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Lordpendragon

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My previous post was a bit narrow.

There are countries where the faith/religion is the only option, but I have also been to many places where the religion plays a more active part in everyday life than is common in our countries (exceptions I know). Our Church has struggled and to be honest failed to get away from religion is for Sundays. I think that if your religion plays an active role in your everyday practices, you are more likely to consider this completely normal and enjoy the community. I may well have been more religious in these circumstances.
 

B_Stronzo

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Pecker said:
Yes, I'm a convert, Stronz. I don't personally support abortion but as for homosexuality, that requires a judgement that I feel I don't have the authority to make, thankfully.

I don't make friendships contingent upon sexuality.

Thanks Pecker.

This is helpful to me since I don't know any.

I'd wondered how many people who possessed the ability of "nuance of thought" (much as you do) get around what I preconceived were fairly strict beliefs within that denomination.

I don't make friendships based on religion either so we're looking at things similarly.:wink:
 

b.c.

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Gisella said:
I think that are a difference between faith and religions...that are people of faith all over the world that do not belong to a religion.

I have faith but dont attach it to a religion that involves a headquarter, a lider/guru and rituals. My faith is in God and love for my fellow human in dispair, the poor mostly. Than social work is where i like to be and make friends, listen to their stories and acknowlege their struggles and hardships...but if this kind of work involves burocracy and blablabla...i dont like it.

Yes I was born in a syncretist (Native Americans, Afro, Christian, others beliefs) society mix , but the 'official' religion says Catholicism...Than I try and live and see many things but I dont like mysticism and hierarquies walls and secrets rituals, exclusiveness and $$$$ contributions to institutions to them distribute to the needy...I prefer i choose where i want to invest my time and resources and will not give power to an authority do it to me.

I dont like impositions in my life comming from religions but i do think I'm a 'mainstrean moralist' (i learn this expression here...) in issues that for me is common sense, like protect the young, the sick, fragile, poor and etc by good laws that is not only in a paper but works in reality. At the same time I'm for the strenght of families and give acess to good education, health, home and etc affordable to the working classes..but my thinking is mostly focus in the hardiships in the reality of a 3rdworld country.

This is my faith practices: Action in basic peoples needs and social issues that is motivated by love (compassion, frustration,dispair, anger etc) that do not involve deal with burocracy and institutions.

yeah...what she said...
 

Dr. Dilznick

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Pecker said:
I am a Christian, a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints since 1971.
The racist "Curse of Cain" doctrine barred blacks from the Mormon priesthood until as late as 1978. Why has it not received any formal repudiation?
 

madame_zora

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Interesting questions LPD, I have often wondered what my life would have been like had I been born in India. I have read parts of the Vedas, parts of the Koran, studied Zen Buddhism briefly and read some of the teachings of some Native American tribes, but I wouldn't claim to have nearly as much knowledge of those as I do the Bible because it's been a bigger part of my own life.

I find it very likely that I would have been Hindu had I been born in India and had less freedom or encouragement to seek my own path, but I would like to believe that my personal philosophies would have remained fairly similar. Most major religions have a Godhead, a "son" figure and the basic beliefs in doing kindnesses for one another. I would hope I would have abstracted the good from whatever religion I was born into.
 
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I received the best of all possible educations on this subject from my parents. I have been raised to be acceptant and of and open to all faiths. All of them have something to teach. All of them have worth. None is more important than the other.
 
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Pecker said:
Yes, I'm a convert, Stronz. I don't personally support abortion but as for homosexuality, that requires a judgement that I feel I don't have the authority to make, thankfully.

I don't make friendships contingent upon sexuality.
How can one not admire and respect this man?:smile:
 

Spoogesicle

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I have read the sacred texts of other religions and have come to the conclusion that most, if not all, faiths are striving for a common goal. No one religion is right for everyone because people are different. For some, no religion is the best option. We all have a conscience and how we use or misuse it does not depend on profession of a particular creed, or any creed at all. I have a religion, and I choose to live it. I may not reach the same conclusion that others find in their journey of faith, but I can respect the quest.
 

vindicari

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I beleive in a higher power than us, however I dont beleive in religion. Religion in its many guises is the creation of man. We have corrupted the ideals of an omnipotent forgiving god to fulfill our greed and aspirations. Religion has caused every war mankind has fought, heres a question, how can an army have a padre? How can a man of god call for blessings on an institution thats sole function is to kill. Did the big man himself not say thou shalt not kill.
 

