My Religion | Teen Ink

My Religion MAG

By Anonymous

I have a magnet on my mirror stating, “Life is not about finding yourself – life is about creating yourself.” This is the statement I live by.

Many people do not believe me when I say I am an atheist. They don’t understand that I simply do not believe in any sort of god or afterlife. I also do not believe in the devil, in angels, or in souls. I believe in myself and the strength I have gained through the help of my parents, teachers, and friends – and my own hard work.

I am not going to try to dissuade anyone from his or her own opinions either. I know that people enjoy having religion in their lives; some need their faith to help them through hard times. And some do not want the responsibility of their misfortunes weighing down on their shoulders.

I do. I abhor the idea of fate – that everything is already planned out and you have no control to change anything. If you believe in fate, when bad things happen, it is not your fault; it’s just fate. When my life is not going well, I know that it is no one’s fault but my own. When I do well in school, when I fall in love, it is not fate and we are not soul mates. I worked hard and paid attention and did the homework. My love and I simply love each other – that is all it is, and for me that is all it needs to be.

For some, life is overwhelming. How can anyone be successful and happy in such a difficult, horrible world? They need someone to help them, someone to guide them, and someone to have faith in to make sure things get better. Placing my success and happiness in another’s hands breaks my heart. I need to be successful because of my efforts. I must be responsible for my own happiness. That is what I need from my religion.

Who will ever know what the truth really is? All I know is in the same way that some have full faith and trust in God to give them hope, I need to believe I am on my own to be truly happy – for how can I create myself if I spend my entire life just looking?



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This article has 764 comments.


on Mar. 9 2011 at 5:34 pm
foxwriter BRONZE, O&#39Fallon, Illinois
4 articles 0 photos 2 comments

Favorite Quote:
If life's not fair then make it fair.

I really love this. I have to admit that I don't know what my religion is. I don't believe in god or the afterlife but I believe in souls. Thumbs up to you for honestly stating your beliefs. :)

on Mar. 9 2011 at 4:13 pm
WindDancer GOLD, Lexington, Kentucky
10 articles 3 photos 77 comments

Favorite Quote:
"It's time to start living the life you've imagined"
- Henry James

"I read to escape, I write to confront."

So true! "To each his own", you know?

Hollyss SILVER said...
on Mar. 9 2011 at 1:04 pm
Hollyss SILVER, Stafford, Virginia
8 articles 0 photos 26 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Fiction reveals what reality obscures"-Jessamyn West
"You can't leap a 20-ft chasm in 2 10-ft jumps."-Anonymous

There are crazy people in this world, and nothing will change their craziness. You are born crazy, not your belief system. I think you'll find obsessive people everywhere: religious or not.

Hollyss SILVER said...
on Mar. 9 2011 at 1:00 pm
Hollyss SILVER, Stafford, Virginia
8 articles 0 photos 26 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Fiction reveals what reality obscures"-Jessamyn West
"You can't leap a 20-ft chasm in 2 10-ft jumps."-Anonymous

Respectfully, I disagree. I don't feel that people have souls, and while you may you should understand that some people just don't. I think everything is equally plausible until proven false. When I die, I will either find God or just be dead.

KayKay:-) said...
on Mar. 5 2011 at 7:55 am
Hey, great for you that you are openly saying you have no religion! I know some people that get all angry when I say I am Methodist and they go on this big thing about the Big Bang and science and all of that crud. But hey, worship who you want to worship, or don't worship at all. (By the way, I don't believe fate exists either. God - or something else - lets us do our own thing, and even if it's bad He'll probably punish us or something.)

on Mar. 1 2011 at 4:48 pm
HisAmbassador BRONZE, Frederick, Michigan
1 article 0 photos 5 comments
I understand you view and hold you in the same high respect as any other of my friends but i pray that God will show you He is the way the truth and the Light

on Feb. 21 2011 at 11:53 am
paleteenager PLATINUM, Fountain Hills, Arizona
39 articles 0 photos 38 comments
Religious tolerance is what we need.

on Feb. 20 2011 at 9:17 pm
kateknopp BRONZE, Carmel, Indiana
4 articles 0 photos 9 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Trade your guns and fire with doves; we fight for love, and peace will find us with harmony." -Christofer Drew

"Sometimes you've gotta fall before you fly."

