by Rod Harvey, Marketing Manager, Gold Coast, Australia
Completely open and free without a care in the world… that’s how I lived when I was a child.
Before I arrived on the scene, Dad served as an infantry soldier in WW II in the Middle East, Greece and New Guinea, followed by an 18 month stint in the RAAF, based in England. When he spoke about the war, we only heard about the camaraderie and the mischief; nothing about atrocities and death. He rarely spoke about those who didn’t survive the war. Only ten percent of his original battalion came home.
No wonder he was an atheist.
Although my parents were irreligious, they encouraged us to find our own direction. I attended Sunday school but didn’t enjoy my brief sojourn. The teachers were too stern. School religion wasn’t much different – it was a drag. But at least there was no homework, apart from being ‘good’ (I didn’t pass).
However I do admit to momentarily wanting to be an altar boy because my mate was and he dressed up in a cool outfit. I think that was about the time I wanted to be a ballet dancer… and that too passed.
By the time I was 18 my openness and sense of wonder had shut down. My interest in God was zero and I had become a skeptical agnostic with strong atheistic tendencies. Life was about sport, the pub, women and work.
I went to a friend’s wedding – a lengthy traditional high mass. It further reinforced the futility of religion to me as I sat through the rituals and Latin liturgies. If God spoke Latin, how the hell (oops) could I communicate with him? I certainly didn’t fancy the idea of kneeling on the ground and bowing my head. Why did they do that? Surely there were better ways to show devotion. To me it felt cold and subservient.
As time went on I saw inconsistencies and bias in religion that cemented my viewpoint. Overall, religions professed to represent love, yet women were generally excluded from ‘holy positions’. One religion tells men not to touch a woman for 12 days after her period starts. Another tells women to cover their bodies with clothing from head to toe.
There’s an imaginary place called ‘hell’ that is used as a form of blackmail to get people to behave as the church wishes. Some religions hint at providing more ‘heavenly’ benefits to chosen followers over outsiders. Many religions persecute people because of ideological differences.
I observed how religions sent their ‘representatives’ throughout the world to change and control the natural way people lived their lives. Wars were started in the name of God. The prevention of the distribution of condoms resulted in thousands of people dying from Aids. I saw monks wandering like beggars being fed by people, then cloistered away to pray, rather than becoming self sufficient and getting out to serve their communities.
I felt that religion was a cop out because you could turn up, pray and then be quite ‘ungodly’ until the next session. To me, this promoted irresponsibility; there appears to be much self indulgence in worship.
No wonder so many people shun God, when there is so much conflicting feedback and controversy about religion.
Does this mean I have something against people who are religious? Not at all; love of people is high on my priorities. I say live and let live. There were times when I was envious of people who were sustained by their faith. I also appreciate the service that is given by people from various religions to their communities, particularly to the disadvantaged.
What I object to is the manipulation and control influenced by those in powerful positions within many faiths, along with extremists and religious scholars: people who often appear to be devoid of love. It is the antithesis to ‘live and let live’. We see similar characteristics with the leaders of some countries.
I reached a point where religion was meaningless and felt it could not be a true unifying force, so why bother? It was futile.
Yet surprisingly, after a few decades of apathy, I now have a different outlook…
The Truth about Universal Medicine 
I nodded in agreement all the way through your astute presentation Rod, as I could relate to all you have shared. The biggie for me in questioning the truth of religion was the fact that so many wars had been and were still being fought in the name of God. This made no sense in any way as even though I was estranged from God back then, I still knew that there was no way he would countenance these senseless and heartless actions.
When it comes to religion, faith is an important word, either you have belonged to a faith, or you have lost faith in God. Yet, in truth religion it’s not about faith, it is about our movements.
What I really don’t like about organized religions is the way we look at those priests and monks as the professionals when it comes to God and religion and regard them as having the ultimate say in right and wrong. And we have definitely participated in reinforcing this formation, even when we turn away from it, by not claiming our own connection with God.
What you describe here Rod as religion, is not religion in the true sense of the word, violence, separation, annihilation, war, all belong to the so called religions you described, when true religion is our returning and reconnecting to the love we truly are, where none of the above exist, only love, equality, joy.
