{"id":902,"date":"2014-02-10T17:03:00","date_gmt":"2014-02-10T17:03:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/rhetoricraceandreligion\/2014\/02\/are-you-there-god-readers-open-up-about-religion-and-spiritually.html"},"modified":"2014-02-10T17:03:00","modified_gmt":"2014-02-10T17:03:00","slug":"are-you-there-god-readers-open-up-about-religion-and-spiritually","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/rhetoricraceandreligion\/2014\/02\/are-you-there-god-readers-open-up-about-religion-and-spiritually.html","title":{"rendered":"Are You There, God? Readers Open up About Religion and Spiritually"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>
Religion is among the most personal\u2014and divisive\u2014topics out there. What we believe (or why we don\u2019t) and how we express our faith (or lack thereof) are questions everyone considers at some point, and part of growing up is figuring out the answers for yourself. Read on for readers\u2019 thoughts on God and spirituality, and share your own in the comments.<\/span><\/div>\n
The Believer<\/strong>
\u201cI come from a very religious Methodist community, and believing in God is one of the ways I find comfort in tough or fearful situations. If I didn\u2019t have my faith, I don\u2019t know how I\u2019d be able to have hope for the future; I think everyone needs something to give them hope in some sort of a way. I\u2019m on my own path with God, and even though I stumble on that path quite often, I know I\u2019ll continue to believe.\u201d\u00a0\u2014Sydney S., 17, from Iowa<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n
The Explorer<\/strong>
\u201cI\u2019ve always been really curious about other religions. I wasn\u2019t raised with any one in particular and have always been free to experiment. There are certain aspects of many religions that I love! Instead of completely pledging myself to one or the other, I\u2019ve taken the parts I like and practice those in my everyday life. I also try to stay as open-minded as possible regarding my friends\u2019 religions. Even if I don\u2019t always agree with their views, it\u2019s important we respect each other. As I\u2019ve gotten older, this has definitely become a bigger thing for me since my friends have gotten more intense in their views. I\u2019ve learned that when people try to push their ideas on you, it\u2019s important to have a strong sense of what you personally believe in and who you want to be.\u201d\u00a0\u2014Justina S., 16, from California<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n
The Questioner<\/strong>
\u201cI haven\u2019t really figured it all out, but I\u2019m probably a mix of atheist and \u2018somewhere in between.\u2019 I\u2019ve always been drawn to religion, but it\u2019s something I\u2019ve also been avoiding at the same time. Religion is power: It unites so many people, but it drives others apart. It\u2019s also an otherworldly experience I don\u2019t think science will ever be able to explain, and that scares me a bit. You have to wonder: Is this real? Was this a story that was mistaken as fact at one point? If God is controlling everyone\u2019s destiny, why do bad things happen? Am I just so desperate to believe in something that I\u2019m making all this up? When does your religion start controlling your life? There\u2019s a lot to think about.\u201d\u00a0\u2014Iris Z., 14, from California<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n
Read the rest here<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Religion is among the most personal\u2014and divisive\u2014topics out there. What we believe (or why we don\u2019t) and how we express our faith (or lack thereof) are questions everyone considers at some point, and part of growing up is figuring out the answers for yourself. Read on for readers\u2019 thoughts on God and spirituality, and share […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-902","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nAre You There, God? Readers Open up About Religion and Spiritually<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Religion is among the most personal\u2014and divisive\u2014topics out there. 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