MARCH 23 — At the pub one day, a curious question was raised by the table next to mine.

“What is the purest form of Christianity?”

Whoa.

That question just (almost) shook me out of my partly inebriated state.

The din was too loud for me to make out the rest of the conversation, but suffice to say that the question made me wary of everything else I had to say for the night, lest I get a beer mug planted on my face.

Religion, at least to me, is a very personal thing.

Sure, you wear a crucifix pendant or earring, or a skullcap or put on robes to pair with your shaved head. Whatever means to display to the world that you subscribe to a certain religious ideology.

The outward representation of “faith”, however, does not necessarily reflect the inward understanding of the religion.

I grew up in a decidedly Catholic household, where Jesus died for our sins and redeemed practically EVERYONE of Original Sin, according to the New Testament.

But every time it came to Christmas mass—when everybody was decked out in their Christmas best—judgement would be passed.

“Oh My Gawd! Did you see how low that girl’s neckline was!?”

“What the heck? Didn’t that boy have any shoes to wear instead of those flip flops?”

And that’s not the worst of the comments.

Everybody has an opinion about how unreligious someone else had been attending such a religious event by wearing such “unacceptable” garb.

Or because someone who is a known Catholic did not stand up to receive Communion.

Just to clear the air for non-Catholics, Communion is when Catholics go and line up during mass to receive the Body of Christ, represented by those neatly stamped-out circles of compressed bread that have been blessed by the priest just minutes prior.

I can’t speak for others, but I have actively refused to receive the Body of Chirst during mass.

Why, might you ask?

Because respect.

I’m not religious. But I respect religious practices. And being a former altarboy, I understand the “rules” that surround the act of receiving the Body of Christ.

By right, you must have (recently) confessed your sins and truly believe in the redeeming qualities of Jesus Christ’s sacrifice to qualify to consume the Body of Christ.

I cannot honestly say that I have (recently) confessed my sins, nor do I truly believe that consuming a piece of bread would bring me an awesome afterlife, if there is any at all.

So I don’t line up to receive the Body of Christ.

It’s that simple.

Does that make me a terrible person? I hope not.

I have a son, who was baptised because my wife believes in the Church.

I have my own inclinations, but I’m willing to accommodate other points of view simply because my family is not just about me.

And in this current climate where people are accusing each other of being vainglorious or insulting of religious achievements, we all forget that many of us simply come from different backgrounds and view things from different perspectives.

There’s no need for me to point out specific issues.

It could apply to the now, it could apply to the Ku Klux Klan, it could very damn well apply to the Crusades.

Whatever the case, the question remains relevant.

In the pursuit of “God’s will”, are we then absolved of whatever transgressions we commit against those who do not believe simply because they don’t?

There is a line in the previously banned movie Bruce Almighty that speaks to this question, as succinctly said by the “God Voice” that is Morgan Freeman.

“Free will”.

* This is the personal opinion of the columnist.