Not entirely sure what brought this on really. Was bored and up late and the internet wasn't working and I just like... started thinking I s'pose! Anyway, take a read.

I am not religious. I never really have been and there is a distinct possibility that I never will be. However, that is not to say that I see no value, beauty, wisdom, or point to some religious teachings. That would be close-minded and foolish. I do not subscribe to the notion that "All people would be better off without religion, gods, or what have you." Nor do I subscribe to its corollary that all people need religion, god, and whatnot. Could the world possibly be in a better place if all people, or no people, were religious? It's possible, but we cannot not know for sure, nor should we ever. And ya know what? I think the fact that people have so many points of view, philosophies, and credos is one of the things that makes humanity beautiful. Our ability to form our own ideas of how we should live our lives based off what we see around us, hear from others, read in texts, and or simply decide upon one day is, for lack of a better word, awesome.

I personally am not a fan of religion. It can and does create hostility between people, lead to discrimination, close-mindedness, has started many a war, and I find the whole concept of a higher being(s) controlling the universe rather silly. BUT, and this is a very big but, despite the bad religion has brought into the world, it has also brought much good. Religion can bring people together, give comfort, and if you distill most religions down to their barest elements, they're just trying to make one a better person. How they go around doing that and what "Being a better person" entails is where issues arise, but I am not going to go into specifics there. The real problem I see is humanity's inability to simply live and let live. People are going to disagree on things. That's inevitable. But to force what you believe on others, especially if what you are trying to force hurts someone, or is easily misconstrued so allow people to be hurt is quite simply wrong. You are not "saving" that person, you are not "educating" that person, you are not helping, liberating, renewing, (and so on and so forth) that person. If to prove your are "moral" you have to marginalize or discriminate against a group of people then maybe, just maybe, you aren't quite so moral. Atheists, don't think you're getting off the hook here. You are just as guilty, and just as capable of being bigoted and close-minded as those of "faith". They way I see it there can be no right or wrong answer in terms of spiritual beliefs or lack thereof. Religious people, if you think there's a god or twelve, then you're totally correct. Non-religious people, if you think deities don't exist, then you are absolutely, 100% right too!

And remember: don't doubt your sunshininess!