with an unwillingness to conform to common sense vocabulary, which in itself could come down to different levels. One of them is the general unwillingness of being defined by an outsider, but it doesn't stop there. For example, there is a resentment against the relativism that is implied by the term for a class of religions, where Christianity is just one out of many. I must say that this resentment comes with its problems, which is also illustrated by the inclusivist approach of Karl Rahner. Is it really possible to respect other faiths - and other ethnicities where other faiths are involved - with this approach? It is a brand of supremacism, where God is used as an alibi for it.