"In the end no religion can give you something you won't give yourself."
GS 1019
Recently I was swapping texts with a friend who is on her own spiritual journey. She told me about her struggles to convert in her faith and how she really needed the conversion. Without any great agenda (because I'm very supportive of her personal path) I found myself responding with, "In the end no religion can give you something you won't give yourself." Immediately, and on the surface level, I was talking about the fact that the conversion won't automatically help her with self-esteem and self-love issues; those need to come more organically and slowly, and from within. However, the more I reflected about that comment the more I think it may represent my view of my faith, and all faith, on a more universal level. As Muslims we're taught that we are naturally good in that we don't believe in the concept of original sin. So, we're not born having to make up for a mistake stretching back to the beginning of human history. At the same time, we're told that when we convert our sins our wiped away, so in that way religion is giving us something that we didn't have before. In The Heart of Islam Nasr proposes that the biggest sin in Islam is forgetfulness; that is, our relationship with God is so natural and total and primordial that we couldn't logically, consciously move away from it, but might instead simply forget it. Some of my brothers, whether they're being sincere or trying to be clever, will propose that no one ever converts to Islam, but rather simply reverts because it is the primordial relationship with God.
My answer here is utterly predictably to those who suffer through my endless struggle between the internal and external aspects of faith, but I have trouble believing that an organized religion could ever give you anything. Whether you think that you are moving towards God for the first time or returning to some primordial oneness with God, in the end what matters is your personal relationship with the divine. If you're waiting for your religion to give you something then you're making a conscious/unconscious decision to not give yourself the very same thing you so desperately want.
GS 1019
Recently I was swapping texts with a friend who is on her own spiritual journey. She told me about her struggles to convert in her faith and how she really needed the conversion. Without any great agenda (because I'm very supportive of her personal path) I found myself responding with, "In the end no religion can give you something you won't give yourself." Immediately, and on the surface level, I was talking about the fact that the conversion won't automatically help her with self-esteem and self-love issues; those need to come more organically and slowly, and from within. However, the more I reflected about that comment the more I think it may represent my view of my faith, and all faith, on a more universal level. As Muslims we're taught that we are naturally good in that we don't believe in the concept of original sin. So, we're not born having to make up for a mistake stretching back to the beginning of human history. At the same time, we're told that when we convert our sins our wiped away, so in that way religion is giving us something that we didn't have before. In The Heart of Islam Nasr proposes that the biggest sin in Islam is forgetfulness; that is, our relationship with God is so natural and total and primordial that we couldn't logically, consciously move away from it, but might instead simply forget it. Some of my brothers, whether they're being sincere or trying to be clever, will propose that no one ever converts to Islam, but rather simply reverts because it is the primordial relationship with God.
My answer here is utterly predictably to those who suffer through my endless struggle between the internal and external aspects of faith, but I have trouble believing that an organized religion could ever give you anything. Whether you think that you are moving towards God for the first time or returning to some primordial oneness with God, in the end what matters is your personal relationship with the divine. If you're waiting for your religion to give you something then you're making a conscious/unconscious decision to not give yourself the very same thing you so desperately want.
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