Just Gotta have Faith

I hope I won't offend anyone if I write this. If there are any problems in this post, or if you feel something in this post should be addressed (as it may offend you or you find it one-sided or whatever), please inform me ASAP and I will rectify it AS FAST AS I CAN. The last thing I wanna do is start a controversy! (Oh, and don't worry, I'm making this note only viewable by Friends)

When it comes to faith, there's not much that we can share that's the same about our religions, except certain aspects of religious principles, like don't commit any form of sin or respect and love your parents. All religions have differences in terms of worship and other principles and customs. But here in Malaysia it's nice to see how every one is united despite our differences in our faiths.

Then we look at the world. The reason why I've stopped myself from reading the news is because every time I do, I am saddened by what is going on in the globe today: so much destruction, so much death, so much sorrow. And no, it's not about Mother Nature wreaking havoc worldwide.

I mean, can't we all just get along, for once?

We are continually striving for peace in every country worldwide. We always preach the importance of being united for the benefits of all Mankind. But now, so many are intent on spreading dissent, anarchy, tyranny and ruin to the lives of the untold billions who call Earth home. And mostly it's because of our faith.

From my observations, I came up with a principle (please note: PRINCIPLE) to living called the Unitarian mind-set. It defines that the religion we practise in our lives as our own, but also readily accepts the religion of others, no matter the differences between them. Instead, it calls for the need to focus on similarities and work from there to create understanding and tolerance. Thankfully, much of the world's population follows the Unitarian mind-set adherently, and the best example would be us Malaysians.

Ever since we achieved our independance, the three primary races - Malays, Chinese, Indians -  have come together to form the backbone of the Malaysian population. And it's already been 53 years; look at where we are now! Still as united, and now growing strong. Heck, the 1Malaysia concept isn't even necessary! We've made it through so far for 53 years and though we have come across some major problems (1969 comes to mind ) we're still making it through together. Just because of certain individuals who question the matter doesn't have to lead us to making such life-changing decisions. It impacts negatively on every one of us.

We shouldn't be fighting at all! We should stay harmonious, loving one another as brothers and sisters who share the same beloved homeland, not involved ourselves in useless bickering and arguing that's taking us round in circles! No way! Embrace our identity. Live as a united community. And start working to greatness.

Still on the subject of faith, when it comes to converting, that shouldn't be brought up as a problem as well. It is ultimately the choice of the individual in question. Sure, many people would be mortified to hear of people changing religion, and some even are cruel enough to shun them. Hello, that's not the way to do it!

Like I said, it is all a matter of the individual. But you may ask "won't a person's God condemn them for all eternity?" Now that question has meaning to it. This is because many people state that their God won't be pleased about it, and may punish them for the rest of their life. (And even up till the point when they end up in Heaven or Hell!) But haven't you been hearing that a lot of people are becoming Christians? I'm sure you have.

Now don't get me wrong. There is a certain attachment I feel to the Christian faith, even though I am a Buddhist. (Yes I am, for those who didn't know!) In fact, sometimes I quote from what I've learned in the Christian faith (like from the Bible, or from my own opinions) and sometimes I share the fiery and devoted faith my friends carry - of their love to God. I know many friends who are like that, especially those who have been Christian all their life. I know friends who converted despite being of a separate religion earlier on. (In these cases, their family subsequently converts, or they don't but still accept their child's decision) I even know friends who have been touched by God, but cannot convert because of their families.

Not long ago (unless you consider close to six months as LONG), I had a friend who shared that kind of experience - love for God, but no support from parents. When I initially heard that she wanted to be a Christian (she's Buddhist) I encouraged her to do so without hesitation. Hell, I was happy for her too! ("What?" some of you might say) Then she added how his parents fiercely disagree with her decision. And because she didn't want to let them down, she didn't convert. Well, correction: she HASN'T converted yet, that's what I say.

I feel for her, and those who face that kind of problem. Even though I'm not a Christian, it doesn't mean I should be condemning my friend for changing faith. It's not right or rational for me to just tell her off and stop being her friend! Instead, I know that she has a connection to God now, and I should let her continue that connection and build a healthy relationship with her Creator. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to talk to her about this because of her reluctance, but I do hope that through this post she will be reinvigorated to have faith in God. Perhaps it'll invigorate you too!

Hey, don't get me wrong here! I'm not asking her to rebel against her parents! No way! But if you have a true undying love for God, stop thinking He's forsaken you and stuff! You should always let Him be part of your life. Even if your parents are doing their own religious stuff and you're there with them, do it too, and do it with an honest heart. Show respect to your parents. Once that, go back to your faith. And if you think it helps (or if you don't practise this) always have a prayer to God at night before bedtime, thanking Him for all the blessings and joy that day, and how you can go about repaying His love for you. (I will elaborate more on repaying God in a future post) Well, your prayer can be anything you want it to be. After all, YOU are communicating with God!

(NOTE: To my Christian friends, do you do this prayer thing everyday? I'm curious as to know if it's universally adopted, or it may just be me watching too many movies.)

Well, you might be saying: "Say, he skipped the original question by jumping to some other point!" Well, yes I did. When it comes to being condemned for changing your faith, I cannot really determine what the Gods have to say about their flock migrating to another faith. It's up to Them, ultimately. But I believe that They know what's best for us humans. They'd probably have a good laugh about it too! I mean, you'll never know what a God thinks of. But do remember they are omniscient. They see all, know all, and hear all. And I'm sure They have more tolerance than we do for each other.

But if there's anything I love doing, it's learning new things from other religions. I have a friend whose family practises the Baiah faith. (Correct me if I'm wrong about the spelling please!) This religion actually accepts all other religions as one united entity that is God. When I learned of it, I was surprised! And thrilled too, because I've always been a Unitarian for quite a while now. So I told myself, "That's enlightening!" and I learned something new and I add that to my list of values.

I also love the fact our generation is full of super-devoted people. And they don't even mind if you're not part of their religion. They still treat you equally! I remember when I was at a Christian event held in MC (no, you girls won't know me from there, except for a mutual friend who invited me, and other friends who went there) called The Reveal that was held last year. Towards the end, they had this appreciation ceremony of sorts (correct me if any of this is wrong) when the band was playing a faithful song and other members were busy talking to everyone about how they love God and how much He loves them, and things like that. Fueling faith, I call it. So anyway, one of them came to me to do the same, but I politely told him I'm not a Christian. He softly said with a smile: "That's okay. God still loves you anyway." I'll never forget those words.

So if you have your thoughts on religions, I'm pretty sure you've a lot to share too. But please be mindful of your words! We don't want a full-blown crusade to happen, do we?

I hope this has opened your eyes on how we see religion. =)

Cheers for now!