When we look around us today and observe what has in the past and currently transpires in the name of religion, it is no wonder why a massive resistance and separation exists. To speak of God yet seek to then annihilate, oppress, segregate, dictate to another is not true religion, nor does it represent the unifying truth that holds all equal as Sons of God. True religion represents love, in every way, for all beings to be known and respected in equalness, as from such a point of truth and unity we as a humanity will flourish in true power.
This blog pretty much sums us my relationship with religion as I also got to the point where I thought it was pointless. After searching for many years and attending many different types of religious services, none seemed to catch my attention enough to give it a good go. Now I know that I was looking for a connection to others and to myself and that we are always in a relationship with religion.
“Life was about sport, the pub, women and work.” And not in that order but I was also caught up in distractions that kept me from feeling how true Religion is always there. It is just us who go into denial.
Why bother?” but still we seek the truth of what it ‘all’ means.
I so appreciate having re-connected back to God and the truth of religion with The Way of The Livingness, after turning my back on religion and God for many years I never thought I would return… such is the wisdom and power of this amazing and very true religion.
I agree Anna, True Religion has always been with us just waiting for us to return.
‘Religious’ schools may be great places to confirm the captive segment of society that is part of the ‘religious’ marketplace and the beliefs of what ‘religion’ is all about. Yet, if you are a person free from it, a ‘religious’ school will, in no way, be an attractive place to go, particularly those who have somewhere in their bodies a feeling that what is on offer there is not religious at all.
Your choice of the word ‘marketplace’ in reference to organised religions is spot on Eduardo. What a business model it is (and huge money maker at that) to offer to your followers (as in Catholicism) a chance to simply confess to your ‘sins’ every Sunday, thereby absolving you of all responsibility for your abusive actions during the week, only to repeat the same actions later, as long as you confess again and give the Church money every Sunday for their ‘services’.
It’s a great synopsis of religion today – well expressed Rod – I enjoy reading your writings and how you express in your words. It is great you now have a different outlook from all that you experienced and grew up with.
You can see how institutionalised religions cause extreme irresponsible behaviours to manifest ..
I have become to know again in my body that religion is my relationship in how much love I choose to have in this world, and I want an abundance of it!
I too had reached point where I felt that religion as we currently know it was not only meaningless but represented corruption, oppression, contradiction, exclusivity and the right to abuse or disrespect another as a result of a gross lack of connection to God. All of which was the antitheses of what I felt religion was truly about. When I came across Universal Medicine I was not looking for a religion to be part. However, through the presentations by way of Serge Benhayon I felt inspired from day one to explore my connection to my essence, my Soul, through which I re-discovered that, what I felt religion was all about, was in fact true. A way of living that originates from the understanding that we are already are the Sons of God, all of us equally so, and living in connection to this Divine quality, our love, is our natural way of being. Learning how to bring this loving quality to the lives we live together, in equalness, is our purpose for being here. As it is through my connection to my Soul, I have realised that my relationship with God was ever-present, and this relationship is one we all innately have access to wherever we are in the world.
One might argue that the principles of The Way of The Livingness hold similar values to all of the Religions that you mention above and from a distance if you do not delve deeper, this is a much more convent truth than opening up to the possibility that there is another way that Religion can be. It is my understanding that we are made up of three parts, our humanness (my fav), our soul (my distant friend) and the spirt (most indulgent and self righteous know it all voice of doubt).
When my spirit reads this article it thinks, The Way of The Livingness might not have hell but it has its own version of hell, as in the astral plane and karma, the extent of ones choices depends on the adverse affects these things may or may not have on ones incarnation.
As a woman of the world my humanness says that I have been hurt by Religions in the past and its best if I am skeptical moving forward but be careful to hide your suspicion so you are not mistaken for a bigot, be “open” to all but really hold out of “love” in case you get hurt, especially from a relationship with God.
My soul says, life is simply a spec in the ocean to the grandness that you are, one day we will laugh together about how small you thought you were, God is love, you are love, and you are equal to him and have the same capabilities as you, free yourself from your spiritual and man made prison of beliefs and walk with me and bring heaven to earth.
Committing to connect to myself and deepening my relationship to God can bring about reactions in others but these reactions in particular is jealousy, they are to be observed and understood and seen where they are coming from. It can be very interesting what is said or not said, whatever the case may be which is not them to try and cause a reaction in me.