DC_DEEP

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I was raised in a christian home. I have read the christian holy bible (several translations, several times, cover to cover), the torah, the book of mormon, the baghavad gita, and excerpts from the qu'ran.

I actually did struggle with belief vs. faith, for a long time, and did truly want to have a spiritual/religious aspect of myself. But the more I read, and researched, and searched, the LESS I believed, until I came to my current total lack of theology, about 15 years ago.

I've known people of all different flavors of religion throughout my life, and liked some better than others. But as long as they practice their beliefs without trying to involve me, that's just fine.
 

newcastle

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There are two problem that I have with religion ad faith "in a higher being."

First, which religion is correct? There are dozens and dozens of them and they all believe that theirs is "the only true faith." For instance, Baptists believe that if you do not believe exactly as they believe, you go to hell - no questions asked! So, if you were born in a part of the world (say, the Amazon) where you have no access to the Christianity (particularly, the Baptist version), you will suffer for eternity! That makes no sense at all.

Second, scientific evidence eliminates their possibility (i.e., evolution). Evolution is a pillar of modern biology - there are no respected biologist in the world who think that there is even a possibility that evolution is wrong. They know it to be fact, pure and simple. Aren't we just an intelligent primate, aren't monkey related to us? You have to see the smilarities there - you just have to.

Those to issues are clear and distinct. Period.

*During the last election cycle in the US, a friend of mine told me a story that happened in her church. She said that the preacher stood before his congregation and told them that if they did not vote for Republicans on election day that they would be sinning against God! That is not an isolated event. I would like to see a voter's identification card with God's name on it!
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B_Hickboy

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Lordpendragon said:
I have two well-intentioned questions for people of faith on the site.

First, have you read the scriptures of the world's other great faiths? (if you are not of faith, I would also like to know this)

Secondly, had you been born in another country with a different faith, would you have been as believing in that faith as you now are of your own?

1. I have read the Bible, the Q'uran, the Upanishads, and Baghavad Ghita. I have also read Baha'i texts.

2. How could anybody answer the second question? I may have a genetic predisposition toward believing in a power greater than myself. If that's the case, I'd have been the same sort of believer in another religion as I am in the one I currently practice. There's no real way to rewind my life and start it in Mecca or Joppa.
 

GoneA

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Lordpendragon said:
First, have you read the scriptures of the world's other great faiths? (if you are not of faith, I would also like to know this)

Yes, to a very large extent. I also have a few friends who are devotees of several "great faiths" and I often ask them questions to gain a more intimate knowledge and possibly fill in the gaps that reading text could only hope to do.

Lordpendragon said:
Secondly, had you been born in another country with a different faith, would you have been as believing in that faith as you now are of your own?

Well, it's impossible to tell, I guess.

I have a longer more indept response, but I'll give later.
 

Spoogesicle

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newcastle said:
scientific evidence eliminates their possibility (i.e., evolution). Evolution is a pillar of modern biology - there are no respected biologist in the world who think that there is even a possibility that evolution is wrong.

Religion and the theory of evolution are not imcompatible. Many devout Christians, I included, accept the theory of evolution as being valid.
 

Dr. Dilznick

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*cough*

Pecker said:
I am a Christian, a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints since 1971.
The racist "Curse of Cain" doctrine barred blacks from the Mormon priesthood until as late as 1978. Why has it not received any formal repudiation?
 

davidjh7

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Dr. Dilznick said:
*cough*

The racist "Curse of Cain" doctrine barred blacks from the Mormon priesthood until as late as 1978. Why has it not received any formal repudiation?

I grew up Mormon, and clearly remember when the change of doctrine happened. It was a few years later I finally abandoned the church for good. Not over this issue, because I thought it was a strupid doctrine to bar black people from the preisthood, in the name of "protecting " them, but mainly because I could no longer stomach the blatant hypocracy and hatred and ostricization of anybody who wasn;t a member. I got some decent moral values out of that upbringing, and I try to hold those to this day, but people should never be allowed to run religions---they always screw it all up, in the name of God. IN this case, hate the players, not the game. :biggrin1: