Victory Soap v. 2.0

The shock of the secular elite over the idea that Christian saints -- and any other members of that faith -- can ever feel doubt or pain is based, I am sure, on the common misconception that religious faith is kind of a cure-all for life's problems. Most of us -- whether we are Catholic, Protestant, or neither -- have bought into the idea that if you proclaim yourself to be a Christian then that means you should always be a grinning maniac of good cheer, or you're a hypocrite. Even atheists believe this -- witness Christopher Hitchens' gleeful "I told you so." A lot of Christians seem to believe this as well, unfortunately -- their clownlike turned-up-to-eleven happiness has certainly turned me off going to their giant video churches.

The idea that believing in God won't make everything "all right" in our personal lives strikes right to the heart of our belief in our own ability to conquer nature. Too many people approach God as if believing in Him will make Him our buddy -- "Me 'n' God, Best Friends Forever!" Then the light bill comes, or the car breaks down, and you're wondering why life still sucks. "But I prayed and everything!" It doesn't work that way -- God, if He exists, surely isn't a being on the level of a teenage crush or a sugar daddy.

(Via The Anchoress.)