Religion is everything to Ursala Twynam. She grew up feeling very connected with God and attending church on a regular basis. As a Christian woman living in Toronto, she tries to live by her religion even though at times she feels as if she has failed God.

“I will always make sure I am pleasing God in what I do.”

Twynam has two children and she says never forced a religion upon either of her kids. Her daughter practices Christianity but she is unsure about her son. When he was younger he attended church regularly with the family but since he moved away, he has stopped going.

Religion affects the way we think, act, and communicate. But a Statistics Canada poll shows the percentage of young adults who have no religion has doubled from 1985-2004. Now 30%, of people under 30 follow no religion.

People often follow the religious practices that their family passes on down from generation to generation. Historically families were centered around religion and regularly attended church together. But today people are discovering spirituality outside of organized religions. It helps some discover their path of life and leaves others confused and looking for answers.

A woman that puts God first in all situations, Twynam is very involved with her church and says it helped to dig deeper in making life decisions.

“I’m thinking about eternal life, and I mean what you live now is so short compared to eternity. And I’m getting older…”

She believes the Holy Spirit will guide her to do whatever is right. Being as religious as she is, she holds no grudge towards her son for not choosing to follow Christianity.

“I’m not sure what’s really in his heart but will allow him to discover it himself.”

Like Twynam’s son, Additi Agrewal was born into a religious household. Growing up he practiced Hinduism because that was what was expected from him.

Agrewal states, “People are identifying with what is passed on and truly not discovering it. Not going to the source of who they are and not digging deeper. “

Additi grew up practicing Hinduism but was not devoted due to reason that he did not know the true meaning of being a Hindu. About five years ago he realized he needed to discover himself in order to understand God and that is when the Hare Krishna practice came in. Although the Hare Krishna originates from Hinduism there is more spiritual understanding required than religious.

The hare Krishna believe that to establish a relationship with god you must seek a spiritual meaning. It allows you to follow any religion you want while helping you understand who God really is.

“You can follow any religion you want but make sure you understand and believe in what you’re following.”