Religion: the big bad word

Religion seems to have gotten a bad name as of late. I have listened to a lot of K-love over the last week, and heard a commercial for a website www.NotReligion.com. The catch phrase of the day, as quoted on the NotReligion.com website, is "It's not about Religion--It's about Relationship." I pose this question to any and all: What is so wrong with religion?

religion ( P ) Pronunciation Key (r-ljn)
n.

1. 1. Belief in and reverence for a supernatural power or powers regarded as creator and governor of the universe.
   2. A personal or institutionalized system grounded in such belief and worship.
2. The life or condition of a person in a religious order.
3. A set of beliefs, values, and practices based on the teachings of a spiritual leader.
4. A cause, principle, or activity pursued with zeal or conscientious devotion.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

I have provided a definition of Religion from dictionary.com above, and I tell you, doesn't sound so bad to me. I have a "belief in and reverence for a supernatural power [...] regarded as Creator and Governor of the universe." In addition to that I hold"a set of beliefs, values, and practices based on the teachings of a spiritual leader," namely Jesus Christ our Lord. Belief and action. Any of those parts of the definition seem to fit.

James the brother of Jesus wrote "If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless. Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." (James 1:26-27.)

But if someone holds the catch phrase of the day "relationship, not religion" how can they understand what James has written? We cripple their understanding. As James points out there is good religion and bad religion. Religion and relationship is not either/or but both/and. They are not mutually exclusive.

James goes on to write in chapter 2:14-18 "What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, "Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed," but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.

But someone will say, "You have faith; I have deeds."
Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do."

You cannot have a real relationship with Jesus that is not accompanied by works. But that is what Religion vs. Relationship seems to pair against each other, and what James addresses.

I understand that the word "religion" has recieved a bad connotation, and brings to mind irrational actions by fanatics, or any other myriad of other notions. But what are we to do when something recieves a bad connotation. Scrap it? The word "Baptist" has a bad connotation to some, and so many churches now sport "Community Church" on their signs, jettisoning baptist altogether. What if the word "Christian" recieves a bad connotation. Will we stop calling ourselves Christians? (In fact for many it does have a bad connotation...started out as an insult!)

No. We correct the connotation. Teach. Anything else just confuses the issues.