Thinking About God

I believe in God. Or more specifically, I believe in a God.

I believe in a God who doesn't make your problems go away or gives you superpowers. I believe in a God who doesn't care what religion you belong to as long as you allow love to animate your life. I believe in a God who is silent and subtle, whose presence can only be felt by the deep echoes from our hearts.

Over the years, I've learned to be contented with these beliefs. Although I do pray for certain petitions ("Lord, keep me away from stress today" Yada-yada) yet in the end, I know that it's still up to me to fulfill those petitions. The best that I can do is pray that He be with me to help me get through.

As for religion, I also think it's undeniably un-Christian for us to believe that we are the better ones in the world. Christianity was always about love and, as I always say - at the risk of sounding like a simpleton churning out questionable theology - if you believe in love, you've already believed in God.

For the last belief, it's really up to us to believe in God or not. Faith without any tangible proof really is a downer but it's not called Faith then if God could be seen just around the corner.

That's probably why I never felt comfortable watching the recently concluded series, May Bukas Pa. For Santino, it was all crystal clear; he had seen Bro's face and he also knows his purpose in life. As for the rest of us, we have to content ourselves with stumbling along, trying to shape our purpose from the myriad crossroads of our experiences, trying to look for God in the most mundane of occasions.

Yet, despite this inconvenience, I think our situation is better. For one thing, our experience holds with it the joy of discovery, the gratification of finally exclaiming out loud: "Yes, I'm here for a reason and now I know why" or "Yes, I've found God" (The thrill of the chase would surely beat the benefit of semi-omniscience possessed by Santino).

That's for some of my beliefs in God, for now.