Link between belief in religious rules and belief in personal God?

Question

I've generally considered the belief in a personal God, with whom one has a "personal connection", and the belief in any religion (i.e. a big list of do's and don'ts) to be different, but related concepts.

Some examples of these do's and don'ts are opposition to homosexuality (alot of religions!)... and things like required religious clothing (e.g. headscarves for Muslim women).

I'm beginning to think now (from talking to people who believe in a personal God) that such people will always have a list of religious do's and don'ts, and that the only difference is how long the list is!

What are your thoughts and experiences on this?

krowtap - thanks - sounds like the Myers-Briggs personality indicator test. Interesting; makes one wonder, does their personality affect their interpretation of their religion, or does their religion give them that personality? I think your answer was suggesting the former; that their personality makes them 100% sure of their religion, trying to "fix" gays, stop abortions etc.

JbAchoo - you talk of "sin", and say religion is not a part. But doesn't your religion decide what is and isn't sinful?

Answer 1

You know, I've found personality tests to be a big help in this area. Please understand me I by David Keirsey has a test and answer sheet as a part of the book. It has a list of 16 different personality profiles. It is not the only test of its kind just the one that I know best. It tells us one of the profiles, which is 30 some odd percent of the population is SJ. This means these people are very concrete and judging. That means they're very much into what people should and should not do. They are the people that are trying to make homosexuals straight, and keep pregnant girls from having abortions. They are very concrete about their religion also and believes the Bible is somewhat like a cookbook, God said it I believe it, nuf said. They are of course, the fundamentalists and a lot of the charismatics. Their Muslim cousins flew the planes at 9/11. I believe Bush and his cabinet are also SJ's, i.e. they could make no mistakes and didn't need advisers like Powell, and their military commanders. These people have done a lot of damage historically and continue to do so. Sorry if I gave you too much information.

Answer 2

I DON'T think you should generalize. I think religion is a lot like a lot of other things. People try to find a way of assuring themselves that their IN because they have a strong need to belong. If you want you can believe with me. I think everyone is IN even those who don't believe and those who don't want to be IN. They don't have a choice, because nothing can exist outside of God and the only difference is those who are aware of God and those who aren't. Those who aren't are just clueless, but they are still IN. There are no rules, but if you want to get along, be good and kind to everyone as best you can and help out all those you can because we all want to get along. it sounds easy, but it takes a concerted effort.

Answer 3

With a personal belief in and relationship (NOT religion) with Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, it is not a matter of following a "list of do's and don'ts" but loving Him who comes to live inside you. When you love someone, you'll want to please that person, love what he/she loves, and hate what he/she hates.

The same is true when living a life in Christ. Jesus is a spirit who resides in the believer, who helps us, through the Holy Spirit, to do what He asks us to do. He helps us to say "No" to sin, the devil, and worldly influences. In other words, God enables us to no longer enjoy the things He detests. He helps us pursue a life of holiness, without which none of us will see Him in peace. This is what sets salvation (Christianity) apart from religion.

It's a inside job.