Your Religion

[manbearpigg]

Just out of curiosity,

1) What is your religion (or the lack of)?

2) What makes it THE religion to have faith in?

3) What caused you to believe in that religion?

4) What is the fundamental message in your religion?

example:

1) Agnostic or a personal form of it (no absolute truth)

2) I believe the first step towards TRUTH is to deny all lies or assumptions and take only viable facts.

3) All other religions have the same basic flaw of assumption and absolutes (maybe except Buddhism)

4) Do unto others, only adhere to logical premises.

I'm really curious guys and this is not a thread to bash on others, purely informative.

[Mr.United_Nations]

There is no right religon, cant say one is better

[The Id3al Experience]

Just out of curiosity,

1) What is your religion (or the lack of)?

2) What makes it THE religion to have faith in?

3) What caused you to believe in that religion?

4) What is the fundamental message in your religion?

example:

1) Agnostic or a personal form of it (no absolute truth)

2) I believe the first step towards TRUTH is to deny all lies or assumptions and take only viable facts.

3) All other religions have the same basic flaw of assumption and absolutes (maybe except Buddhism)

4) Do unto others, only adhere to logical premises.

I'm really curious guys and this is not a thread to bash on others, purely informative.

1) What is your religion (or the lack of)? - Buddhism (Zen) - Personal differences of course (more a philosphy)

2) What makes it THE religion to have faith in? - I would say mainly because it is a phiosophy of the self. Not some God and his rules.

3) What caused you to believe in that religion? - A Personal Experience.

4) What is the fundamental message in your religion? - Be true to yourself, Do unto others.

Kind Regards,

Me

[manbearpigg]

There is no right religon, cant say one is better

Then you would be Agnostic as well?

I know people don't like to categorize themselves but it's useful when applied to statistics.

[eight bits]

1) As it happens, I am an agnostic, which is sometimes usefully described as a "religion." I don't think it's useful as a catch-all term for people who prefer not to be affiliated with a pious-confession religion.

2) Of course, there is no "faith" involved in agnosticism. I don't propose that mine is the right religion, but only that it is my religion.

3) I was never very emotionally engaged by my cradle religion growing up. Around 11 or so, I noticed that some people living in the time of Jesus' early followers believed in incompatible religious ideas, but on the same foundation as the Christians believed in Jesus. They couldn't both be right. I think I went as far as to realize that had things gone just a little differently back then, my "cradle religion" would have been some version of Indo-European polytheism.

Not long afterwards, I encountered another obvious idea, that a religion should foster the adherent's happiness in some way, here and now, which I didn't feel that my cradle religion did.

These are subversive, liberating, insurgent ideas. Of the many places I could have ended up, I found myself contented to be an agnostic. I think that reflects my overall opinions about how people should approach uncertain questions of all kinds, both religious and secular.

4) Know your limits. The question of God is difficult. Some human being knows all about God? Be serious. And when you look at some of the specific people who are proposed to be that "some human being" who knows all about God, you either have to laugh or cry.

[+Paranoid Android]

1) What is your religion (or the lack of)?- I am a Christian, and if you want more detail than that (due to the many approaches to Christianity) I would describe myself as a Bible-believing conservative evangelical non-denominational protestant Christian.

2) What makes it THE religion to have faith in? - Because it is the truth, and through Jesus is the only way to eternal life (that is my belief, I am not preaching to you).

3) What caused you to believe in that religion? - Many little things. I have always believed in a creator (moments of uncertainty led me to agnosticism but for the most part I was a Deist, though I was not aware of the term "Deism" in High School), and up until I turned 19 or 20 I generally believed that the creator-force was too big to fit into any one religion, and that all the religions of the world were simply mankind's way of understanding the divine. I'd read up on several world religions by this stage and knew what Christianity taught about Jesus dying for my sins. I even turned to Christ briefly when I was 12 years old, but I basically turned because of a fear of hell and deconverted three weeks later. The concept of someone dying for my sins was absurd, I could understand it intellectually but never really understood it emotionally.

