So due to catching flak from both his mormon mother, catholic step-mother and catholic grandmother, I decided to try to help reduce his cynical approach to religion.

I told him that religions may disagree on many things, but that everyone is trying to find God or meaning in life. They may teach things that you know can't be possible or true, but to look for the lesson.

He asked "like Adam and Eve? That never happened!"

I replied "exactly. They were seperated from God right? So are you and I in our minds. We don't see God, and you don't believe what people tell you about God. So the lesson is that humans are looking for God right?"

He said "yeah...when you put it that way, I get the story. It didn't happen, but its kind of like we are all Adam and Eve in that way."

I told him that he needs to find his own way to connect to God and the universe. God is like wind. You cant see God, but you can feel God, and you can see how God may affect somebody, just like the wind. It moves leaves and grass, and blows on your skin, but you can't see it. Our journey in this life is to find God in ourselves and everywhere, in the special way that God talks to us. Nobody is the same, so how I find God may be totally different than you. But God is everywhere. It's like air. It surrounds us, and we breath it in, and it fills our lungs and veins."

He said "so when people at the mormon church talk and talk and try to get their spiritual meter to 100%, and they are actually making it go down, they are doing the right thing? They say things that aren't true."

I replied that everyone is looking for God, and trying very hard. "Someone might spank a toddler for running into the street, so the toddler would stop doing it to not get spanked. Why would you not run into the street?"

He said "Because I want to live and I don't want to get run over."

I replied "Exactly. You are using your brain and are up a few levels. But toddlers don't get it, and need something else to motivate them to not run into the street. So if at any church, you hear something you know can't be true, just know that those people are hearing what they need to hear from God at that moment. It may not be all the way true, but it's like spanking them to keep them out of the street."

I told him to use his heart and brain, and to look for God everywhere. I explained how the Buddha held a sermon where he just held up a flower without saying anything, and we talked about what that might have meant.

He thought it was awesome.

He then says "So I should love everything? Good and bad? One day I can throw up and look at the vomit and love it?"

Booyah.

I feel much better. We (both he and I) are making some headway.

And when I say "God", I mean it loosely. To life, meaning, whatever. And he and I talked about that too a little.

Teaching him about metaphor, thinking, the power of stories and myths.







You are a fantastic father. You should be proud.

Thanks :). I'm working on it!

Good job there Dad. Keep him thinking.

Stories and Myths make up our lives in many ways.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Campbell

(not to mention pastors...)