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I was raised a Southern Baptist, identified as an atheist as a young adult, and am a practicing Jew today. Along the way I've studied dozens of religions, including (but not limited to) Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Sikhism, Germanic Neoaganism, Druidism, and most of the Christian denominations common in the US.
So, no, I'm certainly not following the religion I grew up in.
As for why I practice Judaism, I find that it allows me the greatest connection to God, gives me a worldview that allows me to understand the world around me, and provides me a path to be the best man I can be.
So, no, I'm certainly not following the religion I grew up in.
As for why I practice Judaism, I find that it allows me the greatest connection to God, gives me a worldview that allows me to understand the world around me, and provides me a path to be the best man I can be.
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I grew up with Islam and still follow it in my mid 30's now. I'm a 35 (I think) year old virgin too, but I guess this is irrelevant (duh!!!).
I'm pretty much convinced that I practice it because I believe it is right way and the truth, regardless to some parts I see holding me back from having fun (but I believe in). Those parts are not the basics in the religion tho, and I believe the non basics should not bother me and make me whine about it. What it stands for in the big picture and the long run is what matters to me.
I however respect the freedom of religion and followers of all religions. I don't mind marrying a non Muslim as long as it only concerns me alone, but the fact is it does not.
Covellite
Active Member
In my childhood, religion wasn't so important for wast majority of population, including my family. I was baptized as an Orthodox Christian, but only from time to time we went to local church, usually during important religious events to lite a candle.
In my early 20's (since 1990) the New Age came on big door in my life. I was already opened for spirituality, mostly because since my early age I had lucid dreams, astral projections, even experienced some very convincing paranormal phenomenons.
I really enjoyed New Age workshops and met some brilliant people. Unfortunately, the New Age lost credibility to the most members, even to teachers and promoters. So, all those groups I had a chance to get to know really well and made some wonderful friendships vanished, turning on Christianity, atheism or psychology.
My believes and experiences are so unconventional, that I literally have no one to share with. So, I feel lonely and a kind of lost.
Thank you for your OP.
Best wishes
In my early 20's (since 1990) the New Age came on big door in my life. I was already opened for spirituality, mostly because since my early age I had lucid dreams, astral projections, even experienced some very convincing paranormal phenomenons.
I really enjoyed New Age workshops and met some brilliant people. Unfortunately, the New Age lost credibility to the most members, even to teachers and promoters. So, all those groups I had a chance to get to know really well and made some wonderful friendships vanished, turning on Christianity, atheism or psychology.
My believes and experiences are so unconventional, that I literally have no one to share with. So, I feel lonely and a kind of lost.
Thank you for your OP.
Best wishes
Liu
Well-Known Member
- grew up in a mix of physicalist atheism (from my parents and society at large) and liberal christianity (mostly from school)
- shifted from agnosticism to pantheism and back in my teens
- learned about and grew fond of both nihilism and post-modern religions like pastafarianism and discordianism
- found out about satanism a few years ago and thereby found a name for my believes
- spent the time since exploring the different kinds of LHP and occultism in general (albeit mostly in theory - guess I gotta get out of my armchair some more)
- also read more about hinduism as well as minority religions like paganism, christian mysticism etc. to get some additional inspiration
- settled with a pantheistic kind of satanism for now and hope to continue growing on my spiritual path
Since my father is a nihilist I basically retained a large part of my up-bringing - but it took a while for me to realize this and get rid of other influences.
Also I'm not that much of a strict physicalist anymore, even though I'm still a skeptic regarding pretty much anything so-called supernatural.
Basically my path so-far is based on being torn between deeply ingrained skepticism and a desire for spirituality, and on my inherent amorality freeing itself from the white-light morality of society.
