For as long as I can remember, I have not been a fan of organized religion. It just seems to me there are better, more important things to focus on.
From early on in childhood, I remember having religion crammed down my throat. Every church we went to, a new religion. Every new religion, the same message; believe our way or you are going to Hell. Eventually, the result was that the message lost its impact and meaning to me. What is Hell anyhow, and why is it such a bad place? Do I really even believe in Hell? Why do we need religion? Does religion suite me?
Even at eight or nine years old, I questioned these things. By the time I was twelve, my Mom stopped forcing me to go to church. She realized that I followed more closely to my Dad's philosophy of religion than hers.
My Dad, always a thinker, believed that it was impossible to know for sure if there was one true religion, therefore he subscribed to one. He was more a spiritual person than religious, and that suited him just fine. I, however, still wasn't sure if I believed there was even a possibility of a "true" religion or anything beyond what we know in life on Earth, so I continued my search.
As I have searched and searched, I have run into many that claim to be "good Christians" yet none of which seem to truly stand for what Christianity means. They all say one thing and yet do another. They use the Bible to their advantage, pointing out others sins and misdeeds, yet disregard any part of the Bible that doesn't suite their current need. It is this sort of hypocrisy that has led to my dislike for the Christian faith. It is true that not ALL Christians are like this, but many are. Why do they feel the need to berate anyone whose beliefs differ, even slightly, from their own?
Religion, by definition, is a cult. If you don't believe this, you can easily find it in the Merriam-Webster dictionary Online, which states: Cult: Noun 1: formal religious veneration : worship 2: a system of religious beliefs and ritual; also
: its body of adherents 3: a religion regarded as unorthodox or spurious; also
: its body of adherents 4: a system for the cure of disease based on dogma set forth by its promulgator <health cults> 5 a: great devotion to a person, idea, object, movement, or work (as a film or book); especially
: such devotion regarded as a literary or intellectual fad b: the object of such devotion c: a usually small group of people characterized by such devotion.
Now, I'm not sure how many of you were raised, but I was raised to believe that cults are wrong. The same person that taught me this, however, was a Christian and reformed Catholic. Does that not tell you that Religion, or at least Organized Religion, is a bad thing? Think about what religion has caused. We hate people, without knowing them, due to their religion. We fight "holy wars" due to religion (which is truly a contradictory term, since when is war holy?). We kill innocent people in the name of "God" or "Allah" or whatever name that particular religion gives their savior. Instead of religion bringing about peace and hope, it brings about hatred, war and segregation.
Catholicism is yet another one of my pet peeves. You are telling me that you can pay to have your sins forgiven, with cash? You are honestly saying that some old guy goes into a little room and "GOD" speaks to him and only him. Yeah, I think he is schizoidphrenic if he is hearing voices, or possibly he has MPD (Multiple-Personality disorder). Why would "God almighty" only choose men to send his message to? Does that mean that women are nothing in the eyes of God? Did not God create woman from man's rib and man from dirt? Wouldn't that make woman superior? She is created from something of substance.
Now, as for the Bible, this book upon which all things are based, has anyone ever bothered to research the Bible and its origins? No. No one seems to want to take a historical look at the Bible, the fact that it was written, edited, rewritten, edited, and changed many times over by man to meet his needs. I honestly believe that any true merit there may have been in the Bible is long since gone. The Bible is strictly a work of literature, nothing more, and nothing less. Yes, I do believe in the whole "Thou shall not kill" deal, but that is common sense and there are circumstances where it is warranted. People need to wake up and realize that the Bible is NOT meant to cause wars and problems within the human race.
However, everyone is entitled to their beliefs, so as long as they don't shove their religious views down my throat, I won't shove mine down theirs.
