Have you changed your religious affiliation?

Question

I am doing a research project that involves looking at the trend in society of moving away from traditional religions such as Protestantism and Catholicism towards Buddhism specifically. If you have undergone such a change would you be able to give a brief outline if why you did not feel satisfied with the religion you were raised in and what drew you to Buddhism in particular. Could you also include your age?
Thanks in advance.

Answer 1

I did, but I converted to Wicca so I wouldn't be of much help to you...

Answer 2

I was not raised in any particular religion, but Christianity is very much the majority in my area. When I entered high school I attended a local Christian church and converted into Christianity. Though I never got baptized (was uncertain and just wanted to learn more about the religion) I was able to study and explore Christianity. At the age of 21 I decided to start looking into other religions. Coming from a very religiously diverse family and having friends of other religions this wasn't too difficult. However it was the discovery of a local satsang that read from the Bhagavadgita and discussed it that introduced me to Hinduism. The more I learned about Hinduism and the more of the Gita I read, the more I connected to it and began realizing that I had found the religion that best expressed my spiritual experiences and beliefs. At the age of 25 I adopted Hinduism as my religion and even went through a small ritual ceremony where I received a Hindu name. I am currently 28. I was 23 when I discovered the satsang. In fact it was May 2, 2004 when I decided to adopt Hinduism as my religion (I had just visited the nearest Hindu temple with the satsang) and it was May 8, 2004 at the satsang where I received my Hindu name. Not that I hadn't adopted Hindu practices (japa meditation, a mantra, identifying Ganesh as my ishtadev, etc) before then, though. That was just the day I received my name and started calling myself a Hindu. Before discovering the satsang I was strongly considering Buddhism. I have a cousin that is a Buddhist and some Buddhist friends and so I was introduced to Buddhism through them. However I connected more strongly with Hinduism due to its more devotional, theistic, and religious aspects whereas Buddhism always felt more like just a philosophy and meditation to me.....though my friends often do not feel that way (but then again I have reasons why after learning and studying Judaism, Islam, Paganism, Jainism, Sikhism, and Taoism, etc...that I did not choose those either). And it wasn't until I moved that I discovered Unitarian-Universalism (the place that satsang I attend now in the city I moved to meets in a UU facility). I used to say that if I wasn't a Hindu I'd be a Buddhist, now I say if I wasn't a Hindu (or as one member of the satsang joked that she is a HindUU) that I'd probably be a UU. Coincidently when I took the Beliefnet Belief-O-Matic test my top three results were 1) Hinduism 2) Unitarian-Universalism 3) Mahayana Buddhism

Peace be with you.

Answer 3

Well, I changed from a Christian to an atheist.

My opinion, from my limited knowledge of Buddhism, is that those who are drawn to Buddhism find that

- it is far more peaceful than some other religions, though it is not without its violence

- it does not actively contradict certain aspects of science that some other religions do, such as evolution

- It does not require a belief in a god in a traditional sense

- The practices of meditation and the philosophies of Buddhism can be very beneficial to some people

Answer 4

You are asking a Buddhist, to do your homework for you ?
This is against the morals, and ethical standards of the Dhammapada.
I am a Student of Buddhism, and fall into that catagory, but I will not do your homework for you.
There are plenty of internet sites to go to, try to goolge it, to find a site willing to do most of your homework for you.

What your asking is against the morals, and ethical standards of Buddhism taught in the Noble Eightfold Path.

Answer 5

Your question is faulty. Buddhism is a philosophy, a way of conduct, but NOT a religion.

Answer 6

good luck with your research. I've never been a christian, however, my parents were hindu. I changed to agnostic after certain family problems. It wasn't anything against my family that made me change. I prayed quite a bit for my problems to go away..and some of them still remain. It seemed useless to pray for something when obviously that prayer is never solved..so i figgured why waste my time praying when its never going to get answered. thus, its easier for me to solve problems on my own than asking someone for help.