Life is absurd. Evidence and reason only get you so far before you find yourself staring into the abyss, asking, "What's the point of all this?" That's when you need spiritual training wheels — a prosthesis for meaning, if you will.
I was raised protestant, albeit in a very hands-off manner. For example, my parents gave me the choice of whether I wanted to be baptized or not. I decided against. In this post, I try to examine whether this particular brand of Christianity is a decent prosthesis for navigating life. Disclaimer: I know it is not because I already know I don’t believe in God. So, in the below, I rather look at protestant virtues and see whether they seem like good things to adopt.
Protestant perks
On one hand, protestantism offers some genuinely appealing features (ignoring the whole "Jesus is Lord" thing, which, as an agnostic, I politely decline):
In protestantism, faith is one that people take and feel from within. All that matters is people’s own relationship with “higher divine instances”. This emphasis creates a direct relationship with the divine that bypasses institutional intermediaries. This internalization of spirituality promotes a kind of religious self-reliance that feels authentic — a personal connection where meaning emerges from one's own contemplation rather than being handed down through ecclesiastical hierarchies. There's something simple and democratic in this approach. Spiritual insight isn't reserved for the ordained few but is available to anyone willing to look inward with sincere intention. Quite neat.
The protestant work ethic sees ordinary labor as sacred. It infuses daily tasks with spiritual significance. It sees a path to meaning that doesn't require retreat from the world but rather deeper engagement with it. Protestantism sees transcendence as the integration of the spiritual and the practical — found not by escaping routine but by approaching it with renewed attention. Protestantism transforms mundane work into a form of devotion that connects one to something larger than oneself. Ngl, I find this pretty cool.
The protestant commitment to moderation aims to balance our capacity for indulgence and our need for restraint. Protestant temperance isn't about joyless self-denial but rather about finding the middle path where pleasures remain pleasures precisely because they aren't pursued to excess. There's wisdom in this balanced approach that recognizes how easily enjoyment can transform into compulsion, and how moderation often protects rather than diminishes our capacity for genuine satisfaction. That is the canonical allegro ma non troppo, i.e. “fast but not too much”. Seems important.
Protestant problems
But then there’s a painful flipside.
The tendency toward self-denial often crosses the line from healthy discipline into a suspicion of pleasure that, I think, undermines well-being. It’s an ascetic strain that transforms enjoyment into anxiety rather than appreciation. The implicit message is that anything that feels good must be spiritually suspect — a perspective that not only introduces unnecessary suffering but also seems to reject abundance and joy. This skepticism toward bodily pleasure creates a divided self, where natural desires are treated as alien invaders rather than integral aspects of human experience. This is where allegro ma non troppo becomes non troppo allegro, which means “not so happy”. Me not like.
Now, let’s be honest. Protestant spaces are aesthetically austere. Almost like the architects didn’t finish the inside. But this is emblematic of protestant thought. It reflects its ambivalence about beauty and sensory experience. It strips away ornamentation and ritual and thus doesn’t recognize that human experience is inevitably embodied and responsive to visual and sensory cues. The bare walls and unadorned worship spaces may avoid idolatry, sure, but they also reinforce a problematic mind-body dualism that privileges abstract thought over sensory experience. This sensory minimalism creates environments that can feel emotionally barren, missing opportunities to engage the full range of human faculties in spiritual practice. Can we live fully, please?
Protestant traditions push people towards extreme moral scrutiny. It manifests as a hyperactive conscience that, in my opinion, transforms minor lapses into sources of debilitating guilt. This psychological burden is particularly heavy because it lacks the release mechanism of formal confession and absolution found in other traditions. Instead, the individual is left to wrestle alone with moral anxieties, creating patterns of rumination that can just be psychologically damaging. What began as a liberating direct relationship with the divine can become a harsh internal tribunal where one serves simultaneously as prosecutor, defendant, and judge — a fragmented inner life that makes peace of mind tough. Really tough. Sounds paralyzing imho.
The prosthesis needs multiple theses
So where to go from here? As modern and agnostic spirituality allows, I take a piecemeal approach to protestantism — taking what seems sensible and letting go of what seems harmful or misled. For example, while I appreciate protestant moderation, I fear it may lead people, myself included, to be satisfied with ‘too little’ or even be complacent.
If I take this approach to protestantism, I can do that with other schools of thought. What pieces of islamic, buddhist, daoist, christian and secular currents may contribute to my spiritual jigsaw puzzle? Curious to hear your thoughts!
I plan to consult my dad about this, and possibly write with him about it. Why my dad? He’s the first generation of a Mennonite family (= some protestant extremists!) that was allowed to study what he wanted and travel as he wished. He recently told me that he considers himself deeply spiritual yet not religious. And, what I know about my dad is that he’s still very much protestant in his behavior, proven by his devotion to work. I wonder whether he's found the right balance, seeking allegro ma non troppo — fast but not too much — while avoiding non troppo allegro — that recipe which ditches one's own happiness.
I thank Rébecca Balestra, whose oxymoron chronicle inspired this blog post.
Simply written allowing me to get a good grasp on the values and focuses of Prostestanism that I haven't really understood before. I think where your head is at makes sense and I think its cool you want to talk more with your dad about it.
The older I get there more I come to respect my own father and realise I am similar to him in many ways. I was raised up non-religious so didn't experience this Protestant work ethic. However my dad and his mum always need to be busy doing things, and are people who throughout most my life like to fill their time, a trait which I very much have inherited.
Thanks for the post
As always, I love your brain and clever writing, Max.
I recognised a lot of these values in my own upbringing. I wouldn’t have named these as Protestant values but this is undoubtably their origin. It felt soothing to see them outlined and assessed with such clarity. I think I’ve implicitly assessed them in a similar way but you’ve turned something fuzzy in my head to something much more crisp. Thanks!
It’s ironic how Catholic guilt always gets such a bad rap when, as you say here, Protestantism has its own (maybe much more pernicious, much less acknowledged) dynamics producing guilt.
I don’t think you actually touched more spiritual aspects of Protestantism. I don’t know actually what these are but presumably there are more spiritual things that Protestants do (?) some kinds of prayer (?) Maybe your dad will speak more to this.