In this stage (stage 7), you question everything. That includes your religion or faith. This stage is often called the dark night of the soul for this reason specifically. It is important to understand that questioning your faith is something that every human experiences at some point in their lives. It is a natural part of the cycle of human development. If you believe in a deity that made humanity, then this questioning was their intent. Why would any deity want to be questioned? To bring you closer.
This natural phase of your human existence is an opportunity to get to know your faith in a new and deeper way. Understand that questioning your religion is not going against it – questioning your religion is deep exploration that can bring you closer to your beliefs, or refine them in ways that will bring you closer to the divine. Just as a child must grow up and establish a new, deeper relationship with their parents, so too must you now evolve and establish a new and deeper relationship with your faith.
This new relationship will take some time to fully develop. The first step towards that new connection has already happened. You are starting to question. You see the cracks and you are not completely comfortable with them. You can remain in this uncomfortable state with your faith indefinitely, or you can actively walk towards better understanding and deeper connection.
Allow yourself to question all aspects of your faith, but keep it to yourself. This is your own private exploration. Question customs, beliefs, rituals, teachings, historical accounts, etc. read the history for yourself. Read all the scriptures for yourself. Allow for their historical context and make your own interpretations. Allow your own understanding to evolve with these direct experiences. And for now, just keep exploring, researching and respectfully questioning.
With each aspect that you choose to explore, ask yourself…. how did that come to be that way? Would you interpret that the same way? Should it still be that way? And most importantly, what is right for you?
