Life After Religion

Is there life after religion? This is an interesting thought for many to ponder as religion, whatever one it may be, plays such a fundamental role in our lives. Consider, not only do religious beliefs affect our actions, they also affect our perception of the world. Being a Christian, I had so many preconceived notions of right and wrong, the way I should act, and how I should speak. I knew that homosexuality was a sin, I knew I shouldn’t get drunk, I knew what God expected of me, and I knew when I made a mistake. I knew that America was a Christian nation and therefore I knew we needed more christians in politics to positively affect the laws of this country toward a higher morality. I also knew that anyone not following Christ was living a lie and would be judged upon their death.

My, how things have changed.

I had doubts about what I believed creeping into my consciousness. Because I firmly believed that God gave me the abilities as a reasoning creature, I knew that questioning was okay. I also knew that I would come out a stronger christian than I was before. Well, it hasn’t turned out that way. Without getting into all my reasoning for leaving christianity, I will say that my life has changed. What is interesting is that while many of my views have changed, there are still many that have not.

I still believe that religion plays a major role in the world today, just turning on the news will tell you that. However, it doesn’t play a major role in my personal life. As a matter of fact, I really don’t give religion much thought at all, other than to view life through the lens it provides. If I want to understand what is happening in the world, then religious views must be examined. While I am no longer religious, it certainly does affect my life externally.

My views on homosexuality have changed. I no longer believe that it is wrong. Interestingly though, I still DO believe that abortion is wrong. I have my reasonings for this, but this is not the purpose for this post.

While I am no longer a Christian, I still consider myself politically conservative. This, I find to be surprising, because for so long I had tied conservatism to Christianity.

My views on morality have changed in the sense that I no longer believe that morality comes from the commands of God through the bible. However, I still believe in right and wrong. This is an area where the religious and atheists may team up together to argue with me, although from different viewpoints. Is this morality a priori? To be honest, I’m not sure what I think about this. I still have some thinking to do. However, I do know that we seem to have an innate sense of right and wrong. As a deist, I could easily overcome this issue by claiming the creator applied this morality as part of the laws of nature, however, by reason, I can’t accept that yet. That would be a religious proclamation, one in which I truly don’t believe.

I no longer believe America is a Christian nation. I do believe that Christianity is the religious belief system to which the majority would ascribe themselves, however, we all know there is a difference between claiming a religious belief and living the belief. I now believe that America is not a religious nation. While the majority of citizens claim a belief in God, I think that for many of this majority, this belief has no impact on their daily lives.

I no longer believe that we need more Christians in politics to positively affect the legislation of morality on others. Now, I believe that Christians have just as much a right in politics as anyone else, however, when they begin legislating from those beliefs, we are in danger of theocracy. I do believe in the separation of church and state.

I now have a young son whom I will not bring up in the church. Instead, I will bring him up to pursue knowledge, to read as much as he can, to explore religious views, and if he so decides, he can accept religious views. It is not my job to indoctrinate him into any religious system. Instead, it is my job to help him explore what there is in the world with all the love and guidance I can. He will learn right and wrong, as we all do, through life experience. Through this life experience, he will learn responsibility for his own actions, and how those actions affect others. He will be raised to have integrity, strong reasoning, and a desire for knowledge.

Is there life after religion? Absolutely.

Does leaving the faith of your fathers change you? Absolutely. Interstingly though, I have discovered that while my religious beliefs have changed, I am still me. I still have many of the same goals and ideals I had before. My belief in integrity, goodwill, and character are still there. What has changed, is my now firm belief that humanity is basically good, not evil.