*Whateverism or "How can you understand something you don't believe in?"

"In the beginning was the Ocean. And the Ocean was Alone."

. . . "The Ocean created Land, so that it did not always have to be with itself."

. . . "And the Ocean became concerned.

Jason is a fifteen-year old agnostic-leaning-toward-atheist (and, as i like to continually stress, there IS a difference AND agnostics do not go around Wondering/Wandering in the dark about the existence of god they believe that one cannot know!) In Godless by Pete Hautman rather haphazardly and inadvertently (but brilliantly) creates his own religion, when he is punched-out and, in a daze, lying flat on his back, stares up at the silver belly of the town's life giving water tower.

Jason makes his friend Shin the official scribe of their new religion, and eventually they gather a few more unlikely followers to the "Church of the Ten Legged God" or Chutengodianism as the faith comes to be known (once it begins to take on a life of its own). Once it does take on its own life, some of the followers begin to take the church TOO seriously and protestant offshoots even develop. Jason, of course, has no control, although the silly adults, who understand very little of the world or religious ideas themselves (being just following-sheep in their own right), think he is the instigating leader of it all, and want him to halt the whole out-of-control thing.

Much food for thought in this excellent book~If you don't listen to the voices in your head, just Who DO you listen to?

and *whateverism should be MY religion since that is one of my favorite resort-to words.