For many, violence has become a way of life, a rite of passage, a source of spiritual empowerment, a means of moral judgment, and a way of dealing with morbidity and mortality. It is the spirituality of the modern world. It has been accorded the status of a religion, demanding from its devotees an absolute obedience to death. Its followers are not aware, however, that the devotion they pay to violence is a form of religious piety. Violence is so successful as a myth precisely because it does not seem to be mythic in the least.
Violence simply appears to be the nature of things.
It is what works. It is inevitable, the last and, often, the first resort in conflicts. In other words, within this general ethos it can be argues that violence has become a form of religion and spirituality for Americans. To understand the faith community's role requires a different kind of understanding of violence, and the approach to resolution must be holistic, and address the social economic, moral, and spiritual components. Each child is born with an innate potential or promise.