A Day of Religion

I was having lunch at the office cafeteria the other day when I overheard some co-workers talk about the topic of religion. They were discussing how some religions have become a "business", with men of the cloth duping laymen and using the name of God for unscrupulous purposes. Listening to their conversation made me think about the truths of their argument (yes, there are certain religious sects that have made faith a cash cow for personal gain) and the fallacies of their thesis (there are true believers of Christ and servants of the One True God that serve Him wholeheartedly for the benefit of others).

I was also saddened how many ungodly wolves in sheep's clothing have tarnished the image of Christianity -- or any religion for that matter -- and as a result, have led astray many people genuinely seeking God. We need to come against these spirits of greed, deception and manipulation as these are present in our country.

Prior to having lunch, a friend of mine at work asked me what religion I belonged to. I had a hard time answering him. I ended up muttering, "Uhm... I don't have one." Haha! Discomfort sat it. Frankly, I still don't know how to answer this question. I would sometimes answer, "I'm a Pentecostal Christian!" But does that really cover it all? I mean, I have always heard it said in church that Christianity is not a religion but an intimate relationship with Christ. So, I lived most of my Christian life eschewing the label of religion.

But according to Wikipedia, "religion is a set of common beliefs and practices generally held by a group of people," and most dictionaries' definition of the word "religion" pretty much describes some of the things that are involved in my relationship with God. I guess part of the reason why I don't consider myself religious or belonging to any religion is because there is -- whether I like it or not -- an existing stigma attached to religious groups and sects. And this leads to the discussion I heard at lunch time (above paragraph).

*Sigh* There is still so much to learn about the whole religion-relationship thing, and although I'm still not comfortable with the religion label, I totally have no problem with the relationship tag -- that's a more succinct description of what I have with the Lord.

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"Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." -- James 1:27