Religion to me always seemed to be like an exclusive club, if you belonged you were welcome but if you were an outsider, there was a cold reception never a warm welcome one. Serge Benhayon and Universal Medicine have shown me how simple and loving religion can be, and it is not about what you believe, it is about what you know to be true.
As a kid I always couldn’t stand kneeling on hard planks of cold wood. It never made sense if God was love that he’d want people to feel bad about themselves. In my experience this doesn’t bring you to greater love, it just creates a pattern of self doubt and lack of self worth- this was not what I feel God to be.
The misinterpretations, inconsistencies and bias that can be created through people’s perceptions within the multi-faceted beliefs of religions of today can leave many people feeling completely disillusioned with the world around us as a whole.
The way god is portrayed in mainstream religion is far from the truth and gives us an excuse to choose individuality over the union that we can be. True religion does portray this magnificence, that we are all one and god is in every particle that makes up our Universe and so we are all in essence deeply religious.
There is no surprise that Religion and God get blamed for all of the wars, crimes illnesses etc. But at the same time it’s one of the great sadnesses of the world, for we have so misunderstood or should I say we have been so mislead as to what religion is and what it means.
I too had a similar outlook in relation to religion, which was so totally the opposite to what I felt inside, an absolute knowing of the truth of God. Something that I held hidden and was unsure of until I read a book written by Serge Benhayon called “The Way It Is”. Then I knew that what I have always felt is true.
“What I object to is the manipulation and control influenced by those in powerful positions within many faiths, along with extremists and religious scholars: people who often appear to be devoid of love.” Brilliantly said. Same here.
Live and Let Live is always two sided if lived truly.
Unfortunately most Religions give God a bad wrap, they portray God in a way that manipulates people and fears them into attending church, and fosters separation – this is far from the truth of God. It is interesting how we have been sold a lie and how the church continues this level of deception and control to this day, thank goodness for ‘The Way of the Livingness’ that is a true Religion that is simply about love, brotherhood, truth, connection and deep wisdom.
Non of the established so called religions make sense, in fact they contradict themselves and if you seek deeper understanding, nobody can truly give you answers instead you are asked to have faith and trust the authorities – very disempowering.
“I felt that religion was a cop out because you could turn up, pray and then be quite ‘ungodly’ until the next session”. This just did not make sense to me in any way either; it was oh so hypocritical. And of course then there was the money that you were expected to put in the plate, possibly for the extra absolution of the sins that you had been convinced you had been committing. No wonder I classed myself as agnostic, but not as an atheist, as deep inside I knew that somewhere there was a religion that did make sense, and finally I found it, and God, once again; The Way of The Livingness, a religion for all people equally so.
What you shared about religion Rod, feels so true, as it appears to me that within some religions in the world there is deception, lies, control and power, along with the evil of separation that it engenders.
I agree Rod – if you look at how religion is being practised in the world it’s easy to get put off big time.
Any establishment or group that creates separation, comparison or better than, less than between fellow human beings is not in any way a reflection of God. I used to see this hypocrisy as well Rod, watching friends and work mates wipe themselves off on a weekend, but turn up to a church service the next day, and believe they were better than the rest that didn’t go to church. It’s interesting the arrogance and self-righteousness that often accompanies many organised religions in the world…. the exact opposite of the unifying love of God.
Rod I so relate. I could not reconcile the way that people lived with the espoused values of their religions. I read history in high school, with a focus on religion from the middle ages until the 18th Century and came to the conclusion that it was unintelligent to be religious. However the truth is that I was forever seeking meaning in life, that is until I came upon Serge Benhayon’s presentations and it all began to make sense for the first time this life.
Until such time that we have evolved to where we no longer have a need to be better than, unfortunately the mainstream religions will continue to be huge players in our world. For once humanity humbly accepts we are all equal, religion as we know it will no longer offer those the sense of superiority it now delivers.
If you look at mainstream religion it’s very easy to be put off religion and God forever! There are so many discrepancies, and I would say incorrect truths that are sourced from religions – like that God sends you to hell. How could an all loving God be judgmental? To me it seemed like we have given God human attributes, which were a long, long way from the truth of the divinity I felt in my heart.
