Not Sure if this is the appropriate place, but it seemed to fit.

After reading a few posts by different members here, I was struck with a question. What makes me/you believe in certain things, yet not others that are paranormal? We have people who believe in ghosts yet not in psychic abilities, people who believe in empathy and not in tarot cards....Why? Is it because of our own personal experiences or just a "feeling that some things are more real to us than others? I am trying to start a flaming thread here, but I am genuinely curious. And maybe if we delve a little into our differences, we can understand and respect each other a little more.

I personally follow humanism/satanism. They're pretty much the same thing, so pick the word you like more.

The reason why is because I have never known God to do anything for me. And the way world is going, I don't see how any benevolent God can just stand aside and let it happen.
Not to mention, God pretty much disproves himself. If God can create a rock too heavy to lift, then he is not omnipotent because he cannot lift a certain rock. If God cannot create a rock too heavy to lift, then he is not omnipotent because he is unable to create a certain rock.

So I've chosen to look after myself and those I care about most in this world. That dosent mean I hate other people or ignore them. Im nice to others and respect their boundaries. I try not to step on people's toes because I really just don't like fighting with others. I'm still true to myself though. I don't act differently to just please people.

Sooo..yeah...does that explain?

I tend to be a hard sell all the way around.

I never assume that something isn't possible, but I'm fairly logical and plodding, and have no problem saying "I don't know" but I also rarely jump to conclusions either.

I've had one experience that I think could have been "paranormal" which included a type of faith healing or laying on of hands. It happened in front of a room of doctors and nurses and the supposed results were undeniable, no one knew what it was they saw for sure.

Even so, it didn't profoundly change my life, I don't even know today if it was really a "healing", or just simply a coincidence. I can't explain it, but I'm not willing to chalk it up to really being a laying on of hands, or alignment of chakras, or God, or anything... I simply don't know what happened or why.

I think having that experience though changed the way I think about Paranormal things... I can easily see how people can experience something seemingly impossible or even ethereal and immediately chalk it up to other-worldly. I just can't. But I see how people can and do.

Thanks, MMW! That's teh kind of thing I am looking for.



I understand, WolfStar. They are great sentiments. Now, what paranormal beliefs (if you want to answer) do you have ,if any, and what ones do you find hard to believe?

I believe in ghosts and psychic abilities yet the idea oa vampies and werewolves kind of make me roll my eyes. I think there is more going on psychologically with these people, BUT, I could be totally off in my assumptions. If I had a personal sighting of a werewolf, that would defititely change my mind, but as I haven't, I kind fo chalk it up to people wanting to be special and powerful in one aspect that isn't the norm and is a little exciting yet kind of dark at the same time.

no suprise here but i dont believe in anything "paranormal"

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hmm, the most 'paranormal' event that has happened to me was when the cabinet door opened mysteriously by itself...but then my fat cat walked out from behind it xD

As for vampires and werewolves...no. I can't imagine those being real. Ghosts maybe. Beings that can't pass on cause their tied to this world. Aliens definitly because, as they say, the most surest sign of intelligent life out there is that they haven't contacted us lol
I also believe we're not using our brains to their fullest potential (they say we only use 10% of our brain, right?) so I can see things like mind reading or something like that true. The body and brain are really amazing to me which is why I've always thought of becoming a psychologist.

After taking an Anthrolpology course, I was really tempted to go into that field, too, but I wasn't wanting to spend 5 to 7 years in college/university, I am kicking myself now.

So, what interests you to come to this kind of forum? I am genuinely curious. I am not asking this in a snotty way, just an enquiring way.

Originaly it was for my interest of the paranormal

as for what keeps me here, i have NO idea.

i find the skeptics forum amusing.

LOL!
Well, maybe there is something here that appeals to you on a subconscious level?

i have no doubt.

i belive that there are evil thing in our environment and i think i can find a way to slay them, with my freinds i belive in lots of thing and i'm too lazy to put all on this forum

2 words, compartmentalized logic

Every last christian, Muslim Atheist and any other faith you know of...including my own personal faith.....all believe in what we feel in our hearts is correct, thats why we all call what we believe - truth, only because in our hearts and minds, its true to us

that bit is obvious, the real question is WHAT makes your heart feel that way.
There are many many many internal and external influences which lead our heart to deem a certain faith correct.

