Question for Theists of all kinds?

Question

What made you choose which religion to follow? Was it just your upbringing or did you actually study other religions before deciding?

Answer 1

I was born into a very strict Catholic family, and had a strongly religious upbringing. But even while I was still fairly young, I began studying many other religions, and I'm still in that studying process today. I've chosen to remain Catholic, so I am Catholic by both heritage and choice. l remain very open toward learning about beliefs other than my own.

Answer 2

I actually didn't believe the bible at all and looked forward to debates about it. It wasn't until someone told me it would predict the future that I laughed and scorned the idea of a book that old predicting the future. I thought it would be really vague and undetailed. Then I picked it up.

First thing I did was read the gospels of John, Luke, and Mark. Then I skipped over to Daniel and Revelation. I was very surprised at what I read. I did a little research online for other passages and books and came up with several more to read. Now, that didn't cause me to believe what I read. What happened next did.

After I did all that, about 2 weeks later Iran publicly calls for Israel to be destroyed. This was in the very things I JUST read. They did it again a few months later! The bible says that in the last days, the enemies of Israel would call for it's destruction so that even it's name would not be remembered. That shook me to the core and made me rethink everything. So I waited a little longer...

Sure enough something else came up as a foreshadow of revelation. A company in florida had a microchip they could stick under into your arm for medical purposes, that since has grown into now being a secret place to store secret files and such. There was even a government who had a few members proudly say they were "chipped" i just cant remember which one it was. I read it some time ago here on yahoo news links. This goes well with the mark of the beast in my opinion.

It's difficult for me to deny something that happened right in front of me so soon after reading it. How can you deny it? It happened right in front of you. To deny it would be to lie to yourself. I am forced to accept that it was true, and since the book says it cant lie, I am forced to believe the rest is true based on what I have already seen, as hard as it was to believe it at first as it may have been. It's not until i read more and learned more that I finally understood it all.

Answer 3

It was my upbringing until I was 16 and found Paganism. Even after that I continued to study various religions. I can try to list those I've studied, and some I even practiced for a while to see if they fit...

Islam
Christianity
Judaism
Paganism - Wicca, Druidry, Asatru, Hellenic, Shamanism.
Mormonism
Catholicism
Buddhism
Scientology
Satanism - Luciferian, LaVeyan, and Theistic

I think that just about lists them all. I've found researching religions to be fun and informative.

Answer 4

Definitely not my upbringing. Contrary to what others might believe, I actually studied other faiths and beliefs. I even have quite a few in my own family. I came to a decision that was right for me.

Answer 5

I studied many before deciding. I was raised Christian but in an open-minded household. I made the official decision when I was 19.

Answer 6

I'm still looking for more people, not a religion.

I fell far from the tree, and am still rolling. I weigh everything.

I am who I am.
I don't follow any religion. Christ is my light, because He makes the most sense to me. I am far from perfect, and seek daily for answers, and yes, I study. I find wonder of wonders in every turn I make. Everyone has truth inlayed within his soul.

Answer 7

This is what I believe through perception of the world, I am not part of any religion although I could be classed as a theist.

Answer 8

I didn't grow up religious. My mother is a spiritual agnostic -- she doesn't acknowledge the existence of a Creator, but she believes in energy, spirits, Tarot, Chakras ... you get the picture. My father is a Pagan; he's been practicing for almost 30 years and follows mainly the Egyptian pantheon. My paternal grandparents have been Buddhists for about 10 years, but I'm not really sure what they followed previously. My maternal grandparents are Catholic, but they broke off all ties with my mother when she renounced her faith. I've never met them. Okay, enough backstory ...

Neither of my parents ever brought me up into their religion. They basically told me that God was different things to different people, and I'd have to determine what God was for myself one day. I didn't honestly give it very much thought until I was about seventeen, when I started attending church with a friend. I wasn't sure about everything that went along with Christianity, but the teachings of Christ appealed me to first thing.

After doing alot of study, I found most of the Old Testament to be allegory and symbolic; and I found most of Paul's New Testament teachings to be hateful and contradictory to the teachings of Jesus that had become so important to me. Basically, I decided to put everything I wasn't sure of off to the side and try following Jesus's commandments -- to love God with all my heart, and to love other people as myself. And not to sound corny -- but wow, what a difference that made in my life. I felt close to God, and I felt a closer, better relationship with the world as well. After two years, I decided to follow Christ -- not the church, and not other followers. I've been happy and content ever since. Many other people don't quite understand my logic, and I've been accused of hypocrisy by other Christians, but I just continue to live by those two basic rules.

Answer 9

study many religions, and realized that for all of them there is a basic leap of faith. You have to just decide that something or other is real. Some god or prophet or both, and some immutable truth. too much. agnostic

Answer 10

I looked into a lot of different religions. Few of them made any sense to me. Wicca made sense. Even then I stuied for 4 years before dedicating myself.