 I
want to give a big Happy Birthday shout-out to Sir Elton
John -- honestly, you don't look a day over 70 (well, maybe
78). I guess my invitation was lost in the mail, but Elton
threw himself a little party last weekend inside the
Cathedral of St. John the Divine right here in Manhattan.
Unfortunately, there were so many people that he had to
remove all the church pews, turn the altar into a stage, and
bring in over 1,000 bottles of champagne to keep over 400
guests, like Rod Stewart, Elizabeth Hurley and Donatella
Versace, nice and liquored up.
But Elton wasn't satisfied with just one night of
sacrilege. On Sunday he performed at Madison Square Garden
with an image of a burning church playing behind him. Now, I
know you're thinking: "but Glenn, isn't Elton John the guy
who said he would ban all religion because it turns people
into hateful lemmings?" Uh huh. But c'mon -- he's got lots
of cash! If he wants to drop a few mil to desecrate a
church, then hey--who are we to judge, right?
Wrong. The Real Story is that if we don't stand up and say
enough is enough, our religions will continue to rip
themselves apart until there's nothing left. If I were a
member of St. John the Divine I would be absolutely
outraged; how dare you sell out my sanctuary for profit.
There is an epic battle being fought inside our churches
right now. It's the traditional vs. the new; it's the
"bible is literally the word of god" people vs. the "bible-schmible,
I can pray from my lazy-boy people."
In just over a decade, weekly church attendance has dropped
by over 12 percent, representing millions of people. In the
last 25 years the number of people who say they have no
religious preference has doubled.
The churches feel those numbers every Sunday as they look
out at their empty pews and, like any business, they're
trying to adjust. But religion isn't a business and when you
try to make religion "fun for everyone" you end up making it
spiritually fulfilling for no one.
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