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There is a well known proverb about all the thousands of different religions situated around the bottom of a mountain. Whichever religion you choose will dictate which path you take to climb the mountain, but we all eventually reach the same God at the top. Some call him Buddha, some Jesus, some Allah ...

There are so many religions out there, how do we know which religion we are? Most of them we wouldn’t have even heard of. I could start a new religion right now if I wanted.

Once you have realised your belief in a God (theism), then it is up to you to either research different religions, and wait until you come across one which feels right in your heart, or just be happy with believing in God full stop and not take a particular path to worship him. Not belonging to a group with fellow minded people can mean you worshiping God by yourself, and might be quite a lonely and un-fulfilling way to worship. Perhaps this is why we tend to form religious groups, to feel we aren’t alone in our beliefs.

Before all we know, life could be one big dream, or even a computer programme! How do we know that what we think is real isn’t just an illusion of some kind? The fact is that religion gives us meaning and some sort of understanding of the mystery of life. It can give us answers and make us feel like we have a bit of order in the chaos of our universe. It can provide explanations where science can’t.

Some religions are very strict or ‘dogmatic’, and anyone questioning the rules or beliefs of the religion are treated as heretics. Most religions are based on ancient scripts, which often are believed to be written by God or given from God to a messenger. Of course all religions have different sets of rules and beliefs, The Qur’an, for example, is quite different to The Bible. And many religions which are based on The Bible, such as Christianity and Catholicism, are different to each other. So if you are starting from scratch, it would be very difficult to really find the religion that best suits you!

Most people, when asked which religion they are, would probably say whichever religion their parents said they were, quite commonly Christian, Catholic or Church Of England in the UK. Even though a lot of people have never been to church in their life apart from to watch a school choir, they would rather say they belong to a particular sect than say they’re an ‘Atheist’, (don’t believe in a God).

People who have no belief in an afterlife or God, would not have the comfort when a loved one dies of knowing that they will see them again one day, or having the feeling that their loved one who has passed over is still around them at times of joy / sadness.

It is common for people to look for meaning in things when they lose a loved one. We might see a co-incidence, for example, as a ‘sign’ that our loved on is near to us, such as a clock stopping at a certain time that is meaningful, such as when a loved one died. Even atheists might find themselves doing this in times of sadness or vulnerability. So we could argue that that is how we use religion, to help us through dark times and to cling to when we feel like we are drowning in a world of sadness. It gives us hope.

Can all religions be right in what they preach? Or is there one religion that is right and the rest wrong? Some religions interpret the same events in a different way, so who is to be believed? It is a difficult question. If a child is raised with very strict religious parents, it is probable that the child will grow up believing that that religion is the only true religion. If someone is bought up by parents who aren’t at all religious, then it is probable that the child will grow up not really having any religious views or having even really thought about it much. Some people view going to church just a thing that old people do who have been brain - washed into going every week and never really questioning why.

There is no real answer to the question of how to find out which religion you are; just start with accepting God, and maybe he or she will guide you!