Let the truth speak for itself!

I think autumn (or 'fall' for my friends over the other side of the Atlantic that drive on the wrong side of the road, bless you), is one of my favourite times of year. It's greatly helped this year by the truly magnificent September weather that we're having. They call this an Indian summer, yet I still haven't seen any elephants which greatly disappoints.

Beautiful sunshine that is pleasantly warm but not too hot, is mixed with fresher mornings and evenings where the stars and planets twinkle in the clear dark skies. The only thing I'm not liking about it is a very lousy display by our apple tree who has managed to produced just a solitary fruit this year (and that dropped off way before reaching succulent maturity).

I've always loved this time of year, but when I was younger it was thoroughly spoilt by having to return to the bedlam of school after a lovely summer break. Even now the sights, smells and feelings that autumn evokes, trigger a rising panic in my belly. I suddenly fear that I've not bought a new pencil case or completed any summer homework assignments.

I've seen some dear, almost doll-like, tiny children these past couple of weeks, who I guess are in their very first year of education. They walk along carrying their little folders with a mixture of slight bewilderment and immense pride. It amazes me just how young they start their learning.

And it was this that reminded me about what I really want to blog about today - religion, or more specifically, religious education.

I've no idea what life in a primary school is like these days, but when I started there in the latter part of the 70's, there was a massive emphasis on the teaching of Christianity. Our unquestioning little minds (such is the way that nature has designed the brain of the child) were filled every single day with bible stories and hymns praising Jesus and encouraging good deeds.

I appreciate the good intentions of those handing out this message, for I genuinely believe they were trying to mould young minds to think of others and behave in a way that respects the wider world.

But although I couldn't articulate it at that age, even then I felt troubled that the message implied that 'good people' were only those who followed the teachings of the bible and by implication, if you did not, you were destined to end up in some very deep and fiery shit.

My biggest problem was always around why it was we should believe that the bible is the word of god and our instruction book of how to live and behave in this world. As I got older, I would tentatively ask this question of my elders when the opportunity arose, only to be quoted a passage from the bible itself that stated it was indeed the true source of god's word. Hmm...hardly an independent verification is it?

Of course, one of the key parts of any Christian belief system is 'faith'. I soon learned that when this magic word was mentioned, I was supposed shut up, 'just believe' and stop my questions. At that age, you genuinely think adults are all-knowing, and it was a genuine shock to me when I reached maturity to find, lo and behold, adults ain't got the first clue what the hell is going on and are just as scared and often more confused as any child.

But I did try and just believe, in exactly the same way as I did in Father Christmas. Every year this rewarded me with a fine selection of gifts, so it didn't seem unreasonable to assume that this Jesus guy was much the same and would surely be giving me a whopping great gift at the end of my days.

But of course, as you do get older, the nagging feelings of doubt get bigger and need to be addressed. My concern about the validity of the bible just wouldn't go away. Why should this book be believed over any of the other great spiritual works of any other religious traditions?

It would appear that some people cover up this doubt by preaching 'the truth' of the bible or whatever religious book it is that you've been brought up on, louder and louder as they get older. Shout loud enough and the dissenting voices will be covered up for some of the time. But deep in your heart you'll be unhappy. And I wonder if this is why some people of certain religions seem hell bent on trying to make everyone else just as unhappy as they are.

Brainwashing is a strong term and maybe 'mental conditioning' is a nicer way to say a similar thing. But that's what I felt had happened to me during my formative years at school. The hymns and parables were entrenched in my head and held me back for a long time before genuinely exploring other religions and ways of thinking.

I eventually came to the conclusion that all religion is an attempt to grasp at the ungraspable and answer the unanswerable - i.e. it's all a bit pointless really. Theory and words can never come close to describing what it is to be human and how to navigate through life.

We all seem to have a spiritual appetite, especially in times of trouble, but my experience has taught me that this needs to be explored, lived and nurtured by each individual. Handing it over to a group of believers of one doctrine or another is a bit of a cop out. You need to live and learn yourself and then come up with your own conclusions.

Attaching labels to everything seems a common trait of human nature. You may decide from reading this that I'm an atheist or humanist or whatever term you wish to use. But I would never describe myself that way. It's not about believing or not believing in something, but following your own path that ultimately leads you to flourish fully as who you really are.

If you genuinely allow that to happen, it's my experience that this will bring you to a place of peace and balance. But if you try and force your way on someone else, you've actually robbed them of their own chance of true happiness. And by 'your way' I mean pretty much anything that you strongly believe in, from ultimate reality to your political views, to what football team you should support.

Share your views like you would your clothes - offer them to others to wear for a while but be understanding when they decide your fashion sense is ridiculous and opt for a different style altogether.

In my opinion, 'religious education' or whatever you want to call it, would be so much better if it equipped kids with the tools that helped them discover themselves, rather than training them to believe a set of doctrines. It should be encouraging them to question everything, rather than blindly accepting what is told in books from many centuries ago.

Although maybe the whole Father Christmas thing isn't so bad, as he still brings be presents even now, the nice old man.