Rod, I had a real aha moment reading your blog as I felt my experience with religion growing up and understood how it actually reinforced and rewarded irresponsibility but at a price. So you could get away with something so long as you confessed, did penance at church, paying your dues so to speak but it was all through an external agent, the church and it’s representatives and of course at no stage did I look at my irresponsibility in doing or being as I was, I just came, confessed, was pardoned, did my penance, went my merry way to do it all again. Now I see how unevolving this is and how it keeps you subservient and almost ‘child-like’ and the truth, how I used that to avoid my own irresponsibility, how I did not address what was truly gong on with my behaviours and continued feeling I had a get out of jail card, but in fact nothing is nothing and I was owned and am owned when I stay in this way, and actually, even though I’ve long since left that religion, I can see how this pattern plays out all over again, and I reckon it might be time to address it. So thank you for shining the light here and inspiring me to see and feel where I have not been true and dishonouring of all that is truth despite the fact that I adore truth, and know in every fibre of my being what it is, it’s time to live some more of it.
For me growing up within an Anglican family Religion was important for awhile, until I reached about 16 years and then other outside interests took over! I questioned often what Religion had to do with in many areas of my life but at the same time there was something missing! When I came into contact with Serge Benhayon and Universal Medicine and The Way Of The Livingness everything started to make sense
What a great observation of what we let happen under the name of religion and what we have made religion to be. I love your style Rod.
You expose the truth of religion as it is used in the most used sense of the word. It is a cop out to be irresponsible. It doesn’t ask us to be more, but more so to be less. Which can’t be a true way to live.
This is a beautiful deconstruction of religion Rod. It doesn’t get more real than this.
I ‘had a go’ at a few different religions – but they never satisfied. I knew there was more. Finding Universal Medicine felt like coming home – and the integrity of Serge Benhayon – so unlike any other man I had come across – blew me away – and still does.
Religions have been around for aeons and yet people within each of them are suffering… illness and disease are rife, as is the abuse amongst people… and no one religion is untouched by this. Whatever religions have promised, we have not been offered the truth on how to live with ourselves or each other and people are losing hope. So much so that it is not uncommon to hear of people jumping ship from one religion to the other in the hope that maybe another will bring them the salvation they seek.
Thank you Rod I love what you have written and I find what you are saying is true, for me now. Back then I was so caught up in religion that I bought it all, captive all those years living a loveless life thinking I was serving God. Thank God for Serge who has shown us the true way of Livingness our return to the love we truly are that lives deep with us and always has.
In my early 20’s I told my mum I didn’t believe in God and thought it was all a load of rubbish and a way to control, manipulate and bully people. At this stage I was just focused on my own life and didn’t care about myself outside of this. The result was also to be very disconnected from the rest of humanity, I recall when there were major world disasters I would turn the news off and say ‘if it;s not affecting me and where I live then why stress about it or watch it’. I believed in science and creation of the earth from ‘the big bang theory’. The truth is these were the saddest, loneliest and most miserable times of my life. Leaving God and brotherhood was actually very distressing for me and I didn’t know how to handle it other than ‘being tough’.
The only part of being a part of a religion that I valued, it’s saving grace so to speak, was the fact that I met some beautiful, big hearted people. What I realised though, was that it was not the religion that made them loving, but their natural loving way and their connection to themselves.
Thank you Rod. You demonstrate very clearly how the dogma of established religions keeps people in separation to knowing the Divine love of God. The Way of The Livingness presents the truth of true religion of connection to the love immanent within the inner-heart of us all and expressed in the way of love we live and move in every moment with no judgement from the Divine or each other – just love and the essence of who we all already are.
Yes we certainly can Victoria, I have started my journey through The Way of The Livingness. I am learning to truly connect to God and learning to build this ever deepening divine relationship with myself, with God and with others.
This is so true Kim, I never realise this until I read your comment but it was the same for me too.
A brilliant blog Rod. This really highlights for me the exact reason I avoided joining many religions as I also felt they were void of love. I felt a lot of the rituals and beliefs did not feel true or made any sense. I knew the version of God that was depicted did not come close to who he really is. Your blog confirms this for me and I can totally relate to it,
Looking forward to part 2 Rod. I like where this is going, you’ve outlined the reality of organised religion and now it seems we’re getting to the bottom of what true religion is all about.
There’s something very wrong with mainstream religion when it promotes separation between ourselves and God and that God is to be feared. Much damage has been done. Thankfully the Way of the Livingness is exposing all the lies and misinformation and presenting the truth – that God is love, never judges and is always and will always be there lovingly and patiently waiting for us to make our return.
