The Influence Of Religion In My Life

After a deep analysis of myself over the past eighteen years, I’ve realized how much of a positive impact religion has had in nurturing me into the young man I am today. My full name is Craig William Lladoc Coronel, and I was born in the Philippines. I grew up in a lax Catholic household, however can proudly say that my family has never missed a Sunday mass. Religion has always been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. My parents would often remind me to thank God for all the good blessings he gives us and to not blame him when something bad happens over the years. But to be honest, sometimes I question whether or not God is even real. It’s primarily because there isn’t any scientific evidence that shows that he’s ever lived on …show more content…
During elementary school, I was very shy and struggled academically because I was still learning how to speak English fluently. Fortunately in middle school, my English improved immensely and I began making friends. Since I spent so much time with friends, religion began to slowly lose its importance in my life. I no longer only had God to talk to whenever I was lonely. During high school, I finally came out of my shell and developed a sense of identity. I joined several varsity sport teams and clubs. My performance in academics benefitted greatly from my success in sports because of the newfound confidence I had in myself. Always being surrounded by peers, I lost interest in religion and focused on trying to be cool. Thankfully, religion reentered my life senior year when I experienced the sacrament of Confirmation. The whole process was humbling and influenced me to value religion greatly. It taught me to be more appreciative of what I have and not take anything for granted. Now that I think about it, religion has had a huge impact in my development of important virtues like patience and …show more content…
I see people a wide diversity of races every Sunday at mass. It pleases me to know that religion has the power to connect people from all over the world. For example, two countries might be at war, but for one hour every Sunday, its people can enjoy each others company in peace. My neighborhood in the Philippines was mostly Catholic, as well as in New York and now California. However, I’ve noticed that America is much more diverse than the Philippines in population and religions. From what I remember, it was very rare to see a non-Filipino walking across the street the last time I visited the Philippines. Since people live in villages throughout the Philippines, everyone in my neighborhood participated in the same religious community. I personally love all the Catholic traditions we do since they bring the community