Belief

If you truly believe in your beliefs, it bothers you not to hear others talk about theirs in front of you.

If you truly believe in your beliefs, it bothers you not to see symbols of others' beliefs.

If you truly believe in your beliefs, you feel no need to kill or bring others down, knowing that the fact you are right, or the God, or the gods, that stand behind you can bring the light to others' lives.

If you truly believe in your beliefs, in your religion, whether it's atheism or Islam or Christianity or what-have-you, it's not something you feel the need to argue about, to insult the vales others hold, to kill or hurt physically or emotionally, or to wave your beliefs as though they make you better before others.

Yes, it is OK to want - and to try - to convert your friends, for truth - or salvation - is a wonderful thing, and you most certainly what your friends and others to have what you have.

But anything else? To me, that is just a lack of belief. If you can't stand to see another's religious symbol, you don't really believe. If you feel the need to bring others down because of what they believe, you do not believe. Clearly you are insecure in your so-called convictions if you cannot turn to the truth you hold within yourself.

If I say that I believe atheism is a religion, and you are atheist, you can shrug that off even if you don't agree.

When someone says to me that Mormons aren't Christian, I can shrug that off.  Because I know, ultimately, that we ARE Christians.

I don't mind seeing someone wearing a Star of David or a pentagram.  I know that the manger scene in my heart, the love for my God, who sent His only Son, is greater than someone else's outer symbol.

Not their inner symbol, perhaps, but that's not what matters.

You believe if you are kind, if you are compassionate, if you can befriend people of all religions.  Because it's what is held in your heart that matters, not the world around you and what they say.

So do you believe?

Or have you forgotten?

Do you believe?

Or are you pretending?