I would not start this personal essay by saying that I am a devout Christian and that I love helping people or something to that effect. I am a Christian; however, I am not the devout type. I do not regularly attend church gatherings. I do not really engage in community services or avoid vices. My moral beliefs were first cultivated by my parents’ teaching. They are devout Catholic, so it is reasonable to conclude that Jesus Christ is the most influential philosopher in my life. It is because of Him that I am able to walk through life confidently and accept different challenges.
I am against violence and vengeance because He has taught us to forgive. Nevertheless, I still have my own spiritual doubts and questions about life and about being a Christian. I also consider myself as a victim of popular culture who has the tendency to get easily influenced by unreasonable circumstances. I am skeptical most of the time which is why I am convinced that Pepperdine is the most fitting university which can cater my needs for spiritual development. The fact that George Pepperdine did not mean for any of the university’s students to become full-pledged or devout Christians is what attracts me most in the university’s mission.
It interest me not because I do not want to become strictly dictated by Christian values but because in this critical point of my life, I believe that I need all the freedom to make my own choices so I can later ponder about them and reflect on my own life. At a young age, a person must be allowed to discover his or her own spirituality by his or her own means. This way, this person can become more experienced and driven to arrive to what he or she believes is the truth about one’s spiritual being. If one would analyze one’s surroundings closely, it is evident that we live in a material world.
The Term Paper on Christian life
Father Henri Nouwen (1932-1996) presents a deeply spiritual and insight book with Reach Out. He presents a Christian approach to living with a systematic form of spiritual life, occurring in three defined steps; loneliness to solitude; hostility to hospitality; and illusion to prayer. Through each step Nouwen encourages a person to question themselves, and to seek an “ascent” to a ...
Everything that our eyes conceive is physically material. On the contrary, I believe that there is much more in this world than earthly things. The world is a puzzle that we need to piece together—a problem that we need to solve. However, it is a problem unsolvable—a problem too complex and beyond comprehension. Yet, we can only see the world as such if we close our eyes from superficiality and open them to greater extents. Simply put, the world is merely an illusion that we have created to fulfill our sight—and the only way to avoid being fully blinded by it is to develop our own spirituality.
A person who aspires to accomplish a developed spiritual being must learn how to act in his or her own accord. Religion can be quite pressuring at times, which can even cause a person to lose his way. However, if one is given enough leeway to discover everything on his or her own, this person becomes more responsible in choosing the right path without any feeling of rebellion or being forced. I am confident that through the guidance of a university which values Christianity, I can become more disciplined and responsible in discovering the spiritual aspect of my life.
I do not usually attend Sunday church but I honestly have my so-called personal relationship with God. I am more comfortable in talking to Him like a confidant who is always ready and available to listen than repeating prayers everyday. George Pepperdine is right. Maybe I am not fully aware yet of what is the real Christian way of life. Maybe “personal relationship” with God is not enough to be called a true Christian. Maybe it includes so much more than just a relationship. I guess I am not that confident yet about my own spirituality which is more than just a reason enough for me to become accepted in this university.