One day, in December 1998 I was at a beach. it was a High School camp run by a retired preacher. I was finishing year 12. Some of the people at the camp couldn't swim, so they were just wading knee-deep. Suddenly the sandbar they were standing on collapsed, and they suddenly found themselves being sucked under and pulled out to sea. Ultimately, three people drowned, two of them were friends, one was very close to being my girlfriend (the third I did not know well, but that doesn't lessen the tragedy). One of those who drowned was one of the camp leaders, a 25-year old man who was a very strong swimmer. He went out three times to pull people in. He was a hero who risked his life to save people he barely knew. Unfortunately, the third time he went in he developed a cramp and was unable to keep himself from being sucked under.

When I got home, two people who have now become very good friends of mine (furthermore, one of them has now graduated Bible-college and is the pastor of the church I attend) looked out for me and helped me through my grief. After a time, I looked back on the events and began to realise something. I now knew what it meant for one person to give their life so that others could live. I knew it in my heart and not just my head. Jesus' death confused me in the past, I didn't understand how his death could save me. This tragedy allowed me to see that a person can die so that others could live. Once I understood this, I was able to process the rest of Christianity and I was left with the only logical course of action - I turned to Christ.

Since then I've been a Christian for 13 years (or near enough). Unlike my first conversion at 12 I did not convert from fear (do it or burn forever - I now don't even believe in a torturous hell of burning fire). Instead, I came to understand a God of love, and willingly chose to follow him.

4) What is the fundamental message in your religion? - Love the Lord with all your heart and soul and mind, and love your neighbour as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commands (paraphrased from Jesus, who himself was quoting the Tanakh/Old Testament). Basically, loving God consists of accepting Christ's sacrifice and putting him as our Lord, serving him and doing things for his glory. Loving our neighbours is to put the needs of others before our own, treating everyone with love and respect, as we would wish to be treated (the whole "do unto others" spiel, though I've noticed most people think that as long as they aren't hurting someone they are therefore following this command, but I would argue that not to be the case - that sounds more like "don't do to others what you don't want done to you"; "Do to others what you want done to yourself" is entirely different).

In a nutshell, that is the outline of my belief and how I came to it and what I understand of it. Sorry it was a bit long, hope you read it all

~ Regards, PA

Edited January 30, 2013 by Paranoid Android

[Rlyeh]

None. That was simple.

[manbearpigg]

None. That was simple.

nothing is ever that simple.

Can i assume that you are either Atheist, Agnostic, or non-religious non-affiliate?

If not please tell me otherwise.

I MUST categorize you all!

[Overpopulation]

1) What is your religion (or the lack of)? - I would have to say Agnostic atheism if I were to get real technical.

2) What makes it THE religion to have faith in? - Its really only logical to think this way unless you know something I don't. My opinion of course though.

3) What caused you to believe in that religion? - Reason. But it's not really a religion, just a way of thinking.

4) What is the fundamental message in your religion? - Be open minded and think logically.

[Grandpa Greenman]

Just out of curiosity,

1) What is your religion (or the lack of)?

2) What makes it THE religion to have faith in?

3) What caused you to believe in that religion?

4) What is the fundamental message in your religion?

1 I am a Pagan

2 It is a nature based religion and it works well with my view of how the Universe works. It doesn't work for everyone, if you want a religion that tells you what to believe this is not for you There is no sacred book. We learn from each other and nature

3 I was called to it by a tree.

4 The Earth is our Mother, care for her and she will care for you. Wiccans use the saying "Harm none, do as you will" It works pretty well for the most part.

[SubjectDigamma]

1) What is your religion (or the lack of)?- I am a Christian, and if you want more detail than that (due to the many approaches to Christianity) I would describe myself as a Bible-believing conservative evangelical non-denominational protestant Christian.

2) What makes it THE religion to have faith in? - Because it is the truth, and through Jesus is the only way to eternal life (that is my belief, I am not preaching to you).

3) What caused you to believe in that religion? - Many little things. I have always believed in a creator (moments of uncertainty led me to agnosticism but for the most part I was a Deist, though I was not aware of the term "Deism" in High School), and up until I turned 19 or 20 I generally believed that the creator-force was too big to fit into any one religion, and that all the religions of the world were simply mankind's way of understanding the divine. I'd read up on several world religions by this stage and knew what Christianity taught about Jesus dying for my sins. I even turned to Christ briefly when I was 12 years old, but I basically turned because of a fear of hell and deconverted three weeks later. The concept of someone dying for my sins was absurd, I could understand it intellectually but never really understood it emotionally.

