My Take On Religion
This is a post that I have put off doing for quite some time because I didn't want to have to argue with anyone about my beliefs versus theirs. So before I begin, I will tell you this. If you leave any hateful or derogatory comments on this blog post, they will be deleted. The same goes for any rhetoric that attempts to promote religion.
I am not an athiest, nor agnostic. I do believe in a God, but that's about it. I have accepted the fact that I don't know anything about God. I don't KNOW if a God exist, but I do BELIEVE that there is a God. Something had to create us.
I am not a religious person. Not one bit. Now growing up, I was raised as a Baptist. I was in church almost every Sunday with my Grandmother and my Mother. My father did not go to church and as far as I know, did not practice any religion. Around the time that he died when I was 13, I noticed that my mother reduced her church attendance. I honestly was glad because I was tired of going. It seemed that all I ever heard was what not to do so that I won't go to hell. But honestly by this point, I had stopped believing in "the church." It seems that the only thing that I heard when there was people talking about each other, who was wearng what, who was doing what, who had a new car, who was whose daddy. I kept thinking that this wasn't what church was supposed to be. Where was the teaching, the love, the understanding, the acceptance?
I had read the bible and honestly, I was scared to even shit when I finished it. All I could think about was that I was going to hell for even enjoying life in the smallest amount. And then there was the fact that I KNEW (from the time I could comprehend it) that I was a homosexual. That honestly was what made me know that religion wasn't for me. I was not going to believe in something that told me that being who I am means that I will suffer in the afterlife. First off, I don't even know if I believe in an afterlife. And on top of that, I know that I did not choose to be gay. So why should I be punished for it.
Around my sophomore year in high school, there was a discussion among some students about what churches "we" attended. When I was asked, I told them that I did not attend church because I was not a Christian. I was vilified that day, but I stood strong in my beliefs. I had never felt so hated in my life. And by people who claimed to worship a "loving" God. Well, I told them all to kiss my natural black ass because none of them owned Heaven or Hell and couldn't put me there.
I honestly am tired of "people" telling me how to live my life because of their religion. I'm tired of people misquoting the the bible to scare me into believing in what they believe. Remember the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and The Billy Goat who refused to back down to Nebuchadnezzar? Well it never happened! Do you know why it never happened? Because there was no Billy Goat. The story was of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. How can I listen to people who misquote their own religious book.
There are a lot of reasons why I stopped practicing religion, but there is one that reigns supreme. I figured out something that a lot of people don't want to believe. Religion divides people. If you don't believe me, think about Sunday morning. That's the most segregated day of the week when people separate to attend church. Separated beliefs divide people, but a common belief unites them.
I am not an athiest, nor agnostic. I do believe in a God, but that's about it. I have accepted the fact that I don't know anything about God. I don't KNOW if a God exist, but I do BELIEVE that there is a God. Something had to create us.
I am not a religious person. Not one bit. Now growing up, I was raised as a Baptist. I was in church almost every Sunday with my Grandmother and my Mother. My father did not go to church and as far as I know, did not practice any religion. Around the time that he died when I was 13, I noticed that my mother reduced her church attendance. I honestly was glad because I was tired of going. It seemed that all I ever heard was what not to do so that I won't go to hell. But honestly by this point, I had stopped believing in "the church." It seems that the only thing that I heard when there was people talking about each other, who was wearng what, who was doing what, who had a new car, who was whose daddy. I kept thinking that this wasn't what church was supposed to be. Where was the teaching, the love, the understanding, the acceptance?
I had read the bible and honestly, I was scared to even shit when I finished it. All I could think about was that I was going to hell for even enjoying life in the smallest amount. And then there was the fact that I KNEW (from the time I could comprehend it) that I was a homosexual. That honestly was what made me know that religion wasn't for me. I was not going to believe in something that told me that being who I am means that I will suffer in the afterlife. First off, I don't even know if I believe in an afterlife. And on top of that, I know that I did not choose to be gay. So why should I be punished for it.
Around my sophomore year in high school, there was a discussion among some students about what churches "we" attended. When I was asked, I told them that I did not attend church because I was not a Christian. I was vilified that day, but I stood strong in my beliefs. I had never felt so hated in my life. And by people who claimed to worship a "loving" God. Well, I told them all to kiss my natural black ass because none of them owned Heaven or Hell and couldn't put me there.
I honestly am tired of "people" telling me how to live my life because of their religion. I'm tired of people misquoting the the bible to scare me into believing in what they believe. Remember the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and The Billy Goat who refused to back down to Nebuchadnezzar? Well it never happened! Do you know why it never happened? Because there was no Billy Goat. The story was of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. How can I listen to people who misquote their own religious book.
There are a lot of reasons why I stopped practicing religion, but there is one that reigns supreme. I figured out something that a lot of people don't want to believe. Religion divides people. If you don't believe me, think about Sunday morning. That's the most segregated day of the week when people separate to attend church. Separated beliefs divide people, but a common belief unites them.
posted by That Dude Right There at
5/21/2006 09:22:00 PM
3 Comments:
You go boy!!
If more people sat back and took stock of religion, there'd be more atheists.
And this is quite timely too, because in light of the rash of bullshit from the pulpit, SGL Café has just put out a call to Boycott the Black Church.
How can we continue to support an institution that spits in our faces, and rallies for our destruction? No other community would stand for it.
Black Gay Men need to get a backbone and stand up for themselves for once. We will not be second class citizens, outside of church, or in.
I'm calling for all Black Gay Bloggers to address this subject, and to finally prove once and for all that we are not the PUNKS people seem to think we are.
Our are we?
.
The Billy Goat! HAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHA
I want to thank you for your thoughtful and insightful remarks about religion. As a religious person your remarks remind me that we still have a long way to go to present an authentic view of what it means to be religious.
However, I do not think that your take on the worship separation is truly the fault of the religion. The worship hour is a cultural phenomenon and what it reflects is the division that exists in our society. It is a division that can be found in virtually every aspect of our lives.
We generally have friends and a circle comprised of those who share the same cultural background. We are separated by music, literature, movies, television and the list goes on.
Our neighborhoods are for the most part separate and we even celebrate the fact that there are HBCU's and they are comprised of a black student body in the 90+% range.
There are many issues that both gay and straight people can raise about religion and the real problem is most of the practioners do not know what their religion represents.
I have real problems when straight preachers use terms like punk and fags and sissies to describe and degrade gay people. This is not reflective of the teachings of Jesus and it shows a strong lack of compassion (also a hallmark of Jesus)
It is easy to criticize 21st century religious practice but let us never forget that the church and yes religion has played a tremendous role in the advancement of all people of color.
My plea is to all don't throw the baby out simply cause some of the daddies ain't got good sense.
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