What do you think about faith?

For Webelos (one step before becoming a Boy Scout), one of the requirements is learning about faith. I chose to learn about Buddhism.

Nico and Auntie at Tzu Chi Foundation Center in Cleveland

This week, I learned many things about Buddhism at the Buddhist Tzu-Chi Foundation center in Cleveland. When I lived in Cleveland, I used to go to Tzu Chi school there on Saturday afternoons. I learned about Buddhism, Chinese culture, helping people, recycling, and other things. My grandmother goes to Tzu Chi as well. 

This information was collected through an interview of me and and an aunt who works at Tzu-Chi. Please note that these quotes and responses were not the exact phrases spoken. 

One thing I learned was that Tzu means a loving kindness, and that Chi means to help people from suffering. So together, it means that a loving kindness will help people from suffering. The person who founded the non-profit Tzu Chi Foundation was Master Cheng Yen.

I asked Auntie about her personal religious beliefs and she replied that Tzu Chi defines religion as the meaning of life. "How we act and perform will help us to promote peace to our world, and purify the mind," she says. "We must do all goods and avoid all evils so that we will help people [a]void natural disasters and war."

Auntie's favorite thing about being a member of Tzu Chi is that she loves to be a volunteer and go to the homes of the sick and elderly. She says that to help people is to help yourself. She says that is the source of happiness, and that when other people are happy, it makes her smile. I agree with Auntie about helping others. 

What Auntie said about doing her duty to God and helping other people is part of the Scout Oath, which says:

On my honor I will do my best to do my duty to God and my country and to obey the Scout Law; to help other people at all times, to keep myself physically strong, mentally awake, and morally straight.

Auntie also talked about things that fit in with the Scout Law, which says:

A Scout is trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean, and reverent.

I agree with everything Auntie said. I really believe in the part of the Scout Law that says "A Scout is FRIENDLY:

A Scout is a friend to all. He is a brother to other Scouts. He offers his friendship to people of all races and nations, and respects them even if their beliefs and customs are different from his own.

My mom and I also talked about faith and about how some people don't believe there is a god. I think God does exist. My grandfather (Ah-gong) said that some people think that when you die, you have an afterlife or you are reincarnated. I believe in that too because sometimes things happen that make me think there is a God, like when something really lucky happens.

Two ways I have lived according to my beliefs is helping other people (like my brother sometimes) and being friendly to new people. I have also been thrifty by saving up my money for 8 months to buy a Nintendo DS. 

What do you think about faith? Do you believe in God?