It depends on how YOU look at it

IE ME - I look at the bible......and my mind says it doesnt add up...it also protrays God wrongly......so in my heart, I know that the term - All Loving actually means ALL loving...not a killer...not a jealous God....not a vengeful God............Just God

Because I believe I have had a good enough upbringing, I find it hard to follow a religion that discriminates against ANYONE that doesnt suit it or follow it, I also find it hard to follow something that condems others
I chose a faith that doesnt condem ANYONE...doesnt look down on anyone...........doesnt tell me certain people are going to hell............it tells me God is the only one that can make real judgement, and it's not my place to do so..........it tells me people are free to make up their OWN minds, when they make up their own minds on their faith, they shouldnt be condemed for it
When I chose this faith..and said all my OWN prayers...........I saw it work........it made me happy.....it made me love life more than I ever did when I was christian.......so why not follow it??

My faith is not chosen for me by some holy bible or book................my faith comes from ME

Paranormal is just something that is outside the realm of normal experience. Sometimes it is just unexplained phenomenon which will some day have the science to explain. I thing Shakespeare explained it very well, "There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, Than are dreamt of in your philosophy."

I believe what I do because I don't know enough not to.

I wonder in a curious fashion, what you think I believe and don't believe in, from my posts. I think that this topic and your questions are very reflective items indeed. Thinking of myself, I do believe in ghosts and hauntings, and yet I have, in a few posts of mine, staunchly do not believe in demons. I have used Tarot cards in the past, I just feel that they are not useful to me. Although, this does not mean I do not believe in them, I actually do. Yes, I am not orthodoxed in Christianity or other simular type of well known religions. I do believe I am not an Atheist. I feel, that I have my own religion.

Why do I believe in such, and not believe in other things that others do?
I think one, it is definately stems from experience. I also think it comes from reflecting on it, during those experiences. The ghost aspect, from what I experienced from living in military housing for nine years. I believe in ghost, because I can relate to them as people who were on this plane of existence at one point, and I believe do still feel.
I do not believe in the basic religions, based on my experiences of growning up in a secular family. Reflecting that I can see the difference of how someone else sees their higher power and compare it to how I see mine in my secular surroundings. (Bottom line, I think it really boils down to experiences)

I do not believe in demons, because I have not had experiences that would tell me that they are there. (though that is a subject line of though, I know). I also reflect that I couldn't believe in them, cause I have a hard time thinking that some entity could just be without anything else influencing it or the like.

I really think that our each and own experiences and heart, together, tend to determine how we believe. Makes me wonder, and I voice this opinion based on my secular upbringing, there are so many who were raised in an environment on that subjective truth, yet half the time come out of that environment believing differently. My conclusion on that is, nothing is a objective truth, when subjective conjecture along with subjective experiences come into play. How can one believe they are helping others, when you will never know their feelings and heart, when they lived a different life then you do?


I am wondering, did you mean, this, I am not trying to start a flaming thread here.

It kind of confused me at first, reading that.

Personal experience mostly for me, as for religion, as I always say, you can never say a religion is false, if you know nothing about it, so I try to learn as much as possible about a lot of religions, at the moment I follow a mix of Buddhism and Satanism (very hard to mix together...but somehow I did it) but, if more experiences come that contradict what I believe, that might all change.

What do those things have to do with each other, except that Zombie Jesus doesn't believe in any of them?

Even within a category of phenomena... Psychic abilities? Which ones? If I believe that some identical twins might communicate with each other in an unusual way, then why would or should I also believe that the twins or anybody else can bend spoons, except in the usual way?

And even within a more specific category of phenomena that I believe possible, like ghost stories, I believe some reports and not others.

Finally, in this nest of Russian dolls, even if I believe that a particular report of an unusual event is truthful, I am not on the hook for the reporter's interpretation of what happened. For example, I need not believe that what someone has seen and described as a ghost is the spiritual essence of a dead person.

These considerations can also interact to affect credibility for me. For example, I am inclined to believe MissMelsWell when she said she had an experience of unusual healing. One of the things that contributes to the credibility of her report is her remark



Hmm, a witness who did not check her brains at the door. Maybe she's worth listening to.

