Religious, yes or no.

Shero said:
"Kindness" is the theme of all religions. Trouble is those who profess to be religious or spiritual (which means the same thing) do not keep to this.
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Sorry, religious and spiritual don't mean the same thing in my book. Just sayin'. :)💓
Spiritual def:
1.
relating to or affecting the human spirit or soul as opposed to material or physical things.
"I'm responsible for his spiritual welfare"

Religious:
relating to or believing in a religion.
"both men were deeply religious, intelligent, and moralistic"
 

Michael Z said:
I was raised in a main-line church but truthfully there were a lot of mixed signals. The church seemed to preach works, that is, if one's good works outweighed the bad, then you went to heaven. I remember my father, who was a problem drinker, bee-lining for the liquor cabinet as soon as we got home from church. It was as if attending church not only negated the sins of the previous week, it allowed for a shot and a beer or two free of charge on the "sin tab".

My mom, however, had a genuine faith and she also was a regular church attendee. I followed in my father's drinking footsteps, becoming a problem drinker and wild man in general. I attended church for a while as an adult, but then gave up, knowing that simple church attendance could not atone for the boat-load of sins I was racking up. But then at about age 27 I lost my job and was in sort of a pickle financially. The walls started closing in. That is when I turned to Christ as payment for my sins without any works of my own.

It was a whole new world for me. I then started re-attending various churches, gravitating toward non-denominational. Through the 36 years as a Born Again Christian I have attended a variety of churches but now have settled into a very traditional Baptist church for the last 7 years. My current view on church, which I think is a better view, is "What can I do for the church and within the church" as opposed to "What can this church do for me". I was in jail ministry with a fellow church member until Covid hit and now I help with AWANA, helping little kids memorize and understand bible verses.
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One can only reach Heaven thru Jesus, however there is a caveat in the bible that one can reach Heaven thru good works. When one believes in Jesus, good works follow. How could they not?:)
 
Ladybj said:
I had to give up quite a bit of beliefs that I was taught..especially pertaining to religion. I am in the process of working on my inner self which is no picnic in the park but well worth it. Learning to search for answers within instead of external. It's amazing how much suffering we bring to ourselves.. I now understand why I have been tensed up for many years.
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When we don't believe in God or a higher power, we become our own god. Therein lies the problem. Just look around at all the dangerous cults. I am following a case out of Idaho, where the accused are said to have committed murder due to cult beliefs.
The woman is alleged to have murdered her two children JJ, 7 and Tylee, 16 with the help of the cult leader Chad Daybell. her children were found buried in the backyard of Daybell. The little boy wrapped plastic bags and the young lady dismembered and burned. Mr. Daybell is accused of murdering his wife and a couple weeks later married the mother of these children which they disposed of.
Lori Daybell, Chad's wife had her brother murder her husband. Both free of their spouses they proceeded with their crimes. He told her she was literally a goddess and that must have made him a god.
I am involved in a discussion on Academia.com entitled "God loves Children, gods kill children."


tylee-jj.jpg
 

IFortuna said:
One has to consider which supernatural avenue one is going down. In my opinion, my channel is set on Jesus an He hears me and He has my back. I was involved with lots of New Age stuff, spiritualism, Buddhism before and it never yielded me anything.😇
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That is the channel I was going down (specifically the Protestant version); still didn't work for me; thanks anyway.
 
Some people need organised religion and others prefer to follow their own interpretation of the gospels. I think of myself as spiritually aware but not really religious as I don't actually practise anything.
For many people, the Church gives a backdrop to their lives.
I'm still reading up on the whole thing and am trying to make sense of it. However, I'm the sort of person who analyses and examines....I like to find things out for myself.
 
Ladybj said:
I have no doubt there is a Higher Power greater than myself. Maybe that higher power is within myself. However, I do not believe in a God that will send you to Hell if you do not live a perfect life or break a commandment. Would we want our child to burn in hell if they broke a Curfew or rule.. absolutely not. I know I wouldn't.

