Day Ninety: Flexible (in Spirit)

I am flexible in my spirit.

As many of you may know, the Pope decided to resign this past week, shocking the world by being the first pope in six hundred years to give up on the gig. I can’t exactly blame him considering the state of the world and his hate-mongering idiocy seems to be leading us away from the light. But my opinions of the pope have already been discussed at length in earlier works.

Due to the startling revelation that the pope can actually quit (seriously, who knew?) the world has become a barrage of questions regarding the future path of the Catholic Church. I’ve been reading a lot about how many people don’t think that the Catholic Church should or will change at all. As much as I would love to tell you that our next pope is going to dramatically change our church and our world, I know it isn’t true.

Because the Catholic Church isn’t flexible in spirit.

A few years ago I started really getting into Judaism because I really identify with many of their teachings and principles. At the same time, I started reading more into the Shinto and Hindu religions as well as looking at the West African traditions commonly known as voodoo.  I wasn’t looking for a new religion, I wasn’t looking for a change in my spirituality. I was looking for better answers to questions my own religion seemed unwilling or unable to answer.

My mother was understandably upset about my religious swaying. She told me that I was a buffet Catholic; I went from religion to religion looking for the things I liked and disregarding the things I didn’t like. And I was like, “yeah, exactly.” Why should I have to subscribe myself entirely to one religion when I can take what I please from all the world’s religions? I don’t like the way the Catholics treat gay people and women, so I disregard it. I don’t understand the Jewish obsession with the Israel/Palestine conflict and their unwillingness to find peace. A Vodun priest has to go through like nine steps to welcome you into the worship space. But I love the Catholic warmth and its mission of service. I love the Jewish traditions of festivals and food and their lack of a hell. I love the Vodun spirits who help guide worshipers.

So I’m flexible with my spirit. The way I see it, at the end of my days I will go to whatever afterlife has been preordained for me and I can state my case. If they don’t like it up there, I don’t have to stay. I feel comfortable taking the pieces of my religion that I like and practicing it the best way I know how. A lot of my friends and family tell me this is a copout and that I’m being lazy, but really I’m being happy.

Why the hell does religion have to be hard?

Challenge to my Readers:

Whatever religion you are, or even if you don’t practice a religion, take some time to at least read and learn about other practices. Look into a spirituality you would have never considered before and try to take some understanding from it.