I’m not a fan of having to pay a religious “price” for receiving services, either. But just to play devil’s (yikes! no offense!) advocate for a minute … I currently volunteer with a nonreligious organization that sometimes shares space with a very religious organization. The preacher comes in, does a little pep talk, gives away some stuff, then prays with people in a way that puts pretty high pressure on them to participate.
So, in my opinion, ick to the high-pressure prayers at the end — but the fact is, his pep talk is fantastic, a much better morale builder than we’re able to offer, partly because he’s bilingual and has a lot of charisma (compared to, for example, me, who has fractured Spanish and 0 charisma). These people (brand-new asylum seekers just let go by the US govt) have been through hell, and he makes them feel (I imagine) like they’re back in normal life, and valued, and able to laugh a bit. From prisoners towing a line to audience members being entertained, for a moment.
So, I know that using your services to push your religion is optional — not all religious service groups do that — and personally I’m strongly opposed — but here’s one guy doing a thing I really, really disapprove of, and at the same time he seems to be doing a lot of good.
So go figure. You don’t see a lot of Atheist Disaster Services or Secular Humanist Charities groups out there, for whatever reason. Sometimes you have to take the “ick” with the “sweet!” Life can be a tangle that way.
^^I would not want to push this idea too far, just to get it on the table as one piece of the puzzle.