Such a great point Deb. How many people actually fear God? I don’t believe I’ve ever thought about it like that, but you’re so right. People follow rules so as not to get in trouble with God. How crazy is that? Talk about giving our power away…
Why bother with being religion if what the established religions have to offer is not really felt as true? Yet, not bothering with religion is not equivalent to not bothering with God. The problem with the established religions is that they do not really represent God amongst us. Is becoming an Atheist/Agnostic the answer to our clear feeling of not aligning to the mainstream religions? Is it really an alternative? Although we may fool ourselves and state to the world that it is, in truth, it is only an alternative that comes from a previous decision to not feel God in any way.
It is fascinating that people essentially shun God because other human beings choose to behave in unloving ways that hurt them. God plays no part in our choice to cause harm, he simply allows us free will and the opportunity to choose to come home at any time. Unfortunately many of us have refused to see the truth and then blame God for our poor choices.
If what you described was religion I wouldn’t think anyone in their right mine would want to be religious.
I absolutely agree Luke, so why do so many in the world class themselves as religious, are they all not in their “right minds”? I doubt it, but from what Rod has written it is obvious that so many do follow their religious beliefs without question. Maybe this is because there is something missing in their lives that being part of a religion fills and if they were to question it their world would be turned upside down?
Agree Ingrid with anything the we refuse to let go of there is always a reason whether we choose to admit it or not.
Great blog, Rod. Coming to Universal Medicine is a point of turnaround of everything, I have lived and believed before. A point of re-turning and deeply realizing, how twisted the view of myself and the world and what it means to live religious was before. It was twisted means that in the moment I give myself permission to allow everything to come back into the natural energetic order, truth unfolds itself. Comparable how I had (and have) a twisted view and out of it behavior and out of it life, is, what mankind did to religion and living love. I am looking forward to part 2…
I have always had a connection to God, even at the age of about 6 I have memories of being quite sad about the crucifixion on the cross of Jesus , as I listened to a Radio service on Good Friday with my Dad . I didn’t enjoy the fear and feelings of humbleness we were supposed to feel as we knelt at the feet of the Master, not being good enough to eat from the same table but only to share the crumbs from under it. Thank you for sharing Rod.
Rod I can relate to much of what you share here, having been raised a Catholic I felt from a young age how this religion was fear-based and lacked any resemblance of love. I turned my back on religion many years ago convinced religion was the problem. I know religion was not the problem now and I have been inspired by ‘The Way of the Livingness’ to re-connect to God and to be part of a true religion – now I can say I am a deeply religious person.
Rod I had to giggle as I read “I felt that religion was a cop out because you could turn up, pray and then be quite ‘ungodly’ until the next session. To me, this promoted irresponsibility; there appears to be much self indulgence in worship.” Being brought up a Presbyterian I would at times fantastize about being a catholic and being able to confess my sins and be absolved. As it was I couldn’t see any one living up to the perfect image of Christ and concluded that my family were all sinners and would go to hell. That is when I decided (nervously, in case I was wrong) that religion was not true, and so began a life of searching, because in my heart I knew there was more… and forty years on I found the Way of the Livingness.
I also have a different outlook of religion since coming into contact with Universal Medicine and being presented with The Ageless Wisdom.
Me too Joe… Having also been raised in a traditional religion there came a time when I felt the incongruences with institutionalised religion and what I felt deep down were the true qualities and essence of God. Through Universal Medicine however I have experienced that true religion can never be separated from God, and I am now appreciating and developing a relationship with both.
So do I Joe. Although I still hold a bit of a grudge towards organised religions I have to admit, but the difference now is that I have an understanding and experience of what truth in life actually means.
Me too Joe. I baulked at the words religion, religious, God for many years – blaming the words for what was perpetrated in their names. But it is not the words that are the problem, it is the reinterpretation and subsequent ill-usage of them that has corrupted their meanings so we are unable to feel the quality and energy that they truly hold.
Thanks for sharing another version of how and who God is, Rod. Kids should be told about this loving simple God, so that they have a choice.
