I saw a great piece on NBC Nightline on the argument of the existence of God. The link is above for your viewing pleasure. I watched it, but at the end I saw no point in it. There is no concrete proof that there is a God, but there’s no concrete proof that there isn’t a God. It’s like the song that never ends… it’s the never ending argument that has no true purpose. Although, I do think it’s a great educational piece for school children. Kids should be able to hear both arguments so they can come to their own conclusion.

I grew up in a catholic household. My mother would wake us up early every Sunday morning for mass. It wasn’t my favorite task on Sunday, but it was known as the Sunday routine. I had my first communion, I confessed, I prayed, but I never questioned the belief. Not until I was a teenager did I begin questioning something that was part of my identity… my religion. I expanded my religious education and realized I had no Idea what it meant to be a Catholic, or any other religious denomination for that matter. I was closed off from other religions because my religion was pre-determined by my mother. I love my mother very much, but was that fair?

After my religious experience I was puzzled, and I am still puzzled, as to why parents feel the need to religiously educate their children on their own beliefs? What are parents afraid of?

I am also puzzled as to why religious groups, or certain religious individuals, feel the need to convert my religious beliefs to their own? I don’t understand why these people feel that it’s their duty to force the word of God onto others. They don’t spread the word; they force it because it’s either their beliefs or you go to hell. They have to remember that you can’t force change onto an alcoholic, unless he/she is willing to change. We must all find our own way to our own beliefs. We make decisions everyday, we decide what to wear, what to drive, where to work, so let me decide what to believe. Don’t come preaching to me because I know where the preacher is…I know where to find my religious education.

I must agree with the atheist though when they say that Christians, Catholics, etc… use scare tactics, or as they say “terrorist” tactics, to scare the public. Don’t tell me that I will go to hell because I am gay, or masturbate, or have different beliefs than your own. Are they so insecure about their own faith that they feel the need to scare the opposing party? The truth is nobody really knows who’s going to hell. Nobody’s even sure if there is a hell because remember belief is only an assumption. Catholics assume by their own interpretation of the bible what is wrong and what is right. So don’t judge me by an assumption, judge me by the facts of my life.  So assume what you’d like, let atheist be atheist, and let religion be religion.

Please I beg the Mormons to stop knocking on doors. I beg the Christians with their Jesus shirts and fish stickers, and all the other religions around the world to, Stop! Stop the religious bullying.

Let my beliefs rest in peace where they lay, and please, most of all, do the same with yours.