On Religion

***NOTE: if you are going to read this blog post, PLEASE read it all the way through!***

There are a handful of controversial subjects that either people try to steer clear of in their conversations with others or they enthusiastically pursue (there is also a middle category where it depends on the time, place, and people present).  These hot topics range from politics and abortion to homosexuality and religion.

Personally, I usually don’t spout my personal beliefs unless someone specifically asks me (with the exception of close family and friends).  However, I’ve been contemplating writing this article for a while now, and I am going to attempt to tackle the oh-so-touchy subject of religion. 

To give a little bit of background about myself, I grew up in a Christian family where I attended church (mostly a Wesleyan church) and church functions on a pretty regular basis.  Around eighth grade I became really committed to going to youth group and reading/studying my Bible on a daily basis, and I desired to become a “strong Christian”.

I continued to attend youth group and church functions and study The Word steadily until the end of tenth grade/beginning of junior year.  That is when my beliefs began to metamorphosis little by little (it was more like a process that was continually happening over time than like some major, philosophical epiphany).

Currently, I do not consider myself a Christian by its standard definition.

Before anyone mentally judges me and puts me on their prayer list so that I don’t end up in eternal damnation in the fiery pit of hell, please keep reading and hear me out.  Then, after you have seen my views from my perspective, by all means go ahead and judge away (although I think the time you would spend praying for me could be put to much better use…like perhaps donating your time/money to help those in need).

Anyways…getting back on track…I am going to list out some of my personal insights into the concepts of religion and spirituality in order to better explain (to those who desire to know) my current belief system.

(1)   I do not think Christianity is the only way for “salvation”.  I think it is extremely ignorant for people to think that their religion is the only “right” religion and way to think.  First off, I guarantee the majority of religious people out there (and I’m referring mostly to Christians since they make up a vast majority of Americans) do not have a clear understanding what principles and belief systems make up other religious traditions.  How many people have actually read the Koran, the Bhagavad Gita, Buddhist texts, or even the Bible itself?  It’s surprising how few Christians have actually done any real research or reading of their own Christian Bible!  It is even more shocking to me that people can be so assured of their religion even if they do not have any substantial knowledge of any other religious views (and stereotypes do NOT count as substantial knowledge).

 

I don’t think people even think about why they believe what they believe in the first place.  Personally, the main reason I called myself a Christian for most of my life was because I lived in a predominantly Christian country.  My parents are Christians.  I’m surrounded by people who are also Christian.  I was socialized my whole life that Christianity is the only right religion, that the Bible is the Word of God, and that the only way to Heaven is through Jesus Christ.  If I was born into perhaps a predominantly Hindu country, I guarantee I would believe that Hinduism was the only right religion and way of life.

Another fact that I find interesting and I don’t think many Christians seem to realize is that the religion of Christianity has not just always existed.  In fact, Christianity just began roughly 2,000 years ago.  The religions of Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and many others existed long before the birth of modern-day Christianity.   

***SIDE NOTE: modern-day Christianity also looks a whole lot different than the Christianity of 2,000 or even a few hundred years ago.***

(2)   I do not believe the Bible is the Word of God.  Although I DO believe the Bible contains some divine moral truths and has a substantial amount of literary value, I do not think it was written by “God” through the medium of select men. 

During the few years where I was trying to become a “good Christian” and read my Bible adamantly, I would read passages that put a bad taste in my mouth and made me wonder how a loving God could be so cruel and yatta-yatta.  However, I usually pushed these thoughts aside and told myself not to question God and to have faith in His goodness.

When I asked other Christians why some of the Bible passages were so troubling, I got various responses.  Some were very honest and said that they didn’t know, but that it was good to keep questioning.  Others attempted to interpret the passages in any way they could to make God turn out to be always righteous and good and us humans as bad and corrupt.  Both these answers were very unsatisfying, especially the last one.  Oftentimes I felt (pardon my French) that some of the people were trying to pull out any justifications they could from their asses in order to back up their Christian view of God and the Bible, despite what was obviously written in the text.

Also, after reading multiple texts from other religions, I can’t help but notice how incredibly similar the Bible is to other spiritual texts and visa-versa. 

I could (and possibly will) potentially write a whole blog post on just the Old Testament—not to mention the New Testament—alone.  However, this is supposed to be just a semi-brief overview of my personal views, so I won’t go super into detail now.

