Focus on the user and all else will follow.

Since this post is discussing if religion was to be influenced by one of the "Ten things we know to be true" on google, the easiest number to pick would be the last: Great just isn’t good enough. However, since that is the policy of most western religions these days, I would like to focus more on what flaws I see in the western religions, specifically my own experience in the Lutheran church/WELS congregation.

Google's first "thing we know to be true" is Focus on the user and all else will follow.

 

Since the beginning, we’ve focused on providing the best user experience possible. Whether we’re designing a new Internet browser or a new tweak to the look of the homepage, we take great care to ensure that they will ultimately serve you, rather than our own internal goal or bottom line. Our homepage interface is clear and simple, and pages load instantly. Placement in search results is never sold to anyone, and advertising is not only clearly marked as such, it offers relevant content and is not distracting. And when we build new tools and applications, we believe they should work so well you don’t have to consider how they might have been designed differently.

 

I have mixed feelings about this idea within the context of religion. If religion is to focus solely on the user, then everybody would basically have their own ideas of what religion should be. Which, of course, isn't bad at all. There is a very fine line between where religion is now with this and where it should never go, in my opinion. I feel like every individual has his or her own take on religious practices and what the Bible says; however, this understanding can be taken to do a great deal of harm. Take, for instance, The Westboro Baptist Church. They are undoubtedly the most hated group of people in this country at this moment - using religion as their way to become a hate group. There needs to always be a sense of human dignity that is given to each individual... and for anybody who says that the Bible does not state this respect, maybe you've only read specific parts of the Old Testament. If we actually look throughout history, when religion becomes solely about the user, violence breaks out.

 

However; within the WELS congregation, or specifically the church I attend, there is the opposite problem. Relgion in this instance is not at all about the user; it has nothing to do with who we are as individuals and what we need. My own take on the Bible and Jesus' teachings tends to be quite a bit different than my current pastor's - mostly because I believe gay people have just as many rights as everybody else... and I'm a democrat. But I digress. In my experience, this particular church has become more about money and preaching a political opinion rather than the experience of individualized teachings of the Bible. Afterall, I've always felt that since the Bible was written by man for man, there must be some difference in interpretation... and I also think most religions are the same, just different terms and ways of expressing beliefs... which is also against my current church's doctrine. If this congregation is solely about the user, they would not ex-communicate members for a lack of attending church services.. I would not be receiving condescending letters in the mail asking me if I just "forgot Jesus was my Savior" or if I'm just "too lazy to respect God".

 

An open discussion of religion without this ridiculous sense of "we're right and you're wrong" attitude should, in a perfect world, fix these problems between extremisms. Why can't the Bible be up for indivual interpretation? I don't believe any religion is more right than any other, I just particularly like the teachings of Martin Luther. The true sense of what Luther found was wrong with the Catholic Church has basically resurfaced within the Lutheran Church. There needs to be a return to the balance of the "user" and the doctrine. If not, then I suppose I will just make my appearance at church every so often so I am not ex-communicated and then study what I believe to be the true teachings of the Bible... without taking it out on anybody else. So, what do I think about the context of religion being solely about the user? To each his own.. as long as those particular ideologies do not interfere with another's human rights.