Unholy Believers

Despite who we are and the experiences we face, everyone wants to believe that they are a good person. People try to show their goodness in different ways, whether that be taking the time to change yourself for the better, or putting your life in someone else’s hands so they can put you on the right path. However, people use things like religion as a way to prove they’re good, but the reality is that being religious does not make you a good person.
Strongly opinionated religious people tend to go around pushing their beliefs on others, making snarky remarks as they are at it, but weirdly enough, as they’re doing the opposite of what they preach, they probably believe they’re doing God’s work and that they’re good people. This brings up the question, does being religious automatically make you a good person?
In today’s society, there are many people, specifically teenagers who claim to be, “a child of God.” Ironically, those are the same people who say and do the most unholy stuff.
Most religious people would argue that if you were truly religious, you wouldn’t have thought or done those sinful acts. Some would also excuse that behavior by saying that their intentions are pure, giving any excuse rather than admitting that a religious person can also be a bad person.
According to medium.com, “…being good does not depend on religious affiliation. Personal values and beliefs play a significant role in shaping one’s moral compass, and it is essential to question religion’s influence on our lives when necessary.”
Bilal Mahzar, a former student at UACHS, currently a junior in NJIT, is a follower of the Islamic religion. Mahzar believes that to be a good person is to have good character traits and morals, and although religion demonstrates these things, it doesn’t automatically make you a good person.
“…we have rules and laws in society to keep order, but people still break them. Just because someone is part of a religion doesn’t mean they can’t be a bad person (which I’d define as someone doing immoral things), since none of us are perfect,” said Mahzar. “Humans make mistakes, so being religious doesn’t necessarily mean someone will always do the right thing.”
Tatiana Maldonado, a junior at UACHS who practices Christianity believes that what defines someone as a bad person is unnecessary selfishness. While it is natural to be selfish at times, excessive selfishness can reveal a great deal about a person’s character.
“A lot of wounds that you’ve hurt in the past will always resurface and if you try to run away from that through religion, it won’t take away the pain that was once caused,” said Maldonado. “ I don’t believe being religious automatically makes you a good person; as devoted as you can be to your religion, your actions are still a strong factor in who you are.”
For many it is “God first” until your selfishness takes over and you end up doing everything that’s against your beliefs.
No matter how devoted you are, your actions will speak louder than your words, even if it’s God’s word. As Proverb 10 states, “Too much talk leads to sin. Be sensible and keep your mouth shut.”