Since the beginning of time, people have struggled with religion and what they believe in. In history, there are many examples of when a person or group of people have had doubts or completely lose their faith in what they believe. You also can see this today in people because when we grow, we face challenges and obstacles that either make you stronger or weaker. I personally have also dealt with the testing of my faith, but over time it will increase once again. A great example of strife with belief is in the book Night by Elie Wiesel, which is about when he was in concentration camps as a teenager.
Throughout the book Night, the theme that I noticed and took away the most was that people struggle with religion. This is evident of the main character Elie in the beginning of the book on page 15 when it says, “...could not find a master in Sighet to instruct me in the Zohar, the cabbalistic books,...” when he wants to study the Jewish mysticism that is the Cabbala. Learning and studying this book is often discouraged until one is 40 years of age and is very confident in their study of the Talmud. Elie wanting to do this shows that he is not sure what he believes, but wants to learn things that most would consider taboo. Another example would be in chapter four on pages 71 and 72 when a young boy is hanged. When this happens, all the Jews kept asking each other, “Where is God now?” and Elie had replied in his head, looking up at the little boy hanging, “Where is He? Here He is-He is hanging here on this gallows…” When Elie says this, he is basically saying, “God is letting this happen to us, He does not care. You ask where He is- He is here with us, watching these events unfold and not stepping in.” Elie’s faith was tested very seriously here, and he did not truly forgive God for a long time afterwards. Elie is similar to many other people of the world today that lose all or some of their faith in God.
In the world today, about 31.5 percent of the world believes in God according to Daily Mail (“You wouldn't believe it… but having no religious affiliation is now world's third biggest 'faith' after Christianity and Islam,” dailymail.co.uk) and anyone could confidently tell you that every single one of those people struggles with their religion and what they believe about God. Since we are all human, everyone has doubts, worries, or just has problems in their life that take away from their belief in their religion. This in turn makes it so that people doubt God, turn away from Him, or just stop believing in general. When this happens they either stay away from God forever, or eventually come back, and after a short amount of time have another obstacle in their path that takes away from their belief. Another example of religious struggles globally is in Jerusalem, between the Muslims, Christians and Jews. All of these groups have and still argue over the city and who it belongs to, for all groups claim to have a religious connection to the city. The sites include the temple mount, the western wall, Church of the Holy Sepulchre, and the Garden Tomb. At least two, if not all three, of the religious groups claim that they own the area, and squabble over who gets the rights to what. (“Why everyone fights over Jerusalem,” cnn.com) These examples are both part of our world today, but the problems that I see the most are the ones that I have. All my life, I have grown up in the church. I was watching “Veggie Tales” as a pre-schooler, and getting baptised at the age of ten. Even though as a child I learned an awful lot about God, Jesus, his disciples, and the Holy Spirit, what I was not prepared or expecting were the hassles I would go through. I did not truly understand my religion and what I believed until I was about twelve or thirteen, and even then I could not fully comprehend. When I was fourteen years old, my parents and grandparents got into an argument, which caused me to not be able to see my grandparents for many months. When my grandpa died in the February of 2011, our families quickly forgave one another, and we became close again. While losing my grandfather was hard, I was just happy to be able to see my grandma and cousins again. One day after a few months of becoming closer, I went with a friend to a youth group, and the leaders were coming around to pray for everybody. When one got to me, she asked me what was going on in my life, and what she could pray for, and I told her about how my grandmother had been diagnosed with lung cancer the previous year, and it was slowly getting worse. The woman prayed over me, and asked for complete healing. Two weeks later, I was very surprised when out of nowhere I was told that my grandma had died, almost exactly six weeks after my grandpa had. At first it did not register, but I soon remembered that woman praying, and asking for her complete healing, and I could not help but think, “this is not what I had meant.” I quickly blamed myself for her death, thinking that if I had not told that woman and had her pray over me, that my grandma would still be alive. I blamed God, and was very angry at Him for taking her away when I had just started seeing her again. After a while, I got over this, and realized that it would have happened anyways, and that at least she was with grandpa again, but while this went away, my other pains were still there. The one that I struggle with the most on a regular basis would have to be doubt. A lot of the time I try and make excuses about my faith, like that I am too busy, when really I just cannot help but wonder if God even exists, or that He wants me and loves me. Even though I sometimes doubt God, and I struggle with understanding Him and what He wants from me, I know that He is there, and that in time I will come to fully trust and give myself to Him.
People everywhere have different opinions, beliefs, appearances, and lives. There is something that we all have in common though: change. As we grow older, our looks, opinions, responsibilities, and maturity change, and as we grow, we learn more and more and are able to form our own opinions and beliefs based on what we think and have learned. This means that when we get older, our thoughts on religion and how the world was created vary. That is shown in my own personal life, the world today, and throughout the book Night. Everyone struggles with religion, and it is a factor that greatly affects people’s lives.
Works Cited
Burke, Daniel. "Why Everyone Fights over Jerusalem." CNN Belief Blog RSS. CNN, 15 Sept. 2013. Web. 12 Nov. 2013.
Wiesel, Elie. Night. Toronto: Bantam, 1960. Print, “...could not find a master in Sighet to instruct me in the Zohar, the cabbalistic books,...” (Wiesel)
Wiesel, Elie. Night. Toronto: Bantam, 1960. Print, “Where is He? Here He is-He is hanging here on this gallows…” (Wiesel)
"You Wouldn't Believe It… but Having No Religious Affiliation Is Now World's Third Biggest 'faith' after Christianity and Islam." Mail Online. Glam Entertainment, 18 Dec. 2012. Web. 12 Nov. 2013.