What religion are you (see details)?

Question

Okay, this has several parts, but i'd like you to add in any information you want - tell me whatever you want to tell me! Below are some idea's about the kinda stuff i'd like to know, but you don't have to follow it like a list :)

Why are you the religion you are? How did you learn about it? Did you convert? Do you have Scriptures? If so, how often do you read them? Does your religion change the way you behave? Has it ever affected your education or social life? What do you hope to achieve through this religion - does it promise a reward? How do you worship, and what makes you feel like doing so? Does your religion make you feel empowered, or in servitude to a higher being? How does your family feel about your religious conviction? Is it monotheistic or polytheistic? Do you have a certain Icon (for example a God(dess) or saint) who you relate to? Do you have a Holy Place?

Answer 1

Hi Em! I was born Catholic raises in Catholic schools.
I am female and was repeatedly assaulted by a priest.
I stopped being Catholic as soon as I could get out of my parents house.
But then after marrage I started having children and knew every one needs to know God their Father.
One day I was at work in WOOLWORTHS of all places.
I asked an old woman Margret, she ran the house ware dept.
Margret, what religion are you?
Margret replied thatr she was an AT-HOME-BAPTIST
HUH??? Whats that???
SHE told me she sits at home and reads the BIBLE DAILY!
SO, well, so did I for many years and prayed each time to understand it better.
One day, years later, the Jehovahs Witnesses knocked on my door. One of the two young women was my hair dresser, so I let them in. We studied the bible together.
IT took me 10 years to decide that this was the right religion.
I chose to convert, and make a public declaration of getting baptised.
I am SO EMPOWERED!!!!!!!!!!! I know I have the support of the Great creator and every angel in the heavens behind me!!! YEAY!!! Kick butt great!!!!!!!!!!!
Oh, my family, remember I said I grew up in Catholic School...
Family is not so happy....they abandon me for 10 years.
NOT one word until they needed me for something.
But now because they did need me, and still do, they realize I am NOT a CULT or a FREEK. I am a devout Christian.
2 years ago when my dad died, my sisters Catholic priest came into my dads hospital room to comfort my sister.
I was praying outloud. He listened and said AMEN.
ICON??? no God said in the origional 10 commamdments. no ICONS, Pictures, PAINTINGS OR STATUES. Were to be made. Really read it in Excodus.

My Holy place is spiritual for now, I reside in the spiritual congregation of true Christians waiting for the Cleansing of THIS REAL EARTH, and the physical restoration of true worship HERE on EARTH, when sin, sickness, crying and death will be wipped out,and God will reside with mankind the same way as HE started with Adam and Eve before they chose to sin. So I guess my Holy Place is Earth.
Lastly, to prove how wicked this world is and controlled by SATAN, I can guarentee that with out ever reading my answer, I will get the most thumbs down, simply because I said Jehovah Witness...how sad for those hateful people going to supposed Christian Churches...

Answer 2

I am an egyptian polythiest.
I learned about it in my ancient cultures class in middle school.
No I didn't convet and as far as scriptures im not sure how to answer that. It is a yes and no as alot of what I know I learned from history books and my preist. To note he was an archeologist in egypt for 30 years when he converted and started teaching.
It doesnt change how I behave because I have always been the way I am. I should say that I have learned to overcome some anger for my family and learned to accept them as who they are.
No effect on education of my social life.
I dont relly hope to achive anthing from it, at least I cant think of anything.
The only reward is the promise to live on in the after life if you follow the rules of Ma'at. Truth love and honer.
I worship everyday by remembering the God's and feeling a great sense of family therin.
My family is ok with it, there just happy I found something. I feel empowerd and not like a servent, A certain God I feel close to is Anpu, or anubis as he is known in the west. He is the opener of ways, the seeir of truth and the protector of orphaned and abandoned children.
My holy place is my home, as it always should be for a stay at home wife.

REggie

Answer 3

To better tell my story, I am changing the order of your questions a bit. I hope you don't mind. Peace to you on your spiritual journey, wherever it leads you!

