Book 2, Post 2

For Book 2, I chose to read, Holy Envy: Finding God in the Faith of Others, because the description of the book given in class sounded like the author was going to write about a experience that I shared. What is the experience? The experience is growing up with Christian faith and then suddenly being exposed to a wide variety of other religions. Furthermore, how exposure to other religions and ultimately impacts your faith in the Christian religion. 

When reading this book, I was hoping to have an experience that I resonated with. For people who aren't religious and didn't grow up in a town where everyone practiced the same religion, its quite strange to move to a place where there is so much religious diversity. Growing up in Texas, everyone I knew was Christian. I knew a couple of people that were Jewish, but besides them, everyone else was Christian. Were they the most devout Christians, some yes and some no, but one thing for sure was that we all believed in the same thing we were told by our parents who were told by their parents and so on. Basically no one questioned Christianity and other religions were practically non-existent. 

Lone behold I come to Los Angeles for college and two of my roommates are Jewish, and one is an atheist. I had always acknowledged that there were other religions but I had never actually heard anyone apart from the Christian religion speak about their religion. Most of the Jewish kids in Texas would probably never talk about their religion since they would feel uncomfortable by the Christian masses.

It was the first time in my life that I had ever experienced religious conversation that was different than the Christian dialogue I had been surrounded by my entire life. My roommates did not believe in the god I believed in (one did not believe in god at all), they did not picture the same afterlife I pictured, and they did not hold themselves to strict standards that I once held myself to when I was religious. Needless to say, my brain was going for a ride. All my life I had never really questioned my religion or considered other religions. So, all of a sudden I'm questioning everything and feeling some religious guilt because Im doubting my faith. 

However, it was a necessary exposure that I needed to experience. Barbra Taylor, the author of Holy Envy, can say the same as well. We didn't share the same upbringing in the Christian faith, but like me she was solely familiar with the Christian religion for a very long time without having any introduction to other religions. Then, once she was offered to teach a world religion course, her perspective on certain aspects of the Christian religion would change dramatically, along with her appreciation for other religions. 

From reading the book, here are three main takeaways that I was able to come up with: 

• The same respect one has for their religion needs to be reciprocated to other religions.

Taylor notes in her book how her and her students were welcomed gracefully by those present at the buddhist temple her class visited. She goes on to note how some religions do not reciprocate that same welcome and respect to individuals of other religions. From this, and I think this should be inherently known, but everyone should hold respect for others religions regardless of whether it lines up with your beliefs or not. 

• There is nothing wrong with being curious.

In her book, Taylor believes that many Christians feel extreme guilt when they explore religions other than Christianity. I am going to take a shot and say that most people who explore beyond the religion they grew up with feel religious guilt in general as they might feel that they are betraying their religion. However, this book taught me that there is nothing wrong with being curious about other religions. As a matter of fact, you might find aspects of one religion that intersect with your own, or you may implement ideologies from one religion to your own to enhance your religious experience. 

• Perception can vary ones outlook on religion.

One thing that I have taken away from Taylors book, which I had already noted prior to reading the book, is that people perceive religion very differently from one another. One comparison that Taylor uses in her novel is how some Christian individuals view god as a loving god while others view him as a deity to fear. There are so many different ways to perceive texts and practices that I truly think that we all have a different perception of religion whether we realize it or not. Things can be interpreted very differently depending on the individual.

I expected to get exactly what I got from this book: reassurance. Taylor reassured me that there was nothing wrong with exploring or entertaining other religions. As a matter of fact, one might stand to gain something from exploring religions besides the one they practice. Personally, I am now not religious like Taylor but I do appreciate that I have a somewhat similar experience that I can relate with.