WHO IS RELIGIOUS?

A minister said, “I never see her in church.  She is not religious.” 

The Gadfly asked, “Who is religious?  Is it the one who is afraid to see the world through anything but stained glass?  Or perhaps it is the pious pew-dweller who fondles Bibles like a lost soul caressing the paper bag, which contains his fermented solace?  Or shall we deem religious those who claim familiarity with church, yet are strangers to love?  I tell you it is only those, whose hearts are open to love and the wonder of life, who have entered into the sacred temple.  Church is like a doormat to the sacred.  One can stand on the mat without entering the temple of life.  But what use are doormats to those for whom the spirit of life has become their own breath?  Who is religious?  To know this you must look into the temple, which is made of heart, and has love written upon its altar.  For the temple which is made of stone and has words written upon its sacred pages is empty, except for the life that people bring to it.”