Your Religion

[Critter]

I'm a non-practicing Catholic...

[Prometheus]

Meaning you are baptized, but use the pill... ?

[Critter]

Quote by: Prometheus Meaning you are baptized, but use the pill... ?

You're half right...

I was baptized, AND confirmed, (I spent grades K-8 in a Catholic school, and really didn't have much of a choice), but I no longer have any faith whatsoever in the Catholic church, for a variety of reasons. (This does NOT mean that I don't believe in God, however.)

[jai_lyn7249]

hi im new to post also...
just wanted to let everyone know my religious background.....growing up my parents were not religious and i always asked my mom why and she always said i did that to let you make the choice yourself when you got older. i knew of god went to sunday school and bible schools but my grandmom did that with me.....
as i got older just thought if i do the right things ill be alright untill i met my husband
he is not a jehovah's witness but he was raised that way and alot of what he says i believe. alot of people have the wrong views on witnesses but if you looked more into it. it is alot like any other religion

[MerlinsByte]

was baptized, AND confirmed, (I spent grades K-8 in a Catholic school, and really didn't have much of a choice), but I no longer have any faith whatsoever in the Catholic church, for a variety of reasons. (This does NOT mean that I don't believe in God, however.)

One of my short term Xs was a non-Catholic (meaning that she did not practice it any longer) . I was then about 25 years ago a pagan. She loved the ritual of the catholic religion and compared it to my paganism...needless to say we had some interesting ....debates.

Question do you miss the rituals?

oh you are sorta newish ...so I should tell you I am a open theist christian.

mb

[MerlinsByte]

hi Jai_lyn7249.....Welcome to the forum...so you are saying that you are a Jehovah witness? Its an interesting religion and its beginnings and its evolution (or change gallo) as it matures is unique to major western religions. I only have a basic knowledge of its theology.

[Critter]

Quote by: MerlinsByte Question do you miss the rituals?

Honestly, I can't say I do...symbolism is fine and dandy, I suppose, but I think Martin Luther had the right idea in branching off from Catholicism to start his own religion.

[MerlinsByte]

I happen to enjoy rituals (Christian and others), it seems to focus my thoughts and it is a form of meditation.

Yes martin luther was a great man His supporters called him a Protestant hero, a freedom fighter (a terrorist?), wise and insightful church leader. His detractors call him a heretic, an apostate, a profane ecclesiastical terrorist. I think he was a nessessry evil in a time that demanded action, and a single-mindedness force of will.


mb

[jai_lyn7249]

merlin im not a jehovah witness but i am currently studying it..... alot of people i talk to accept my best friend and she posts here too... believe it is a cult, i was actually afraid of telling people about my preference but i chose to be out right honest cause thats the type of person i am.. i think if someone has a problem with someone elses religion then thats a problem they must take up with god if you believe... because the bible says not to judge or be judged..
i personally believe i have alot of bible knowledge i could know more and im currently working on that and if there is any questions you would like answered feel free to ask me..
thanks for being kind

[MerlinsByte]

excerpted from jai_s post......i was actually afraid of telling people about my preference but i chose to be out right honest cause thats the type of person i am.

merlin writes..Thanks for being honest, its difficult for Christians from any branch of Christianity to express their faith, because we are persecuted for our beliefs.

I believe that we will pay with blood (be martyred) in the future (by the leader of the one world goverment , the beast) for following the scriptures. All religions have merit, but that is another thread, thanks for your response.........

[carriew]

Quote by: jai_lyn7249 my best friend and she posts here too...

Heya Girl!

did you say I think JW's are in a cult? I wasnt sure how to read what you wrote exactly either I think your in a cult or I accept ya I am not sure lol...let me know ok...lmbo

cya round and HAPPY ANNIVERSARY !!!

carrie
EDIT

and just for the record I am catholic...

[BaldEagle]

Raised Southern Baptist, but went my own way at 16. Decided I needed more answers than I was getting with religion. Turned to science and while I got more concrete answers still left all the lingering ones unanswered (not an indictment of the validity of science, but more likely an indictment of my ability to comprehend). Don't much care what the correct answer is, just want to eventually get to it. Reckon I won't in my lifetime, so I waste precious little time with it. I am not hostile to religion or religious people. I ignore proseletising, but understand that some just plain don't want to hear it. I say no thanks and just walk away or gently shut the door. I never have been required to invoke the name of any god as long as I have been here and I suspect barring some nasty change that will remain the same.

BaldEagle

[MerlinsByte]

have been here and I suspect barring some nasty change that will remain the same.

Nasty changes are not all bad. Its like my wife, who passed away recently, would tell a client about de tox (she was a psychologist who worked in A&D ). " you can always go back to your old life (after or while detoxing) but if you don't make this (Nasty?) change, the only option you have is death.(because by the time they had a court order to see her, their addiction was killing them).

However, I feel that there is no death of the soul for the saved or the unsaved, the Hitler's, and the Ted Bundy’s. A soul once created is eternal. I do feel that a relationship with God and the revelation (of truth) alone is worth the pain of living a religious life.

mb

[jai_lyn7249]

car i was stating the fact that you dont judge me at all.............
thats because ya love me....LOL!!!!!!!!!

[carriew]

I do love ya.

I dont judge anyone Or at least I try real hard not too...

[northtexan]

Quote by: imperialprincess I was raised as an Eckist (member of Eckankar)and I still am but my husband and I are joining the UU church so that we can have a common religion to share with our children

I'm UU. We joined about 15 years ago so our son could be raised in a religious community. I am also a humanist by philosophy and an agnostic by 'faith.'

