Religious, yes or no.

I could write a book on my involvement with religion but not here. This is a very timely topic for me as I am right now reading a book, "Perfectly Clear" by Michelle LeClair and Robin Gaby Fisher. It's about the greatest religion in the world, The Church of Scientology (I'm pulling your leg here by saying it's the "greatest religion." Actually, it's a horrible cult! It was started by a charlatan by the name of L. Ron Hubbard. It's run like a military camp that would make the German Nazis jealous! They have hood-winked rich Hollywood types into joining like Tom Crusie, John Travolta, Kirstie Alley, Anne Archer and Leah Remini. If you want to leave they come after you and spread lies. They have billions to back them up. You want trouble and you want to go crazy, just join the Church of Scientology. By the way, they will clean out your bank account for free and promise that you will live forever. Good luck. Me, I wouldn't touch them with a "10 foot pole." The following film is 1/2 hour long but worth watching; just in case you want to join them.

 

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I was into Theravada Buddhism for a while and still agree with the Buddha's philosophies. To me Buddhism is more of a philosophy than a religion... Theravada Buddhism is, anyway. Some of the newer sects of Buddhism have deities and what could be considered religious beliefs and practices, but Theravada Buddhism is solely the teachings of the Buddha — Siddhartha Gautama.

Some say the Buddha was a misanthrope, and the argument that he was could be easily defended. He despised the way commoners were treated and society as a whole, so he went off to live in the woods to get away from all the a-holes of society. I consider myself to be a misanthrope, so Buddhism is a good fit.
 
I worked at a retail business that had 8 employees. I got along great with 7 of them. I never like one of them (Vernon) right from the beginning. He was one of those people who just rubs ya the wrong way. I was always respectful with him, but I always thought, "Yuk."
When he caused some trouble for me, I spoke to the owner who told me: "Well, he has had his problems in the past, but now he's a reborn Christian, he turned everything over to God & he's a new person and a very devoted employee." I just walked away, chuckling.......can't fight that kind of mindset.

A few weeks later, I came to work & heard the owner in her office, crying. I asked her what was wrong. She didn't answer. Her husband took me aside & said, "She's upset because she just found out Vernon embezzled $95,000.00 from us."
I said, "She mentioned his problems in the past; did they also involve theft?"
He said, "No; they involved cocaine."
 
I could write a book on my involvement with religion but not here. This is a very timely topic for me as I am right now reading a book, "Perfectly Clear" by Michelle LeClair and Robin Gaby Fisher. It's about the greatest religion in the world, The Church of Scientology (I'm pulling your leg here by saying it's the "greatest religion." Actually, it's a horrible cult! It was started by a charlatan by the name of L. Ron Hubbard. It's run like a military camp that would make the German Nazis jealous! They have hood-winked rich Hollywood types into joining like Tom Crusie, John Travolta, Kirstie Alley, Anne Archer and Leah Remini. If you want to leave they come after you and spread lies. They have billions to back them up. You want trouble and you want to go crazy, just join the Church of Scientology. By the way, they will clean out your bank account for free and promise that you will live forever. Good luck. Me, I wouldn't touch them with a "10 foot pole." The following film is 1/2 hour long but worth watching; just in case you want to join them.

LOL - I've met a few people who were involved in Scientology. Poster people for the term "Wacko."
ETA: I just remembered one place I worked at for 3 years. Part of my application involved a 3-page multiple-choice test that involved choosing 1 of 4 answers to weird questions about how I would handle certain situations. At the end of the test, I noticed on the last page in small print that the test came from The Church of Scientology. I was both amused and angered, but I was also glad that I gave the answers I thought they were looking for. They hired me.
 
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Yep I might say that about most major religions.

Religiosity is maintened by tradition and repetition, any deviation outside of the written law is heresy. Religions rsstrict outside influence as a concern might disrupt the power that controls the religious and the religion they follow. Should there be doubt, religion is tested by the religious to maintain or reconstruct based on new information.

Understanding religion is beyond my comprehension. What is the reason and purpose of religion? There is more to religion than in preparation for the afterlife. Religions provides support for human services, helping the poor and impoverished, but what must the recipient pay to receive services of this type? A lifetime of devotion, without question or freedom to be as one may hope to be?

How much do people know about religion? I encorage everyone not to think as they are told but think as you will.
Oh, Mr. Ed, Ye of little faith as they say. What would you like to know?;) Some people know plenty about religion. Few people know about faith. I don't want to take on a particular one but if I did, my first topic for discussion would be LDS.
 
Oh, Mr. Ed, Ye of little faith as they say. What would you like to know?;) Some people know plenty about religion. Few people know about faith. I don't want to take on a particular one but if I did, my first topic for discussion would be LDS.
😂 the LDS are quite an interesting group. I consider them a very large world wide cult, not a religion.
 
This is a question that means different things.

People may not belong to a specific organized church/ or named group but have personal beliefs and practices.
When People ask this i always wonder what they are getting at .... which church do you belong like a club ?... are you in the right fraternity or something?
are they planning to make assumptions based on if catholic or baptist or whatever?
My guess is yes they are checking every stereotype box in their head they can.........

I went to many different churches but seemed to focused around attendance and how much money are you giving.
That is all you got out of church. Sad. No offense, but why not ignore the money issue. You don't have to contribute if you don't want to. Attendance? Not your worry. Concentration should only be on the Word, in my opinion.💖
 
I know that I am an eternal soul currently living in a physical body until that body dies, at which time my spiritual identity will continue its journey. While I'm in this material life I try as much as is reasonable to not harm any other beings, or myself and to be helpful. That's about as sophisticated as my aspiration for advanced consciousness gets.
From what I understand one gets to Heaven by Faith in Jesus not by works. However, those who do good works are not forgotten by any means. Think how one might be doubly blessed if they have both faith and works.💖:)
 
We will have to PM at some point.
So true. H
It seems like a lot of religious Christians don't actually follow the teachings of Jesus. They just believe in him so they can get into heaven when they die.

Personally, I don't believe in an afterlife, so there's nothing in the creed in it for me. I try not to be an a-hole, though, and that's something that Jesus taught... I believe in the Sermon on the Mount where he preached the words, "Blessed art thou who be not an a-hole."
I believe this qualifies as blasphemy. How do you know what an individual Christian believes? Be specific please and don't mince words on my account. Above all Jesus taught love.;) As in loving your enemy or those who believe differently or those who live their lives differently with the partner of their choice.
 
I was raised in a church background and am still religious all these years. I pray several times a day, because it is important for me to communicate with God, no matter where I am. I love reading the Bible but don't do it as much as I used to. There is so much wisdom in those pages, particularly in the Proverbs. But the Bible is not my religion. I look at it more as a tool to learn about God, but I have found that it is not the only way to seek Him.

I seek Him in my heart and soul. I believe in the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. I believe that Jesus died for our sins. I believe that He trampled death so we could live. Amen.
Amen. I support you.
 
Palides and Fortuna, I am not religious but I admire your dedication and faith, regardless of whether we share the same views. We have all had different experiences in our lives that determine who or what we follow, but we all need to be dedicated and to have faith in something, whatever that is. 👍
You are a kind hearted person as I have come to know. It is not what we have faith in but who. You are a tremendous asset to this community and loved by many here I believe.💖
 
Many people celebrate their birthdays on a different date
out of convenience, weather, or other reasons. Most have.

December 25 was chosen to replace an evil celebration (pagan)
with a good celebration. I'm sure Jesus is pleased.
Instead of looking for the bible based church, why don't you become the teacher of the bible. I am certain you have the knowledge. ;)💖
 
From what I understand one gets to Heaven by Faith in Jesus not by works. However, those who do good works are not forgotten by any means. Think how one might be doubly blessed if they have both faith and works.💖:)
I think it says, somewhere in the Bible, that you will be known by your works or good deeds. It also says if you share those works in life, supposedly for gain as in look at me I gave x amount to this charity, then since you got “credit” here; you don’t get credit with JC. It seems very complicated-gaining heaven.

I want to be with Joey, be there for Joey. He’s a nervous guy and wants his mom, relies on his mom to be there when he needs her. Will he need me in heaven? I don’t know. But wherever he is, I will be there until there is no more there.

I am far from perfect, very far. It worries me. But we can only do so much.
 
😂 the LDS are quite an interesting group. I consider them a very large world wide cult, not a religion.
I have done videos on LDS, Mormons so called and Joseph Smith. LDS is not so much a concern as the cults the are offshoots of it.
My research is ongoing. There will be more. If you are interested go to my channel, "The Fortuna Report" on YouTube.
 
LOL - I've met a few people who were involved in Scientology. Poster people for the term "Wacko."
ETA: I just remembered one place I worked at for 3 years. Part of my application involved a 3-page multiple-choice test that involved choosing 1 of 4 answers to weird questions about how I would handle certain situations. At the end of the test, I noticed on the last page in small print that the test came from The Church of Scientology. I was both amused and angered, but I was also glad that I gave the answers I thought they were looking for. They hired me.
I am a former member of Scientology. What would you like to know from my perspective, anything?:)
 
Interesting, could you expand on that a bit? The "it suited God's plan" part. 💗
It suited God’s plan that JC be born. I doubt God intended to bake him a cake very year, send him a present, get him a Christmas tree. God was/is a harsh God, as we learn from the Old Testament.

JC was expected to be about God’s plan, and complete His path as dictated for him. It seems that JC did not have free choice. That’s what’s interesting. We have free choice, JC did not. Think about that, JC did as his Father planned and wished. Awesome, absolutely awesome.
 
I have done videos on LDS, Mormons so called and Joseph Smith. LDS is not so much a concern as the cults the are offshoots of it.
My research is ongoing. There will be more. If you are interested go to my channel, "The Fortuna Report" on YouTube.
The non LDS, LDS are truly interesting. What killed me was when the Jeffries children were returned to their mothers because Utah did not have enough foster care homes and did not want to spend the money on supporting those children. It’s always the bottom line in this state.

The LDS has a lot of power here, in Utah . Not as much as they used to, but still a lot.
 
I think it says, somewhere in the Bible, that you will be known by your works or good deeds. It also says if you share those works in life, supposedly for gain as in look at me I gave x amount to this charity, then since you got “credit” here; you don’t get credit with JC. It seems very complicated-gaining heaven.

I want to be with Joey, be there for Joey. He’s a nervous guy and wants his mom, relies on his mom to be there when he needs her. Will he need me in heaven? I don’t know. But wherever he is, I will be there until there is no more there.

I am far from perfect, very far. It worries me. But we can only do so much.
Could you cite complete passages in support of your arguments? Here is one, James 2:18 "
But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works."
Ephesian 2:8-9 "For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast."
https://www.openbible.info/topics/they_will_know_you_by_your_works 💖;)

 
Could you cite complete passages in support of your arguments? Here is one, James 2:18 "
But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works."
Ephesian 2:8-9 "For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast."
https://www.openbible.info/topics/they_will_know_you_by_your_works 💖;)

No, I won’t. I find the Bible is a historical document and I am not arguing. I am discussing things with you. You believe as you want, I’ll believe as I want. I am pulling stuff from memory and I don’t care enough to look it up cause if you are that interested, 😂, you can look it up.

As an abused child, I read the Bible a lot. It was a great comfort from a child's perspective. It gave me a sense that God’s justice would fall upon my parents. As an adult, I believe God will judge them and I will accept his judgement.

Therefore, I follow what the Pope said although the Church tried to backtrack on it. Everyone goes to heaven.
 
It suited God’s plan that JC be born. I doubt God intended to bake him a cake very year, send him a present, get him a Christmas tree. God was/is a harsh God, as we learn from the Old Testament.

JC was expected to be about God’s plan, and complete His path as dictated for him. It seems that JC did not have free choice. That’s what’s interesting. We have free choice, JC did not. Think about that, JC did as his Father planned and wished. Awesome, absolutely awesome.
Jesus could have walked away from the cross, but He loved humanity so much He carried out His destiny in my opinion. Just because your father wanted you to do something, did you always do it? God gave Free Will to everyone. He allowed Himself to be taken to the cross because He loved us. He did not run away a He surely could have but turned Himself over to complete His destiny. :)
 


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