POLL: What Religion Do You Follow?

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Born Protestant but Zen Buddhist now.

 

Officially borned protestant, all the strappings and all that but none of the specific faith so I am one of those who voted "born" agnostic. The family had no clear opinion, nothnig was rejected, nothing was accepted.

My current views mostly corresponds to atheism.

 

I guess I am agnostic.

Something had to create this all...

 

Born Protestant, now Non-Denominational Christian with an entirely unique consept, as most of my ideas are my own.

 

Born very vaguely Christian, now mostly atheist with a few flashes of agnosticism from time to time. I don't see any reason why there needs to be a god, but to dismiss the idea entirely kind of goes against some ... er, stuff I've waffled at myself in more philisophical moments

 

Also an agnostic.
Catholicism wasn't forced on me at all, but I was raised "properly" into it. I suppose my sister having a horrible illness is what basically ended my faith (or began the end.) I refuse to believe that a kind, loving, and omnipotent God wouldn't have let certain things in my experience and in history happen.
I also refuse to believe that anyone "knows" anything regarding religion...and the condescending "oh your poor person you've gone astray" view towards atheists and agnostics just angers me.
Who is any person to tell me of divine truth? Who am I to know divine truth?
I think much of organized religion comes from the arrogance of man who believes that he can know everything (whether we're talking about religion OR science) and that people want to believe in something to give them meaning. And I tend to question peoples conclusions based on biases.

I'm happy though that this thread isn't all angry and stuff though...people get worked up about these issues to much. :0

 

Born Catholic Apostolic Roman (sp?) but I left yhe 'path' after finished cathequesis class.

That was exactly what happened to me.

My question (in one of those classes): why if Jesus was so poor, the church is so rich?
Priest answer (grabbing my hair and directing me outside the classroom): You don't have to ask this questions in front the rest of the class, you confuse them, where you get those ideas?

 

To adress the topic: I follow no religion whatsoever and I´m perfectly happy because of it.

Look at the world today and throughout history and ask yourself: What is the no. 1 cause of pain and suffering of all time? Religion, plain and simple.

You don´t believe me? Ask the Mayans who were butchered by the Conquistadors (is that spelled right?). Ask the people who were deemed as infidels by the Inquisition. Ask the people who live in the Middle East. Millions of people killed because of the dictates of some uptight holier-than-thou elite or a bunch of outdated, withered scrolls. In my opinion, religion is the root of all evil.

 

Depends what you mean by 'cause'. Whilst many of the people you referred to were acting under a religious banner, they were also greedy and intolerant and may have been so whether or not there were also part of a 'religion'. I think the causes of those issues lie deeper than the concept of religion.

 

Maybe, but you also see it today. I´m not saying I´m right, it´s just my personal opinion...

Free will, right?

 

The question to those that don't believe then becomes, how hard did you look? Not to be rude, and I know I did a poor job phrasing it, but it may sour some on religion when they go from church to church without feeling that spiritual connection....

Again, the harder it is forced, the more likely it is to be rejected. You have to live it to feel the connection, don't you?

That kind of knowledge is actually very personal. I can describe it (maybe, I have butchered some things I've tried to say), but it really won't be easily conveyed to others. They have to experience it for themselves to understand this.

This thread has been more positive because it asks people what they believe, as opposed to a tone that becomes one of "now go to your corners and come out swinging".

In my church, this would turn into a discussion on Tithing and the other donations made by the members and on wise stewardship...

Exactly right. The people that you called the aggressors abused their free will and took the name of God to force their views on others. You don't convert someone at the point of a sword. Baptism by immersion doesn't mean grabbing a sinner and holding him under water until he quits resisting...

 

I was baptized and raised a Roman Catholic. I'm currently Catholic and I'm likely going to die a Catholic.

 

Raised Catholic - Now Shaolin Monk........

 

Born into an old-school Roman Catholic household, as soon as I was able to kick my sunday school teacher for saying I would burn in hell for my sins I was declared a heathen, which greatly dismayed my grandmother. Afterwards, I decided on Atheist, as it fitted my belief system (or not) at the current time. Still does actually. Note the fact that I no longer actually go out of my way to enforce my views (or lack thereof) on others, unlike the sunday school teacher incident..

 

Born Muslim, now Muslim.

A little reading and thinking goes a long way towards affirming your belief system.

 

Raised a Catholic, but these days i'm a raging alcoholic.

 

From Catholicism to Alcoholism, almost similar to mine, except my parents didnt really care wtf I did so know I just pray to the god of AD&DCRPG's...

 

Born Protestant, now now either Protestant or 'Spiritual, but not religious'.

Explanation:
I'm rather called Faithfull than Religious. Religion includes the customs of your church as well: whether you use sacraments or not and how many, how often you 'have to' pray, the roll of men and women, the importance of a 'godshouse' (whether church, temple, shrine or sacred ground etc), all that kind of stuff.

I rather look, as a Christian, what Christ is teaching me.
I not believe, as a protestant, that only protestant will go to heaven, nor do I believe that all protestants (by name) will go to heaven.
Jesus wasn't a protestant (well, maybe for his time and culture), but I do believe I will meet him some day (on good terms, because I also believe all people will see him some day).
People who live by the letter of the law, and not by the spirit, are rather religious than faithfull, imo.

But I might be religious after all. I do go to church twice at sundays with an other 600 people here in my hometown. And we have 2 sacraments there as well, but not every sunday. I think God gave me other faithfull people to live with, and I don't want to be faithfull all on my own if I see there are a million others (or just one).

Edit: some minor grammar/spelling errors.

[ August 05, 2005, 11:40: Message edited by: Master of Nuhn ]

 

Wow... despite the fact that you and I have a completely different faith you and I both think quite a bit the same. I completely agree with your point.

I was spiritual, but not religious when I was a kid. At the age of 12 I became a non-denominational Christian and am still one even now, at the age of 20. I don't need someone else to interpret what the Bible says for me - I'm accountable for that myself.

The way I would've answered that question is that Jesus chose to be in his position, to send a message to everyone equally - not just to the rich. And about the church... I'd just have told you it's corrupt, but then again I think it would depend upon what church you were talking about. I have my opinion on that but that's all it is, an opinion.

[ August 05, 2005, 03:44: Message edited by: Cryo Mantis ]

 

They had no right to say that. Ultimately, it is God that will decide that...

Maybe that's why some religions are dwindling...

That should be the basis of all Christianity.