Hinduism? That's practiced only in India. Greek Orthodox? Sounds like it's only for people in Greece. Buddhism? They practice that in China or some other Asian country -- I don't know. Catholicism? The pope's in charge there. Reconstructionist Judaism? How many types are there? Unitarianism? Never heard of it.

Although some of these religions are unknown to most of us, they are powerful forces in the lives of many area youths. Y-Press recently talked with kids from a variety of backgrounds to find out the role religion plays in their lives.

Adina Sklare, a sophomore at North Central High School, is Jewish, and Megan Pfarr, a junior at Roncalli High School, is Catholic. Jerome Molleston and Katrina Gounaris, seventh-graders at Carmel Junior High, are Greek Orthodox. Neha Yakhmi, a seventh-grader at Sycamore School, and Aaki Bhargava, a seventh-grader at Carmel Junior High, are Hindu. Trish Atwater, a senior at Lawrence Central, practices Unitarianism. William Starsiak, a freshman at Brebeuf Jesuit Preparatory School, is Buddhist.

Adina belongs to a sect of Judaism called Reconstructionism. In general, Jews believe that every person is special because each is created in the likeness of God, and that hard work and education will lead to a good life on Earth. They also believe Jesus Christ was a loyal Jew but not the Messiah. Adina added of Reconstructionism: "We just believe that the Messiah hasn't come yet, and we can take the Torah and basically reconstruct it and do what we want to do and add things that we want to."

Jerome and Katrina are Greek Orthodox, a denomination that claims to be the historical continuation of Jesus Christ and his apostles. Like other forms of Christianity, followers believe Jesus was the son of God, and it places more emphasis on the Resurrection than the Crucifixion. "It's basically just a form of Christianity. We believe in one God who created the universe, and that Jesus is the savior," Jerome explained.

Catholicism is Megan's religion. The Roman Catholic Church split with the Greek Orthodox Church in 1054 and looks to the pope for leadership. Catholics believe they will find salvation in heaven through merit and grace, and they have a great respect for life. As Megan put it, "A respect for life, for all life, from womb to tomb."

Buddhism is more a way of life than a religion. Buddhists believe that life is suffering, but that the suffering can be lessened by following the path to enlightenment, which includes leading a moral life, being mindful of thoughts and actions, and developing wisdom. As William explained, the Buddhist life is intent "to save all living things from the suffering of existence."

Hinduism is a polytheistic faith, and followers believe in reincarnation and that all life is sacred. "We don't have one god. We have a god for different things, like a god for war," Aaki said.

"Hinduism is tolerant, and all religions are a path to God," Neha added.

Unitarianism also is a tolerant religion. "The basic belief of Unitarianism is that everyone's free to believe what they want to, and that no one should be persecuted for their particular beliefs," Trish said.

Followers of these religions gather at different times in different ways for different reasons. Many gather to worship, some to learn, and others to pray. Hindus pray at home weekly but meet once a month with others, according to Aaki, but most of the others meet once a week.

Megan is an exception. Because she attends a Catholic school, she goes to Mass every school day and Sundays. "I enjoy going to daily Mass at school. That's something that is very important to me and helps me throughout my day."

Most Jewish, Catholic and Greek Orthodox believers engage in worship and prayer services at least once a week. Katrina, whose father is a priest, explained that some Greek Orthodox services can be quite elaborate and that many Greek Orthodox youths go to Greek school to learn the language. "They're really strict in Greece. The women have to wear all black. It's easier in America, because we're not as strict and we don't have to wear anything particular. And in Greece, they do it all in one language and it's really hard to understand."

Unitarians and Buddhists gather on Sundays for education. "Because we try to be very accepting of other religions, we try to use church, coming together every Sunday, as a source for education on other religions and becoming aware of how other people practice and other belief systems," Trish explained.

Buddhist temple is also a time of learning. "It's run by a group of Vietnamese people who were forced to move out of Vietnam because of the war," William said. "On Sundays, I go to services with them, and they help instruct me in my practice, and I can ask questions and they'll answer."

