Faith with Meaning

By Siena

As a young teenager, you are figuring out most of the stuff about you: who you are, what you like, who your true friends are, what your aesthetic is…what do you believe in? In this article we will be discussing the impact and importance of religion, why you need it, and maybe even why you don’t. Stay with us to embark on the journey and discover the wonders of ancient times, where and when these spectacular religions and moral values started.

First of all, what is religion? That is a tricky question, but let’s start off with the “main” religions, and by that I mean the most popular, and their own core values and morals.

• Christianity (2.4 billion followers): Christianity is about faith in Jesus Christ as the Son of God and Savior, following his teachings of love, forgiveness, and salvation to live a righteous life and attain eternal life with God.

• Hinduism (1.2 billion followers): Hinduism is a diverse spiritual tradition centered on dharma (righteousness), karma (cause and effect), and moksha (liberation), emphasizing devotion, self-realization, and the interconnectedness of all life.

• Buddhism (500 million followers): Buddhism is a path to enlightenment based on the teachings of Siddhartha Gautama (Buddha), emphasizing mindfulness, compassion, and the cessation of suffering through the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path.

• Judaism (15 million followers): Judaism is a monotheistic faith rooted in the covenant between God and the Jewish people, emphasizing the Torah’s teachings, ethical living, and devotion to justice, kindness, and community.

• Islam (2 billion followers): Islam is a monotheistic religion centered on submission to Allah, following the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad, with core values of faith, prayer, charity, fasting, and pilgrimage (Five Pillars of Islam).

• Sikhism (26 million followers): Sikhism is a monotheistic faith founded by Guru Nanak, teaching devotion to one God, equality, selfless service, and honest living while rejecting discrimination and ritualism.

I am a Catholic, a branch of Christianity. I love being a Catholic. I love my God, and I love my religion with its impressive core values. I was baptized and went through all the training of knowing what a Catholic is all about, like Confirmation and Eucharist. I have started reading the Bible and knowing the stories ever since I was little, and I haven’t appreciated the Bible until now that I am 16 years old. Even when I was an atheist, I still loved the teachings of the Bible. To me, religions teach you good moral values about how to become a better person to yourself and to others. Religion also teaches us discipline we must have for ourselves. For example, in Buddhism, a good moral value story is “The Buddha and the Hungry Tigress”:

Once, in one of his past lives, the Buddha was born as a prince. While walking in the forest, he saw a starving tigress struggling to feed her cubs. The prince felt deep compassion, realizing that if she died, her cubs would suffer as well. Unable to bear their suffering, he sacrificed himself to feed the tigress, demonstrating ultimate selflessness and kindness.

Moral: True compassion means selflessly helping others, even at great personal cost.

Discipline story of Islam “The Patience of Prophet Muhammad”: An old woman used to throw garbage on Prophet Muhammad daily, but he never reacted with anger. One day, when she fell ill, he visited her with kindness. Touched by his patience and compassion, she embraced Islam.

Meaning: Discipline in Islam means controlling emotions, responding with kindness, and staying patient even in hardship.

In conclusion, even if you do not wish to pursue any type of religion, I suggest you read and maybe even listen to its teachings to help become a better person. Religion is here to show humans the moral way and show us core values such as kindness, discipline, respect, patience, compassion, and most importantly…love.