I try not to discuss or bring up religion very much on this blog because it can be such a touchy subject for people. I wouldn't want for someone to decide not to read my blog simply based on my religious beliefs or something like that- but hopefully nobody like that is reading my blog anyways!
I don't believe in one specific religion. I think that whatever anyone believes is true for them. None of that "there is only one path to heaven" or "everyone else must be saved" crap. I would never, ever try to force my beliefs on another person or speak of my beliefs as facts. There is literally no way any of us can actually know anything about god, gods, the afterlife, heaven, hell, or any of that. It upsets me greatly when people act like they know all the answers, or as though all the answers are written all nice-and-tidy in a book. Holy books were written by numerous people and then translated by a whole slew of other people throughout history. There is nothing to prove that they are any more factual than a book of Grimm's fairy tales.
I'm sorry if that offends you- I'm not dissing on the bible or the qu'ran or any other holy texts. They are beautiful works of literature that I'm sure everyone would benefit from reading- in the same way anyone would benefit from reading socrates and descartes.
That said, if someone believes that everything in the bible is true, word for word, then I see no reason that it can't be true for them. Similarly, if someone is an atheist and doesn't believe that there is any type of god or afterlife whatsoever, there's no reason that that can't be true for that person. I don't think we all need to come to a consensus. I don't think there is only one right answer. The right answer is different for every person, and it is whatever makes that person most comfortable and happy to imagine.
I consider myself a sufi. Sufis often consider themselves to be every religion, because they believe (as I do) that there is no one right way. Essentially, sufis believe that there is only one God, and it is the same God in every religion. Also, "God" is seen as more of an entity that is everywhere all the time. He/she/it has many names. I don't want to freak you out with all this stuff so I won't go too much further haha.
Here are a few little tidbits about sufism:
Sufism is the religion of the heart
Sufis follow the path of love, harmony, and beauty
The sufi order I am a part of began in San Francisco in the 70s with a lot of hippies
If you are curious about sufism, you can look it up online. The order I am a part of is called the Ruhaniat.
Lastly, I believe religion should be something that makes you happy and full of love! I've seen far too many people who instead get filled with hate or snobbery or fear. Hate for people who are different, snobbery in thinking everyone else is wrong, and fear that any so-called sinful action could send you "backsliding into hell". This makes no sense to me. If there is a god, I think hesheit would want us to be happy, not fearing for our salvation and certainly not pressuring others into agreeing with us. My religion is the pursuit of happiness, love, clarity, harmony, satisfaction, and beauty, among other things :)
Love,
Em
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