How Does Religion And Spirituality Affect The Teenage Population

Over 85 percent of teenagers are affiliated with an organized religion. In addition, it is estimated that 80 percent of these individuals pray and 40 percent pray daily. More than half of this population attends religious services at least monthly.

If I were to ask high school seniors how important religion is to them, the majority would most likely report some type of religious belief or belief in a higher power is an important part of their lives.

The National Institute of Health was named as the participating organization. The NIH would like to learn whether and how these beliefs influence early sexual behaviors, alcohol or other drug use that may facilitate the transmission of HIV in children and adolescents. The focus is on positive and negative effects of religiosity and spirituality.

The realization that so many teenagers are interested in religion and incorporate religion into their lives in some way or another prompts our government agencies and others to take a closer look at how this affects the teenage population, their behaviors and our society.

I hope more and more human service agencies learn how to intertwine religion, spirituality and scientific research into their programs of care. I feel scientific methods of treating social, mental and emotional problems are not enough for anyone.

God And Love

When it comes to God And love, God’s love toward us is that of a father toward his children. “That you may be sons of your Father in heaven.” He spares nothing that is for our good, no matter what the price is. God gave His only - begotten Son, Jesus Christ who died for our sins that we may be saved. God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. This was an exercise of the Divine will in deliberate choice, made without assignable cause save that which lies in the nature of God Himself.

Jesus commanded: “Love your enemies.” God Himself established the principle, as the apostle Paul states: “God recommends His own love to us in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us… For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life“. A wonderful instance of God and love is God’s dealing with Saul of Tarsus who became the apostle Paul. Loving our enemies, therefore, should be governed by the principle established by God and be exercised in obedience to His commandments, whether or not such love is accompanied by any warmth or affection.

As to God and Love we can be sure that love is of God. The apostle Paul writes: “God is love.” says: “He who does not love does not know God, for God is love.” He also has other attributes, among them justice, power and wisdom. says: He is the Rock, His work is perfect; For all His ways are justice, A God of truth and without injustice; Righteous and upright is He. says: “Behold, God is exalted by His power; Who teaches like Him?” says “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom, Thanksgiving and honor and power and might, Be to our God forever and ever. Amen.”

As for God and love, God also has the capacity to hate, a quality the very opposite of love. His love of righteousness requires his hatred of wickedness. says: “You shall not worship the Lord your God in that way; for every abomination to the Lord which He hates they have done to their gods; for they burn even their sons and daughters in the fire to their gods.” says: “These six things the Lord hates, Yes, seven are an abomination to Him.”

How to love God is the ability to come to know God as oneself. Love can come only by seeking and following God’s spirit and the knowledge that comes from His Word. Love must be first to God, above all others. Otherwise, it will become misdirected. Knowing God’s purposes is essential, because one knows then what is best for his own welfare and that of others and will know how to express love in the proper way. This love to God is described in the Bible as loving Him with one’s whole heart, mind, soul and strength.’.

Love is primarily a quality of the heart. says: “Since you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the spirit in sincere love of the brethren, love one another fervently with a pure heart.” We must know God and his qualities, and his purposes, and how he expresses them. says: “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love.”

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Islam

The idea of Islam being spread by the sword is one of the most common misconceptions among both the Muslims and non-Muslims. Many non-Muslims have written untold volumes of anti-Islamic literature propagating the fallacy of Muslims holding swords above the heads of Christians and forcing them to convert to Islam. This is total nonsense. On the other hand we have some Muslim apologists who, in their great fervor to defend Islam and portray it as the peaceful religion it is, seem reluctant to admit that Muslims did indeed fight wars to expand their territories. So what is the truth of the situation? I would like to begin our quest for the truth on this matter by quoting the Qur’an, the literal word of God and the primary source for Islam: “Say the truth from your Lord, then let whomsoever wills believe and let whomsoever wills reject.” 18:29

Let’s start with the prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and look at his example. He did preach Islam peacefully in Mecca for 13 years without once raising a finger against his enemies even though he and his followers were harshly persecuted, tortured, mocked and sometimes murdered. The first wars with Mecca did not occur until after the hijra to Medina, and those battles were defensive against Abu Sufyan and his amassed troops. After the Treaty of Hudaybiyya, the peace treaty between the Muslims and the Meccans, was unilaterally broken by the Meccans, the Muslims conquered Mecca without any bloodshed. Tribal customs would dictate that the Meccans should then be slaughtered for their transgressions against the victorious Muslims, and indeed the Meccans anticipated this, but Muhammad (PBUH) granted them amnesty on the condition that they cease fighting the Muslims. This was a beautiful act of mercy which led to the majority of Meccans choosing to convert to Islam, though no person was ever forced to do so.

What is conversion to Islam? Converting to Islam is something that has to be done by choice, it is something that you believe in your heart, that there is only one God and that Muhammad is His prophet and messenger. Words without belief are meaningless. Of course God alone knows what is in each and every person’s heart, so you won’t be able to fool God by meaningless lip service to Islam, and religion is solely for God and the benefit of the individual. So, forced conversion is impossible. The Qur’an attests to this fact in 2:256 where it states: “There is no compulsion in religion.”

So how did Islam spread so rapidly across North Africa to the Iberian Peninsula and east across India and Central Asia all the way to Southeast Asia? Primarily it spread by trade. Very often while Muslim merchants were traveling abroad they would impress the people they did business with by their honesty and integrity, so much so that those people would ask questions, learn about Islam, and eventually choose to convert.