Looking for a faith.

Carlita said:

The OP isn't about Islam. I was sharing with him how I see religions. Some are based on faith/belief. Some based on mind/thoughts. Some based on practice/discipline. They are all interconnected. In my opinion, some religions emphasis one thing more than another. Whether the OP sees it that way, or wants to, I don't know. It's how I learned about religion and where I am now in a religion of practice. I found that just belief seemed empty. Everything comes from the mind; so, that is a default for me. However, the practices I have are the hallmark of my faith.

Whether or not that is Islam, I don't know. What I do know is that Islam pray, study the Quran, and worship as a community. I define these as practices.

If you'd like me to support why I say this, then we need to create another thread. However, what I said above is how I see religion and I felt it would help the OP gain perspective on each person's walk not just one faith but many.

Click to expand...

Exactly, i am aware of that.

But to make it more accurate, i just wanted to fix it up a little bit.

I would rather have a larger, organized religion. The closest I've gotten to my beliefs was panentheistic Judaism, and I want to explore Reform Judaism more.

I want to have a disciplined religion, yes, I guess you could say I build faith from doing things, from practice. It is very important to me to stress a respect for all people and living things, but not necessarily pacifism or vegetarianism.

Islam sounds interesting, however, I am not sure... I've heard its scholars can be rather homophobic. I also like Conservative Judaism, however, again, homophobia. I either believe in a merger with God in the afterlife, or a messianic age.

I was interested in Sikhism until I heard the prayers, which asked for the death of one's enemies and mocked those of different faiths, even though I read that Sikhism teaches to look upon friend and enemy alike, and for religious tolerance.

The religion that has "felt" the most right is Judaism. But I'm early in the process. I'm not making any decisions right now.

lovesong said:

I actually made a quiz like this a while ago. Mine has 50 possible results though.
https://www.qzzr.com/c/quiz/211932/what-religion-should-you-follow
Although it is just for fun, this or any other religions quiz (preferably long ones, theres a good one by SelectSmart that I think it pretty nice) can actually be pretty helpful if you need a direction. Once you have a direction you can use the quizzes again (there are specific ones like "what type of Pagan are you?" again, good ones from SelectSmart) to at least narrow your focus. Check some out @Chickie17!

Click to expand...

Belief-o-magic is another one: http://www.beliefnet.com/entertainment/quizzes/beliefomatic.aspx

I'm out!

Chickie17 said:

I would rather have a larger, organized religion. The closest I've gotten to my beliefs was panentheistic Judaism, and I want to explore Reform Judaism more.

I want to have a disciplined religion, yes, I guess you could say I build faith from doing things, from practice. It is very important to me to stress a respect for all people and living things, but not necessarily pacifism or vegetarianism.

Islam sounds interesting, however, I am not sure... I've heard its scholars can be rather homophobic. I also like Conservative Judaism, however, again, homophobia. I either believe in a merger with God in the afterlife, or a messianic age.

I was interested in Sikhism until I heard the prayers, which asked for the death of one's enemies and mocked those of different faiths, even though I read that Sikhism teaches to look upon friend and enemy alike, and for religious tolerance.

The religion that has "felt" the most right is Judaism. But I'm early in the process. I'm not making any decisions right now.

Click to expand...

Opinion respected.

May peace, mercy, and blessings be upon you.

lovesong said:

Take mine! Tell me whatcha get!

Click to expand...

Hinduism

Carlita said:

Belief-o-magic is another one: http://www.beliefnet.com/entertainment/quizzes/beliefomatic.aspx

I'm out!

Click to expand...

asked for e-mail

Jesu disciple said:

asked for e-mail

Click to expand...

I have an email address dedicated just for spam, if that helps?

Welcome aboard

I hope you find what you are looking for. God bless

Chickie17 said:

Hi. I am a young woman. My father is an atheist, my mother is an atheist/agnostic, and my brother rejects religion entirely. I go to a panreligious church that welcomes all ideas, but seem to be mainly various flavors of atheist and pagan.

I have always felt a pull toward the spiritual. I came to recognize this as the essence of a deity, who is pure experience, beauty, and meaning, in existence, whose essence also binds us all to ourselves and sustains us. We are a part of it, but an impure part. We do not take the form or have the sheer power of this deity because of the rejection of basic beauty and purity in our world. However, our world still is filled with divinity and beauty as an intrinsic part of it.

My question is, did I create my own religion, or can I join another? Is there a religion that would allow me my interpretation of this God as long as it fit within its context?

I would rather have a religion due to the acceptance, community, and routines it brings. With rituals and services, I have a concrete way of feeling close to spirituality.

Please do not use this as an excuse to proselytize unless you really think I could be a religion.