Rod, you have shared with us all the reasons why I decided to have nothing to do with God or religion for many years, but I still remembering having a slight sense that there was more to it than what I was being presented. Slowly I began to understand that what I thought religion was, was simply the bastardised version; the version used to control and manipulate. Today I am beginning to finally know the true meaning of religion and as I do my relationship with God is developing into what I have actually always known deep inside, that is just a normal and natural part of my everyday living
Great writing Rod, can’t wait to go to part 2!! To be religious and to believe in God has been so massively bastardized that so many people, like you share, live in the reaction to those misinterpretations and choose a life free of any religious ideals. I experienced the same, it did not feel anything that I would aspire to live. There were no religious role model, the contrary for me every religious person was pathetic and not coping with life and the church was the most oppressive institution I have ever been in. In this it never occurred to me that the whole set up was misguiding, but not religion, and definitely not my relationship with God. Through Universal Medicine I started to see through the game and reclaimed my deep relationship with God, not a belief, but a knowing and today I am deeply religious.
I love that you have shared your experiences and thoughts on religion, exposing from the point of love what truly doesn’t make sense. It feels like something has definitely been lost in translation and whatever that is, has left many unsure of what is the truth.
I recall feeling lie this i the past “…religion was meaningless and felt it could not be a true unifying force…” All I could observe was pain, suffering and power games, the love that was spoken of was not lived. I now feel I have reclaimed a meaning religion that works for me, which is lived.
My experience of religion is as you have stated Rod. Exposing and honest questioning – glad there is a part 2 🙂
It’s understandable why so many shudder at the word religion when it is based on so much fear of the repercussions if not lived according to the individual religions interpretations. Really looking forward to reading part 2 Rod.
Religion seems almost like a game we play, depending on which team you pick determines how much you enjoy or even get a go… No wonder sound many choose to sit it out
I can relate to how you felt about the inconsistencies and self indulgence that exists within the religions. Bring on Part 2.
Rod I can so agree with how you felt in the past towards religion as I myself had questioned the many contradictions I could see being perpetuated by religions across the globe. I too though have now begun to see true religion as being my Union with God, a relationship with myself and bringing greater purpose in my life through the self-loving choices I am beginning to make. This is a religion I can live by as it is the way of my livingness that reflects the true Union I am developing with myself and those around me.
When spelled out as you have done here Rod ‘organised religion’ appears to be more like ‘disorganised religion!’. While growing up I never really gave it much attention, just something in me had no interest in something that didn’t make sense. What I did used to feel however, is that there had to be something bigger than us, something working on a grander scale, but I would never admit it to myself let alone another. There is a grandness all around us but how that is connected to has been muddied. Through the presentations of Universal Medicine and the Way of the Livingness I can now say with a certainly that I know that there is a God and that connection to this grandness is not solely for a certain few, or constricted to certain buildings or roles in life, and is actually very simple to connect to.
Simple, live what you speak or in the case of many organised religions live what you preach, it is glaringly obvious that there are many inconsistencies within organised religions when it comes to this issue, speaking of love and living love are not the same. This is truly exposed in this blog.
Oh my god Rod – I am so looking forward to read your next blog . . .
There are so many rules, shoulds and should nots in religions that we are familiar with, so yes, I can understand, why bother with it as none of it makes sense. I know I gave up on religion after leaving school having attended a Catholic school my whole life. I gave up on religion, but I didn’t give up on God. I always knew there was more to God, I just didn’t understand him or how to access him. Only through “The Way of the Livingness” have I come to understand that there is no need to search for God outside of myself. That he is right there within us all equally. Now I thank God for the religion “The Way of the Livingness” which doesn’t have rules or regulations, it simply presents that there is a Way and it for us each to unfold that within ourselves.
Rod your thoughts about religion in your early years were the same as what I had concluded religion to also be about, and none of it made sense. It’s interesting reading your account and seeing how illogical things we are taught are! My connection now with religion is very different, but only after peeling away the mistruths I took on as fact.
Yes it is a tragedy these days that one cannot claim to be religious without being looked upon as someone who must be anti-science and anti-common sense. Atheists have rightly laid claim to the fact that one does not need to be religious in order to be concerned about and empathetic for human beings, but they in turn have incorrectly seeded their own propaganda, often claiming that to be religious means one cannot embrace science or the gritty reality of life. And this is a shame, because these days we have created such a divide between religion, science, and indeed philosophy. Part of this is obviously due to the ridiculous position some mainstream religions have historically held when it comes to acknowledging the science of the day – which is unfortunate, for there is nothing in truth that I have ever seen that really suggests that you cannot talk about God and the Big Bang in one breath, or that the two subjects should in any way be contradictory or conflicting.
