A poll on your belief systems

by LyinEyes 19 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  LyinEyes

  Now that I am D/A , I now have the freedom to walk into any church or any darn place for that matter, without being afraid the end will come. I know of a few who go to church , but I wonder what religion you are in now, and why? My hub is totally agaisnt going to church right now, I can understand that, I know some people come to a point they don't want or need to go. I don't know if that will change for him or not. As far as myself, I would like to try it one day,, maybe to just say I did, and to feel if there is a difference. I know I would be very skeptical, I would walk out the first time some one laid down too many rules, which I am afraid is the way it will be.

  I know some in here beleive in some higher power and do not associated themselves with any organized religion, they have their own ways of fullfilling their spiritual needs. How?

  I know there are some that do not beleive in God at all , anymore. For these , what do you do for peace of mind in human relationships and world problems?

  Basically, I would just like to know , what your beleif systems are??? I am trying to open my mind to new ways of thinking, so every comment you all give would be appreciated.
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  Sirona

  Hi Lyineyes

  I'm pagan. I find it makes sense to me personally. I believe that there is a universal power called God that is reflected in everything around us, but that humans simply "put a human face" on God. I do not follow the God of the bible.

  Its immensely liberating to choose a spiritual path which does not have rules but which still develops high standards within the individual. Contrary to popular belief, most pagans are very positively affected by their faith and have high moral standards.

  Intellectually speaking, I find that paganism does not contradict science and it accepts scientific findings of a psychological nature. Some would disagree, stating that believing in "energy manipulation" is extremely unscientific. mmm thats another debate.

  I don't believe that one has to attend a church or group to be spiritual, either. Just follow what feels right to you, being sure to never compromise your own personal standards. Research lots of religions, like Buddhism and other non-christian faiths...you might be surprised that the Watchtower description of them was way off the mark!

  Sirona
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  Vivamus

  I have become a complete atheist. I cannot believe in God, it does not make sense to me that a God should exist with so many problems in the world.

  what do you do for peace of mind in human relationships and world problems?

  Well, I just try to be as good a person as I can. "Do good to others, for doing good is good itself". I can't remember who said it, but that line makes more sense to me than any religion.

  So, my basic rules for living right now is: be happy with who you are, be true to yourself, and be nice to others, and in that order.

  Viv.
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  zenpunk

  I'm Taoist. No one knows the meaning of it all - so try to live the best way you can.
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  LB

  If you have a need to do formal worship then going to church works and just do that. Many smaller churches are very informal. The smaller the church the fewer the rules it appears, they can't afford to chase anyone away.

  Just expect that many churchs support a minister so they are looking for donations. But they put on a good show at some of them.

  Praying works too. I do believe that living by the golden rule should be good enough to please god. If not, then there isn't one.
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  Mindchild

  If I had to say it all in one sentence it would go something like this: I'm a postmodern radical constructivist supporting Extropianism as my primary transhumanist philosophy. It sounds complex but is in fact rather simple.

  Postmodernism is about replacing ancient and idealized views of "truth" by something much more dynamic and changing worldviews.

  Constructivism is a view that knowledge and reality don't have to be absolute and that we humans interpret or construct a reality based on our experiences and interactions with our world. In other words insteading of conceptualizing a meta meme (which is what religions are) concepts, models, theories and so on are judged by their viability. Essentially a scientific theory is an example of constructivism.

  Radical Constructivism can be viewed in several ways but I personally like the approach used by Psychologist Ernst von Glasersfeld who sees knowledge as being actively received either through the senses or by way of communication. It is actively constructed by the cognizing subject. In short, it is a meta belief about other beliefs. It allows one to use the tools of epistemology to critically view other belief systems and to be eclectic in choosing memes that are useful.

  Extropianism is a futuristic philosophy a bit like humanism, it values reason and humanity and sees no grounds for belief in unknowable, supernatural forces externally controlling our destiny, but transhumanism goes further in urging us to push beyond the merely human stage of evolution. As physicist Freeman Dyson has said: "Humanity looks to me like a magnificent beginning but not the final word."

  Clear as mud?

  Skipper
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  LittleToe

  I'm an unorthodox Christian.

  I currently go to a reformed protestant church, because it's teaching and form of worship are closest to what I believe, but I mix it up a bit with other churches and forms of worship. They great thing is that they tolerate and endorse that, which is as it should be, IMHO.

  I despise religion for religion's sake, believing that a personal relationship with Christ is the bottom line, based on the two primary laws of love of God and neighbour.
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  Kingpawn

  Very interesting to me that on the same day I am researching alternate religions at http://www.religioustolerance.org I come here and find this poll. Maybe more than just a coincidence?

  I've been feeling stirrings of renewed desire to have some system of belief in my life, but like many I find it extremely difficult to go the route of "Christianity" whatever that means.

  And maybe more than a coincidence that the belief system I've been researching is (as I understand it) a form of paganism known as Wicca.

  There are aspects of it that appeal to me. Equality of the sexes; a strong pro-ecology orientation; the Wiccan Rede which basically says "anything is OK if it does not harm anyone." In other words, if it doesn't control, manipulate, dominate, or harm another person or yourself, it's OK; no prejudice re: sexual orientations; tolerance by all toward all as far as what path anyone wishes to take regarding spirituality. Other concepts like a dual-aspect diety (the Lord and Lady, or God and Goddess) and the idea all things, even inanimate objects, have spirits, or no being like Satan recognized in it, will take me longer.

  I'm trying to make contact with a nearby group to explore it further--there may be aspects of me that would be incompatible with its teachings--but I won't know if I don't ask.

  For the present, beyond a belief in God, the idea that all things were created by or through Him, I'm drifting.

  I've been troubled by the idea that if God created Adam and Eve, and He knows the future, then He must have known what would happen. So Christ's death was foreordained even before they ate the forbidden fruit?. If not, if their sin was a surprise, then is God truly able to see the future?

  Wondering.
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  bboyneko

  Whos better, the chrisitan who does good knowing he will go to heaven for the good he has done, and avoids bad so he wont go to hell / be eternally executed, or the athiest who does good without any reward whatsoever, without any promised reward from a mystical being. The athiest who does not do bad because well, he dosent want to do evil, to harm his fellow man.

  When you have a reward/punishment system for good and bad, your motives are always in question. When there is non your motives are clear and your intentions honorable.
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  RandomTask

  I still believe in God and I am somewhat inclined to believe in the bible, yet only as a moral guide for our lives.

  My belief in God though is more like he put things into existence and then left humans to live their lives on their own. I still believ that humans create what is bad in the world, and they also create what is good in the world. And I see a lot more good than bad. I don't believe that God really takes an active part in our lives.

  So religion therefore isn't really a big part of my life, I concentrate on finding my own path and my own happiness, which is a lot easier to do without the 12 ton weight called the Watchtower.

  The only reason I would ever even get involved with religion is if I had children and I would want them to have a moral guide to live their life by, so that they have a basis for making good decisions. But ultimately I would leave their life course up to them when they are older.