- shifted from agnosticism to pantheism and back in my teens
- learned about and grew fond of both nihilism and post-modern religions like pastafarianism and discordianism
- found out about satanism a few years ago and thereby found a name for my believes
- spent the time since exploring the different kinds of LHP and occultism in general (albeit mostly in theory - guess I gotta get out of my armchair some more)
- also read more about hinduism as well as minority religions like paganism, christian mysticism etc. to get some additional inspiration
- settled with a pantheistic kind of satanism for now and hope to continue growing on my spiritual path
Since my father is a nihilist I basically retained a large part of my up-bringing - but it took a while for me to realize this and get rid of other influences.
Also I'm not that much of a strict physicalist anymore, even though I'm still a skeptic regarding pretty much anything so-called supernatural.
Basically my path so-far is based on being torn between deeply ingrained skepticism and a desire for spirituality, and on my inherent amorality freeing itself from the white-light morality of society.
Aupmanyav
Be your own guru
Tried none, but know about all. I am a strong atheist and a Hindu, perfectly satisfied with my religion. None better.
Aiviu
Active Member
Detailed? its gonna be very long ..
... sorry i am not a native speaker. So if i sound under educated forgive me.Childhood:
- Born confessionless, Lost dad at 3, Really no big family or that stuff. Just me and my mom.
- I got "molested" at 6 from an older person. Maybe 12 or older. As a child i assigned love with someone's attention towards me. And i replied doing what was asked from me "voluntarily" or "without a better knowing". Later mom and i moved to a new city. I never told anyone and i simply had accepted it.
- I meet someone when i was 10 who was soon going to die. Someone who believed my heart can save this one to heaven. I just have to give my heart voluntarily. For a reason i seriously thought must be love.
- Then i was seeking for a God who resides in this heaven which this someone told me will be there.
- I had no book or church to go.
- I tried to live the way how i heard it in in the religion lessons at school, or when i had to visit a church with the other kids. Be kind. Be peaceful. Be selfless. My only wish was to save someone into heaven. And if possible, meet again.
- The pastors and the religious teachers who i met through school quickly ignored me by hearing that i am confessionless. "Pagan" i once heared them saying about me to each other - it sounded pejorative. So i got pushed back to stay without community. But I always felt very happy when i had the possibility to be in a church or hearing stories from this book through school. It made me sense love. I couldnt understand the other kids making fun about this.
- All of these attributes; Love, kindness, honesty, selfless, etc .... went into my self-teaching.
- I learnt how easy it was to cut my desires that i dont need to have any wordly things.
- But when something gets into the subconsciousness, it pretty easy to oversee. So i forgot what had happened to me. I notified it for accepted and moved on.
Youth:
- I lived 30% of it. The other 70% i tried to make up how much of the bible stories i heard belongs to me. Always reviewing what i did and what happened to me as i was growing into relationships with others. I seemed to seek for someone who truely loves me. Simply teenager stuff. Someone's Loves' attention instead of sexual attraction was in how i was following it.
Grown-up:
- I found out that i always seeked in the future was to find someone who i already i had known at 10. My memory took me a year to remember all the things which we'd talked. So, now its ok.
- But it still makes me stunning in how much i followed it unconsciously and how something in me tried to make me remember it.
- A while ago i thought: I dont practice what i believe in, how can i truely believe if i dont practice these rituals. Praying, attending church, and stuff like that. I realized that to obey this God is to practice being good. To practice peaceful love to others. To practice to cut my desire to the basic needs. To practice to share these resources with others. All i know is love is not for myself to have. Its the sharing of the present time where i am able to be with others. This is true creation. Evidenced in futurely times. Evidence which shows it was absolutly true and pure. Even if God is not true and is a definition for humans to lay it at rest for what they suffering for that they are able to be alive again, I still believe in this place where someone who had spoken with my heart was leaving into. A heart which i can call on my side now.
I remember that as a child i believed in powers of the human's heart. Thus i can make a wish and ask it from my heart. Well, I shouldnt had wished to make myself disappear into heaven, right? I shouldnt have wished from God to resurrect someone else for me. I literally forced my heart to fulfill that. Now i know God gave me life but i make it somewhat less of life ... still waiting for this someone.... Waiting for anyone who bring this someone back or who sends me there. Or a little small evidence that we had been.