Had to change my beliefs as I got older and it is a sense of Freedom. I am Still a work in progress. Why do soo many "Christians" "Religious" folks suffer?? God do not bring suffering to us, we bring suffering to ourselves in what we were taught. Our parents did the best they could in what they knew... I am now on a journey to look deeply inside to find the answers and they are coming to me. Seek and you Shall Find. :love:
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Depends on the rule and why the curfew was broken and what they were doing. After all, serial rapists, mass shooters, and even Hilter had parents.
 
mellowyellow said:
Religion brings comfort to millions of people and that has to be a good thing.
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I agree with that. Although I'm not religious, a get the appeal. Religion provides an explanation for things we cannot, at this point in time, explain. It provides meaning to life and a large social support network. It makes people feel like they belong, which is valuable in today's increasingly isolated and polarized society.
 
Of course believing that you have a direct link to the creator of the universe is comforting. So is the belief that you will live forever in heaven. They are harmless. It's the finicky details of religions that cause problems, like expecting everyone else to believe as you do and follow the same rules. I read that there was a time when Christians killed each other over whether God is a trinity or not. Then there's Protestant vs. Catholic, Sunni vs. Shi'a, etc., etc.
 
I was raised in the church and my husband and I raised our two girls in the church. We believe that God died for our sins and if we accept him as our Savior and we live the life the Bible says to live than we should have eternal life in heaven. I am not one of those Christian people who pushes any of my beliefs onto anyone or even talks about it unless a question is asked like in this post.
 
IFortuna said:
Pretty religious since I was baptized in 2008. I was a Buddhist for nearly 30 years. I love being a Christian, I have been extremely blessed in many ways unlike my previous religious practices. It has opened me up to being more non judgmental, seeing the other person's viewpoint better. I am happier than I have ever been. 😍
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I am not a Buddhist but I love Buddhist teachings - very enlightened. :love:
 
IFortuna said:
Sorry, religious and spiritual don't mean the same thing in my book. Just sayin'. :)💓
Spiritual def:
1.
relating to or affecting the human spirit or soul as opposed to material or physical things.
"I'm responsible for his spiritual welfare"

Religious:
relating to or believing in a religion.
"both men were deeply religious, intelligent, and moralistic"
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I did not say being religious and being spiritual are the same thing.
Where did that come from?
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Pepper said:
Thinking the Emperor wore clothes was a comfort as well to millions of people.
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Its maybe important not to look at the influence of religion in too simplistic a manner I think, (above on this thread page are some examples of this, worse than yours, if you don't mind my saying).

I can't fully explain myself here, or my views very clearly and succinctly, but will point at the fact the earliest colleges at Oxford University, seven or eight hundred years ago, were set up in many cases to oppose the ideology of one of the other Christian colleges I believe, (I've worked in Oxford quite a lot, visiting a number of colleges, and read of their origins,..., I think they call such ideological diversions "schisms" don't they).

You could perhaps imagine therefore the efforts undertaken to understand religious thinking or differing views, by the greatest brains of the time, and this justifies my saying trite or simplistic comments about religion are likely to be of limited usefulness! :)
 
I'm religious because I'm spiritual.

It's true there is no scientific evidence that there is a God, but there's no evidence that there isn't one, either.

I and millions of people since pre-history have believed there is something higher, a creator. We believe in something we can't see because of a deep sense that it is true. That's why it's called faith and not fact.

My parents bought us up in the Presbyterian Church. There were no fire and brimstone preachers, no strict rules against drinking or dancing, just calm sermons about how we can be better people, followed by reassurance that Jesus still loves us even if we fail.

We had Sunday School lessons based on the teachings of Jesus, where they tried to teach us not to judge other people, but to love them, feed them, and care for the sick.

I found it all very comforting -- Mr. Rogers was a Presbyterian minister who felt called to care for little children, he was a lot like the ministers I've known, gentle souls.

I think it's a shame that so many people use the name of Jesus to make money for themselves or to justify shunning others. Jesus accepted and loved everyone and warned against a love of money.

I've had spiritual moments in nature and in all sorts of unlikely places, but I still love going to church and being among other people who are worshipping God and trying to become better people. It's always spiritually moving to me and I feel better after a service. For many of us church is like a hospital for our soul where we can get care and recover.
 
