I was brought up as a Roman Catholic. I attended Catholic schools throughout my life, and went to church every single Sunday till I was in year 10 (1997)

Even though I was going to church from year 7 to 10, there was something that happened in 1994 that made me question my faith immensely, and left me rather baffled.

I am not going to tell you what that event was; I am just going to tell you that you would understand. Can you imagine how hard it is for someone who was brought up to believe all these stories on creation and religion, to just loose faith?

Faith is something I think everyone will need to question shortly. With the advancement of the human species in Technological and Philosophical areas, we really have to start asking the hard questions.

Cloning and stem cell research… Should it be allowed?

Ask yourself this… If you got around with a bunch of friends, and commissioned some of them to glorify your life when you died in mysterious circumstances, and this group of friends became somewhat engrossed by the story of your life, that they told a few people around them, then a few people around them, then a few people around them… is that a religion? Jesus Christ had Christianity… Mark Sugden will have Sugdianity.

Please don’t consider me blasphemous… Christians have my utmost respect, as does anyone who has any faith in any religion. I am just rather suspect to all the facts.

Last night on the Television I saw a story on how a baby was just born in Sydney – it was apparently a carbon copy of its father, and it was organized by the sect known as the Raelians - http://www.rael.org/english/index.html

This group is based on one French guy’s apparition of an Alien being talking to him and telling him that he is the savior of mankind… yada yada yada. In stead of Adam and Eve, or Evolution, these guys preach that humans were ‘placed’ on earth 10,000 years ago by Aliens as a social experiment… “As if” I hear you all say.

Well, I am sorry, while that sounds spaced out, I simply don’t know that it isn’t true, so I won’t rubbish the idea.

We are all so comfortable in believing that there is a greater being out there… we all take solace in the fact that there is some superior being watching over us… but is he really watching over you? Is it something that has just been drummed into your head by society? your parents? your environment?

Let me ask you – how isn’t it possible that human’s were planted here by Aliens 10,000 years ago? We simply don’t know.

Religion is holding science back. Cloning a whole human being, that’s not really something I am comfortable with, but stem cell research for medicinal purposes – that is something I am comfortable with. http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/02/12/1076548160824.html - an article on the progress of stem cell research.

Stem cells are exciting because they can potentially be grown into any type of human tissue, even whole organs. They can be extracted from umbilical cord blood, bone marrow, even animals, but cloned cells are genetically identical to the person they were extracted from and of better quality

There are sooo many ethical questions though… how would you feel accepting a manufactured kidney?

If it means the quality of some ones life will improve… how is that an ethical question?

I am at a stage in my life where I will feel more spiritual on the beach, in the forest or up in the mountains than I ever do in a church, but I am also at a stage where I wish I knew more… It doesn’t really matter though, As long as I try to be the best person I can be… God, Ganesha, Jesus, Aliens, Mohammad and the great spirits will all be proud of me.

As a people though, I don’t think we can let archaic notions of supreme beings hold us back.

Your thoughts and comments will be well received.

Peace Out.