A question I’ve been asked a lot recently is whether or not I believe in God. Over the years my answer to this question has changed – I used to believe in a very literal, Old Testament God, and I found that comforting; then I became a staunch atheist and felt I had a clearer, more correct view of the world. I wouldn’t say I’ve found a balance between these two extremes. Rather, I have no strong opinion at all. I think the defining aspect of my opinion on God is not so much that I don’t know, but rather that I don’t care.

This position has come to me quite naturally, but when I think about it, it seems like quite a sensible place to stand. When I see someone caring a lot about whether or not God exists, their lives seem to be overcomplicated and stressful. On the one hand, there are the religious fundamentalists at my old university, who spend inordinate amounts of time desperately trying to convince people to believe in God, are offended by any suggestion that they might be wrong, and get hugely frustrated by someone’s lack of interest; on the other hand, one of my closest friends is aggressively atheistic and can be reduced to tears by someone else’s faith. She’ll argue for hours trying to prove that God doesn’t exist, and will only succeed in exhausting and upsetting herself.

This observation – that people get disproportionately distressed over the God question - is hardly ground-breaking. But it’s become so prominent in my interactions recently that I’ve been reflecting on the fact that everyone just needs to chill out. Who cares what the next person thinks about the divine and almighty? Is it really worth having a shouting match over, raising your blood pressure, and reducing yourself to tears?

If you believe in God, good for you. I hope it gives you comfort, makes you see beauty in the world and encourages you to live a wholesome, generous life. If you don’t believe in God, good for you too. I hope that also gives you comfort, and that you also see beauty and wonder, and live a wholesome, generous life. But how can anyone possibly hope to live that kind of life if they spend their whole time worrying about what everyone else thinks? Aren’t you struggling enough with this complicated question, without feeling the need to invade other people’s headspaces and trying desperately to rearrange their opinions?

I’m not saying debate shouldn’t happen, or that it’s not a conversation worth happening. I just think it’s the kind of conversation that you should only bother with if you aren’t going to have a crisis about it. There’s enough to get upset about in the world without giving yourself a crisis of faith and a coronary condition. Stop caring so much and you’ll probably live longer and be happier. Focus instead on recycling, or feeding the hungry, or campaigning for change in this political cesspit we’ve found ourselves in. That would be so much more worth your while than trying to change someone’s fundamental worldview. Put your faith in the fact that they’ll come round in their own good time.

Noa Gendler has just graduated from the University of Cambridge, where she studied English Literature. Before that she attended North London Collegiate School. She is a seasoned Limmudnik and is involved in Marom, the Masorti young adult community.She previously wrote for the JC's Student Views blog