(I think I am a "panentheist", variants of which are in Sikhism, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.)

Click to expand...

I'm responding to this because I came from an identical background as you describe it- I found atheism very satisfying 'intellectually' until I began to question my own beliefs instead of just others'. This took a long time since an inherent part of atheist belief is to refuse to acknowledge it as a belief at all!

So I identify primarily as a skeptic of atheism - but where now?!

I think in a sense all religions are part of the ultimate 'plan' like everything else- but this doesn't make them all equal/correct either -as politically correct as that might be. Having the choice to be wrong is part of the gift of free will, without which finding truth means nothing.

What about Faith Hill? Pleasant voice, easy on the eyes.

How does one explore faith without feeling as though they must be converted to it out of obligation? I mean experiencing rituals of the faith without being expected to convert.

I say this because it is difficult for me to have faith unless I act it out somehow. How does one go from lack of faith to faith? Will I stop doubting?

I got "Islam" for one test and "Sikhism" for another. They don't seem very similar. Okay, then? I've also gotten reform Judaism.

I follow Gods such as Odin, Thor, etc while I also believe that Odin is sort of like "God" in the Christian sense, and that the other gods are similar to Angels. I'm known as a Henotheist. I believe in multiple deities, or acknowledge they could exist, while focusing on one supreme deity.

Jesus shows you how to be true love. Most living in true love can feel pain, very alone and empty. In our society we call this a disorder cause we are so scared of true love and it is so hard to accomplish on our own. That is why he built his church to look like heaven and have statues of the saints as they are in heaven we ask them to join us in prayer to guide us on how to do as he did through his apostolic succession appointed by him. The beast like instincts accepts our desires and emotions as our way. We always fulfill our desires and allow our feelings of our body to manipulate our minds that it is true love and it becomes a false nourishment for our lives. In fact this animal instinct inside us destroys lives without any regard to anything but our own self wants. This is what Jesus teaches us is sin. Not to feel guilty about sin. But to use sin as the dirt that needs clean and as a guideline to correction. Like I believe I go to heaven if I stay as close to this path of true love

Chickie17 said:

I got "Islam" for one test and "Sikhism" for another. They don't seem very similar. Okay, then? I've also gotten reform Judaism.

Click to expand...

Those on-line tests are not realistic. One suggested that I should be a Sikh, despite the fact that I'd declared myself a polytheist.

Looking at your original post, there are several religions that might fit, but you did want a group to which you could belong and whose ceremonies you could attend. The obvious answer would seen to be Unitarianism, although Druidry is a possibility.

I was born UU. I am looking with my minister into a second religion to join. They would have to let me continue as a UU, but I think that might be something specifically about liberal/conservative congregations.

I feel drawn to Judaism specifically. I know panentheism has become a more popular belief there. Of course, Judaism is a highly private religion, so I would essentially be a convert among many "chosen people". I would have a different story.

I my first real "transcendent" experience in a temple. I had been visiting at ten with my church. They started to sing, and that was when I felt a sense of connection, like something finally had intrinsic, profound beauty, not just life's minutiae. (I have had this experience in secular settings too, since then.) I spoke of it glowingly for days afterwards.

I think I would convert to Reform if I was to convert, though I feel guilty because Reform Judaism was essentially meant to be easier in order to keep Jews Jews, not based on any intellectual difference.

I don't know, that may be unfair.

Jabar said:

What you mean brother?

Click to expand...

I am not your brother . . . and what part of "How is Islam anything like what she is inferring to?" don't you understand?

Chickie17 said:

Hi. I am a young woman. My father is an atheist, my mother is an atheist/agnostic, and my brother rejects religion entirely. I go to a panreligious church that welcomes all ideas, but seem to be mainly various flavors of atheist and pagan.

I have always felt a pull toward the spiritual. I came to recognize this as the essence of a deity, who is pure experience, beauty, and meaning, in existence, whose essence also binds us all to ourselves and sustains us. We are a part of it, but an impure part. We do not take the form or have the sheer power of this deity because of the rejection of basic beauty and purity in our world. However, our world still is filled with divinity and beauty as an intrinsic part of it.

My question is, did I create my own religion, or can I join another? Is there a religion that would allow me my interpretation of this God as long as it fit within its context?

I would rather have a religion due to the acceptance, community, and routines it brings. With rituals and services, I have a concrete way of feeling close to spirituality.

Please do not use this as an excuse to proselytize unless you really think I could be a religion.

(I think I am a "panentheist", variants of which are in Sikhism, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.)

Click to expand...

If you are looking for something truly Spiritually Theistic that interprets Mankind / the World as an impurity then I recommend Gnosticism.