Well, i guess i have no religion as a community. I live in an totally atheistic world with a lot of people who require humanity as to be the top notch. From people who seen religions is that they are merely supress the individual circumstance. And that is i dont see as wrong or untrue. But i also see which part they are missing out. And i see the part which the religino is missing. ....
So i'll stay a confessionless person with a certain believe in God who gave me life to live and awakens me in the consciousness of love. There is no other God who can take it away from me.
GoodbyeDave
Well-Known Member
My father was an anti-clerical Catholic and my mother an occasional Anglican, so most of my religious activities were at school. I continued as a "weddings and funerals Anglican" until I converted to Paganism as the result of a lot of study.
I was brought up loosely Christian, I guess. My mom and I never went to church until we moved to Ohio to live with her side of the family in the late '90s. We went to one of my uncle's Methodist church for a time, but I didn't like. I didn't like Sunday school. Then we tried a Baptist church for a time, but we didn't like that, either. Too negative and I always left with a headache. Then tried a UU congregation. It was okay, but they never got back to us about being members. Then we just gave up for a few years.
I was obsessed with conspiracy theories like those of David Icke and was really into that for a time. At the same time, I was rather anti-Christian. Then, for some reason, I decided I wanted to try church again and my mom let me pick one. So I chose the Catholic cathedral here, because I had never been to a Catholic church before and was drawn towards the art. So we want to Mass and really enjoyed it. We went to RCIA in the fall of that year and were Baptized, Confirmed and took First Communion the following Easter Vigil. I was really devout for a time - including going on a mission trip, going to the National Catholic Youth Conference in 2007 and being part of the Diocesan Youth Council for a time (until I was kicked off for missing one or two meetings when my grandfather died and my home life really went to hell; how Christian of them).
After a while I started questioning. Basically, things didn't add up for me and so I've ended up dumping Catholicism. It still holds some emotional power for me and has its beauty, but I could never subscribe to the dogma anymore. So that's done. I've explored various sorts of Satanism (LaVeyan, Anti-Cosmic and general Theistic), Luciferianism, Gnosticism, Hellenismos, Asatru and Shaktism.
At this point, I'm most drawn towards Northern and Central European indigenous folkways and African diasporic folkways (particularly the various strains of Vodun and Quimbanda), since that's what my heritage is. I've been thinking of ancestry a lot due to the death of my mother this January and being completely estranged from all of my blood relatives. So I'm sort of looking for a feeling of rootedness, which I've never had.
Pre-Columbian Mesoamerican religion remains a big interest of mine, as well, since I've long been fascinated by Mexican culture, including the cults of figures like Santa Muerte (which is really a continuation of the cult of the Aztec Death Goddess, Mictecacihuatl).
I would say that Kali is still pretty important for me, but I no longer care about fitting my views of Her into what mainstream Hindus think, because I don't care what they think and I'm not concerned with pigeon-holing myself any longer or forcing someone else's expectations upon myself. (My spiritual path is very Feminine and, as such, it is "dark". The Left-Hand Path is associated with the archetypal Feminine, as the Woman is the Key to Initiation in esoteric systems. So the Dark Mother is a very important archetype, for me.) I am also inclined towards shamanism in general.
I still regard myself as a Satanist, but that is something that can exist within any cultural framework that deals with "dark" or "shadow side" deities and spirits. Some really serious Satanists are mixing Quimbanda and Aztec traditions into their practice already, and that is very interesting to me.
