I've really gotta stop ranting about the gay marriage issue. Im sure its getting boring for those reading (yes, all 4 of you). I dont even live in the US, so really whatever decision they come to will not affect me at all. It will not affect anybody that I know personally either. So really, what am I bitching about? It just bothers me, scratch that, angers me that King George is ignoring all of the problems that he has caused and is taking time out of his busy schedule to publicly and openly discriminate against an entire group of people. Better men than him have been shot. *sigh* I probably will rant about it again, but I'll try for the next little while to come up with something different to rant about.
...How about religion? Religion sounds good. Those who know me personally know that Im a Heathen. I was raised to be Catholic (very Catholic), but as the cliche goes, you can take the girl to church, you just cant force her to believe. I dont think I ever really believed. Even when I called myself a Christian, I didnt believe what the Bible said. I think I just wasnt ready to just take what was told to me and file it away as "truth". Besides the fact that the science of evolution and whatnot is just a little too plausable than the stories told in the Bible.
Fast forward to the late 20th century. Starting when I was about 18 years old I started doing a lot more research and I eventually came to the conclusion that I just dont have faith. Its just not there. Im too much of a pessimest. I am not an Athiest. I have never and will never call myself that. Besides the fact that I dont like labels, that one just does not suit me. An Athiest is a person who states "I believe there is no god." The phrase "I dont believe in god." is not an Athiest statement. It is an Agnostic statement. (For those who dont know, an Agnostic is someone who neither believes or disbelieves in an almighty being, someone who leaves it open to interpretation.) I dont believe in god, but I dont call myself an Agnostic for that matter. I am an Apathist. I just dont care. There might be a god(s) out there somewhere, who am I to say for certain that there isnt? But if god(s) exists, what have he/she/they done for those of us on Earth anyway? Nothing. Nada. Zippo. Zilch.
I dont believe in "Heaven" or "Hell". Those are terms which we should apply to how we choose to live our lives. I certainly dont feel organized religion is for me, no matter what it is. I dont want someone standing on a soapbox telling me what to believe. Telling me what is right and wrong. THAT is what is wrong. Morality is relative. Everyone has different morals. What I believe is the right thing to do is probably going to clash with other people's ideas of what is right and wrong. That's ok. I can deal with that. I do have a problem with people who discriminate against other people. That really bothers me.
Another thing that bothers me is when people say that they're a certain religion, but dont practise it. Im going to use Catholics for example, because that is what I am familiar with, but Im sure that this happens with all religions. Just because someone is baptized, does not make them Catholic. Just because someone believes in God, and that Christ as the "son of God" does not make them a Catholic. You can be confirmed and married in a Catholic church, but it doesnt make you a Catholic. What makes you a Catholic is going to church on a regular basis, praying on a regular basis, celebrating ALL of the Catholic holidays, not just Christmas and Easter.
My mother for example, is a Catholic. She goes to church every Saturday evening (weather and health permitting of course). She goes to church for every holiday. She eats pancakes for supper on Shrove Tuesday. She gets her ashes on Ash Wednesday, and doesnt eat meat on that day. Or Good Friday either. She attends Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter mass. She also attends mass for Christmas and New Year's and all the other special occasions in-between. Its people who stop going to church after they have their kids baptized but still call themselves Catholic that piss me off. Sure they're still Christians, but not Catholic. Its like saying that you're a vegan, when you eat dairy and eggs.
There, I got that rant out of my system. There are lots more, which will eventually sneak out.
{Friday, February 27}