[SemStudent08]

I am a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America (ELCA). I also attend an ELCA Seminary. Much of my belief is outlined in the Book of Concord, but I do disagree with it at times, and understand it to be a human work. I believe in the inerrancy of Scripture in a remarkably different way than most people who use the term do. I beleive, in essence, that what is inerrant about Scripture is its ability to "hit a moving target." With careful investigation and deep examination of Scripture one finds it applicable to modern life and society in a very personal way. And it is this understanding that leads to certain beliefs which may, at first, seem contrary to what most Christians proclaim today (i.e. I do not think homosexuality is a sin, I do not believe in Creationism/Young Earth, and I do not believe that women should not be in leadership positions, etc). If you would like to know how I am led to these conclusions, by all means, PM me. I try and keep an open mind and I proudly claim to have learned a great deal about faith from non-Christians and even people who express no faith whatsoever.

[CJFreeman]

Quote by: SemStudent08 I am a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America (ELCA). I also attend an ELCA Seminary. Much of my belief is outlined in the Book of Concord, but I do disagree with it at times, and understand it to be a human work. I believe in the inerrancy of Scripture in a remarkably different way than most people who use the term do. I beleive, in essence, that what is inerrant about Scripture is its ability to "hit a moving target." With careful investigation and deep examination of Scripture one finds it applicable to modern life and society in a very personal way. And it is this understanding that leads to certain beliefs which may, at first, seem contrary to what most Christians proclaim today (i.e. I do not think homosexuality is a sin, I do not believe in Creationism/Young Earth, and I do not believe that women should not be in leadership positions, etc). If you would like to know how I am led to these conclusions, by all means, PM me. I try and keep an open mind and I proudly claim to have learned a great deal about faith from non-Christians and even people who express no faith whatsoever.

SemStudent8,

I'm also in a Lutheran Seminary here in Canada -- Concordia Lutheran Theological Seminary -- which is part of the Lutheran Church-Canada, sister to LCMS. I'm not exactly sure of the theological leanings of ELCA, and was wondering if they are anything like ELCIC (Evangelical Lutheran Church In Canada)? That is, a little less orthodox, less conservative, more liberal? Could you fill me in a little more, please? I attend with some guys from Rochester, NY, and would like to know more about what they're saying when they use some of these familiar acronyms.

Cheers!
Christopher J. Freeman

[SemStudent08]

Quote by: CJFreeman SemStudent8, I'm also in a Lutheran Seminary here in Canada -- Concordia Lutheran Theological Seminary -- which is part of the Lutheran Church-Canada, sister to LCMS. I'm not exactly sure of the theological leanings of ELCA, and was wondering if they are anything like ELCIC (Evangelical Lutheran Church In Canada)? That is, a little less orthodox, less conservative, more liberal? Could you fill me in a little more, please? I attend with some guys from Rochester, NY, and would like to know more about what they're saying when they use some of these familiar acronyms. Cheers! Christopher J. Freeman

The ELCA is much like the ELCiC. Though I don't personally put much stock in terms like liberal and conservative, I suppose most would call the ELCA more liberal than conservative. I would not, however, say we are less orthodox (I guess it depends on your definition of the term...in a lot of ways there is even a great deal of variety witin the ELCA itself). About the only way in which some would say the ELCA is unorthodox as a whole is in our willingness to use the Historical-Critical method of interpreting Scripture, and that is a matter of perspective. From my perspective I would say that examining Scripture with every gift God has given us would qualify as orthodox, others would not agree, defining inerrancy in a rather more narrow way then I do...

As for more info, allow me to direct you to the ELCA website at http://www.elca.org and if you have more points of clarification after checking out that site, feel free to ask and I will do my best to answer.

Shalom,
Jon Nelson

[SteveA]

I was raised a Mormon (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints) but haven't been active religiously in much for almost 25 years. I think I've seen a lot of the religious debates from both sides and agree that people are being persecuted both sides. My friends daughter had her Bible taken from her at school and thrown in the trash. On the other hand many other people are excluded from being married.

I personally admire a lot of religious folk, though I don't believe there's any guy with a flowing white beard out there, though there are also many things that seem to indicate there's more going on in the universe than we are aware of or understand (consciousness and quantum mechanics) so I can't claim there's not a "creator" either though.

Anyway, I mostly wish both sides of the religious debate would just agree to go their own ways. If someone wants to put a commemorative statue of the 10 commandments in front of a courthouse, as long as they don't expect anyone to respect it in any particular fashion differently than some similar object, I don't see a problem but the same thing should hold for a guy who grows and smokes some marajuana on his own property and is minding his own business not harming anyone (I'm not encouraging the use of marajuana but the laws should be about real criminal threats to people, not trying to save people from themselves or based upon irrelevant circumstances - for example, we don't need a law against using cell phones in a car, the real threat is if someone is driving in a dangerous manner like drifting out of their lane or changing speeds quickly etc., so whether it's a mother reaching back to hand her child a bottle or someone changing radio stations, we don't need police with binoculars saying it's ok to swerve in one case but not the other - one simple law that everyone understands solves this and leaves less wiggle room for lawyers - don't drive recklessly. Sorry for drifting off on a tangent but religion should be a factor like race that is just ignored legally, neither discriminated in favor of or against but by decentralizing things it would be easier for both religious and non-religious people to live comfortably without feeling overly forced to tolerate something that could just be avoided instead).