Growing up as an atheist, I had thought religion is nothing but quicksand of cults, an organization that you join voluntarily to be controlled and manipulated. I'm not sure where I picked those negative assumptions of religion, perhaps from passing by stories, and perhaps by heavy anti-religious influence on CCTV. It wasn't until recently that I started exploring different spiritual routes that Christianity has to offer. Christianity seems omnipresent, just like how Bank of america branches are everywhere, providing convenience, implying dominance. A few things I noticed about the teachings of Christianity that breaks my original idea of religion as a whole and see it less of a cult.
Encouragement for a welcoming community: People tend to adopt a sense of identity from a group, being inside a group tend to generate pride and exclusivity. The whole idea of VIPs is built on top of individuals' pride and ego, a boost of exclusivity and feel good hormones. A small group of girlfriends can also be closed off to others due to reluctance for change and new voices. I believe welcoming communities are a rare find in today's society. It requires open-mindedness, love, and compassion towards others to be a member and supportive of a welcoming community. And who can confidently say that they always resemble all those qualities?
Belief in god as a self-fulfilling prophecy: It is hard for a colored feminist to picture a bald, old, Caucasian guy with exotically shaped long beards as a ruler, and call him father, believe in him, and think that he gives me life or decides my path. So I don't picture God in that way. Rather, I imagine god as goodness, karma, justice, fairness, and the perfect form of myself. Hence, to be closer to god is to constantly remind myself that I should be a good perfect, and I should strive towards perfection. Because I can never be god, I can never be perfect. And when I do things that are not perfect, that is because I can never be god. The other idea is that god will eventually give you everything you deserve in this unfair world. It's the thinking that everything is going to be good, fine, and we will eventually all be okay. This wishful thinking to me, seems like a self-fulfilling prophecy that prevents me from aimlessly worry about the unknown future.
It makes you less fearful of death: A number of spiritual writers and well-being gurus have written about fear. Fear of death has tormented people, especially in old age, from enjoying their life to the fullest. The essence of Christianity is to believe that once you are dead, you in some gassy form will ascend to heaven and live in utopia forever. While this sounds to me like a prison, but it's suppose to be good. The belief of afterlife makes you less fearful of death, hence help liberating you from the notion of fear itself. Now isn't it good to be brave and less fearful?
While these teachings have only good intentions, we have all seen people that were so dedicated to religion that they have completely lost themselves. As a friend once said, religion can be a tremendous help for people when used in the right circumstances with the right amount of influence. When you are too much into an established religion, let it be Christianity or Buddhism, that you donate all your belongings to it and struggling to make your own ends meet, then this religion is a cult to you. I am not an advocate for Christianity, and I still take the idea of organized religion with caution. With that said, I think that everyone needs their own religion as a leeway to deeper spiritual development. It could be an unique religion that you come up with yourself (your view on life), or you can join an already established religion with temples or books. As long as it allows you to focus on being a better human being to yourself and to others, it is a good religion that fosters spiritual development.
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