When you say: "Religion", I think you mean idolatry and hypocrisy.

When did religion become a bad word?

I hear "religious people" being talked about like criminals and "religion" being something to avoid at all costs.

This topic makes me feel like a mother that just caught someone bullying my child on the playground.


James 1:27 Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.

If the church is trying to avoid religion...they are doing a pretty good job. I don't know anyone that visits orphans and widows.

Roots of the word religious :
1 : relating to or manifesting faithful devotion to an acknowledged ultimate reality or deity a religious person religious attitudes
2 : of, relating to, or devoted to religious beliefs or observances joined a religious order
3 a : scrupulously and conscientiously faithful
b : fervent, zealous
This definition is from this website:https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/religious

The definitions make me want to be MORE religious. More fervent in prayer, more zealous about the gospel! Faithful devotion, conscientiously faithful, yes yes yes. Observances joined in a religious order:that would be every person in the world. We all religiously eat, go to work, sleep, shower. Christians religiously celebrate holidays and follow a religious order every Sunday at church. Worship, offering, announcements, sermon, communion.

WHY IS THIS WORD BEING THROWN AROUND LIKE IT'S BAD!?

Here is the reference for the definition of the word "religion":https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/religion

More beautiful words that remind me very much of the word passion! Faithful devotion? Service and worship of GOD. YES.


I believe there are two reasons that modern day humanity and Christians do not like this word:

#1: It's obligating and requires discipline and submission.
The church is called to be a spotless bride.

#2 It cramps their "freedom". This current is a generation that wants to do whatever, whenever and however they want. Really that is the purest form of the sinful man without Christ. We see children defying their parents, parents not disciplining, and people doing whatever they want. NO RULES. I can be whatever gender I want, have any sexual preference and I have the grounds to defend myself. Because I exist. That's it.

The gospel is about freedom from the bounds of SIN. Instead we are bound to CHRIST. The Bible refers to us being a BODY, the body is bound together. The Bible refers to us a being a BRIDE, a bride is bound by covenant to her groom! We are children of God, one of the 10 commandments is children obey your parents for your inheritance. It is not a coincidence that God uses this image of Himself as FATHER,

#3 They don't know what it really means.
The religious people in the Bible that were sinful, were hypocrites and idolitors. Religion becomes sin when routines become idols and we do not live out our faith. So imagine this: I want to be more religious, so I devote myself to prayer and Bible reading every morning, no matter what. Eventually I read and pray on my front porch so my neighbors can see me. Soon I'm reading and praying robotically and the Word is not being applied to my life, my prayers are empty and I don't listen for God to speak to my heart. These things become things I check off on a list and then brag about later or use to defend my integrity in an argument. THIS was the sin of the Pharisees in the Bible. Instead of adopting the humility that comes with being a servant bound to Jesus, they become proud and elevate themselves because of their religious activities and accomplishments.

The definition of devotion is so similar to that of religion: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/devotion

a : religious fervor : piety
b : an act of prayer or private worship —usually used in plural during his morning devotions
c : a religious exercise or practice other than the regular corporate (see corporate 2) worship of a congregation
2 a : the act of dedicating something to a cause, enterprise, or activity : the act of devoting the devotion of a great deal of time and energy
b : the fact or state of being ardently dedicated and loyal her devotion to the cause filial devotion

Here something scary, if you look up the opposite of being religious, here's what you get:
Antonyms for religious
evil
immoral
irreligious
irreverent
sinful
unholy
unsacred
vile
wicked
agnostic
atheistic
careless
erring
indolent
lazy
undetailed
ungodly

I think I would rather be accused of being religious than being accused of being any of these things!