Did you convert? I was raised in a very traditional Christian denomination in a rural Midwestern town where literal translation of the KJV Bible was the way of things. My
conversion started after a day in my first college philosophy course.
I was raised in this church, which most of my friends outside now call a cult, so please understand that I did not consider anything in the doctrine to be wrong. Indeed, I did not consider it to be separate or different from the true doctrine. Part of my religious upbringing was the teaching that God was pure good, pure honesty, and all powerful. In fact, I was taught that as whatever God spoke was automatically so; God was incapable of lying. I, having little cause to doubt it, did not.

When we began discussing the nature of God in PHIL 110H, my mind was not at all prepared. When we discussed the omniscience of God, I was smug in my conservative Christian knowledge that "Of course God is omniscient. I never doubted it." When we began the discussion on God's omnipotence and benevolence, I stated, "But God cannot lie."

My professor responded something with along the lines of, "Oh, so God is not omnipotent?"

"Well, of course He is," I asserted.

"Oh, so God can lie."

It was here that my brain broke. How can a benevolent God also be a liar? Would he lie to us? Has he? Suddenly, everything I had been taught was questionable - it could even be lies! What if all the verses weren't meant to be taken literally? How could I know?

Why are you the religion you are? Simply put, I am Buddhist because its tenets are peace and tolerance.

How did you learn about it? I read extensively about many religions before I decided on Buddhism. I desperately wanted a religion that wasn't selling something or recruiting.

Do you have Scriptures?
There are writings by the Buddha and countless writings by other Buddhists. There is no required reading. I was most affected by the Siddharta and the book Awakening to the Sacred by Lama Surya Das. The former is a story about the Buddha attaining enlightenment. The latter is a book, written by a Buddhist leader/teacher/lama, for Westerners who are interested in Buddhism.

If so, how often do you read them? I try to read a little something everyday, to keep my mind awake with fresh ideas.

Does your religion change the way you behave? Yes, as it has shown me how to be peaceful and tolerant.

Has it ever affected your education or social life? It has greatly affected my relationship with my family. They do not approve of my conversion, as they truly believe that it dooms me to eternal suffering. I try my best to listen and be understanding of their fears while still maintaining the peace I mentioned above.

What do you hope to achieve through this religion - does it promise a reward? Buddhism's first 'reward' is mindfulness - being completely aware of what you are doing and thinking and why. The second is peace. The most lofty goal is enlightenment. I believe that this will come in time, whether it is in the lifetime or not is of little consequence.

How do you worship, and what makes you feel like doing so? I worship by reading and meditating. It helps me to feel less stressed, as I am less concerned with the small details and more concerned about the big picture. It clears my mind of that everyday clutter and helps me to, well, feel more spiritual and spiritually centered.

Does your religion make you feel empowered, or in servitude to a higher being? Definitely empowered, as I am connected with every living being. It might sound weird or too new age to an American, but I feel one with the universe itself.

How does your family feel about your religious conviction?
As I mentioned before, they are very concerned for my spiritual well-being. It does not help the Buddhism, as an Eastern religion, is so alien to them.

Is it monotheistic or polytheistic? It is neither. The Buddha was merely a teacher.

Do you have a certain Icon (for example a God(dess) or saint) who you relate to? No, though many Buddhists do have icons.

Do you have a Holy Place? I do not personally, but many Buddhists do. My sacred place is with my friends and family who I love and who love me.

Answer 4

Wicca-based Pagan.

Why? Because it makes sense to me and I find it personally fulfilling.

How? Reading, studying, introspection.

Did I convert? I used to be Christian, so yes, you could say that. Though there wasn't a formal baptism or anything.

Scriptures - not ones that are considered the "literal word of God" but many many books that I consider to be Divinely Inspired, and which help me on my path.

Yes, it definitely changes the way I behave, because part of my religious beliefs include not harming or wishing ill will towards people, so while it used to be "no big thing" to honk at or flip someone off who was a jerk in traffic, I don't do that now, because that energy comes back to me.

