Nowadays it seems that being a religious person, namely a member of the Christian faith, you are expected to be ashamed of that and to feel the need to apologize for your beliefs. This is something that has affected my personal life, as people seem genuinely shocked when they learn of my beliefs and how dedicated I am to my faith. Sometimes, they even go so far as to say, “I thought you were smarter than that.”
The fact that people are so comfortable being so negative in regards to other people’s beliefs truly boggles my mind. I do not expect people of different religions or beliefs to understand my faith, but I do expect them to respect it and not to act as though belonging to my religion automatically makes me some sort of uneducated, close-minded bigot.
Albus Dumbledore once said, “It takes a great deal of courage to stand up to your enemies but a great deal more to stand up to your friends.” Well, here is me standing up to both enemies and friends, strangers and family.
I do not question others’ religious beliefs — or lack thereof — and feel as though it is not difficult to show me that same courtesy. While we fight to abolish the stereotype of one group of people, we continually promote other stereotypes without even thinking about it. If we are so adamant to believe that one evil person who is atheist does not represent all atheists, why don’t we apply that same school of thought to evil Christians or evil Muslims?
Let me be clear: I know that there are bad Christians in this world. Just thinking about the people of the Westboro Baptist Church makes me want to commit several acts of vandalism on their church and picket signs. Of course, I would never do that, for two reasons: 1) I cannot afford to drive all the way to Topeka, Kansas; and 2) I know that doing so would make me no better than them.
Being a Christian is so much more than going to church every Sunday. It is having a personal connection with God, whether that be through reading a copy of the Bible or praying. When I say that I am a Christian, I do not mean that I go to church and play perfect so that I can judge everyone who I ever cross paths with. I mean that I am strongly devoted to my God and His word. I mean that I am a sinner, plain and simple, and I strive to be a better person and to follow God’s law.
I know there are some people that use their status as a Christian like it is a get out of jail free card, and to them all I have to say is to reread Proverbs 11:2. However, if we are supposed to be a nation that believes one bad egg doesn’t ruin the dozen, why do we not apply this same principle to people of the Christian faith?
I acknowledge that there are people out there soiling the name of Christians around the world, but those people do not represent the majority of Christians, and I will not apologize for my faith on their behalf. While I do not like that they are used to represent me, I am not ashamed to be Christian.
