From the newsletter ...

20 years after his death, John Lennon's song has been pronounced the best ever No.1 single. An admirer of Lennon's songs myself, I have to confess that this seems to me to be one of his most simplistic and I'm surprised at its continuing popularity.

However, good song or not, is it a sensible idea to "imagine there's no heaven"? Given Lennon's limited track record as a prophet (he's the man who announced in 1972 "Happy Christmas - War is Over") it might seem strange to take him too seriously. But more and more of us are turning our backs on all forms of religion and adopting the materialistic view encouraged by Lennon.

Does this result in the gentle happiness that Lennon suggests in his song? Recent statistics point to a rise in depression (1 in 4 of us will become depressed in our lifetime); we have an epidemic of stress; violent crime appears to be on the increase and there is evidence of widespread dependence on alcohol and so-called recreational drugs. These are hardly the indicators of a society at ease with itself.

There is also increasing concern at the contemptuous way In which we treat other human beings; the bodies of the dead are unceremoniously dumped on the floor of an unrefrigerated hospital chapel; scientists propose to create embryos solely to grow replacement cells for failing bodies; babies are bought and sold on the Internet. Little evidence here for the inherent dignity of the human being reflected in Lennon's song.

I wonder to what extent the adoption of a materialistic world view underlies these developments? Of course, it would be foolish to suggest that religion does not have its downside too. There are plenty of examples of bigotry, jealousy and downright evil perpetrated in the name of religious belief. But are we risking throwing out the baby with the bath water?

As a sociologist, I note that the majority of societies in the past have been knit together by a religious view of the world that provides a framework of meaning that lifts our eyes from the narrow pursuit of our own interests to the concerns of others. Maybe religion is an essential part of a truly human way of life.

Of course, as a Christian, I want to go much further than that and say that such a religious world view is not just necessary but true, and all the more necessary because it is true. As the Psalmist put it:

Now that's worth imagining!

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© 2001; Published in Cogges Parish monthly newsletter, number 259, February 2001