I,m sure part of the reason i believe as i do is because i was raised in a home where those beliefs were taught. But i have throughout my years looked into other beliefs such as Buddhist, pagans,muslim,wiccan etc...And i learned a lot! But my personal experiences kept bringing me back to Christianity, and for me thats where i belong! I just think that we all have to choose where we belong and what the truth is for ourselves! And i wish we could just respect one anothers rights to make those choices without belittling or or ridiculing them!

Lovely post

But can I ask you...as you looked into Buddhism...can you tell me just how peaceful their faith is?? they say its the most peaceful of religions...maybe thats why I NEVER seems to get attacked!!

Thanks

PS I always enjoy your posts BTW lol

Well, because I have read other threads that turn into mean spirited threads that are just abandoned because of some people wanting to just belittle everyone anyone who believes differently than them.


I am a really curious person and when I started thinking about my beliefs being so different than my family's, well, I started wondering about how others beliefs came into being.

And great post Stubbly, you really explained well and answered my questions.

Oh yes they are very peacefull! Mabey thats why at the time i would have made a very bad Buddist! At the time i looked into it i was still a young hot head,and i liked eating meat and if a spider annoyed me i,d stomp on it! But seriously i find most buddists to have such a well spring of patience and they seem to approach much of life with a great sense of humor! I think one of the reason their beliefs arn,t attacked as often is because of the fact that they have a compassionate non violent,live and let live attitude! At the time i just couldn,t be as calm and accepting of everything as a good Buddist is supposed to, I was and from time to time still can be a bit "overly passionate "would be a flattering way of putting it!

LOL thank you that made me laugh a lil LOL about jumping on the spider

For me to become a buddhist...I would have to leave Gary lol..cuz he drives me nuts, I would most likely get - gently told to leave their faith if I had gary with me..cuz i'd loose the rag and instead of jumping on a bug..id be jumping on HIM

Man I think I need anger managment thearapy - cause of anger - her partner lol...only difference between my partner and a pesky bug...I could get away with destroying the bug with pest spray...one swift spray and poof bug is no more and aaaahhh bliss...but there is no pest spray for bugging men aaaccccckkkkk!!!!!!!

Yeah, I couldn't be a Buddist either, I am a mass murderer for killing so many ants and mice lately.

I myself used to be a Christian, now I am merely a follower of HaShem. You could call me a Jew but that would be inappropriate.

Well ladies, doesnt it just figure that it,s the MEN and BUGS keeping us from finding our inner nirvana!

Thank you and you're welcome. I think my answers came to be, because of the wonderful and reflective question(s) you brought up when you started this fascinating thread.

There are warrior sects of Buddhism... it's not all peace and flowers... Samuri's and Ninja's were memebers of warrior Buddhist sects.

The concept of Buddhism is peaceful, however, it's not always peaceful and anti-violent nor equal among the sexes.

it's worth looking at a little bit deeper and make your own judgements.

There are many different types of sugar: brown sugar, white sugar, rock sugar, syrup and icing sugar but it is all sugar and it all tastes sweet. It is produced in different forms so that it can be used in different ways. Buddhism is the same: there is Theravada Buddhism, Zen Buddhism, Pure Land Buddhism, Yogacara Buddhism and Vajrayana Buddhism but it is all Buddhism and it all has the same taste - the taste of freedom. Buddhism has evolved into different forms so that it can be relevant to the different cultures in which it exists. It has been reinterpreted over the centuries so that it can remain relevant to each new generation. Outwardly, the types of Buddhism may seem very different but at the centre of all of them is the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path. All major religions, Buddhism included, have split into schools and sects.

But the different sects of Buddhism have never gone to war with each other and to this day, they go to each other's temples and worship together. Such tolerance and understanding is certainly rare. .....


http://www.buddhanet.net/ans11.htm

Although monks in the past have tried to condone "just war," none has ever been able to find any canonical source to support this claim.
"In all of Buddhist history, there has never been a holy war."
http://www.bodydharma.org/choices/violence/sivaraksa.html full article

my own life-long traumatizing experiences, are why i believe what i believe...

...or rather disbelieve what i used to believe...

