In my last blog, I explained that I do not favour any of the three areas. Now some people may wonder why. The reason is because there is a big distinction between religion and faith. Between these two, I favour faith!
Being religious does not necessarily mean having great faith. In fact, for many people religion can take different forms depending on what one's core belief is. However, this does not necessarily mean "supernatural." As it is, some people may have physical and material objects as their object of worship as one famous TV personality says, "Money is my god, I worship it." This is not to be equated to faith in the supernatural, that which is beyond the physical.
In a sense, one's religion could be a thing, an activity or the likes. It is important to note that religion does not exclude faith, but there can be religion without faith in the supernatural as in the case of making a cause one's religion. Such cause may include fighting for equality for all, fighting to eliminate racism, and other forms of injustice. In this case, religion is placed on the realm of sets of ethics to guide one's life.
Christian faith goes beyond mere belief. It is all about relationship between humans and God as well as how humans relate with each other and all of creation. In this, ethical codes are not the core injunctions. In fact, the Ten Commandments are there to guide people, but to be able to attain their true meaning, relationship with the Divine comes first. That is why Christ invited his followers to relationship with him, to learn from him, and then to go out into the world and make disciples.
So, reality for people who claim to be religious may differ - one may be purely materialistic and physical, while the other may be supernatural. Society as an entity ought to recognize that people's core belief needs to be respected and not stiffled. While most people will not necessarily believe in the same manner, it is important that we all realize that what unites us is much more than that which divides. There is need for more conversation so that each side may understand where the other is coming from. Who knows what the result may be - conversion due to better understanding.
Please let me know what you think. I am open to conversations.
I like to think of myself as a Christian. But what I believe as a Christian is different from what others believe. Not to judge those whom I don't know but to accept there is good in everyone. To help others all others not just ones that are Catholic. When God created man he created us equal but different. I do not see color of skin I see a person. What I lack in myself my neighbour may have. I maybe wrong on how to live as a Christian.
ReplyDeleteI agree. We are all called to help each other and love one another as God loves us for he gave his only son. We are all one.
ReplyDelete