Arontius of Bygelswade

.....In the liberal bastian that is Western Washington, little Kitsap County is something of a hold back in many ways. We have a rather isolated economy with all the military bases here. With what we do here it is not surprising that we are a predominantly blue collar, conservative, 'redneck' group of people. Us liberals mingle with them, but know that we are not REALLY one of them. :-)

.....Yesterday I was reminded that I am one of a rather smaller group of people here. :-)

.....When I started work at the Shipyard some twenty-one years ago now, the place was far more conservative than it is now. I spent some time as an apprentice in the machine shop, which is a HUGE structure with maybe a thousand people (especially then) working to shape metal. I vividly remember many times when I would walk the place during the lunch hour and listen to the dozen or so Bible study groups reading and discussing their favorite passages from the bible.

.....Things aren't quite as explicit these days (you don't see the study groups as overtly anymore), but an advertisement prominently displayed on the local bulletin board caught me by surprise. It was entitled, 'A Creation Seminar - Is the earth really billions of years old?'. I stopped and read it as I was intrigued. The next paragraph was rather interesting, "Many people believe evolution is a proven fact. Nothing could be further from the truth! In these exciting, informative, factual, and hands-on seminars, the Christian's faith will be strengthened, and the non-believer will be challenged to reconsider his position."

.....I'm tempted to go just to see if my personal position on evolution is challenged. Hmmm, naw, probably not. :-) But as I thought about it I realized that this wasn't really an anomaly as 'Prayer Breakfasts' and other religious gatherings, officially sanctioned, were still happening. They may not be AS prominent as they used to be, but are still rather prevalent.

.....My own brand of religion has mellowed over the years. I was heavily into alternative forms some couple of decades ago. I'm rather proud of the fact that I've at least listened to every viewpoint, from Pentecostal to Indian Guru to atheist. I think that there are many paths to essentially the same place.

.....I am still surprised sometimes when reminded that main stream Christianity is still the predominant religion, and as a religion, they don't like competition. :-)

.....Aaron.