I was obsessed with conspiracy theories like those of David Icke and was really into that for a time. At the same time, I was rather anti-Christian. Then, for some reason, I decided I wanted to try church again and my mom let me pick one. So I chose the Catholic cathedral here, because I had never been to a Catholic church before and was drawn towards the art. So we want to Mass and really enjoyed it. We went to RCIA in the fall of that year and were Baptized, Confirmed and took First Communion the following Easter Vigil. I was really devout for a time - including going on a mission trip, going to the National Catholic Youth Conference in 2007 and being part of the Diocesan Youth Council for a time (until I was kicked off for missing one or two meetings when my grandfather died and my home life really went to hell; how Christian of them).
After a while I started questioning. Basically, things didn't add up for me and so I've ended up dumping Catholicism. It still holds some emotional power for me and has its beauty, but I could never subscribe to the dogma anymore. So that's done. I've explored various sorts of Satanism (LaVeyan, Anti-Cosmic and general Theistic), Luciferianism, Gnosticism, Hellenismos, Asatru and Shaktism.
At this point, I'm most drawn towards Northern and Central European indigenous folkways and African diasporic folkways (particularly the various strains of Vodun and Quimbanda), since that's what my heritage is. I've been thinking of ancestry a lot due to the death of my mother this January and being completely estranged from all of my blood relatives. So I'm sort of looking for a feeling of rootedness, which I've never had.
Pre-Columbian Mesoamerican religion remains a big interest of mine, as well, since I've long been fascinated by Mexican culture, including the cults of figures like Santa Muerte (which is really a continuation of the cult of the Aztec Death Goddess, Mictecacihuatl).
I would say that Kali is still pretty important for me, but I no longer care about fitting my views of Her into what mainstream Hindus think, because I don't care what they think and I'm not concerned with pigeon-holing myself any longer or forcing someone else's expectations upon myself. (My spiritual path is very Feminine and, as such, it is "dark". The Left-Hand Path is associated with the archetypal Feminine, as the Woman is the Key to Initiation in esoteric systems. So the Dark Mother is a very important archetype, for me.) I am also inclined towards shamanism in general.
I still regard myself as a Satanist, but that is something that can exist within any cultural framework that deals with "dark" or "shadow side" deities and spirits. Some really serious Satanists are mixing Quimbanda and Aztec traditions into their practice already, and that is very interesting to me.
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Baladas
An Págánach
I was raised in a semi-practicing Nondenominational Christian home, with my parents ever looking for a church that was like the one they attended together in California.
When I hit my teens, I began to question the value of religion and the existence of God. I remember that my mom was not happy about this at the time (though she is much more open-minded now).
Though I didn't really believe the way I used to, a part of me wanted that back. When I was about fifteen I had an intense mystic experience, which I associated with Jesus Christ.
I became an extremely devote Christian over the course of about a year. I devoured the Bible, pouring over the Gospels again and again. Meditating on their meaning and how I could apply them to my life.
I eventually got settled into a church and shortly after, I had another mystic experience. For me, this was confirmation that I was in the right place.
I was passionate about worship, I went on mission trips to Mexico and Northern Ireland, I studied theology and preaching.
I was certain I would be a pastor of some kind. I became a youth leader, and I wanted to be a mission leader.
A few years ago I began to allow myself to question some of the assumptions that I had allowed myself to make about God and the world in general.
I studied what little we know about Pelagius (a supposed heretic of Celtic Christianity). I found that when my daughter was born, I could no longer even entertain the notion of original sin.
I took what was for me, a plunge, and began to study other religions and metaphysical concepts. I also began to study the sciences with renewed interest.
This lead me to be simply an open-minded pantheistic pluralist of sorts, and then to identify more as a Taoist as I found I related to the philosophy.
I also resonate deeply with Irish paganism, which is my dominate heritage. I practice several forms of meditation, and try to be mindful about what I do and say.
When I hit my teens, I began to question the value of religion and the existence of God. I remember that my mom was not happy about this at the time (though she is much more open-minded now).
Though I didn't really believe the way I used to, a part of me wanted that back. When I was about fifteen I had an intense mystic experience, which I associated with Jesus Christ.
