Religion

Yes, I know I am going to open up a large kettle of worms, but I have been thinking a lot about religion and my views and well...   Here's what I came up with:

I consider myself to be a Christian, which to MY mind means I follow the teachings of Jesus Christ.  Simple really.  Jesus had very few "rules" so they were easy to stick to.  "Love ye one another"  That's pretty much it in a nutshell.  Some people will ask me about the rest of the Bible.  I consider it to be advice I can take or discard.  What worked for some might not work for all.  The contrary advice of  Leviticus just gives me a headache.  There may have been good reasons for the "laws" placed in that book, but do they apply to me today?  Nope.  Call it "cherry picking" and decry my lack of "faith"  if you must.  My faith and my beliefs are what get me out of bed some mornings.  I also VERY FIRMLY believe in everyone's right to believe as they will and as long as it doesn't cause injury to me or to someone I love, I say good for you!  It is not my place to tell anyone else how to live or what to believe or what deity to worship. Not my business. I have friends who don't believe in any deity.  If it works for you, that's great.  I saw a t-shirt once that said something to the effect of "some people believe many gods, some people believe in no more than one god, atheists just take it a step further."  I thought it was funny.

What you claim to believe does not make you a decent human being, it's how you put your belief into action that matters; case in point those morons at the Westborough Church.   I don't know what they are reading, but I would dearly LOVE to see the part of any Bible that talks about God hating anyone.  I often wonder at "religious leaders" who claim to have a direct line to God.  That televangelist a few years ago who told his followers that "God would call him home" unless a specific amount of money were raised.  I would have put THAT one to the test.   Religion is Big Business for many people.  There are so many "brands" it's hard to know which one to choose.  Choose what speaks to your heart, it will be easier to "walk the walk" that way.