can religious people be open minded?

Question

although religious people have many preformed ideas i think theoretically, they can be open minded, that's if they believe that other people have the right to disagree with them and to follow other religions or no religion at all (i.e. believe in freedom) but in real life, do you know such people who are both religious and open minded?
smiles

Answer 1

With difficulty. Their vision is always clouded over

Answer 2

Thank you for the respectful way you worded this question. Yes, I do believe there are some religious and open minded people out there. I know there aren't a lot of them in the public eye, but in real life, I do know some very down to earth, accepting Christians. It's too bad that the ones who are in the media give the others a bad reputation. I consider myself a Christian but I am not religious....more spiritual, and it really bothers me that people look at Christians in general as judgemental, stuck up people. I hope that eventually more of the open minded real life Christians will change that stigma for good.

Answer 3

Most of the answers so far are pretty good, but a lot of it depends on an individual's interpretation of their beliefs. For instance, take Christians and the Bible. Some believe that being "open minded" takes priority over strictly adhering to the commandments of God as laid out in the Bible. Much of this is due to popular opinion and the man- made philosophy that we all should be able to do what we want. Any SERIOUS student of the Bible knows that this is not the case. God does not require us to worship him at all, but he rewards those who do (and do so properly, as He instructs) with eternal life. Those who don't only have a limited time to exist. So, when someone "religious" comes along and says, for instance, that being homosexual is a sin (according to the Christian bible), what is your reaction? The bible DOES say that God thinks that way, but then again we have free will, don't we? No one likes to hear that their beliefs are wrong, but not all beliefs that are held by people are compatible with the belief system they claim to be a part of! Someone may like the IDEA of being a Christian but do not adhere to ALL parts of Christian beliefs. Is this open- mindedness? I hardly think so. You either are or are not an adherent to a belief system. If you only take part of it, you're not a member of that system. If you do adhere to all of it, that does not make you closed- minded. If that was the case, then God is closed- minded. It all boils down to interpretation and willingness to accept or not accept ALL of what the Bible (or any belief system) says.

Answer 4

I'm religious, and many of my friends tell me that I'm also open minded.

The problem that often arises for people being religious and open minded is the difference between tolerance and approval. A religious person can tolerate the behavior that they consider to be sinful, but that does not mean that they approve of it. Many religious people do not understand this distinction and refuse to even tolerate people who engage in 'sinful' behaviors.

Certain religions are more tolerant and open-minded than others. Christians are more open-minded than the Amish, for example. Many people also define 'open-mindedness' differently. Do they have to be open to experiencing the things that they disagree with? Or do they only have to be open to allowing others to experience those things without interfering? This is a difficult question to answer for anyonel, religious or not.

Answer 5

if you think theoretically, doesnt that show that you follow by blind faith in something?

theoretically means of theory and theory is not absolute proven law or fact.

hence 'the THEORY' of evolution' though most people accept this as how things actually happened...it is still a THEORY! it has not been proven to be a LAW. what is a law? the law of gravity, the law of thermodynamics etc...

thus, though you may think you sound reasonable, you are no different than a closed mined individual if you operate on theories.

think i am being mean? well, for example, i have a theory that bigfoot, the yeti and the lochness monster are in my basement at this moment playing texas hold 'em but everytime i go and turn on the lights, they instantly disappear. this is my theory and if you dont believe it...then you are closed minded. dont forget, you 'think' THEORETICALLY.

trust me pal, you are not even a close match for my debating skills, power of observation and ability to find out things that you dont even know about yourself.

you are neither 'open' minded nor do you think theoretically!

Answer 6

In general, I find 'religious' people (those who believe in god) to be very judgmental, intolerant and extremely closed minded. So many of them have very little knowledge, if any, about their own religion, yet they look down on every other religion of which they know even less about.

Most Christians accept their bible as some 'factual' book inspired by god. They are too afraid to question anything in it, yet at the same time they don't even follow what's in it. The majority of Christians believe Atheists are doomed to hell but what they don't realize is that, if there is a god that created all of us, it is that same god that gave Atheists the inability to accept unscientific, unproven information.

Answer 7

Yeah, me.
I'm not going to name my religion but I think everyone has their own right to their own opinions and beliefs. Yes, there are beliefs and practices that I may disagree with in my own religion or someone elses but it seems like alot of religions have the same basic beliefs.
I think alot of the things that set different religions apart are the people and their closed-mindedness to take a look at other religions.I would never comdemn someone for their beliefs because who knows.....I might be wrong! (I'd just rather be more on the safe side, than sorry than to find out there was no God.)

Answer 8

Yes! I think that people turn to be narrow-minded only when they do not understand what they actually believe in. Very informed religious folks always take into consideration the fact that God is not finite and therefore, cannot be limited by man's finite imaginations.

I am a Christian, yet, turn to be very welcoming of other people's viewpoint that are backed by reason. Of course, I, TOO, THINK!

Answer 9

I am religious and open minded. Especially the three major branches. I am a Christian, and I take interest into Islam and Judaism. I still believe my beliefs stongly, but I love to understand why do other people think the way they do. As Christians, God wanted us to be his ambassadors, the fishers of men, so it is important to understand people to be a good "men" fisherman. Even though the hope, love,truth and faith sealed throughout the Bible is bait enough.

Answer 10

Everyone "can" be open minded. It's more a matter of "will" people be open minded. We are all human and all of us are subject to the same levels of open and closed mindedness regardless of our experiences or upbringing on this planet. Religion is a choice & for some people, choosing that religion was, to them, being "open minded" to whatever mental state they were in prior. So, you see, "open mindedness" itself, is the concept that we must be open minded about, for Everything is a matter of Perception & Interpretation.

Answer 11

Yes, I believe they can be religious and opened minded, isn't there a constitutional thingy that says you shall respect other people's religion, or something like that?