Abler Hannah Section G My Religious/Spiritual Values 1/24/2008 My Religious View of the World Human existence is pitiful. In the history of the world, one life is a mere eye-blink. And, more often than not, that one eye-blink is filled with more pain and sorrow than anything else. Occasionally you stumble upon a lucky duck whose experience of laughter and happiness outweighs his experience with pain and sorrow. The reality of our existence is so depressing when looked at from afar that without something to hope for, without the idea that something better waits us after our life, then living seems meaningless. Religion provides that hope. It gives people a purpose to strive for that extends beyond their own life on earth. And that hope seems to make people feel whole and at peace of mind. As for my religion, I was raised Catholic. However, I no longer associate myself with any religion. I believe that there is a higher power, something beyond us that created the universe in the beginning, but the Catholic Church has just been so violent and unforgiving in the past; its history is practically steeped in the blood of others, others who didn't agree or who stood in their way. That makes it hard to be proud that I was a part of the Church. I still go to Mass occasionally, though, because I love the feeling I get when I am inside a church and when I sing the hymns. As I said before, I do believe in a higher power, but a lot of my views are very much in contrast with the views of the church. For instance, whereas I don't believe that abortion is right, my belief that no one but ourselves should be able to tell us what we can or can't do with our bodies is stronger. I believe that the minute the government is allowed to illegalize abortions, they will start telling us what else we aren't allowed to do to our bodies, making them not our
own, but essentially property of the government. I also believe that if you are a good person and lead a good life, then you will go to heaven whether or not you believe in God. I know that the Bible says otherwise, but obviously once you get there, you are going to believe in God. I believe that everyone truly was created equally and that, therefore, there is no reason for discrimination. don't I think that God sits up there and says "Oh, that's a woman; she's my lesser creation." I believe in equality and inclusion of everyone. That is the main pivotal value that rules my life. It makes me so angry when I see people being left out. I don't think God does leaves people out or behind; I refuse to believe He would. Why would He wish to leave out and be prejudiced against one of His own creations? No one person or event has shaped these beliefs. As far as I can tell, they originated within my mind, but I'm sure that I had inspiration from somewhere. I know that my mom and I share the belief that if you are a good person, you will go to Heaven whether you believe in God or not. And someone will be right there beside those who didn't believe to say: "Told you so." I know that my opinions about abortion and gay marriage/rights do not come from my family or friends because none of them share my view. I few of them share my idea on abortion, but not many. I think that my view on abortion and gay marriage/rights comes from the book 1984 by George Orwell. In the book, the people of Winston's world essentially gave their government allcontrolling powers years ago, and now they live in a world where they aren't allowed to think what they wish, do what they wish, they can't even have sex or get married when they wish. The government has also turned children against parents, effectively destroying the last thing that could've withstood their tyranny. The people in the novel aren't allowed to practice any religion because the government believes that it would seed rebellion. I feel that giving the government
the right to restrict what we can or can't do to our bodies takes us one step closer to that scenario. Religiously, I don't believe that abortion is right and I believe that homosexuality is unnatural. However, my belief in an individual's right to be an individual is far greater. In short, I don't affiliate myself with any one religion, which I guess makes me agnostic, but I do believe that there is a higher power; I see evidence of it everyday. And while I have strong beliefs and convictions, my religious views sometimes bow aside for my other beliefs that I feel are more vital.