For the believers of a "Higher Power" or Deity(s)...?

Question

There seems to be much debate on here where faith in a Diety originates from. Where would you say your faith originates from?
Your upbringing, (meaning parental influence), or have you taken your own spiritual journey to discover your faith. Please explain your answer.

This question is directed to any and all religions who believe in a God(s)/Goddess(es). But please, keep your responses respectful towards others.

Thanks a bunch in advance for your thoughts!
*Hugs*

Answer 1

i grew up catholic and quickly abandoned it as soon as possible. no one seemed adept in answering my questions. it seem my parents "duty" to drag my sisters and me to church. it wasn't until i did my own soul searching in my late teens/early 20's did i get any answers. my faith began with my own personal experiences, either direct contact with god and goddess or through the magical happenings in my life. the books i like best for spirituality are ceanne derohan's.

Answer 2

Experience...

Our faith isn’t intellectual; it is experiential. We don’t know about God, we know Him. At the University of Chicago Divinity School, each year they have what is called “Baptist Day.” It is a day when the school invites all the Baptists in the area to the school because they want the Baptist dollars to keep coming in.

On this day each one is to bring a lunch to be eaten outdoors in a grassy picnic area. Every “Baptist Day” the school would invite one of the greatest minds to lecture in the theological education center. One year they invited Dr. Paul Tillich. Dr. Tillich spoke for two-and-a-half hours proving that the resurrection of Jesus was false. He quoted scholar after scholar and book after book. He concluded that since there was no such thing as the historical resurrection, the religious tradition of the Church was groundless, emotional mumbo-jumbo, because it was based on a relationship with a risen Jesus, who, in fact, never rose from the dead in any literal sense. He then asked if there were any questions.

After about 30 seconds, an old preacher with a head of short-cropped, woolly white hair stood up in the back of the auditorium. “Docta Tillich, I got one question,” he said as all eyes turned toward him. He reached into his lunch sack and pulled out an apple and began eating it. “Docta Tillich (crunch, munch), my question is a simple one (crunch, munch). Now, I ain’t never read them books you read (crunch, munch), and I can’t recite the Scriptures in the original Greek (crunch, munch). I don’t know nothin’ about Niebuhr and Heidegger (crunch, munch).” He finished the apple. “All I wanna know is: This apple I just ate—was it bitter or sweet?”

Dr. Tillich paused for a moment and answered in exemplary scholarly fashion: “I cannot possibly answer that question, for I haven’t tasted your apple.” The white-haired preacher dropped the apple core into his crumpled paper bag, looked up at Dr. Tillich and said calmly, “Neither have you tasted my Jesus.”

The 1,000-plus in attendance could not contain themselves. The auditorium erupted with applause and cheers. Dr. Tillich thanked his audience and promptly left the platform. “Taste and see that the Lord is good: blessed is the man that trusts in him” (Psalm 34:8). It has been well said, “The man with an experience is not at the mercy of a man with an argument.”

Answer 3

Lady Isis appeared to me when I was 10 and washed away all my sins and filled me with a love beyond comprehension. I have served her as my goddess ever since and she continues to comfort me and fill my life with miracles on a daily basis. Isis is awesome. Those who don't have faith can't understand. I pray that Isis may open up the eyes of your understanding sh you may come out of the darkness and into the eternal light of her love.

Answer 4

I think I was born "knowing" something was out there. I did not know what church was till I was ten. I did that for a while. It didnt work for me. Eventually I found a path that did. I feel connected to something larger than me that produces a positive effect in the world.

Answer 5

My own personal search and choice. By following my heart and soul. I was raised another faith but chose Catholicism myself.

Answer 6

Well, I have a God of my own understanding, and I found Him judging the road of happy destiny through my 12 step programs.

Answer 7

Part of it was my upbringing as a Christian and myself. From my families experience and some of my own.