One day, in December 1998 I was at a beach. it was a High School camp run by a retired preacher. I was finishing year 12. Some of the people at the camp couldn't swim, so they were just wading knee-deep. Suddenly the sandbar they were standing on collapsed, and they suddenly found themselves being sucked under and pulled out to sea. Ultimately, three people drowned, two of them were friends, one was very close to being my girlfriend (the third I did not know well, but that doesn't lessen the tragedy). One of those who drowned was one of the camp leaders, a 25-year old man who was a very strong swimmer. He went out three times to pull people in. He was a hero who risked his life to save people he barely knew. Unfortunately, the third time he went in he developed a cramp and was unable to keep himself from being sucked under.

When I got home, two people who have now become very good friends of mine (furthermore, one of them has now graduated Bible-college and is the pastor of the church I attend) looked out for me and helped me through my grief. After a time, I looked back on the events and began to realise something. I now knew what it meant for one person to give their life so that others could live. I knew it in my heart and not just my head. Jesus' death confused me in the past, I didn't understand how his death could save me. This tragedy allowed me to see that a person can die so that others could live. Once I understood this, I was able to process the rest of Christianity and I was left with the only logical course of action - I turned to Christ.

Since then I've been a Christian for 13 years (or near enough). Unlike my first conversion at 12 I did not convert from fear (do it or burn forever - I now don't even believe in a torturous hell of burning fire). Instead, I came to understand a God of love, and willingly chose to follow him.

4) What is the fundamental message in your religion? - Love the Lord with all your heart and soul and mind, and love your neighbour as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commands (paraphrased from Jesus, who himself was quoting the Tanakh/Old Testament). Basically, loving God consists of accepting Christ's sacrifice and putting him as our Lord, serving him and doing things for his glory. Loving our neighbours is to put the needs of others before our own, treating everyone with love and respect, as we would wish to be treated (the whole "do unto others" spiel, though I've noticed most people think that as long as they aren't hurting someone they are therefore following this command, but I would argue that not to be the case - that sounds more like "don't do to others what you don't want done to you"; "Do to others what you want done to yourself" is entirely different).

In a nutshell, that is the outline of my belief and how I came to it and what I understand of it. Sorry it was a bit long, hope you read it all

~ Regards, PA

AMEN I'm Christian u people got a problum with it

[manbearpigg]

AMEN I'm Christian u people got a problum with it

i said no bashing. dont try to agitate others.

[Zaphod222]

I am atheist Christian.

[Rlyeh]

nothing is ever that simple.

Can i assume that you are either Atheist, Agnostic, or non-religious non-affiliate?

If not please tell me otherwise.

I MUST categorize you all!

Atheist.

[Frank Merton]

I'm an atheist Buddhist. Buddhism is typically agnostic, saying that we have to work out our own destinies and that gods and all that are not relevant to this central problem. Personally I see no reason to think that such things exist, especially not the God of the Western religious mythologies. (That makes me not a very good Buddhist because I really shouldn't question others' beliefs).

[Crikey]

Just out of curiosity,

What is your religion (or the lack of)?

What makes it THE religion to have faith in?

Well, Christianity is a hard act to follow because it has Jesus the Son of God himself as its central core, but-

Islam - doesn't

Judaism - doesn't

Sikhism - doesn't

Buddhism - doesn't

Hinduism - doesn't

Spiritism - doesn't

Bahai - doesn't

Jainism - doesn't

Shinto - doesn't

Taoism - doesn't

Zoroastanism - doesn't

Paganism - doesn't

Rastafarianism - doesn't

Scientology - doesn't

Chinese traditional - doesn't

African tribal - doesn't

Cao Dai - doesn't

Tenrikyo - doesn't

New Age - doesn't

Unitarian - doesn't

Native American - doesn't

Fairy-worshipping cults etc - don't

[J. K.]

1) What is your religion (or the lack of)?

2) What makes it THE religion to have faith in?

3) What caused you to believe in that religion?

4) What is the fundamental message in your religion?

