Elizabeth, I have to tell you something right up front here. You’ve done something that has never been done before in the history of AGW – you have stumped our panel of advice givers. Not ONE girl left a piece of advice for you. Apparently they were all clueless as to what you should do in this situation. And I don’t blame them one little bit. You may have posed the single hardest question we’ve ever gotten.

Religion is an extremely touchy subject for most people. Many people are raised in their religion, and never question it their whole life. But you’re at the age where such things start to happen – you start to question everything in your life. That’s a good thing.

I’d like to give you one piece of advice. Before you start telling your family that you don’t want to be Presbyterian anymore, find out more about what it means to be a Buddhist. Investigate other religions, too – Catholicism, Taoism, Islam, Judaism, Shinto, Wicca. Find out all you can before you make any huge decision. If your parents ask you what you’re doing, just tell them that you’re curious and you want to know how other people worship God. It’s not a lie, but it may help avoid the fight that you’re afraid of.

If you do decide to change your religion, talk to the spiritual leader of the church you’ve decided to join and ask their advice about how to handle your family. I’m absolutely certain it’s something they’ve had to handle before, and they may be the ultimate experts on the problem. So check out that resource!

Lastly, please don’t borrow trouble where there isn’t any. It’s quite possible that your parents will be understanding when you finally do tell them your plans. Just remember that they are people too. They deserve respect, just like you do. The fact that you may want to change religions doesn’t mean that their choice to be Presbyterian isn’t valid.

The best of luck to you, Elizabeth. I wish you joy on your search for your path.

Kate, Editor-in-Chief
AGW