Michelle posted on how she felt a lot of folks' interest in religion was more ceremonial, and less substantial. It becomes something you do out of necessity, rather than a heartfelt commitment or belief.

When I was reading Bellah's article, I was amazed by some of the things he was putting forth. I don't know that I'd agree with all of the tenets of the American civil religion as he saw it, but I was quite amazed to see how easy it was for me to endorse a lot of the things that are implicit in the tradition.

And it makes me wonder: why can certain people tap into it to move people, and why can others not? What makes a "prophet" like Lincoln or M.L. King, Jr.? One might say that it's due to circumstances, and I won't totally disagree with that, but we have our fair share of causes that we need people to get behind. Is all that is required a charismatic leader? I doubt it. But it's something I wonder about, particularly given the evils that still pervade our world and country now.