The Topic Everyone Hates to Talk About: Religion.

I was born & raised as a Catholic, like most Filipinos. As a family, we went to church every Sunday. I did bible study & had my first communion like every raised Catholic. When I got to high school, my family stopped going to church mainly because my parents got divorced. My cousin & I continued to go to keep the tradition, but it was only a matter of time before we completely stopped attending Sunday masses. Now, my family only goes to church for Easter & Christmas mass. Strange how time changes things. And through time, I grew my own beliefs on religion & the after life.

So what really happens when you die? It’s hard to say because you don’t really know until you die. I use to believe in Heaven & Hell until one day I decided not to live my life by a book (The Bible). I started to feel like religion was just a code to live by to make you a better person. It’s always better to have faith in something than to not have any faith at all. I don’t mean to offend anyone who’s Catholic or Christian or anyone with other religious beliefs, but this is just how I feel.

We are all part of Earth. We as humans play our roles & share this planet with other living organisms. We share this planet & do our jobs to keep life moving. Trees provide shade & oxygen & without trees, we wouldn’t be breathing. Animals provide meat & as preys & predators, we all go through the vicious cycle of life. Life & Death - We live & we die.

But what DOES happen when you die? Well to keep things logical, we die, we get buried, worms & maggots eat at what’s left of our flesh & then eventually disintegrate into our planet’s soil. But where do our souls go? Do you ever think about how often life & death occurs?

Some people just believe that after you die, it’s game over. That’s it, that’s life – you only get one chance. I’ve thought about that before, but then I also thought about how life keeps going. If nothing happens after you die, then life would eventually die out too.

I believe in souls – every person is born with a soul. When our bodies die, our souls look for a new body to live in. Just like hermits – we find new shells to live in. Our bodies are slaves to our souls & when our bodies die, life moves on. It's just the cycle of life.

You may say I believe in reincarnation, but I believe it’s far more spiritual than that. I do believe in God, but I don’t believe in a specific God. I believe in Jesus, but I believe he was just a Carpenter who happened to create miracles. He may have been the son of God, but aren’t we all God’s children? I do believe that there is something that exists, something of higher form. Aliens is a different topic, but God is not of human. God did create these planets & gave us a little to work with. I believe in evolution, but also believe that God created humans, not just apes. We as humans built our nations & found ways to make living a lot easier for ourselves.

Prisoners or people who are struggling with life find that the answer to a better life is God. And they’re right because once you start having faith in something, you’ll start to have faith in yourself. Convicts or drug addicts who actually want to change their lives look for answers in God & The Bible. They usually find their answers because The Bible is a scripture of what it means to be a good person.

Think about how many religions there are, how many Gods people believe in. Everyone has their own beliefs. But how do we know which religion is true? You only really know what happens when you die. To me, faith is the only thing that can save you.

I don’t mean to offend anyone who is religious, this is just my own personal opinion. I can’t live my life by a book. I understand obvious rules like “do not kill” & “do not lie,” I get the basics. I just don’t understand how some can live life by a book.

The Bible tells us not to get drunk or damage our bodies, but how many of us go out on the weekends & have a few cocktails? Does that make us sinners? The Bible tells us not to have sex unless you're married, but how many of us are pure virgins? And what if you never get married, then you're to die a virgin? Yikes. The Bible also tells us not to be gay, but what if they can’t help it? I have a few religious Christian friends that are gay & they’re true to their religion. It’s wrong to say that they’re going to hell just because they’re gay – that’s just some Republican bullshit! But the best part of The Bible that I love is:

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16)

I’d like to believe in Heaven, but to me, Heaven is what you perceive it to be. Heaven to me, is when you feel happiest. Hell? I feel like living on Earth is Hell already! Having to work for a living & pay the government your taxes, isn’t that what Hell is? The Bible does state that Hell is on Earth.

I say, “Live life as you please.” Don’t let anything or anyone run your life – do what makes YOU happy. If living by The Bible makes you happy, then so be it. It’s common knowledge - If you do good things, good things will come to you. If you do bad things, well…Karma’s gonna bite you in the ass.

All you need is LOVE.