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Summary of Question:	Re: Changing Religion
Category:	General Sikhism
Date Posted:	Friday, 10/31/2003 8:28 PM MDT

Sat Nam,

This is a response to the person who I think was saying that she would change faiths because of love for a man, regardless if she believed the faith or not.

First, if I misinterpreted your meaning, please forgive me.

I used to be Mormon. I came to ask questions of a pair of visiting missionaries because religion has always interested me. But I got sidetracked; I got a bad crush on one of the missionaries, and figured if I joined the church, I'd win his favor. So I got baptised, even though there were things in Mormon doctrine I disagreed with, hoping that when his term of service was over (Mormon missionaries contract for 2 years) he would come for me. What happened sent me into therapy several years later. See, I tried to be something I was not. I made a big show over being such a good, submissive Mormon lady, when really I'm a maverick who likes to speak my mind. After the missionary went home and got married, I still stayed with it, hoping that it would at least make me more spiritual and more deserving of the happiness this guy and his wife would have. I got a post teaching Sunday school to little kids and found I couldn't do it. I learned that I didn't believe in it, I even realized that I wasn't a real Christian because I figured Jesus was a man and not God. I felt so guilty and horrified with myself that I tried to kill myself. The scars where I cut myself are still visible, ten years later. My God was not the one who made me; I'd made a god of a man, and worshiped what human beings thought of me instead of my Divine Creator. I then dropped out for 2 years, lived as a hermit while I pondered where my spirit was going. When I came out, I knew my beliefs, but didn't know they had a name until I discovered Sikhi.

My point is that it can be a disaster if you choose a religion for the wrong reasons. If you get into something you don't believe in just because you want a guy, you end up messing yourself up mentally and spiritually. Religion is about relationship with God first and foremost. Remember God and everything else falls into place.

If you love a guy, learn to respect his spirituality and learn what he believes and practices. If you find it's for you, then great! It is another dimension to a relationship. But you are an individual first. Never let another person rob you of your individuality, because you were created unique. Why mess with what God gave you? The right guy will love you for you, regardless of religion.

I hope you'll find what is right and true for you. The individual you, whom God created to be unique. Ask your Divine Creator to show you the truth, and he will.

Replies are welcome. To both my sister and the moderators, if I have spoken incorrectly please set me straight, especially where the Sikh teachings are concerned.

All love and blessings,

Elizabeth