1. I would call it non-denominational New Testament Christianity, for lack of a more specific label.

2. That question may not have an answer. I would imagine that anyone thinks their own religion is the one to believe in. Why do I think mine is right? Ultimately, because ....

3. ...my personal experience with the Spirit of God speaking to my own spirit and convincing of the truth as I choose to believe 4. Salvation (being united with God) is obtained through making Jesus Christ Lord of one's life.

[manbearpigg]

Well, Christianity is a hard act to follow because it has Jesus the Son of God himself as its central core, but-

Islam - doesn't

Judaism - doesn't

Sikhism - doesn't

Buddhism - doesn't

Hinduism - doesn't

Spiritism - doesn't

Bahai - doesn't

Jainism - doesn't

Shinto - doesn't

Taoism - doesn't

Zoroastanism - doesn't

Paganism - doesn't

Rastafarianism - doesn't

Scientology - doesn't

Chinese traditional - doesn't

African tribal - doesn't

Cao Dai - doesn't

Tenrikyo - doesn't

New Age - doesn't

Unitarian - doesn't

Native American - doesn't

Fairy-worshipping cults etc - don't

Listen i know in your mind Jesus Christ is lord and i get that.

However what you just wrote up there proves nothing... I'm sure you can agree.

All you did was write "doesn't" next to a list of other religions. I can do that with Christianity as well.

Prove Christianity is THE religion without using jesus as the ultimate proof?

[Hasina]

Well, Christianity is a hard act to follow because it has Jesus the Son of God himself as its central core, but-

Islam - doesn't

Judaism - doesn't

Sikhism - doesn't

Buddhism - doesn't

Hinduism - doesn't

Spiritism - doesn't

Bahai - doesn't

Jainism - doesn't

Shinto - doesn't

Taoism - doesn't

Zoroastanism - doesn't

Paganism - doesn't

Rastafarianism - doesn't

Scientology - doesn't

Chinese traditional - doesn't

African tribal - doesn't

Cao Dai - doesn't

Tenrikyo - doesn't

New Age - doesn't

Unitarian - doesn't

Native American - doesn't

Fairy-worshipping cults etc - don't

Woah. Hey. Everyone knows Xenu could beat Jesus in a wrestling match. Also, space plane. Now that's a hard act to follow.

[Zaphod222]

Well, Christianity is a hard act to follow because it has Jesus the Son of God himself as its central core, but-

Islam - doesn't

Judaism - doesn't

Sikhism - doesn't

Buddhism - doesn't

Hinduism - doesn't

(snip)

And how did you come up with that? Out of thin air again?

For your information, Hinduism actually has LIVING GODS, which beats your long-dead son of god by miles.

Travel to Nepal and pray to the Kumari. I am looking forward to a report of your prompt conversion to Hinduism.

[regeneratia]

I am gnostic. The reason it seems most right for me is that it accents the "kingdom within" far more than any other religion.

[regeneratia]

What Christianity does is to wrongly put Jesus outside of ones' Self, into the external environment, when all Jesus talked about, including the Gnostic texts, was about the internal environment, that core of our spiritual being that is today totally unaddressed by modern dogmatic and political Christianity.

Well, Christianity is a hard act to follow because it has Jesus the Son of God himself as its central core, but-

Islam - doesn't

Judaism - doesn't

Sikhism - doesn't

Buddhism - doesn't

Hinduism - doesn't

Spiritism - doesn't

Bahai - doesn't

Jainism - doesn't

Shinto - doesn't

Taoism - doesn't

Zoroastanism - doesn't

Paganism - doesn't

Rastafarianism - doesn't

Scientology - doesn't

Chinese traditional - doesn't

African tribal - doesn't

Cao Dai - doesn't

Tenrikyo - doesn't

New Age - doesn't

Unitarian - doesn't

Native American - doesn't

Fairy-worshipping cults etc - don't

[RedSquirrel]

1) What is your religion (or the lack of)?

2) What makes it THE religion to have faith in?

3) What caused you to believe in that religion?

4) What is the fundamental message in your religion?

1: I'm a basic seeking Christian. I believe in the message of the bible, but believe that life is up to us. I see the message as a pretty good one, for me. I don't follow the hate, I see it as a lesson, even if it is just stories.

