Do you believe there is a difference between religion and believing in God?

Answer 1

Yes, without a doubt - one need not partake in organized religion to believe in and be guided by something greater than himself. One can absolutely be spiritual without being religious; in fact, this is the route that many spiritual people such as myself take. For one reason or the other, some individuals don't find themselves inclined towards every tenet of a particular faith. If this is you, don't be discouraged; you need not cede your faith simply because you do not fit into established religious classifications. You can live a rich, fulfilling spiritual life if faith exists within you.

Answer 2

Yes. I believe that evolution is a religion (a secular religion), but obviously does not require a belief in God. It takes a great deal of faith to believe that the earth is millions of years old, especially when you weren't there to witness it, and it takes a great deal of faith to believe that the dog and the cat had a common ancestor, when science shows us that this is a physical impossibility, and likewise there was no witness to this miraculous event. It takes a great deal of faith to believe that everything in the universe materialized out of nothing without any intelligent factor whatsoever. Yes, evolution is very much a religion. In fact, if you challenge the beliefs of evolutionists, they get their panties in a bunch and are "offended". This is a reaction typical of the religious, not "open-minded" scientists. An evolutionist college professor even said he would flunk anyone who didn't believe as he did. Isn't that academic discrimination?

Answer 3

Yes, absolutely. It's like the difference between a bank and money.

Edit: A bank is founded on the existence of money (a belief in a god) but when you go to Starbucks you still need money, not a bank. The money or belief in god is the active ingredient here. The religion is little more than an association of like-minded adherents.

Answer 4

Yes, I do. Believing in God means that a person believes in a Deity.

Religion is the practice of that spiritual belief as it is understood by an individual or by a group of individuals.

Answer 5

The Crisco's and their God want to fry everybody that doesn't do as they say. That's somewhere between cult and Religion. A true religion does not need to affect others in order to gain veracity of self or the object God or Gods they worship.

Answer 6

If you believe in any god, you have a religion. It's just a matter of whether it's an individual religion or not.

Answer 7

The dictionary offers the following as a definition for “religion” - “belief in God or gods to be worshipped, usually expressed in conduct and ritual; any specific system of belief, worship, etc., often involving a code of ethics.”

Answer 8

Of course.

I believe religion exists ... I do not believe God does.

Buddhism is a religion without a god.
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Answer 9

kind of.

I don't follow any religion. I don't believe in oprganized religion- thus there is no name for a person who believe in god (in my case jesus) but won't interact with people or involve others in their beliefs (so no bible).

but I do have religious beliefs if we define 'religious beliefs' as any thoughts about a higher power

Answer 10

Of course. Belief in Gods can be private and innocuous. Religions are the antithesis, as per this single example...

“All three of our major religions -- Christianity, Islam and Judaism -- have a hateful idea at the very core. That idea is Exclusion: the "othering," if you like, of the unredeemed.” -- Matthew Parris