#17: I Can visit a church or other house of worship with a set of beliefs different from my own in order to understand my fellow Americas better and to put to rest any misunderstandings I have about other religions.

Week #12 Summary: March 19-25th

There is a method to my madness this past week.  I didn’t post anything about what I was doing because, frankly, I believe it is a topic that is best dealt with in private.  Today, this particular area of our culture seems to be way too politicized, used as a tool for judgment and often “hi-jacked” to propel radical and intrusive agendas.  This very same topic has been used to bring about much good in the world, however, today it seems to be more dividing that uniting.

What could I possibly be talking about???  Yep, it’s religion.

Here’s the deal…I don’t care what you believe.  If you worship the sun…awesome.  If you are a Christian…great. If you are Jewish, Muslim, believe in spaceships, or think Tom Cruise is going to take you to the promise land then I am thrilled for you.  I want you to be happy and so long as you are happy and living your life based in love and service to others, then I am cool with it.

What I have problem with is when people pass judgment, cause harm to others either physically or mentally, or try to pass your beliefs or faith as law of the land…then I take issue with religion.

Just do the right thing.  We need to treat each other with love and respect.  We need to focus on the issues that make us all the same, not issues that divide us. 

We can’t Fix America by pushing religious or faith based agendas onto the masses.  Live your life according to your beliefs and let other people live theirs.  So long as your beliefs don’t wake me up in the morning, assault me in a parking lot, or tell me what a terrible person I am then continue on.  If you are participating in harmful activities because of your beliefs, or harboring prejudices because you are unwilling to learn about something different (doesn’t mean you have to agree…just seek to understand) then take a good, long look in the mirror and ask yourself if you would want to be treated the same way.

Isn’t there a rule out there about treating others the way you would like to be treated?  I think there is.

Amen.