I became an extremely devote Christian over the course of about a year. I devoured the Bible, pouring over the Gospels again and again. Meditating on their meaning and how I could apply them to my life.
I eventually got settled into a church and shortly after, I had another mystic experience. For me, this was confirmation that I was in the right place.
I was passionate about worship, I went on mission trips to Mexico and Northern Ireland, I studied theology and preaching.
I was certain I would be a pastor of some kind. I became a youth leader, and I wanted to be a mission leader.
A few years ago I began to allow myself to question some of the assumptions that I had allowed myself to make about God and the world in general.
I studied what little we know about Pelagius (a supposed heretic of Celtic Christianity). I found that when my daughter was born, I could no longer even entertain the notion of original sin.
I took what was for me, a plunge, and began to study other religions and metaphysical concepts. I also began to study the sciences with renewed interest.
This lead me to be simply an open-minded pantheistic pluralist of sorts, and then to identify more as a Taoist as I found I related to the philosophy.
I also resonate deeply with Irish paganism, which is my dominate heritage. I practice several forms of meditation, and try to be mindful about what I do and say.
Desert Snake
Veteran Member
I'm assuming the OP means whatever religion your peers adhered to, or your relatives, whatever. It's less likely that one would know more about a religion they aren't at least nominally aware of.
This is correct. If religion is part of one's early life then it is usually forced upon them at that time. As evident in this thread, people can often find ways to escape if they so choose, but for many this is impossible.
Some parents are finding ways to help their children seek their own path, especially in the more individualistic religions/philosophies.
I'm Muslim and born in Muslim family . I had moments of doubts and deep study of the religion I'm following. I considered reading a bit about Judaism and christianity last year I was with someone who was into a Christian congregation and left it and did deep compatible studies on christianity and I have learned a lot . I believe in god and I'm Muslim and I believe that most Muslim like most Christian doesn't read their holy books and doesn't try to understand it.. they only get what someone else said about any topic because that someone is holly person or scholar or whatever which can be misleading many times . They don't think critically .
This happens sometimes in my religion (more like a philosophy) also. Thanks!
I'm in much the same boat.
No I was raised atheist, and when I was 18 I started to beleiving in Bod
I'm starting to believe in this:
http://www.religiousforums.com/threads/there-is-only-one-god.187820/
Sand Dancer
Crazy Cat Lady
I got tired of making up excuses for a literal and inerrant Bible. The religion does not cause people to adopt Jesus' attitude, so I figure I can love God and Jesus without being involved in organized religion. Other religions are just as, if not more, sincere as Christianity.
He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.
He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.
Erebus
Well-Known Member
The religion I practice today both is and isn't the religion I grew up with.
My father is an agnostic atheist. He doesn't have a problem with people following whatever religion suits them, but he's always made it clear that religion isn't for him. Therefore it was my mother who had the most input into my religious upbringing.
She considers herself a Christian, but it's not quite as simple as that. She incorporates a healthy dose of NeoPaganism into her beliefs and taught me the basics of magic from a young age. I was the kid who saw auras and didn't think that was unusual. I was also the kid who knew which plants could be eaten, which would soothe a rash or nettle sting and which plants were to be avoided. I was also taught never to wish for things you didn't really want, never to tempt fate and never to deliberately offend the spirits.
I was also taught that there's an omnipotent creator God who loves me and that Jesus was his son. Science offered us a way to understand the world around us and to understand God. My mother has little patience for YE Creationist types. She also made it clear that we needed to find our own way in life and do what we thought was right.
I've explored quite a few religions, some for longer than others. I've dipped into various branches of Neo-Paganism, been a full on Christian, been a staunch atheist and tried out quite a few different approaches to magic.
My world-view is an ongoing process and I try my best not to hold on to anything that no longer works. I feel that Pagan suits me the most as a title, given that I believe in so many gods. At the same time though, I don't neatly fit into Wicca, Druidry, Asatru or any other sub-category of Paganism.