Chickie17 said:

Hi. I am a young woman. My father is an atheist, my mother is an atheist/agnostic, and my brother rejects religion entirely. I go to a panreligious church that welcomes all ideas, but seem to be mainly various flavors of atheist and pagan.

I have always felt a pull toward the spiritual. I came to recognize this as the essence of a deity, who is pure experience, beauty, and meaning, in existence, whose essence also binds us all to ourselves and sustains us. We are a part of it, but an impure part. We do not take the form or have the sheer power of this deity because of the rejection of basic beauty and purity in our world. However, our world still is filled with divinity and beauty as an intrinsic part of it.

My question is, did I create my own religion, or can I join another? Is there a religion that would allow me my interpretation of this God as long as it fit within its context?

I would rather have a religion due to the acceptance, community, and routines it brings. With rituals and services, I have a concrete way of feeling close to spirituality.

Please do not use this as an excuse to proselytize unless you really think I could be a religion.

(I think I am a "panentheist", variants of which are in Sikhism, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.)

Click to expand...

Have you tried reading the New Testament? I would recommend you to start with John's Gospel. The God of the Bible is the only real, true God and if you devote your life to Him you will come to know that what I am telling you is true. The God of the Bible is love and you will feel His love within your heart. It is something real that does not depend on you or on your imagination. If you are in problems, I can assure that that he will be right there by your side and you'll feel it. He will take away all of the emptiness in your heart and fill it with his love and compassion. If you want to devote your life to Him, you need to acknowledge the fact that you are not perfect and that you have offended Him by hurting other people or by hurting yourself. This is something that all of us have done and it is called sin. By acknowledging that we are sinners in need of repentance, we become ready to accept God's plan of reconciliation with Him. God is so just that he needed to punish all of our sins, but He loves us so much that He decided to take the punishment himself by coming to this earth to die for us. He took up a human body and came to be known us Jesus. In order to accept Jesus' sacrifice for your sins and be forever with God, you need to say the following out loud (even if there is no one else to hear): "God, I am a sinner but I have repented and I want to live forever with you. I want to be your daughter. I accept Jesus as my Savior. I believe that he died for my sins and has resurrected from the dead". If you say this and you believe it in your heart, God will take care of everything else. Just read the Bible to get to know him better.

Chickie17 said:

How does one explore faith without feeling as though they must be converted to it out of obligation? I mean experiencing rituals of the faith without being expected to convert.

I say this because it is difficult for me to have faith unless I act it out somehow. How does one go from lack of faith to faith? Will I stop doubting?

I got "Islam" for one test and "Sikhism" for another. They don't seem very similar. Okay, then? I've also gotten reform Judaism.

Click to expand...

why do you put some limitations to your choices ? to stop doubting i guess you should be opened to all religions and knock all the required doors, like for example if Islam forbade homosexuality but you see it's ok, that not means Islam is wrong and you are right, it could be the opposite , and the same for sikhs prayers or any other of your comments

i guess to get the internal peace you should submit yourself to god following his will, seeking regardless your desires or the temptations around you, otherwise you might be misguided by your desires or the temptations

it's just my opinion

Chickie17 said:

Hi. I am a young woman. My father is an atheist, my mother is an atheist/agnostic, and my brother rejects religion entirely. I go to a panreligious church that welcomes all ideas, but seem to be mainly various flavors of atheist and pagan.

I have always felt a pull toward the spiritual. I came to recognize this as the essence of a deity, who is pure experience, beauty, and meaning, in existence, whose essence also binds us all to ourselves and sustains us. We are a part of it, but an impure part. We do not take the form or have the sheer power of this deity because of the rejection of basic beauty and purity in our world. However, our world still is filled with divinity and beauty as an intrinsic part of it.

My question is, did I create my own religion, or can I join another? Is there a religion that would allow me my interpretation of this God as long as it fit within its context?

I would rather have a religion due to the acceptance, community, and routines it brings. With rituals and services, I have a concrete way of feeling close to spirituality.

Please do not use this as an excuse to proselytize unless you really think I could be a religion.

(I think I am a "panentheist", variants of which are in Sikhism, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.)

Click to expand...

You are a cunning youngster, I'll say that. You have already answered you own question. My only reservations are that you say that you have "a concrete way of feeling close to spirituality". If you already do so, then act on it. Follow it where it beckons you. Or do you not genuinely believe? As I said to someone yesterday, a part of you is whispering to you but your thought process drowns out the whispers of the whisperer. There exists within you something that is a pool of tranquility, calmness and peace. It is also the source of the impulses that cause you to reject religion after religion. You know. Let that knowledge grow... and grow... and leave the backbiting religions of the world behind you, sitting in the dust where they so deservedly belong.