The Role of Religion in My Life

Honestly, growing up, the religion that I am currently in had its own way of how I should look at life. I am not the kind of girl that usually goes to church every Sunday or pray every night, or at least reads the Bible every day or once a week.

Back when I was still studying in La Salle, there are a lot of things that I knew that I wasn't supposed to at a young age but I was thankful for everything because it helped me gain that composure that I shouldn't rely on my decisions based on my religion.

As they always say, people who are working in the church, especially those who are in the highest power, are also humans. They tend to make mistakes and they will make mistakes every now and then which aren't supposed to be done but it has been done. I know that at some point the decisions people make are based likely on either emotion or constructive thinking. However, I cannot accept the fact that the people I am looking up to before are the ones who aren't actually as good as I thought they are. I know that people make jokes and that is where the bond comes but if I look back at it now, it doesn't suppose to happen.

I watched this video back then by a vlogger who has his own opinion on his religion. I can somehow relate to that video.

First of all, my perspectives in life will not and never depend on what my religion teaches me. There's this ongoing debate about not approving same-sex marriage in the Philippines because the country is a predominantly Catholic country, which makes no total sense to me. I have looked into the history of the Bible and research suggested that the translation of the story from the Bible about homosexuality is wrong or just mistaken because of the fact that we assume what gender is. Like the fact that we see God as a male when no man has ever proved it. I am not going to consider this as a debate because God's gender isn't really the problem but how people translated stories to make people believe in something these writers want them to believe. Because if we are to follow everything in Bible, we must do everything it says. For example, since some people believe that a man cannot sleep with a man or a woman cannot sleep with another woman because that's what the Bible "says", then people must not work on a Sabbath day, otherwise, stone him to death, as said in the New Testament. Men and women cannot do tattoos on their bodies, Leviticus 19:28, because it's also against the Bible, which up to this day is still a debate.

As I grow up, I had watched tons of news and documentaries where people were done horrible things to them, and most of it is done by the people who are supposed to be spreading love and respect. My latest documentary that really questioned me was the Netflix documentary of Emanuela Orlandi which had been missing for over 3 decades now. Although I am not hoping for her to be alive, at least, justice for what happened must be served. I am really sad that her father didn't even know what really happened before he passed away.

Anyways, there are tons of reasons why we should still make an effort to build up that love for one another. However, if we do things because someone or something tells us and not because of humanity, to the point where we are already hurting somebody, then there's something wrong with us.