Am I a christian if I believe in other religions beliefs as well as christianity?

Question

I've always considered myself a christian , but I'm not involved in a church and have scattered beliefs. I agree with most of christian beliefs but also believe in some buddist ideas, such as reincarnation. I want to join a church before my son is born so he can find spiritual awareness, but how do I lead him to this when my husband and I are lost ourselves? Please someone show me some guidance in this subject.

Answer 1

Hey Cathlene, having a baby sure puts things into perspective, doesn't it? It makes you think about life, about reality, about truth. When it is your own life at stake, you tend to kind of take chances, but when there is the life of this precious child... well that's another matter.

I congratulate you and your husband on this pregnancy and pray for the health of the baby as he/she is nurtured within. Yet, as you realize, having a healthy baby physically is only part of the issue. Having a healthy baby in all ways, emotionally, spiritually, and physically is what you desire.

Yahoo answers is not the place to give you all the answers, but here is a try. FIrst, you begin by saying you consider yourself a Christian, but you seem not to know what that means. A Christian is "a Christ-like One." Now I know that eliminates a whole lot of people who consider themselves Christian, but that is how the Bible defines it. You might ask what the Bible has to do with it? Where else does Christianity come from? You see, Christianity is not a race like Jewishness or a bunch of creeds like Buddhism. It is a person, Jesus Christ, and faith in Him alone as the way to God. The Bible is God's self-revelation through Jesus Christ. Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth and the life. No man comes to the Father but by me." In other words, Jesus made this absolutely fantastic claim that if you believe in Him, He can make you right with God, the heavenly Father, but if you do not believe in Him, then there is no other way. So, you cannot be a Christian and hold to reincarnation, since the essence of Christ's teaching is that when we die, He will take those who love Him and trust in Him to spend eternity with Him. That's not judgmental, its just a statement of fact. If you wish to be a Christian, then you must trust in what Jesus said. The bottom line is this, either Jesus was a lunatic, who claimed diety and sole possession of truth, or He is the eternal Son of God and therefore is worthy of our trust and love. So, as someone else already said in an earlier answer, if you want to know more about the true Christian faith, find a church near you that teaches and preaches from the Bible, that believes that it is all God's Word, that loves Jesus and trusts in Him alone for eternal life. Or you can go on in life, searching for something to fill that God shaped vacuum you feel in your heart, and end up feeling that life is "meaningless, meaningless, all is meansingless," as the writer of Ecclessiastes predicts will happen to those without Jesus in their lives.

Hope this helps.

Answer 2

Cathlene, I do not hold the answer of are you a Christian or not. That right belongs to God alone. I have had many good discussions with a friend that also finds Buddhist ideas appealing. I am not sure why this is because the teachings of Jesus far surpass even the little I know of the two.

Reincarnation is not a Christian belief and not supported in scripture, but I would say that the belief in it is not "a saving point of grace." What I mean is that is the belief in Jesus as your savior and redeemer is what makes you a Christian once saved you live your life in accordance to his will and that of God the Father.

To join a Church is not always easy and can be quite disappointing at times. Considering your thoughts expressed I would avoid Catholic Churches and look to Pentecostals and Non-Denominational Churches. There are many good regular Churches as well and it is a matter of belief and taste. Baptists, Nazarenes, Methodists, Christian Church, Church of Christ and Lutherans are all good Churches and can very from area to area.

The way my family found our current Church was an accident, but what we used to guide us in joining was simple. We went to a Sunday morning service then and evening service ad finally a Wednsday meetings. Since it was similar to our other Churches and the beliefs were really similar we had the Pastor come over and speak with us. We also watched how the members related to us as well as each other and others visiting. We did not even consider joining the Church as members until one year later. I believe joining a Church should be akin to getting married. Go slow, pray, and choose well.
I would be happy to explain why reincarnation is not valid and any othe question you might have.

Answer 3

Do you believe in Christ? If you do, you are a Christian. Stepping outside the narrow box that many Christians have made for themselves does not make you any less a Christian.

The Episcopal church is good for people in your position. It's closely related to the Catholic church, but there is no pope, and the rules are more relaxed. People often go there when other churches have frustrated them. Some people stay, and others simply use the time there to gather their bearings to figure out what church to go to from there. There are no expectations to believe in everything the next person does.

