DISCLAIMER: The views shared in this post are solely mine. They are not on behalf of, for or against anyone or any religion.
Yes, I went to church and got burnt!
The burn is a result of a cooking error. Though I’ve been called a Bad Christian by a certain (not called, it was more like a shriek) Teacher in front of the entire class in 12th standard. That day I was pretty upset, not because some intellectual-blinded-by-religious-ideologies judged my faith but for the fact that I missed out on the lunch period… argghh!
A Staunch Catholic – NOT!
Anyways. I was brought up in a staunch Catholic family, grew up in a Muslim locality, went to a convent school that celebrated both Christmas and Durga Puja in grandeur and I’m married to a Hindu guy who believes in God more than religion.
I remember being under the strict religious obligations. How my dad would drag me and my siblings to church, every Sunday at 7:30 AM. And that’s not all, we also had to spend another two hours after the mass, being preached and disciplined at the Sunday Class. At school too, Catholic students had to attend the Catechism class, while the others spend awesome time, interacting and learning about the civic society and its problems in the scheduled Moral Science period.
MORAL SCIENCE
Once we missed the catechism period and had to attend the moral science class. It was awesome. I am not saying that learning about Jesus is boring. It is not. But you should have the freedom to learn about the Almighty at your own will. After all, someone’s faith and belief are a completely personal. Sadly, this feeling of a 12-year old was not appreciated.
HUMANITY is above any RELIGION
What I am trying to say is that there is something greater than religion. And that is HUMANITY.
I will be a good Christian, if I am good to others. I will be a true Hindu, if I help others. I will be a pious Muslim, if I connect with others. I will be a loyal Sikh, if I am selfless.
Today, we live in a society – especially the Indian society – where if a Christian sits on a rat, people say good riddance to the rodent. But if a muslim kills a rat, they say he is a terrorist. If a Hindu invites the other community to a festival, then it is called secularism, if a Christian calls others to a special prayer gathering, then they called it conversion – Ghar Wapsi!
(These are just EXAMPLES. Hold your guns!)
Stare at the Sky. Connect with God!
I love going to church but only when it is empty. There I can sit and connect with Christ. In fact, I can do it anywhere. All that is needed is peace and a little faith in God. Hell – oops – You can connect with God by simply staring at the sky. No words needed. No emotions emitted!
I do believe in Christ, Allah, Shiva, Buddha, Guru Nanak and all… because I believe in myself and I have faith in HUMANITY!