Life is a mystery, isn’t it. Existence is a mystery. And like any mystery we are drawn to solve it. When we knew very little, the obvious answer was that some superior being or beings were controlling everything. Every culture came up with a version of these beings. Some were benevolent, some tyrannical, some a mix.

Not so long ago historically, you would be hard pressed to find someone who didn’t believe in a God or Gods. There was no other explanation for the way things are. And, you would probably accept that the version in your own culture was the true one.

Then science happened and we began to understand more physical processes and found things that clearly disagreed with some sacred texts. This posed a quandary. How do you explain the differences? Some say the texts are clearly mythical. Some say the texts are absolutely correct and science is in error. And, some say the science is right, but parts of the texts should be taken as allegories that show fundamental truths.

Does it really matter which camp you’re in as long as we can agree to accept each other’s right to their own opinions, and don’t try to make them accept ours? Unfortunately, there is a big stumbling block. Education. What do we teach our kids?

Clearly, if you send your children to a private religious school, you have the right to teach them whatever you wish. But, how about tax supported schools? That gets really sticky. Science and the scientific method are critical to modern life. If we are to compete with other countries, our children must understand it. How can you teach that it applies in some circumstances and not in others?

There are still many things we can’t explain and maybe never will. In my opinion, belief in God is still as valid as disbelief. The details are up to each individual. There are good people in all faiths, and with no faith.
 
For those who claim there is no evidence that god doesn't exist, that's not true. The existence of a god or anything supernatural would defy the laws of physics and other fields of science. If it were possible for a god to exist, then it would also be possible for my chair to turn into an alligator. That would be one terrifying world! :ROFLMAO:

So, on one hand, there is no evidence that god exists. On the other hand, there is strong evidence that god doesn't exist. That's why I have a hard time believing in god.
 
Grampa Don said:
Life is a mystery, isn’t it. Existence is a mystery. And like any mystery we are drawn to solve it. When we knew very little, the obvious answer was that some superior being or beings were controlling everything. Every culture came up with a version of these beings. Some were benevolent, some tyrannical, some a mix.

Not so long ago historically, you would be hard pressed to find someone who didn’t believe in a God or Gods. There was no other explanation for the way things are. And, you would probably accept that the version in your own culture was the true one.

Then science happened and we began to understand more physical processes and found things that clearly disagreed with some sacred texts. This posed a quandary. How do you explain the differences? Some say the texts are clearly mythical. Some say the texts are absolutely correct and science is in error. And, some say the science is right, but parts of the texts should be taken as allegories that show fundamental truths.

Does it really matter which camp you’re in as long as we can agree to accept each other’s right to their own opinions, and don’t try to make them accept ours? Unfortunately, there is a big stumbling block. Education. What do we teach our kids?

Clearly, if you send your children to a private religious school, you have the right to teach them whatever you wish. But, how about tax supported schools? That gets really sticky. Science and the scientific method are critical to modern life. If we are to compete with other countries, our children must understand it. How can you teach that it applies in some circumstances and not in others?

There are still many things we can’t explain and maybe never will. In my opinion, belief in God is still as valid as disbelief. The details are up to each individual. There are good people in all faiths, and with no faith.
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In a way, (if it isn't too obvious a thing to say?), what really matters is the way people "think", or more specifically "whether they/we think of others as being sometimes as important as ourselves"!
To have trust in one another generally we all have to buy into the idea don't we, that those we meet, do business with, even choose to marry, have a level of decency about them, and don't just wish to "push you down" whilst "pushing themselves up" in this world, (be it psychologically, or in other ways).
 
Irwin said:
For those who claim there is no evidence that god doesn't exist, that's not true. The existence of a god or anything supernatural would defy the laws of physics and other fields of science. If it were possible for a god to exist, then it would also be possible for my chair to turn into an alligator. That would be one terrifying world! :ROFLMAO:

So, on one hand, there is no evidence that god exists. On the other hand, there is strong evidence that god doesn't exist. That's why I have a hard time believing in god.
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Who made the laws of physics, who established the order of the universe, who set off the big bang? I think it's easy to believe in both science and religion, they are different aspects of the same world. Science will tell you a certain small human is a child but only religion can explain why you love it.
 
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