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- Subscribe - Contact Us - Rate Card - Place an Ad Archives Revels Classifieds Real Estate Menu Guide Wedding Weather Subscribe Contact Us October 8, 2005 Author brings his beefs with religion to Ashland By Alan Panebaker Tidings Correspondent A self-proclaimed freelance mystic, Steve Scholl takes religion very seriously. And he should. It is his livelihood, and taking on the modern religious right is his modern-day crusade. And he will spread the word of skepticism today in a lecture called “Why the Religious Right is Absolutely Wrong … Relatively Speaking” at Saturday 7:30 p.m. at the Ashland Unitarian Church. Scholl will also put on a workshop Sunday from 1 to 4:30 p.m. “While I chose the provocative title, I want people to know that this is not a rant against the religious right,” Scholl said. Instead, Scholl wants to analyze the current status of the religious right in modern America and how their influence in politics is changing the world. “The fact that religion has been captured by the right is a skewed point of view,” Scholl said. This scholar of religion who claims none himself blames part of this point of view on the play conservative Christians get in the media lately. Scholl said there are not any more members of the religious right these days than there have always been, but through the modern Republican party and fooling the press, conservatives have managed to convince the world that all of America is dominated by conservatives. “The press has been lazy about this and doesn’t do its homework,” Scholl said. “Where on the other hand, the Christian right is very smart with the media.” Scholl even goes as far as to call the religious right in the Republican Party a fear-based group that uses the party as a “bully pulpit.” But he said he is not afraid of them because he sees them as a “fear-based response to modernity.” Through Scholl’s studies in religion at the University of Oregon and McGill University in Montreal and his editing work with White Cloud Press — an interfaith publishing company he started — he said he has yet to find one religion that is absolutely right. Thus, Scholl talks pluralism — the theory that no one has all the right answers. “Diverse religious viewpoints have to be embraced in a way where we can have civil debate,” Scholl said. Luke Frechette, an associate pastor at the Ashland Christian Fellowship and manager of the Upper Room Coffeehouse and Bookstore, said he dabbles in civil debate but his path is led strictly through the scriptures in the Christian Bible. “Pluralism opens up a can of worms for anybody to create their own religion,” Frechette said. He used the analogy of a lock with multiple keys working for it thus rendering it useless. For Frechette, believing in more than one belief system only confuses and complicates people. “The way I see it God made it our way on purpose for our sake,” Frechette said. “It’s easier to pick one religion rather than 10. See, God didn’t want anyone to get confused or led astray.” But while Scholl is skeptical of religious fanatics, and Frechette is hesitant about folks who believe in plurality. They may have more in common than they think. For example, Frechette said his church does not allow any political agendas in church, and Scholl applauds local churches for creating a sense of community that plays a pivotal part in people’s lives. At the least, Robert Semes — executive director of the Jefferson Center for Religion and Philosophy (Scholl’s lecture and workshop sponsor) — hopes some provocative and intelligent conversation arise from this weekend’s religious analysis. “We hope it will raise consciousness about issues,” Semes said. “We’re always hopeful that people’s minds will be opened and refreshed.” For more information about Scholl’s lecture, visit www.thejeffcenter.org. Tickets for today’s lecture are $10, and workshop tickets are $30 each. DailyTidings.com Home Page Archives | Revels | Classifieds | Real Estate Guide | Weather | Subscribe | Contact Us Copyright 2005 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers All Rights Reserved Deep Muscle Stimulator Ceramic Piggy Banks FREE Entertainment Guide Women's & Men's Slippers Accelerate Weightloss Products Backpacks Generic Viagra Vegas Travel Guide Search Engine Optimization Sportsbook Absinthe Supply Student Loans Hotel & Airline Reservations African Safari Hammocks Helzberg Diamonds Online Casinos Community Bonus Casino King of Spirits ink cartridges Mortgage Calculator Security Systems Mailing Lists Click Here Advertisement .:Advertisements:. Site Search: RESOURCES - Mail Tribune News - ODOT Road Cams