The Dalai Yoda

The Dalai Lama, leader of the Buddhist faith, spoke yesterday in Montreal. I don't know if you've ever seen him speak on television or in a video but I have when I took some Buddhism courses in CEGEP and at McGill. What I love about the Dalai Lama is the look of peace on his face. Very calm, very cool, very collected. But when he smiles or laughs, you can't help but smile with him! He's very... Yoda-ish. Wise but kind of goofy, too--in a good way!
                                                                   
There was an article in today's Gazette about one of the Dalai Lama's speeches. In one of them he said, "You don't have to be a religious person to be a good person. But if you have faith, you must be serious about it. You can't cheat God."
I like this. If I was on Facebook, I would click the "Like" button with the little thumbs up. I've had many discussions with many people about religion and faith. For the most part, these people tell me they don't understand why religion is a good thing and don't believe that a person needs faith for whatever reason (to be a good person, to get to heaven, etc.). I don't have the perfect answer, I just have my answer that works for me. I think that's what the Dalai Lama is saying too. Each one of us must be responsible for ourselves, for our own words and deeds. I know that my faith is a necessity for me, like needing air to breathe. But with this relationship with God comes responsibility. If I have faith, I must be serious about it. I can't use it for personal gain, to sow discord, to manipulate, or any other evil. Faith is not some currency I can use to get whatever I want, when I want it. It also doesn't work to "have faith" only when it suits me.
Faith is at once communal and personal. It's important not to let it become either/or. If it's just about the social aspect, then you can't have a personal relationship with God. If it's solely personal, you can't fully experience God's love through other people. That being said, God knows my heart and my mind. I can pretend all I want in front of other people. I can wear a cross around my neck, go to church every Sunday, donate money to charity. But only God knows why I really do these things and what they actually mean to me. It's kind of like cheating on a test. The only one you're cheating is yourself. It's the same with God. You can't cheat God.