"Be yourself; everyone else is already taken." -Oscar Wilde

your religion is a beautiful thing. be who you want to be. :)

on Feb. 15 2011 at 6:07 pm
WerewolfWriting BRONZE, Eerie, Nevada
4 articles 0 photos 32 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Life is not about the breaths we take but about the people who take our breath away."

I am very impressed with how open you are - the atheists I know are closed up and and angry and whenever I ask they go into a huge speech like I was taunting them or something. Although I think God created everything, I respectfully enjoy your piece.

on Feb. 12 2011 at 2:22 pm
T.R.Trevino BRONZE, San Diego, California
1 article 0 photos 21 comments

Favorite Quote:
'I cannot, nor will, recant anything, for it is neither safe nor wise to go against conscience.' -Martin Luther

I am hapy for you that you believe so strongly. but be mindful of what you say. People do not appreciate being called weak.

noname37014 said...
on Feb. 10 2011 at 9:33 am
noname37014, Holland, Michigan
0 articles 0 photos 6 comments

Favorite Quote:
"As I write I create myself again and again."
-Joy Harjo

It's really great to see someone put this to words without being agressive. I am an atheist, but I don't want everyone to think I believe they are all stupid for having a religion

Topaz97 SILVER said...
on Feb. 6 2011 at 7:55 pm
Topaz97 SILVER, South Milwaukee, Wisconsin
5 articles 0 photos 8 comments

Favorite Quote:
Don't curse the darkness-light a candle.

This is a great piece of writing for many reasons...you strongly state your opinions without bashing others, you write truthfully, and write artistically. I respect your opinions, even if I disagree.

Ehwaz11 BRONZE said...
on Feb. 5 2011 at 8:50 am
Ehwaz11 BRONZE, Hopkinton, New Hampshire
4 articles 0 photos 17 comments

Favorite Quote:
"It's important to remember that we all have magic inside us."
- J.K. Rowling
“Oh, dead man, you’re dead wrong,” I tell him. “The world goes on stupid and brutal, but I do not. Can’t you see? I do not.” -Andi Alpers, Jennifer Donnelly

thank you for backing up your opinion passionately, articulately, and respectfully. great mantra!

on Feb. 4 2011 at 9:47 pm
coribelle777 BRONZE, Plymouth, Massachusetts
2 articles 0 photos 2 comments
thank you for being very considerate of other religions while stating your opinion.  it really gave your point more credibility and i truly appreciated your work. keep up the great work!

Lilliterra said...
on Feb. 2 2011 at 12:11 am

No, he spoke them into existance. Out of nothing. Humans can only make stuff out of other stuff. They are so proud of what they've made, but God looks at man's amazing creations and says, "Get your own dirt."

Ps. See my article on Creationism: "What Darwin didn't Know".


Lilliterra said...
on Feb. 2 2011 at 12:06 am
Well said.

on Jan. 31 2011 at 7:18 am
All is forgiven friend.

leafy said...
on Jan. 29 2011 at 8:42 pm
okey dokey. truce. sorry about that

Vital_Critic said...
on Jan. 26 2011 at 6:00 pm
Vital_Critic, LA, California
0 articles 0 photos 6 comments

So, without evolution, how did all these creatures come to be? did "god" make them all out of his wonderful "cosmic clay"?

 


leafy said...
on Jan. 26 2011 at 3:18 pm
what i meant by that was that you didn't show love, compassion or mercy in your past comment, because i am not obama and i never will be. (unless a marry a guy with the last name of obama, but thats unlikely.) and i didn't ask for politics here, i don't care if you hate obama or not. if i did i would check out the politics section