Life Without Religion.

by Staff November 23, 2013 4 Comments Christian Talk News Opinion Weekly Columns

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(ThyBlackMan.com) Most of us have been born into a religious belief system that has defined and shaped how we view and experience life. In fact, over 80% of the world’s population identify themselves with some form of religion. In most instances, our concept of God was formed through our early religious indoctrination. If you happen to be born in the United States your religious context was likely some form of Christianity. Those born in the Middle East likely experienced God from an Islamic perspective.

At its core, all religions offer principles of living and God. Religion in and of itself is not a bad thing; however, it has been used to cause great destruction, division, war and suffering. People use religion to justify hate, murder and discrimination. The reality is religion is doctrine, and is not God. While most religions consider its tenets as the pathway to God, the truth is that our connection to God is not based on a religious affiliation. All religions were created by imperfect human beings, not by God. The foundation of all religions is faith which means there is no empirical evidence or proof to support the belief. Even the most astute theologian will acknowledge that the sacred texts have many interpretations and unsubstantiated stories.

If we were really honest, none of us knows for sure the validity of any doctrines. This is why it is difficult for many independent thinkers who rely on verifiable evidence to believe many of the stories in religious texts. For example, in the Bible it speaks about a serpent telling Eve to eat the apple. A talking snake? Or, consider the story of the man who was in the big fish for 3 days. Those who dare question the validity of these events are often attacked as if questioning scripture is an attack on God. Reality check: God is all powerful, and that power that we call God is not diminished by the skepticism or questioning of man. What we do know is our individual experience with that which we call God.

Your faith is your faith…it is not necessary to convince others that their way is wrong and yours is right. There is no harm or injury in allowing others to believe what they choose to believe. Free your mind and discover truth for yourself and allow others to do the same. Self-discovery moves us beyond belief to knowing.

Imagine a world without religion…no Christianity, no Islam, no Hinduism. We would be able to truly discover God, who did not cease speaking to His creation when the sacred texts were written thousands of years ago. Imagine a God that is not limited to a set of principles and traditions. A God that is not restricted to a particular belief system. How differently would our world be if rather than discovering God through a religious perspective, we were able to discover God for ourselves without a prescribed philosophy? The truth is, God is beyond concept and description. All have access to God…the Christian, the Muslim, the Hindu, the Jew, and even those who do not have a particular faith. No one has a monopoly on God. God is beyond a religious system.

Staff Writer; Harold Leffall

Who Is Harold Leffall? He is a student/teacher who is committed to sharing the lessons of limitless living to those who are ready to create and live a new reality. Harold has written two books, Brother CEO and Living from Within. He has been featured in Black Enterprise, Best Self Altanta, Essence and Entrepreneur magazines and host the TV show “Moving Forward with Harold Leffall.” He has also appeared on OWN, BET and TV On; http://www.haroldleffall.com.

4 Comments

Northern_Magnolia says:

November 29, 2013 at 6:06 pm

What you propose, Mr. Leffall, is impossible in light of human history. Man is a worshipping being. Remove or discredit existing belief systems, and he will worship himself. And, consider the consequences of this: man did not seek out a universal understanding of God when communism convinced men that all religion was the opiate of the masses. Instead, strong men who felt themselves accountable to no one deified themselves. Stalin and Mao come immediately to mind. In Germany, the Christian faith of the people was discredited by the higher critics; Hitler arrived not even a century later.

And, Mr. Leffall, if you are Black, consider: there already is an existing system of belief that denies the validity of all existing religious belief systems. It is called evolution, invented by white men going all the way back to the Greek Thales. In it, the white man denied the gods of his forefathers, but did not seek a universal understanding of God; instead, by Charles Darwin’s time, we see that the white man considered himself the pinnacle of evolution, with no God above him to stay his hand from anything he wanted. Need I mention what group of humans was considered least fit in the game of survival of the fittest, and who was exploited the most in modern history? By contrast: of what profession of faith, I ask you, was William Wilberforce, who did so much to stop the slave trade, or Martin Luther King Jr.?

Again, Mr. Leffall, a world without religion is not possible; it is merely a choice of which, for man will not seek a universal understanding of God for long before he worships himself or someone dictator poised to fill the gap. Nonetheless, it might interest you to know: what you propose will be tried by the masses of the world, according to the Bible. The results are laid out in Scripture, and the prediction honors the historical pattern, among other details.

But before you personally continue in that path, ask yourself this question: what if God has already revealed Himself and made Himself available universally in Jesus Christ (because it is Christianity that most firmly denies the validity of other faiths, and you seem to be rejecting that claim most of all)? I’m not talking about you “going to church”; I’m talking about you coming to terms with the claims of Christ as laid out in the Bible, for Christianity as laid out in the Bible is not a religion; it is a personal relationship with God in Jesus Christ, based on accepting and believing His work in dying on the cross for your sins, and His burial and resurrection (see I Corinthians 15:3-4). Far be it from me to recommend going to anybody’s “church” as THE thing to do to have favor with God. That lie is 1,700 years too old already. First, deal with Christ — is His work sufficient for you, or not?

Reply
James Davis says:

November 26, 2013 at 8:54 am

What You Are Proposing Does-not Pass The Smell Test!

The Bible through the Lord our God has addressed this very question. You see, you cannot say you love the Lord our God and refuse to understand what He stands for, His principles, and His ways which are depicted in the Bible. Here is what God says if you are a believer; is that if you diligently seek Him, He will be founded.

Deuteronomy
4:29 But if from thence thou shalt seek the LORD thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul.

Notice He did not say you would find a religion or even the Bible, but you will find Him. Here is what He says will happen when you find Him. You will find “His counsel” for living.

Isaiah
46:9 Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me,
46:10 Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure:
46:11 Calling a ravenous bird from the east, the man that executeth my counsel from a far country: yea, I have spoken it, I will also bring it to pass; I have purposed it, I will also do it.

That counsel will guide you to His Son, Jesus Christ, for this is what He has proposed.

Romans
10:9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
10:10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
10:11 For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed

And so it goes.

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Terrence the Pterodactyl says:

November 25, 2013 at 9:04 pm

Modern day religion has become an entertaining joke.

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ROBERT says:

November 24, 2013 at 12:39 am

HUMANITY will have fully evolved when there is no such thing as religion ; because religion is the invention of a primitive mind!

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