(3)   There is a big difference between truth/knowledge and beliefs/faith.  I think this is a huge thing many people don’t get.  I personally believe that truth and faith are equally important and should be in balance with each other; however, I also believe it is a huge mistake to equate truth/knowledge WITH faith/beliefs.  Truth/knowledge is something that you can prove and know for complete certainty.  Beliefs/faith is something that you believe/hope to be true, but that you are not completely certain about (NOTE: strong beliefs are [or at least should be] those backed up by or based off of truths). 

It is quite absurd when Christians say they know God exists and that they know the Bible to be true/the Word of God.  They should say they believe that God exists and etcetera. 

Logically, no one can prove that God exists and, consequently, they cannot prove that He does not exist.  This applies to all other religions/belief systems…that is why they are called “beliefs”. 

Because no one knows for certain (although some will argue that they do and, in that case, I would LOVE to hear their hard “evidence”) that their version of a higher power/religious views are the “right” ones, I think it is absolutely absurd and beyond ignorant for a person to think that their belief system is the only way/absolute truth.

Unfortunately, a vast majority of people have this mindset, and that is why many of the world’s wars and conflicts have been based off of people’s conflicting religious views. 

(4)   Religion can be a very good thing!  I don’t want people to get the false idea that I am some religion-hater/angry-at-God/hard-core-atheist (I don’t really consider myself anything besides “spiritual”.  Labels are very over-rated and I don’t think I really fit into any box anyways).  I am open to nearly all religions (okay, perhaps not something like Satanism or religions where they accept human-sacrificing and that type of thing….) and am willing to participate in a variety of religious activities regardless of the religion (like attending a church/synagogue/mosque/temple/etc.) and learning more about the proponents that make up that belief system.

I believe that religion can be a very positive thing for it gives people a collective value system to follow and a deep sense of community and connectedness to fellow human beings. 

The only problem I have when it comes to certain religious people is their unwillingness to be accepting and open to other people’s beliefs.  I’m not saying there are not certain inalienable and fundamental morals that everyone should follow, for I personally believe there are, however, people have the right to differentiate in their personal beliefs.

People are going to have different views on issues like “what happens after death”, and you know what?  That’s perfectly okay!  That doesn’t mean they’re right (or wrong), and it doesn’t mean that your beliefs are right (or wrong) either.  That’s the beauty of beliefs; everyone has different perspectives on the fundamental life questions like “what happens when we die”.  If you get upset/offended over someone who has contrasting religious views than you and feel the need to “convert” them to your religion and mindset, then you are just going to live a very sheltered, possibly miserable life believing that everyone who isn’t of your faith is going to suffer eternal damnation.  

(5)   I admit that I do not know…and that is okay!  It may come as a shock, but I don’t actually know everything (although I probably will never admit this to my mother!).  I am still growing in my knowledge about religion and spirituality, and my belief system is growing with it.  The exciting thing is that I will continue to grow my entire life.  As I become more knowledgeable (and hopefully wise) and I have more life experiences, some of my beliefs and views (with the exception of fundamental values) will more than likely expand and change too. 

As for the whole matter of what I actually believe in concerning a higher power, supernatural beings, and the afterlife/salvation, my overall belief is that it does not matter what I believe.  Regardless of whether I believe in a monotheistic God (I do happen to believe in a “higher power”/divine purpose for life), whether there are in fact supernatural creatures like demons and angels, and whether I believe in a Heaven or Hell...if such things do actually exist (or other religious versions of these things), they will exist whether I believe in them or not.  Believing in something does not make it so and likewise with not believing in something.

Overall, I think it is important to grasp the concept that we are all sensitive, mortal beings trying our best to make sense of the world and to reassure ourselves of what happens after death in order to have more security and avoid the fear of the unknown.  This is why I believe religion has the potential to be a very powerful and positive force in people’s lives. 

 

The fear of the unknown and our attempts to make sense of it is the one thing that connects all of humanity together.  This in turn allows for us to be able to better relate with other fellow human beings and have a sense of love and empathy for one another.

*I am pretty sure I could write a whole book on my views concerning religion and philosophy, but for the sake of everyone reading this blog, I will cease rambling on now.

**John Green, author of “A Fault in Our Stars”, and his brother Hank post some very insightful YouTube videos on their vlog the Vlogbrothers ranging in topics from book reviews and politics to religion and theology.  Below are some of their videos on religion I found very insightful.  I HIGHLY recommend checking them out along with some of their other videos!