A Touchy Subject...

Since it is Good Friday and Easter is on the way, I've been thinking alot about faith and what it actually means to society and more so, what it means to me.

I was raised a Catholic, went to catholic schools and still attend church on religious holidays. But just like most teenagers, you go through the phase where you reject everything you were brought up to believe in, like Jesus, God etc.

But the more I think about it, the more I seem to appreciate the role that religion plays in society and what it really means to have a faith. Not just the world faiths like Christianity or Judaism and the likes, but to generally believe in something bigger than yourself. There is constant inner dialogue about whether or not I would consider myself a religious person, and it's a big call to do so. There are so many connotations associated with being a faithful person, and to be honest I was a courier of those stereotypes in an earlier part of my adolescence. It's "cool" to not believe in Jesus/Yahweh/Buddha etc and to believe that it's irrational or childish to associate with something that isn't scientifically proven.

It's a general principle of mine that I don't like to take anything wholly. I like to balance everything and take every opportunity to experience the world around me to create my own micro culture, my personality, my beliefs. And religion is no exception. It's just that I am in the situation where Christianity is how I was raised, and it's all I've really known. I've learnt of Judaism, Hinduism and small parts of Islam and Buddhism, but never really experienced them in their pure forms. I've seen glimpses of the Balinese Hindu faith and written essays on Jewish bioethics, but I still feel like the only true connection I have with faith is the Christian tradition.

Of course I don't believe in the literal word of the Bible, I feel that type of faith is kind of primal and immature, but I truly believe that what lies beneath it is beautiful and important to who I am. The values and ethics that all faiths promote is a great thing to study and learn and to practice in day to day living. This is where my tendency to balance comes in. I choose the parts of my faith that I believe in, and I feel that that way of thinking can help me get the most out of faith so I can make myself better. I believe that Jesus' teachings (most of them anyway) are good and true, I also take on the Hindu belief of karma and reincarnation. I think Jewish devotion to God is truly the most beautiful thing and the serenity and selflessness of Buddhism is to be aspired to. All of what makes the world a great place is somewhat reflected in these powerful and life changing belief systems and I genuinely feel that they should be celebrated and accepted as potent forces in peoples' lives.

More and more I have come to despise those who hate on religion. I feel that hating anything that is important to people is just as bad as the preachers they hate on and is just disrespectful. God may or may not be real, but hey if it makes people happy and gives people a reason to get up and do good for others, than who cares? Nourish and feed that good in people and accept their strive to become better human beings.

So yeah, I guess this Easter is a different one to me, one where I can understand and relate to religion and the impacts it has on people. I've learnt that faith was and is a part of my life, and I am so extremely grateful for the opportunity to have religion and express it, when some people do not. Sure, I am not the best Catholic and sometimes I stuff up and yeah I believe in karma but you know what? I'm happy with that and it makes me happy. Doing whatever the hell you want and believing in whatever the hell you want to believe in is the greatest gift anyone could wish for, and this Easter I am going to appreciate the heck out of it.

Kacey xx

PS: check out this SoulPancake series named "Have a Little Faith", it's a series that meet people from different religions from an agnostic perspective by this beautiful man named Zach. It's a great way to share faith with those who love it and may open your eyes to the reality of stereotypes that have been created over the years.