Enter
tribalism, you’re going to lower
the boom on Google, even if Easter
isn’t somehow implicated.
But it’s a pity that the Doodle
Rage has, in this instance, accorded Google more power in the
public sphere than it actually has.
Google is, God knows, a powerful corporation. I’ve no doubt that
there are people on its campus
with messianic pretensions. But
the company isn’t a countervailing force, rising in opposition to
religion, any more than the Target
checkout clerks at Christmastime.
And it’s deeply weird to suggest
that Google is. The whole concept
of “faith” involves a firm, indefatigable belief in matters beyond the
material sphere. And faith communities give those faith muscles
regular workouts, by offering adherents the opportunity to pursue
rigorous spiritual contemplation,
participate in meaningful sacraments and traditions, and participate in fun and rewarding fellowship with other believers. The
bottom line, I think, is that when
you invest in these practices, it’s
supposed to prevent you from
completely falling to pieces when
fate occasions a moment where
you do not receive immediate,
perfect validation of your beliefs.
LOOKING FORWARD
IN ANGST
HUFFINGTON
04.07.13
Look, Cesar Chavez was about
as perfect a human being as the
rest of us, which is to say, not at
all. His embrace of the Marcos regime in the Philippines caused a rift
within the United Farm Workers
Organizing Committee, and latterday immigration reformers may not
find his legacy entirely suited to the
forging of alliances. Nevertheless,
at the root of Chavez’s career as