These religions have some restrictions, many of them food-related. For instance, Greek Orthodox believers and many Catholics aren't supposed to eat meat on Fridays and other holy days. Jerome, while accepting this law, has one complaint: "On Friday, my family will watch a movie and eat pizza, and I hate cheese pizza, and so I always want to get pepperoni, but I'm technically not supposed to 'cause it's Friday."

Adina's religion also has food laws, most of which forbid certain types of meat and eating meat and dairy products together. "People are like, 'Don't you want a cheeseburger?' and I'm like, 'No,' and they're fine with that," she said. "I choose to keep (the Jewish laws) because it makes me feel that I am a part of the Lord, and it helps to remind me that I am part of a people who go back thousands of years."

Buddhists don't smoke, drink alcohol, use drugs or eat meat "because you're ordering an animal to be killed if you buy them," William explained. Unitarianism, on the other hand, has no restrictions whatsoever. "Unitarianism welcomes one and all -- homosexuality, eating meat on Fridays -- you name it. Sure! Why not?" said Trish, who added, "We're very into respecting Mother Nature. I do recycle."

The teachings and doctrines of their religions affect these kids' everyday decisions, too. "From our religion, you know that God is always watching you, and you know you should do the right things. . . . Most of the people wear crosses, and that reminds us that we should do the right thing always," Katrina said.

Megan concurred. "Although there are no rules against certain kinds of music or lifestyles, they do encourage us to be upright and holy in all aspects of our life."

Megan ran into an uncomfortable situation a few years ago. "I was at a house for a slumber party, and they were watching an R-rated movie that had a lot of graphic violence, sex and language, and it just wasn't moral. Although they weren't pressuring me to stay there and watch it, I was very uncomfortable, but I knew that I would make a fuss if I left.

"But I decided to listen to my parents, because at that time I was not allowed to see R-rated movies, so I went ahead and left. And believe it or not, none of my friends said anything, although they continued to watch the movie. They didn't make fun of me for it and didn't bring it up later. So I was glad that I did what I did," she said. Hinduism offers similar guidance. "They teach us if you make a bad choice, then God will punish you," Aaki said.

Jerome added, "If I wasn't religious at all, like if I was an atheist, I probably wouldn't care as much about stealing or being honest."

Not only are their everyday decisions affected by their religion, so are some of the decisions they will have to make in the future. Most of the students said their religions encourage followers to marry within the religions, and many Hindu marriages are arranged.

However, most of the kids said that while they may encourage their children to follow their religion, they wouldn't force them to do it.

William understands firsthand how difficult it is to persuade an uninterested child. "My dad's a Roman Catholic and my mom's a born-again Christian . . . and going to church when I was young, I never could get into the sermons because I was forced to go to church and I couldn't appreciate it for what it was."

He found the religion he was looking for in Buddhism. "Once I got kicked out of school for bringing a knife on the bus. And that's when I found Buddhism, because I went to the library and checked out a book on it during my time off."

Megan had a different experience. "My father was raised Catholic, and when he married my mother, she decided to convert to Catholicism. . . . They did raise me Catholic, but it was always my choice," she said. "I went through some really hard times in grade school, and I decided that Jesus was my best friend, so I had a very personal relationship with him."

Likewise, Trish plans to respond as her parents did. She recalled an incident when she was about 10 years old: "I was in a very contradictory mood and looking for a fight, and I turned to my mom and I said, 'What would you do if I decided I wanted to be Jewish?' And she said, 'Well, we'd drive you to synagogue before we went to church on Sunday.' That's how I want to raise my kids."

Aaki and Neha are glad they were raised Hindu. "Hinduism is kind of a complicated religion. It's something you pick up from your parents," Neha said, adding, "I'm proud of being Hindu. That's how I was brought up, and I don't think I'd change."

ASSISTANT EDITORS: Briana Hansen, 15; Colleen Merkel, 16; and Melissa Tuckman, 15.

REPORTERS: Stephanie Boxell, 12; Megan Brown, 13; and Valeri Simmons, 11.