ANNANDALE-ON-HUDSON, New York — It has become fashionable in certain smart circles to regard atheism as a sign of superior education, of a more highly evolved civilization, of enlightenment.
Recent best-sellers suggest that religious faith is really a sign of backwardness, the mark of primitives stuck in the dark ages who are yet to catch up with scientific reason. Religion, we are told, is responsible for violence, oppression, poverty and many other ills.
It is not difficult to find examples to back up such assertions. But can religion also be a force for good? Indeed, are there cases where religious faith comes to the rescue even of those who don't have it?