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Oh my Gods
By Vanessa Durand, Staff Writer
Religion has always been a fundamental building block that relates
to each individual. Finding oneself is tough enough, and religion
plays a crucial role in many of the lives of those who are still
soul searching. Many people choose to conform to an organized
religion which may work for their particular mindset and background,
yet others are still questioning whether the morals they were born
into most certainly fit their personalities and curiosity or not. I
myself being born into a Catholic household find it difficult to
believe in one faith alone and adapt to the traditional mentality of
those that practice Catholicism. Being a teenager is nearly
synonymous with the word exploration, thus why not broaden one's
horizons and search for other religious expressions? Is there a
faith that can very well measure up to your standards of living?
I find it boring to simply join the
majority of the world in praising one God, one set of rules, and one
belief system concerning life and death. For me, I have decided to
pick and choose various teachings from many different religions that
fit the different opinions I have concerning the world. For
example, I believe that there is one superior God, Jesus Christ, yet
I am polytheistic. Since this works for me, I do believe that no
gods that may exist would object to this. This may seem
contradictory, but only from a closed-minded point of view would it
be true. Organized religion, I believe, tends to shut its mind to
so many possibilities and considers all others to be inferior. It is
essential for the adventurous to break out of their comfort zones
and seek all truth, not just particular truth.
Picking and choosing is definitely
not for everybody, and many even see this as absurd. But following
one's heart is much more important than grasping to something that
one may be uncertain about. I believe that Buddhism, for example, is
equipped with some of the most beautiful teaching such as respecting
all life. Heaven and Hell are conventionally accepted subjects yet
I believe in neither. I like to believe that people should not
merely live their lives according to rules, commandments, or strict
beliefs in order to hope to be in a safe place after death.
Reincarnation sounds much more exciting. In this belief, if one's
time on earth is terminated but their time in the universe is still
needed, one lives another life in another body to fulfill the duties
God wants them to complete. Therefore useful and positive energy is
in a way, recycled. Judaism, Christianity, and Islam teach the
importance of respect, peace and faith, and that God will reward
those who follow these loving steps in the path of life. Catholicism
fits into my personalized religion as well. The Virgin Mary and
various saints that Catholicism is based upon plays a crucial role
in life. Some of the 10 commandments that Christianity instills are
essential when forming strong moral. The many demigods of the Hindu
religion are beautiful spirits that aid in the specific and
individual prayers. They may answer according to the different
questions concerning life.
For now, this is a bit of what I have
found and chosen to believe in, and if this sparks slight interest
or opens a closed mind, the opinion that I have spoken of will be
worth the explanation. Knowledge is power so seek new truth.
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