“When I was a kid I used to pray every night for a new bicycle. Then I realized that the Lord doesn’t work that way so I stole one and asked Him to forgive me.” 
Emo Philips, stand-up comedian

It’s okay to laugh, I do too. The concept raises many serious questions however. Religion has many contradictions, and causes us to ask many questions. If God loves us why do we suffer? Why do bad things happen to good people? Why do good things happen to bad people?

If we are to understand ourselves as human we must try to understand the divine. You may believe God exists (theism), you may believe God doesn’t exist (atheisim), you may just not know (agnosticism) but every culture in the world has been built around a belief system.

The modern western world is based upon the Judeo/Christian belief system. Middle East ancestry is influenced heavily by Islam while Eastern culture has been built around Buddhism and Hinduism. Deny it if you will but the faith you were raised in is one of the largest influences on your life today.

The articles on religion in this section may not provide all the answers you seek, but they will help you to begin asking the right questions.

In this section you will find articles on religion like the one below

On what does Kierkegaard base his contention that “a crowd in its very concept is the untruth”? Why does he feel that the communicator of the truth can only be a single individual? What is the highest truth attainable for an existing individual? How is it related to faith?

While participating in a crowd, the individual believes he is not responsible for any actions that are committed while in the crowd, which in truth every participant is responsible for its actions. The crowd is the truth in descriptive matters, but not of ethico-religious truth. It is not prescriptive. Any truth that precedes existence is objective—but aesthetics, ethics, and religion is subjective; a choice that I alone can decide.

The truth can neither be communicated nor be received except as it were under God’s eyes, not without God’s help, not without God’s being involved as the middle term, He himself being the Truth. It can therefore only be communicated by and received by the individual. This is very close to James’ version of pragmatism. Truth is something that you do, not say. No middle man. Just between you and God.

An objective uncertainty held fast in an appropriation-process of the most passionate inwardness is the truth. The truth is precisely the venture which chooses an objective uncertainty with the passion of the infinite. This definition is equivalent with that of faith which also requires risk. Without risk, there is no faith. For example, a religious person must make a choice to follow their faith, regardless of the consequences, where ever that path takes him.

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