Not a Christian?!

It's funny how we learn things...out of left field...when we are least expecting it. I read something tonight that gave me the ultimate clarity on where I stand religiously.

It was this statement:

"All we have to do is believe that Jesus Christ died for our sins. Nothing more or less. There is only ONE WAY. Jesus makes it very clear......'no one come to the Father, except through me.......I am the way'"



My childhood upbringing taught me that you were either a Christian or you were going to hell. I did not know about other religions. Jesus is God, God is Jesus. Jesus died for our sins and if we ask him into our heart we will go to heaven. Everyone else will go to hell. I do not doubt the story of Jesus dying on the cross or even that he is the son of God. My issue is with the getting to heaven part ONLY if you believe these things.

I have to admit ignorance when it comes to religious knowledge. I never realized just how ignorant I was until I began college and took classes on religion. I moved often and spent my childhood in small, impoverished towns in Arkansas. I realized how limited my experience of the world was and that I wanted to have a choice in my religion. If I was going to be a Christian, I wanted it to be because I chose it, not because that's all I've ever known.

I studied Islam and went to the mosque on LSU's campus. I studied Buddhism and spent time talking to a Buddhist monk and attended services in Vietnamese (with a guide/translator). I participated in their services and prayers. I was actually scared that God was going to strike me down...was I praying to a golden Buddha? I went to the Bahai' Center and met with them a few times. Their teacher called me "A Seeker". I liked that. I attended many Catholic masses (my husband is a non-practicing Catholic). I and went to many different Protestant denominations: Baptist, Methodist, Pentecostal, Presbyterian. I took a class on Kabballah and learned about Jewish mysticism.

I even went to the church of Scientology (very SCARY) and decided they were absolutely crazy...they even sent me a sloppy handwritten letter in the mail telling me I was afraid of "THE TRUTH" when I asked them never to call my house again *shuddering* I still get sick to my stomach thinking of those encounters.

I took a class at the Unitarian Church and even joined for a period of time. I loved that they accepted all beliefs and did not have a doctrine you had to follow to be a part of their church. I participated for a while, but wasn't satisfied. I spoke with many people and was able to ask many questions about their various religions. Many times they'd ask ME what I wanted to know and I'd look at them blankly...I wanted to know what I DIDN'T KNOW and I thought they were going to tell it to me. I searched my soul and I studied my dreams with a dream therapist to study the hidden path to it. I took long breaks and avoided religion altogether.

Somehow, I still feel ignorant about religion. Tonight, though, I realize one thing for sure. I am not a Christian. I cannot claim to be when I have such an issue with the only way to heaven being a belief in Jesus. I think about all of the people in the world who are like the me who only knew their religion (or lack of religion). What about the people that have never heard of Jesus and the Bible? Just because they practice another religion, does that mean they will not go to heaven? I don't think so. There are many common denominators in many of the world's religions. The essence of each...that's the true religion to me.

So, I am not a Christian. It's like finding out that the parents you grew up with your entire life had really adopted you at birth. They raised you and helped you become who you are today, but it is not their DNA that you possess. I am not a Christian. That's what I DO know. I believe in God. I gave my life to God a long time ago...that's when bad things stopped happening to me. I will continue to live my life by the Golden Rule with an open heart. I trust God will guide me to the correct path that I should follow.