You are ill informed about humanism then. Satanism and humanism are quite different. Satanism is hedonistic-self-serving while humanism is the exact opposite !
Here from wiki: (I am lazy)

Humanism clearly rejects deference to supernatural beliefs in resolving human affairs but not necessarily the beliefs themselves; indeed some strains of humanism are compatible with some religions. It is generally compatible with atheism and agnosticism but doesn't require either of these. Agnosticism or atheism on their own do not necessarily entail humanism; many different and sometimes incompatible philosophies happen to be atheistic in nature. There is no one ideology or set of behaviors to which all atheists adhere, and not all are humanistic.[4][5]

As humanism encompasses intellectual currents running through a wide variety of philosophical and religious thought, several strains of humanism allow it to fulfill, supplement or supplant the role of religions, and in particular, to be embraced as a complete life stance. For more on this, see Humanism (life stance). In a number of countries, for the purpose of laws that give rights to "religions", the secular life stance has become legally recognized as equivalent to a "religion" for this purpose.[6] In the United States, the Supreme Court recognized that Humanism is equivalent to a religion in the limited sense of authorizing Humanists to conduct ceremonies commonly carried out by officers of religious bodies. The relevant passage is in a footnote to Torcaso v. Watkins (1961). It is often alleged by fundamentalist critics of Humanism that the Supreme Court "declared Humanism to be a religion," however the Court's statement, a mere footnote in any case, clearly does not in fact do so; it simply asserts an equivalency of rights to act in ways usual to a religion, such as ceremonial recognition of life's landmarks.

Renaissance humanism, and its emphasis on returning to the sources, contributed to the Protestant reformation by helping to gain what they believe was a more accurate translation of Biblical texts.

Knowledge

According to humanism, it is up to humans to find the truth, as opposed to seeking it through revelation, mysticism, tradition, or anything else that is incompatible with the application of logic to the evidence. In demanding that humans avoid blindly accepting unsupported beliefs, it supports scientific skepticism and the scientific method, rejecting authoritarianism and extreme skepticism, and rendering faith an unacceptable basis for action. Likewise, humanism asserts that knowledge of right and wrong is based on one's best understanding of one's individual and joint interests, rather than stemming from a transcendental truth or an arbitrarily local sources.

Optimism

Humanism features an optimistic attitude about the capacity of people, but it does not involve believing that human nature is purely good or that each and every person is capable of living up to the humanist ideals of rationality and morality. If anything, there is the recognition that living up to one's potential is hard work and requires the help of others. The ultimate goal is human flourishing; making life better for all humans. The focus is on doing good and living well in the here and now, and leaving the world better for those who come after, not on suffering through life to be rewarded afterward.

Satanism

Satanism" is a term which has been used since the end of the Middle Ages to describe a number of different belief systems in a number of contexts. People claiming to be Satanists, or outsiders claiming to describe Satanism, ascribe a wide variety of beliefs to Satanism. At the same time there is no established, common sense of this word. These range from the obviously fanatiс sects to the groups of people in search of themselves; from the literal deistic worship of a spiritual being (Theistic Satanism) to the monography of the atheistic philosopher; from a subversive ritual performance stressing the mockery of Christian symbols (most notably the Black Mass) to denying all rituals; from the claimed rediscovery of an ancient but misunderstood religion (e.g. Setianism, associated with the Egyptian god Set who is conflated by some with the biblical Satan) to the exaltation of hedonistic recreation and the celebration of selfishness and pleasure.

So the only similarity is that they "can be" atheistic and there it ends. Correct me if I'm wrong.

I label myself an agnostic/freethinking humanist /am "major critical" of the bible and organized religions. (for endless reasons-which I am sharing on this forum)/am a former christian but was already getting sceptical with age 11./considered satanism but find it too self-serving./ I have respect for Atheism/Buddism and Taoism,Deism, Paganism although I don't practice nor agree with everything.
I research endlessly/look at "all sides" of the story/and this is where I am now.
I believe in ESP/precognition/other subtle energy forces -but science will explain these eventually(still not 100% sure )/ U.F.O. s although cant say what's up with that-something strange is definitely going on up there.

A book would be required to explain why I believe what I do (which isn't much by the way). And it would be called " I don't know much................and neither do you".