== God ==
Religion that is preached through threats of punishment, baits of reward or constant accusations of guilt is not sacred and it is the perfect weapon in the hands of Devil. Why call it faith if it is had only to avoid a terrible consequence or for some temporary gain? I call it compliance, a very narrow thing, which begins and ends with its motive. Faith in God and in religion cannot be something so heavily dependent on motive.
If I were to place faith in God, expecting Him to heal me, then my faith in Him lasts only so long as I am being healed. The day He fails to heal me, my faith is lost. Then is my prayer the mark of my faith in God? Or is it merely quid pro quo, something in return?
And if I were to pray, to obey a code of conduct merely because I would otherwise be put through some grievance, that itself is no faith in God. I pray not because I believe in God, not because I am awed by His supreme powers, not because I truly believe in His goodness, but because if I fail to pray, I will suffer. Isn't this prayer nothing more than a shield, a safeguard?
What good is faith if I use it, not have it? If my prayer, my faith, my devotion is merely a means of achieving an end, or the shield against an undesirable end, then this faith is false faith and I am the victim of exploitation, whether self inflicted or imposed on me by someone else.
And therefore, no war is holy. A militia that resorts to inflicting pain and injury to preserve the integrity of a people's religion is nothing more than a gang of bandits, exploiting the weak for some morbid satisfaction.
Theirs is a false God, a misguided, distorted version of this Higher Being.
And so is the same for the Evangelist who promises fortune and peace, happiness and prosperity as the fruit of faith. Is he truly preaching, or is he simply buying people?
Faith can be spotted and nurtured, seen and developed, not inculcated or planted. It is not one of those crops you can sow and harvest. It is one of those rare orchids that are either there for you to pick or simply fictitious.
My faith is my own. And that is the only thing I have, which you can't play with.
Are You listening?
