It is a well-known fact that religion has been a cause of wars, hatred, and division between people for millennia. I find that peculiar, considering religion’s stated purpose is to promote peace, love, and unity. The reason for this disparity is that religion, like government, has been used against people rather than for their benefit. Once a person understands and accepts this, then the inescapable fact arises that our leaders have no real interest in unity, peace, or love.
My concern is not religion, though. People have a natural need to understand and worship God, their Maker. And our wellbeing is inextricably linked to our relationship with the Creator. My concern is man-made religion, especially Christianity, a product of men’s vanity, their greed, and their need to control and use others. Men, who in fact, are ignorant of God. They can’t help us because they are lost! I am not a cynical person by nature, but at some point, I began to think that concepts such as the reward of heaven and the punishment of hell are used to control people. Pavlov’s dog type training. These thoughts coincided with the fact that what they were telling me at church wasn’t ringing true. Yet I never stopped believing in God. So, early on I determined to find the answers to my questions myself. I constantly pray. I’ve studied the Bible, the Quran, and philosophy of religion. And my experience is that God guides me and provides what I need. As I've said, my religious studies started with Christianity and then evolved. Christianity, as most people know, is one of three major religions supposedly rooted in Abraham.