Religious Uncertainty

Coming from a person who is not spiritual, or even religious, this class has been an interesting experience thus far. In last week’s class my mind was able to reflect on what the meaning of religion is. Before coming into this class I thought that people turned to religion because it was a chance to be a part of something, and to be in a place of comfort and peace. Also, I saw religion being used by my family during a time of death, and a time for a family get together. But I learned that there may be more reasons to why people turn to religion. It may not be because people want to belong to a community that shares common beliefs, it may be because our society has made it so that religion is part of our everyday lives.

As McDannell had said in Material Christianity, “one of the reasons why the material dimension of American religious life is not taken seriously is because of how we describe the nature of religion.” I think that one of the reasons that I am not very spiritual is because I fall into number of Americans who don’t take religious life seriously. I was not pushed by my parents to go to church, or to learn the bible. My mom did not have me baptized because she wanted me to have the choice of picking the denomination of what I want to be a part of. One of the reasons I have yet to be baptized is because there are a lot of religions, and within these different religions there are different beliefs, and norms. I do believe in a higher power, but because there are a lot of religions and it is hard to find something that shares my personal views. Sometimes I wonder how many people are in my shoes, and do not have a religion to conform to because they cannot relate to their religion.


Hannah and Her Sisters. Dir. Woody Allen. Perf. Woody Allen. Youtube. 5 Feb. 2007.

I am at a point in my life where I can make my own decisions. However, I have yet to find a religious group that I fit into. I have the chance to question what religion means to me, and what it will do for me. Today, in America I feel that people do not have this opportunity because many people either are not raised with any kind of faith, or they are and have difficulty casting aside the faith their parents gave them. I feel lucky because my mom told me she wanted me to have the chance to choose my religious beliefs. As in the video above Woody Allen’s character is trying to convince his parents that he wants to follow Christianity but they have a hard time understanding his explorations because they were raised Jewish and did not ever worry about anything else. It is obvious that Woody Alan’s character wants to know more about life than what his current religion is offering.

If given the chance, would you choose to erase your religious background and start exploring faith anew?