Abandon Religion
in a shaky voice.
I had not, in fact, heard anything about my best friend, but I didn’t answer right away. A devoted gymnast, I assumed that she had done well in a competition over the weekend. That can’t be, I thought to myself, she didn’t even have a competition.
“What are you talking about?” I asked, but somehow already knew.
“She was in a car accident…she and her parents. They didn’t make it…Brooke died…”
I was floored. The voice on the other end of the phone became distant and no longer made sense to me. My eyes filled with tears and I grabbed onto the counter for stability. Disbelief and shock besieged my body; I began to sob uncontrollably. I immediately questioned God. How could He do this to someone so pure and innocent? Why her and not me? I couldn’t grasp the idea that she was gone, that God would take her away so brutally. Hundreds of doubts infected my brain. I don’t remember hanging up the phone or getting up or eventually taking a shower; I only remember the hurt I felt in the realization that my God could do something like this. It was at that moment that my downward spiral began.
Since early childhood, I recognized religion and God in a positive light, but since Brooke’s death, I was forced to face the harsh reality of having been lied to. I had built this ‘good God’ up over many years only to see him rip so many lives apart. The loss of my best friend forced me to lose my faith. One would think something like this would only strengthen my faith, but since then I have felt nothing for him. I became numb.
When I ask others to abandon religion, they will reply, "Why would you want to forsake something that has produced so many helpful things?" But I am not asking people to give up their affectionate and tender ways, laced with gentleness and humanity. I am not asking that they give up mercy or justice, things which are just as easily attainable without religion, if not easier. I am asking people to give up their fear of hell and demons, their hope of an afterlife and a God. I am not asking the human species to surrender the things that are good and accompany every warm heart -- I am asking the human species to remodel the idea that a God exists that will punish nonbelievers and reward believers. The consequences of a society functioning under the false pretense that God will reward those who are good will only devastate them when an experience like mine forces them to think otherwise. If people were to suddenly discover that there was no God, would they find themselves to be less considerate, less hopeful, less charitable? If any religious person can [next page]