We have witnessed first-hand, throughout our history, the atrocities carried out toward humanity in the name religion through judgement, separation and discrimination. I love what you have shared so far Rod and I am looking forward to reading Part 2…
I can hardly wait for part 2! I too became jaded about religion at an early age. I was weary of trying to be good because I always failed and I announced this to my parents one day. They were so shocked that they took me to see a kindly retired minister from our church who assured me that my good family would all go to heaven. That didn’t cut it, because I’d been trying for perfection by changing my behaviour to model the perfection that Jesus was presented to have been in, but inside was a seething sense of unhappiness, discontent, feelings of self-loathing, annoyance at other’s behaviours, jealousy and more. And quite frankly I saw the imperfections of others around me, so I quickly dismissed religion as untrue and unsustainable, though I did maintain a fondness for Jesus.
Thanks Rod for this top blog. You have covered a lot for any reader and I agree with what you are saying. For me personally, I grew up with the Hindu religion which left me very confused as there were so many Gods and each had a story. My thing was why is it not simple and we just have one God?
Why clean your house at Diwali so the Goddess of wealth can enter?
My take – why not always consistently clean your house?
Anyway no amount of praying sorts our your money life and I am living proof of that. I had the big statue and all the Gods and tried another 5 religions in my adult life. Nothing worked and the fact is I got even more confused.
What has worked is what Universal Medicine have presented and I finally got it. The search was over and the icons, statues and everything else that symbolised “God” were not needed. EVERYTHING was inside me so all I needed was to learn how to connect to me inside and know and feel what God is – simple.
So true what you have said about how irresponsible religious people and religion have influenced and manipulated people. Acting and living with complete contrast to what true religion and God is.
I can really relate to what you share here Rod. In my 20s I spent some time visiting a range of different churches on Sundays (somewhat desperately) looking for one that presented something true. I had a Christian upbringing and an unshakeable belief in god but try as I might I could not align to any church or religion I found. There was always something that felt wrong, something that I could’t agree with. The congregations also seemed devoid of love and connection and this said it all for me.
When I attended one of my first Universal Medicine events a very lovely man I did not know assisted me to put my jacket on as I was struggling a bit. It was such an innocent, sweet and tender gesture and it was world apart from what I had experienced anywhere else. I’m looking forward to part 2 – what a bonus it is ready for a reading. Like getting the box set to watch all at once 🙂
‘What I object to is the manipulation and control influenced by those in powerful positions within many faiths, along with extremists and religious scholars: people who often appear to be devoid of love. It is the antithesis to ‘live and let live’.’ – Hear! Hear! Rod, what an awesome quote.
You’re right Rod, it doesn’t make sense to have all of the separation, wars, fighting and shutting people out because they have a different religion.. is that really God’s word?
If God were human I can imagine he would not be judgmental or criticise others over their opinions, but rather bring people together, help unite and teach the world about connecting to who they are, and the naturally loving essence they have hidden away, but is still there inside them, naturally.
On to part 2 of this amazing article!
There is so much in this blog.I know this was not a main point of the blog but I was blown away by the fact of only ten percent of your fathers’s battalion came home from the war, this is truly horrific and it is much more in touch with what happened during the war than all my school history lessons combined. I got to feel the magnitude of the loss that was experienced in war when you wrote of it in this way, at school it was just big numbers, when you write about the loss of life Rod it is more tangible, as you made it about people. How can we possibly still be creating and participating in wars?
“When he spoke about the war, we only heard about the camaraderie and the mischief; nothing about atrocities and death. He rarely spoke about those who didn’t survive the war. Only ten percent of his original battalion came home.” – I can relate to this Rod, my uncle was the same.
Yep, me too…Looking fwd to what comes next. But where you have left us here, is where I am still (somewhat) today in my reaction to religion. Let’s see where part 2 take me…
Like you, atheist parents and I was also an atheist until recently. Like you, I could have found many reasons why not to bother with religion, yet what your blog made me realise is that I did not bother to go there at all. I simply ignored it altogether. Religion did not turn me off; it just did not turn me on.