Religion

Some months ago I was asked “Do you believe in God?” My response to that question has always been that same; I am spiritual, I believe that there is a higher power whether you call it God, Allah, Buddha, the little gray aliens in the spaceship, Everybody is looking toward a high power no matter what you may call it.

That day was different though I was pushed beyond a normal conversation. Everything I said was considered wrong in the other person eyes. I don’t care to talk about such personal things in the work place. I believe that you are there to do work, associate with coworkers, and then go home. No where is there an area that we should be preached at about how one religion is the only way to go.

One of the very first things that was said by the other person whom I was talking to was “I don’t talk bad about other religions.” I should have taken this as a warning about what was about about to come. I stated my position and right as soon as I said Allah his eyes got wide as he professed that “Allah is not God.” To which I responded “According to Islam he is God.”

He then responded to my statement that “Islam is not a religion.” I looked at him dumbfounded as soon as he made this statement. I questioned his statement with the following “You mean to tell me that Islam, one of the three major Abraham religions is not a religion?” Without missing a beat he said “Yes I do.” I should have stopped there and walked away but I wanted more punishment.

I started with a whole cascade of different questions and responses. I asked “So you mean to tell me that the billion plus people who are in the Muslim religion are all wrong?” His response was “Yes they are. They are a religion of war. The only way to get through life is through Jesus Christ.”

“But what about Muhammad or the Koran?” I questioned him.

He responded with “He is nothing but a man and the Koran was written by man.”

I wasn’t sure if he was joking or not when he said this comment. His next comment was just as interesting as his previous comment. “The only book that you have to read is written by God.” Before I could actually say anything he stated “The Bible.”

I looked at him and stated “I was brought up Catholic and I have read through the Bible. I have read and studied about other religions around the world.”

He stated that “There was only one true path and that was through Jesus Christ.”

I then told him that I had lived on a Native American reservation for 16 years and I studied their mythology as well as other aspects of their religion. He asked me “How was it living with the Pagans?”

Again I was dumbfounded by such a question by somebody who stated earlier that “I don’t talk bad about other religions”. I broke down some of the major aspects of the Native American religion. To which he responded with “That is a make believe religion. It is man made so therefore it is make believe.”

With astonishment on my face I asked him “You mean to tell me that a religion that is older than most religions is make believe?”

He flat out told me “Yes it is.”

I balked at him as he didn’t have a clue what the rest of the world was like other than the small area of Maryland and Pennsylvania where he where was born and raised.

No matter how much I tried to explain the different religions that were out there he stated “Everything that you have said is about man made religions therefore they are make believe.”

At this point all I could do was turn around and walk off because I could not believe that somebody could be so naive about the world around them.