Born or Converted?

[cardero]

Were you born into your religion or did you convert to it later in life?
Depending on which religion you belong, in your opinion, is there any benefit to being born into it as compared to conversion?

 

[Bishka]

Were you born into your religion or did you convert to it later in life?

Both. I was born into an LDS family, but did not consider myself completley converted until a few years ago.

Depending on which religion you belong, in your opinion, is there any benefit to being born into it as compared to conversion?

Sometimes, I see the benefit of converting, becuase you are an adult and have complete control of your senses, memory, etc. You understand a bit better when you are older.

 

[Littledragon]

I was raised christian, and converted to paganism

I agree with what becky says about converting

Sweet water and light laughter
Littledragon

 

[FFH]

Were you born into your religion or did you convert to it later in life?
Depending on which religion you belong, in your opinion, is there any benefit to being born into it as compared to conversion?

I was born into the LDS faith...

If I had been born into a different religion I know my life would have taken a different turn..

I'm grateful to have been born into this religion. There is no better religion to be a part of than the LDS faith..

I was practically born knowing that the LDS religion had the "fullness" of Christ's gospel, with the help of the whisperings of the Holy Ghost/Holy Spirit to my mind and heart.....

My parents did not talk religion that much at all, but they made sure to teach the basics like tithing, baptism, etc...the rest was slowly learned over the years by studying it all out for myself...

No pressure was put upon me by any relatives or friends whatsoever...

The LDS teachings are challenging enough to adhere to as it is, and everyone knows that, and so it's pointless to push anyone to do that which they may not be ready to commit to doing...

I looked to the examples of those living the teachings of Christ, in their fullness, and tried to emulate them as best I could, within my capacities to do so...

 

[BFD_Zayl]

I converted...and you cannot be born into it, well, officially anyways. you are not seen as a part of it until you accept the initiation. so even if your parents are members...they keep it hidden, let you find your own way, when you are old enough they reveal their faith and see what happens.

 

[jacquie4000]

I was raised Lutheran, but my thoughts changed over time.

 

[Kungfuzed]

I'm not sure if one actually converts to Atheism or if it's just a deconversion of the previous religion. I don't consider Atheism to be a religion that one would convert to. I suppose you could say I was born an Atheist since I had no belief in God as an infant. I was involved in a few Christian religions in my teens and twenties and now I've returned home to the belief I was born with.

 

[cardero]

Atheism is covered as well because someone could have had a parent that was atheist. Also I realize that some religions do not baptize until later in life but I was just curious about whether it was upbringing or something that one decided later in life.

 

[ayani]

was converted. raised Lutheran, and still have alot of admiration for the spirit of Christianity.

 

[Gentoo]

I was raised Catholic and I converted to Paganism

 

[Aqualung]

was converted. raised Lutheran

I was raised Lutheran, but my thoughts changed over time.

I was raised Lutheran too, before converting. Maybe that's a sign.

 

[ayani]

I was raised Lutheran too, before converting. Maybe that's a sign.

wow, interesting. what lead you to the LDS church?

 

[Aqualung]

wow, interesting. what lead you to the LDS church?

I saw the fruits of the religion. Then I studied it and it made sense. Now I have a testimony that it's true.

 

[BruceDLimber]

Greetings!

I became a Baha'i as an adult.

And while I'm not what I was before, neither do I consider this a "conversion" in that I still believe in and honor both Christ and the Bible, as indeed to all Baha'is world wide!

So this was more a progression than a conversion.

And BTW, this is true of ALL Baha'is, even those with Baha'i parents, becuase in the Baha'i Faith each individual must choose his or her own path free from anyone else's interference, including parents, cleargy (we don't have clergy) and friends! And there is no condemnation of those who choose some other path....

Best,

Bruce

 

[Aqualung]

So this was more a progression than a conversion.

Good point. Mine was the same. I went from a religion that had part of the gospel to a religion that contained the fullness of the gospel. It didn't change, it just got more.

 

[Mike182]

i converted to my religion.

the advantage of being born into my religion would be that your parents will not fly off the rails with misconceptions of your faith when you tell them about it.

other than that, no differences or advantages, other than knowing about it earlier on in life.

 

[UnTheist]

I de-converted. The only problem with my situation is I am the only Atheist/Pantheist in my entire family. Everyone in my family sees Atheism as "Wrong," so I have to ignore them most of the time.

 

[Sahar]

Born and raised as muslim and hoping to die muslim, as well! :shout

 

[Hema]

Born and raised as muslim and hoping to die muslim, as well! :shout

Beautiful sentiments! I was born a Hindu and will die a Hindu. I see all religions as leading to the same destination though.

 

[Rolling_Stone]

Were you born into your religion or did you convert to it later in life?
Depending on which religion you belong, in your opinion, is there any benefit to being born into it as compared to conversion?

Neither. I evolved. It's nice to have a custom fit.

 

[dawny0826]

Were you born into your religion or did you convert to it later in life?
Depending on which religion you belong, in your opinion, is there any benefit to being born into it as compared to conversion?

I was raised by a conservative Christian mother and a non religious father.

I rebelled against religion completely until starting a life on my own, where I began questioning. Wicca originally appealed to me. I studied and practiced for quite a while but there was something missing from Wicca...Christ.

It's been quite a journey and I still struggle but I am no doubt a Christian...a Christian who accepts the Trinity. Currently, I am not part of any religious denomination.

 

[standing_alone]

I was brought up as a Christian (WELS Lutheran) and then, after much analysis of those religious beliefs and becoming critical of those beliefs (along with some emotional reasons for leaving such belief), I found I had no other option but to discard such belief and found myself only comfortable ascribing to nontheism.

I don't know if there is really any advantage to being raised as a nontheist, rather than coming to it after no longer ascribing to any form of theism. I think it depends on the person; I've seen people who've come to nontheism through what I would deem more positive means, such as critically analyzing their previous beliefs, and I've seen people who've come to nontheism through negative means--what I would deem, religious abuse, for lack of a better way to put it. I've often seen differences in the way each type acts; those who came to nontheism after analyzing their previous beliefs typically being more "logical" and tolerant of other belief systems (theism), whereas those who came to nontheism after, what I call, religious abuse typically being more "emotional" and intolerant of other belief systems (theism). I don't really know about those raised in nontheism. Most people have been exposed to religions and raised in them and I haven't really known anyone who was raised nontheist to have much comment on that.