Life is hard. It is an endless search for meaning, but that meaning is difficult to find. We often pose many anxiety-inducing questions: What should we do in a failing economy? Why can’t I find a job? Why am I busting my butt to get decent grades? Why have hundreds of thousands been killed in Darfur? Why did cancer take my friend’s mom? What am I supposed to do with my life? How can I possibly find any happiness in this God-forsaken world? Although we can attempt to answer some of these questions, they often take a tremendous toll on our spirits, breaking us down until life seems hopeless.
This is when we turn to religion. I am not going to say you must read The Bible for strength, or say that if you practice Christianity, everything will be alright. I know there are plenty of people who benefit from reading the Bible, and it gives them hope and comfort to believe in something so strongly. Kudos, I say. But just because one religion works for one person does not mean it works for everyone. Therefore, every single person needs to find his or her own source of strength and hope, but at the same time, respect others for their spiritual choices.
Growing up, I never used the Bible to get me through life. In fact, I rarely went to church because I did not benefit from it. It appeared to help others, but it was not a rejuvenating experience for me. When I got confirmed in the Catholic Church, I did not know what I was confirming, and I did not feel any different afterwards. Instead, I found other things to motivate me and drive me to become a better person. I read novels that resonated with my life, and I found idols that provided the guidance I needed. Basketball was part of my religion, and Michael Jordan was my Messiah. They gave me something concrete to hold onto and to help me figure out life. Why should anyone be criticized for what gives him or her strength if it does not hurt other people? Heck, if Kanye West inspires you to be a better person, incorporate his music into your faith.
I wish the Bible did more for me. I wish I could go to church, be inspired and feel stronger. Instead, I find my own way. In the big picture, all anyone is trying to do is figure out a way to get through life without being torn down by the difficult questions. Hopefully, with a newfound strength, we can answer the answerable, but also accept the unanswerable. In other words, we need to try our best to figure things out, but also to relax in the face of life’s uncertainties.
When I read Antoine de Saint-Exupery’s The Little Prince, I am comforted. Instead of getting dismantled by “adult” worries, The Little Prince reminds me to concentrate on the important things. That little dude would scoff at the anxieties over America’s economy. “Grown-ups like numbers,” he says. “When you tell them about a new friend, they never ask questions about what really matters.” This helps me to keep life in perspective when the world is bogged down by its troubles.
When Aristotle, in his Nichomachean Ethics, tells me, “for no function of man has so much permanence as virtuous activities,” I find comfort in doing virtuous activities. I pull from these sources and attempt to find some glimpse of hope and some reason for living.
We need to find texts, people and traditions that give us strength. There is no “right” religion. Religion is our comfort object; it is our teddy bear that we hold onto when the monsters under our bed are stirring.
That is not to say we should just keep our teddy bears to ourselves. We should never try to push our religion on others, but it often helps to share our faith and talk with others about what helps us. We can build off each other, but the only way to do that is to listen. Listen to the Christian telling you about a Bible passage that gives him or her strength, listen to the Muslim telling you why he or she fasts during Ramadan and listen to the Buddhist telling you about The Four Noble Truths laid out by Gautama Buddha. Then you can choose whether or not to add those things to your religion.
After all, we live in the same difficult world, and together we are all struggling to figure out life’s meaning. We cannot do it alone, so we must listen to and understand each other. Once we gather different sources, we need to practice the religion that works for us personally. Only then can we find the strength to live a happy and meaningful life.