Social life - Not really, I'm lucky that my husband is understanding and respectful, and in fact I have met some really cool people because of my beliefs.

Does it promise a reward? No - I don't think there's a "reward after you die for being good". Because what I do comes back to me, "being good" while I'm ALIVE is a reward in and of itself. I don't believe the spirit maintains cohesiveness or consciousness after we die.

I honor the God and Goddess in my daily life, taking time to respect and care for Their creations, enjoying the sun on my face and the wind in my hair, the sound of the rain and the smell of the flowers. I celebrate eight seasonal holidays that mark the turning of the seasons, as well as full moon rituals.

I feel very empowered - I have the ability (and the RESPONSability) to create positive change in my own life, both by myself and with the help of the God and Goddess. I am responsible for my own actions and for the consequences of those actions.

My family doesn't mind, even though they're mostly Christian. I love my family!

Polytheistic insofar as I recognize different aspects of the God and Goddess by different names and personae, but I also believe that they are all facets of the same Higher Power.

Usually I address Father God and Mother Goddess, though if I have specific prayers or offerings (like one this evening for the truth of a certain matter to be known) I will address them to a specific aspect (Themis, in this case).

Holy places are what you make them - even the city has a rhythm and heartbeat of its own if you stop and listen for it. I love my grove of oak trees in the back yard, but my favorite place is by a large body of water.

Answer 5

I will only give you a few since it takes too long to put it here. 1. Wicca is a Polytheistic (2 or more deities) religion. 2. Contrary to popular belief Wicca is separate from Witchcraft. 3. You need to be 18 before any Wiccan can legally teach or accept you into the group. 4. There are many different branches of Wicca, as many as there are groups and solitaries who follow it. Now, if you have a specific question on this I will try to answer it.

Answer 6

I am a born again believer in Christ (Baptist). In my late 20's, I started to believe in God. I think some people must have prayed for me. Then I moved to a place where I had Christians on both sides for neighbors. Then I started car-pooling to work with a Christian lady. This was in 1980 when a lot of people didn't even know what a born-again Christian was (including me). The car-pool lady had told me that if I wanted the Lord to come into my life, all I had to do was ask Him. And I remember doing this one time around Christmas when I felt like the whole Christmas thing was pointless. I didn't notice any change in my life at that time but about 9 months later, something happened. I went to an Episcopal Church (Anglican) briefly as a child. My mother took me there. My dad called himself an atheist. Anyway, the Christians I knew spoke to me about the Lord Jesus Christ. One gave me a tract to read and another used to invite me to Bible Study. I thought I would read the Bible someday after I retired. Well, someone in my family came down with cancer and I was quite distraught about it. I called someone, not knowing she was a Christian, and she started telling me to pray and talking about Jesus. Well, it was like a light bulb going on in my head. It was like I had never heard the name before, which of course I had. Anyway, that person did recover from the cancer. But the next day after the phone call, I was driving to work and lit up a cigarette. I just had this feeling that I shouldn't be smoking, so put it out immediately. I gave up smoking, drinking, and bad language that day. These were major miracles. No one had even told me I should do that. I just knew. Anyway, I started going to a Bible church, not Baptist, but similar. I started reading the New Testament. I couldn't believe what I was reading. I would just stop sometimes and think, 'THE BIBLE SAYS THAT???" I was amazed at what I was reading. Back to your questions, yes, I read the Bible daily. Yes, it definitely affects my behavior. I really don't have much of a social life anymore because of health, but I go to church on Sunday mornings. Christianity promises eternal life in heaven with the Lord. I worship by singing, praising and thanking the Lord for blessings, etc. I feel like doing it when things are going well. I don't really feel especially empowered or in servitude. I just feel joyful and at peace most of the time. My family (what's left of it) doesn't always agree with me but we get along. Well, that's the short version. Thanks for asking. God bless you. Oh, and it's monotheistic. I don't have any holy place - just pray anywhere, anytime. No saints.