If you do decide to try out an Episcopal church, find out ahead of time whether that particular church is a liberal or conservative one. There's a rift going on the subject of homosexuality. Attending a church that is on the side you are not comfortable with can make yours a bad experience.

Good luck with your search.

Answer 4

Why do you pass judgement on Christianity and in so doing, God Himself, situated at the habits of folks who declare to be Christian? Is it wiser to stake your everlasting long run at the rumour of what folks say approximately the Bible or on what the Bible honestly says? You say you just like the instructing of Christ but you do not suppose folks will turn out to be in Hell despite the fact that He says this may increasingly occur. Same factor with Heaven. Why might Jesus say He's going to Heaven to construct a house for each believer (John 14:a million-three) if it weren't actual? And why might John cross to such lengths to explain the brand new of house of all believers (Revlation 21) if it weren't a truly situation? It's something to be a skeptic and really an additional to disclaim the proof earlier than you. The BIble used to be wriiten for skeptics. But in the event you ever desire to fully grasp who God rather is it might be smart to set apart the poor feelings that keep you again and simply research the Bible from an independent body of brain. Everything you ought to understand is in there, adding all of the evidence you want. No unique interpretation required. Just a want to understand the reality.

Answer 5

If you want to be a christian that's fine, and if you want to believe in other things, that's okay too. I think you should read the book "Conversations with God" by I think Neale Walsh. I can tell you have more of an open mind than some other fanatics out there. I think it will help you. The book is very enlightening. And regarding your son, I believe if you are open to it, you should let your son decide his religion for himself. But that's just my opinion. Hope that helps! Ciao!!!

Answer 6

the easiest solution is not to label yourself. the way i see it, no living person is right about absolutely everything, no one's chosen "the correct path" cos no one has any way of knowing what the correct path is, so it's better to keep a completely open mind about this kinda stuff and be prepared for your beliefs to change at any moment.

also, i don't think forcing your children to go to church generally does raise spiritual awareness. my parents were completely apathetic about all of this stuff and i'd say i'm pretty spiritually aware for my age. philosophy and religion are extremely interesting subjects when viewed with an open mind, so as long as you aren't forcing anything down your son's throat and forbidding him from believing in anything outside of your own, he should consciously develop his own beliefs and thus find spiritual awareness.

Answer 7

It is good to study what you believe but a lot of stuff is NOT Christian. Some of it is very disceptive. I have started to believe that there is something to supernatural stuff but much of it is not of God and you should stay away from. Like the Bible says not to ask foretune tellers for predictions. I also believe that while there is something to what people call reincarnation is more like channeling spirits that choose you to be their 'host' body. The Bible says it is appointed once for a man to die and then the judgment. You have to be careful what you believe any more even the best of Christian churches are falling into deceptive teachings

Answer 8

if buddist ideas contradict your christian beliefs then you are not really chrisitan. i recommend the catholic church(roman catholic). i will offer some sites you can look through so you can make a more informed decision

www.salvationhistory.com(use the free study section,it is free)
www.fisheaters.com
www.scripturecatholic.com
www.catholiceducation.org
www.ewtn.com
www.catholicism.about.org
www.newadvent.org

as right now you are in the questioning stage i recommend highly the study section in salvationhistory.com,fisheaters is also quite good. you and your husband can study together and see if it is right for you. if the catholic denomination is not for you may try others,this is simply so you can research it more. god bless.

Answer 9

Hello Cathlene, the first thing you should do is join a christian church. You want to be grounded. Secondly, anything other than christianity is only a spinoff of the original religion. There is no such thing as reincarnation. God says that we shall put no other god before Him. The God you want to serve is the God of the heavens and the God of the earth. Not just some small dogmatic view of what another human thinks God should be, but who He really is. God bless you and your family feel free to e-mail me at [e-mail] epicure

Answer 10

technically, no. "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one gets to the Father except through Me" -- Jesus Christ. If you don't believe that, you're not on the right track.

I suggest you do raise your son in a church environment as stay yourselves. If you're not learning, how can you expect to teach your son?

just don't force your son into your specific scattered beliefs about reincarnation, etc. no offense, but I think the "if a [spiritually] blind man leads a [spiritually] blind man, they will both fall into a pit" principle applies. If you aren't sure, then don't let your son follow in your example.