There is talk about how society is corrupted.

Discussions are held about how living in a society in which the media throws  up images of sex, drugs and violence results in the degradation of religion.

There is talk about how religious people are biased.

Discussions are held  about how all of the people that strongly believe in a God are crazy.

Countless false stereotypes- that all Muslims are terrorists, all Catholics hate homosexuals, and that all religions want to convert anyone else to the point of violence- are all thought and believed. Religion is seen as a problem, as something that is illogical, a fools hope.

Way to judge a book by its cover.

Yes, the news relays stories of bombings and hate crimes, of religious zelts starting wars over the ever debated question of a higher power. This is not new. Religious wars have been fought for centurie.

Do the Crusades sound familiar?

There are always extremists- people who are willing to put not only their own lives but also the lives of others in danger to prove their point.

But these are the extremists. They do not represent the moral compasses or deciding factors for everyone who believes in the same God.

Roman Catholic Pope Francis addressed this topic when speaking to a large group of people.  “…many of you do not belong to the Catholic Church and others are non-believers, from the bottom of my heart I give this silent blessing to each and every one of you, respecting the conscience of each one of you but knowing that each one of you is a child of God.” Francis said.

Most higher powers teach their followers to love everyone around them. Being religious does not mean that you are hateful and unaccepting of others. It is supposed to be the opposite.

Most religious people cannot be picked out of a crowd.

Being religious does not mean that you run down the street at rush hour, waving a Bible, asking people if they have chosen the correct religion. Being religious does not mean that you subtly try to convert all of your friends during conversations. Being religious does not mean you discriminate others based on their faith, or lack thereof, in a power they have never seen.

Being religious just means that at the end of the day, you can go home and know that someone, somewhere, is always watching out for you. Any further beliefs or actions based on religion is dependent on the person holding the belief.

In this aspect, religion is simple.