Best of Both Worlds

Religion is different for everyone. For example my mom is a Christian and my dad is somewhat a Buddhist. My mom converted to Christianity when I was in the fourth grade, the same year my parents got divorced. My mom regularly goes to church every Sunday and she attends bible study groups and other groups for church.  Half of the week, when I am at my mom's, she takes me to church with her and tries to get me to read bible verses every night. I do believe in the Christian faith, but not to the extent that my mom does, but I still consider myself a Christian. On the other hand, my dad disagrees with the bible and Christianity. He is somewhat Buddhist because his whole family is. He doesn’t go to the temple all the time. He will go occasionally with his sisters or brothers when they get together. My dad always tells me that he is a scientist and he believes in evolution and that there is not a god. I like to think I am somewhat in the middle of my parent’s beliefs. I believe that God exists, but I also believe in evolution. Though my mom would really love for me to be a hardcore Christian, who reads the bible every night and preaches the word of God to everyone, she doesn’t try to force her faith upon me. As read/discussed this week in the Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God, Jonathan Edwards threatened and scared his audience into converting to Christianity. His view of Christianity was clearly different from my mom’s, my dad’s and my own. Religion is a very different experience for different people depending on how they were raised, where they are from, or how they think. Personally I do not think anyone should try to force his or her faith onto others unless the other party is willing. People should be allowed to believe in what they want. Threats and anger are not the answer!