Find Religion

I’m out soaking up the sun at the beach for a week, so a number of my bloggin’ friends are guest posting for me! Today’s guest poster is April Gilford from Life as a Christian Woman. Enjoy!

When Allison asked for guest bloggers, I jumped on the chance and decided to talk about religious tolerance. Although in my own blog I concentrate on issues relating to Christian women, I believe that tolerance of others is a vital attitude for moving toward a more cohesive earth. Finding religion in everyday life is a spiritual journey, no matter where that journey begins or the name of the god[s] one believes is at the end. In order to practice acceptance and cohesion, we must first learn what it is we are tolerating.

The United States is at war with Islamic radicals. The Jewish nation of Israel exchanges fire with Palestine. Christians are arrested in China for religious practices. In the midst of all of these conflicts, the United Nations pushes for more global economies, trade agreements are signed between countries, and contact with nearly any person in the world is only a click away on the Internet. How do we reconcile functioning in today’s world-wide information age with conflicts raging over basic cultural and spiritual beliefs?

Peace will only come through understanding. Understanding other peoples will not excuse genocide and atrocities against women and children, or explain starvation, disease, and governmental dictatorships. But it is essential to opening the doors on these issues. If you take into account the thousands of religions and belief systems throughout the world, one element becomes clear in all of them: those beliefs shape the way in which that culture, family unit, or single person lives life. Whether subtle or blatant, beliefs contribute to actions. 6,000,000 Jews were killed for their religion during World War II. By the latter-1900’s, the Bororo Indians of South America drove themselves to extinction by their own fascination and obsession with death. For both cultures, in acting or being acted upon, they believed.

The purpose of my post today is to challenge you. Choose at least one religion other than your own or the one you grew up in and learn about it. What are the major tenets of that religion? In which geographical areas is that religion represented? What are three major events that happened in the history of that religion? How is that religion practiced outwardly by its followers? How is that religion similar to and different from your own? Find the writings or teachings of a leader of that religion and read them. To get you started, visit www.religionfacts.com, a website dedicated to archiving the major facts on religions of the world. As you learn a little about it, you can search for other sources on the web. Then come back here and let us know what your search revealed in understanding other people and their actions.

Allison challenges you everyday to find religion in your everyday life. Today, I am challenging you to find another religion and understand the everyday life of someone else.

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