Somebody just told me (commanded me actually) that if I don't believe anymore in the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church, I should start attending services of other sectors to prove my belief in God and my worth as a person. In short, I have to pick another church to worship in. No middle, no wiggle room. No grey area, just black and white.
As a self-proclaimed freethinker (I believe in God / higher being, but not in any established religion because I see them as medium and sources of hate, wars, corruption and discrimination) I do not understand the concept of having to have a label attached to your name that you are either Catholic, Christiam, Muslim, Buddhist etc. to be considered as a good, God-loving, God-fearing person. It hurts me to think that other people see me in a different light just because I happen to not believe in the traditions and dogma that comes with established faiths.
Why can't I just live by my principles in peace without people thinking I'm turning into a devil-worshiper because I don't adhere with the rules and customs invented by charismatic people and believed by many? I do not understand how, in this day and age of technology and freedom of expression, people can still be so close-minded to think that there is this unwritten rule that you have to be a follower of a popular religious institution to essentially be considered as a person worthy to enter heaven or any alternative thereof of everlasting life.
This kind of behavior further strengthens my belief that religion in general do more harm than good in the world. Yes, there is the hope that they give, the companionship, the idea that you can just come into this church and everything will be fine. But there are also wars, killings, various acts of violence, discrimination, hate, abuse and outright oppression of basic rights of people.
Imagine, sang John Lennon, a world with no religion. Imagine no suicide bombers, no 9/11, no 7/7, no Crusades, no witch-hunts, no Gunpowder Plot, no Kashmir dispute, no Indo/Pakistan partition, no Israel/Palestine wars, no Serb/Croat/Muslim massacres, no Northern Ireland 'troubles'. Imagine no Taliban blowing up ancient statues, lashing women for showing an inch of skin, or publicly beheading blasphemers and apostates. Imagine no persecutions of the Jews - no Jews to persecute indeed, for without religion they would long ago have intermarried with the surrounding populations.
How many people had their lives taken by some religious act of righteousness or gave up their souls for some higher purpose that involves blowing up a building full of innocent people? How many have been persecuted, discriminated and shunned just because their way of living isn't acceptable based on the faith of the people they are surrounded by?
Now, I believe wholeheartedly in the existence of a higher being, God, deity, absolute spirit, divine entity or whatever you may want to call it. And I know that a lot of people cannot separate the connection between God and religion because, for many, they are ultimately the same. But they are not, and in fact, in my perception, they are eons apart, for one is an ultimate being that transcends reason, science and logic, and the other is an organized belief system created and organized by mere humans to feel more powerful and one with a higher realm. Closer to God, yes, but also closer to becoming one.
I am a dreamer. I dream of a future where there is no hate, no wars based on contradicting beliefs. I know this concept is far from reality, but nothing is ever going to stop me from hoping.
Being alone in my belief (at least based on the people I know personally), all I can do now, is leave you this song by the legend John Lennon. I've never paid much attention to this song before, but have found it instrumental in my argument against religious labels and close-mindedness. With this, I wish the world love, happiness and peace.
Imagine there's no countries
It isn't hard to do
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion too
Imagine all the people
Living life in peace
You may say that I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will live as one