Answer 7

This is quite the survey and more than one question.....

Briefly, I 'm a Scientologist. Found it by reading a book after searching for some anwers. Was raised in the Jewish faith (didn't "convert" altho not a practicing Jew. Family relations are good).
I have studied and continue to study the thelogy in the books and materials (not exactly scriptures) that form the basis and knowledge of Scientology.
I apply this knowledge in my life everyday. I achieve abilities to improvement thro understanding, all aspects of life, which was what I was looking for. This is empowering. No worship, icons or specific "holy places" involved.
There is no dogma or pretended knowledge or claims about God , the Supreme Being, or Higher Power etc in my religion other than an acknowledgement that this exists. It is left to each individual's to define for themselves.
It's basic promise is spiritual freedom.
My religion delivers this for me and also works when I apply it's principles to others and my life in general. (I have been a Scientologist for more than 35 years)

Answer 8

I'm a Roman Catholic. I was born into a devoutly Catholic family. Church was one of the first public places I was taken after I was born, and I've gone ever since. But after my parents died (that happened when I was still in school), I started going to all different kinds of services, Christian and non-Christian. Any religion I'm curious about, I'll attend their services, and will still do so to this day. After exploring many religious and non-religious options, I stayed Catholic by choice.

Yes, we have Scriptures, and they're read at every Mass. I can also read them privately, of course. My religion changes the way I behave because it constantly encourages me to find ways of extending charitable kindness toward others, and I have no excuses not to practice charity. It is one of the demands of my faith. Not that I wouldn't be charitable if I weren't Catholic, but it definitely forces me to think about it (and act upon it) on a continual basis.

It affected my education by offering excellent education in the religious schools that I attended. What I hope to achieve in my religion is to attain salvation through Christ, and also to show God that I love Him. I worship in a very reverent and quiet atmosphere, both at Mass and at home. I feel very empowered by my religion; if I thought it were an endless drag that took the joy out of life, I wouldn't be doing it. As for my family, they would have been horrified to know that I'd ever explored anything but Catholicism. Of course, they'd have been pleased that I chose to remain in the Church (but if I'd left it, that would have to be my decision and not theirs). My religion is monotheistic. As for saints, I relate to my patron, St. Camillus, whose life of Christian service greatly inspired me.

My holy places are everywhere. Wherever God is (and I believe that's everywhere), that's a sacred place to me.

Answer 9

There is no religion on the face of the planet that can help the hungry soul ever truly know the living God. As a matter of fact, religion will keep them on a quest searching for knowledge of His essence forever. Forever they will be searching, but never finding. But if the seeker can get past their religion, there is an absolute Truth that is capeable of feeding his/her hunger to the point, that they'll never hunger for knowledge of Him again. God wants to be found, and will be, if we would learn to understand that He is closer than the religious person realizes. All we need to do, is learn to accept God's truth no matter what we may feel about it; no matter what others feel about it, and apply that truth to our lives.

Answer 10

Born and raised Roman catholic until the age of 19. Since that time I acknowledge myself a Born Again Christian.
What I hope to obtain from my faith, is a life that is pleasing to God. A life that brings Glory to Him and Spiritual growth for me. All Praise and Honor go to Christ Jesus, He is the center of everything, all things revolve around Him and everything was created by Him and for His Glory. He is the force that sustains all things and sets all things in motion. With a whisper, He creates entire universes. He is the One True God, the Revealer of Truth, the Giver of Life. You ask about my Holy Place? I will tell you....It is in my heart. His Words are written there, it is where my Love for Him grows, it is where He speaks to me, it is His Home, it is where He resides in me. He knows my deepest and most intimate thoughts and He guides me through rough waters. He is the Captain who never abandons His sinking ship, although all hope looks lost He stays at His post, steering the ship to shallow waters. There is no other so worthy of Praise, to Him be the Glory, forever and ever. God Bless You...Peace.