2: I do not believe it is the only way. It's just the way for me.

3: A very personal experience. It's all subjective though.

4: The way I see it? "Love your neighbor as you love yourself", treat others the way you want to be treated (That is why I do not 'witness') and from the great book of Wheaton: Don't be a (word short for Richard).

Just as addendum, I view my faith as below other people's thoughts. It's a personal thing, nothing in it would be taken the way I see it.

[RavenHawk]

Just out of curiosity,

1) What is your religion (or the lack of)?

2) What makes it THE religion to have faith in?

3) What caused you to believe in that religion?

4) What is the fundamental message in your religion?

1) I'm Christian as in faith, but I am a cross between a Deist and a Gnostic and part maverick and all heretic in religion. I believe that we have been brainwashed by the Catholic way of thinking for some 1700 years and the Reformation didn't do enough to break away from ridged thought. It is now believed that Mary Magdalene was not the Prostitute. What more can we discover with an open mind? That Jesus and Mary were spouses? That Judas was the Armor-bearer (and you need to know what that meant in that period) and was just obeying Jesus' wishes (the Plan)? That Paul was a homophobe and his writings against homosexuals were a bit biased? That Genesis 1 is an observation of evolution?

2) I wouldn't say it is THE religion other than the existence of Jesus. More on this later. In Genesis 1 to 11, there was only the ONE religion. It wasn't Judaism. GOD was more directly involved in their lives. But at the time of the Tower of Babel, cultures separated and in time formed their own variation of that religion. Today we see this in that there are some 261 different versions of the flood myth. From Babel there were religions like Zoroastrianism, Judaism, and Hinduism as main line. Zoroastrianism has all but died out and the majority of all the world's religions are then offshoots of the two remaining. We see the parallelism between the two with the following relationship: GOD = Brahma, Jesus = Shiva, Holy Spirit = Vishnu. So in essence, there is not one that is the ultimate right one, but they all are part of the whole. We just need to understand the different perspectives. For the longest time I thought that the Catholic belief in Baptism by sprinkling was wrong and that only full emersion was the true path to salvation. Today, I would like to think that I am a bit wiser and if one believes that sprinkling gets one closer to GOD then so be it.

So what role does Jesus play in this? Throughout history, we can see many Christ like characters. We know that in the beginning that Jesus was with the Word and was the Word, so why couldn't these other incarnations have been Jesus? Forgive me if I get these backwards but Sunni's are waiting for the coming of the Mahdi. Now the Jews are waiting for the Messiah. The Shiite believes that the Mahdi is already here but is in hiding until the right time. Christians await the second coming of Jesus. The Parallelism is striking. The second coming is the arrival of the Messiah. What if Isa *IS* the Mahdi. Just as Paul, I think is wrong in some things, Mohammed is wrong in some things. No one man is 100% right no matter how inspired by GOD they are. In the Hindu based religions, they will see Jesus as Shiva. All of this comes together because no other GOD seeks a personal relationship with each one of us. No other GOD has sacrificed for us. That is saying something. That is something unique. That is breaking all the barriers that man has put up. This is why atheists exist. It's not really because they don't believe in GOD, they are just frustrated with what man has done to the image of GOD.

3) I met him in spirit and there is nothing anyone can do or say that will make me believe that it never actually happened. I know it did.

4) Salvation.

[Clarakore]

1) What is your religion (or the lack of)? Christopaganism.

2) What makes it THE religion to have faith in? It is one path among many.

3) What caused you to believe in that religion? I grew up in a culture that had both, Christianity at church, and witchcraft and magic as equally acceptable systems outside of it, had I grew up somewhere else or in a different time then my religion would be different.

So geography and society is what "cause me to believe", or more accurately, allowed me to accept the dominant narrative of my society, that of Christian mythology, and to also accept a coexisting undercurrent of practicing and respecting those who practice certain types of witchcraft native to this region.

4) What is the fundamental message in your religion? Syncretism but there is nothing fundamental about it, it is either organic and innate within one or not, if you have not been exposed to two traditions you might not have a need to have a blended faith, if you have then it might be an option.

Edited February 5, 2013 by I believe you