Real mature discussion. Why do you believe in what you believe?

[retro23j]

Personal experience + faith + diligently seeking Him through prayer to learn and understand Him more has lead me to the point of no return.

Do you go to church to please others?

At first. Not anymore. I go now because I want to. Have to.

     Quote:

Have any of you changed your religion? And why?

Nope. Apostolic all the way

 

 

[wavy bone]

IMO....

Religion is simply a control device. People are generally controlled by fear -- fear of your parents as a kid, fear of the law as an adult, fear of doom in the afterlife, etc etc. How many people would honestly have faith in any god or higher being if there were no fear or reward at the end?

And to believe in a particular god, means to completely discredit all other religions. That fact alone makes religion seem ridiculous -- no offense to anyone. For this reason alone, blood has and will always be shed for the sake of religion.

I believe in energy and "mother nature", as weird as that sounds. I believe nature is the beginning and end, not a god. The thought of "where did it start" is enough to give a person a headache and it's overwhelming to think of -- to think of something none of us can grasp.

A+ Post

One of my ex-girls was Muslim, and while I admire many Islamic teachings and their discipline...I was amazed at how..."brainwashed" she seemed. She'd literally die for what she believed in and it was nothing she chose on her own. It obviously was drilled in her head since birth to the point. I don't think I could ever be that influenced about something.

 

[weekz]

I go to church to satisfy my family.
While I have not switched religions I have "lost" my faith for lack of a better term.
As for lack of belief, I think that is a poorly framed question. There is belief but there is not faith. I believe in the power of science, human capability, human thought and philosophy.

 

[Comparison Ford]

I was raised in a somewhat religious household.  Went to church and Sunday School up until about age 7 when my parents got divorced.  Throughout my childhood into my late teens my belief waned to the point where I became apathetic.  Nowadays I would consider myself an agnostic atheist.  I can't say for sure whether or not God exists, but I realize that there's no solid evidence for me to believe.  I've also grown to resent organized religion in the past few years.  My resentment has been reinforced by watching shows like The Atheist Experience (Matt Dillahunty, in particular).  I encourage all believers to watch these videos in order to get a better understanding of atheism.  Atheists will obviously enjoy these videos, but it's pretty much preaching to the choir.  Please disregard the goofy techno music in the second clip: 

 

[guttagetsbusy]

Great thread.

 

[cincoseisdos]

I believe in a higher power I refer to God, but no, I don't follow any religious idea... more spiritual than religious I guess. Was raised Catholic, hated church, would be outside munching on chicharrones and raspados with other kids on the front steps as the grown folk were inside.

As I grew up, my desire hadn't changed. Parents signed me up for Confirmation classes, we stopped going maybe 6 Sundays in.

This past Sunday, my extended family is over for a cookout/pool party. First glimpse they get of my girlfriend, they ask her what she'll do when we have kids and I don't want to go to church... I bit my tongue and shut my mouth.

 

[ggarvinxx3]

I was raised in a somewhat religious household.  Went to church and Sunday School up until about age 7 when my parents got divorced.  Throughout my childhood into my late teens my belief waned to the point where I became apathetic.  Nowadays I would consider myself an agnostic atheist.  I can't say for sure whether or not God exists, but I realize that there's no solid evidence for me to believe.  I've also grown to resent organized religion in the past few years.  My resentment has been reinforced by watching shows like The Atheist Experience (Matt Dillahunty, in particular).  I encourage all believers to watch these videos in order to get a better understanding of atheism.  Atheists will obviously enjoy these videos, but it's pretty much preaching to the choir.  Please disregard the goofy techno music in the second clip: 

is this the homie SillyFuturePuttyMD? 

 

[Comparison Ford]

is this the homie SillyFuturePuttyMD? 

lolwut.

I am not Silly Putty/FutureMD.  I'm familiar with him though.  I understand why people find him abrasive, but he makes some decent points.  I'm just a longtime lurker/new poster.

Nice to meet you too.

 

[youngdoc]

Raised Christian and grew up going to church relatively frequently but once I got older and started thinking for myself more I ended up stop going.

I do believe in God and Jesus Christ but I don't follow the Bible strictly and definitely don't use it as a moral compass. This is because it was written by men and has been edited it over time by many different sources all with their own agenda.

It always baffles me when my religious friends use only the Bible as their argument for being against things like premarital sex, gay marriage etc. They essentially say "I'm against because the Bible says so".

I really don't like that aspect of religion and that's one of the reasons I don't go to church

 

[solexsup]

I was raised catholic so i did the whole church on sundays, communion then confirmation. But after confirmation i stopped going to church. And maybe last year i started questioning if there really is a god and i brought it up with my mom and she gave me the stone face. So now i still tell people im catholic but i dont go to church or pray or do anything related to being catholic. It just doesnt matter to me.

 

[samuel jackson]

I believe in nature because it's the reason for our existence.  

 

[jrdnsrnss]

I was raised Catholic and even went to Catholic school for six years. As i grew older the thought of religion and all the stories it comes with just seems way too farfetched to me. I don't have a problem with others believing in it but i hate when religious people are too narrow minded to believe in anything else.

 

[blackxme]

I don't believe in any higher being. I know most people find it a lot easier to come to grips with reality by thinking that it all came from something or some force, but that doesn't satisfy me. I can't just simply put my faith in something that might or might not be there, especially when there's isn't any concrete evidence for said being.

Science has really opened my mind to the world in front of me and it does a great of job of trying to explain all that is around me. Even without the belief in a higher being I can appreciate life and marvel at the wonders of the universe. My favorite fact is that we're all stardust, the molecules which encompass our bodies were forged in the core of stars that exploded as supernovas. Stars have enriched our universe with the ingredients for life, and by chance our insignificant planet managed to positioned just right for those ingredients to come together and spark life.

But at the end of the day people can believe whatever they want as long as their beliefs don't interfere with that of others.

 

[iblink]

I used to go to church and believe in Christ because of my family. Then I moved out on my own and began to question things for my own understanding. Ended up giving up on the Christian faith. Though I still believe in a Higher being which thine greater can be concieved, I believe more so in morality.

 

[cj863]

I was raised a Christian, Baptist to be exact and now I honestly don't believe in none of that ****. It took a while for me to step back and see how sheepish religious people really are. There's no way you can get me to believe anything in the bible. As of now I'm stuck between there actually being a God or higher power that has absolutely nothing to do with the bible, quran, etc. and some form of reincarnation. Imo there has to be more than just living this life and dying, we have to reincarnate, it's really the only explanation that makes sense to me.

 

[glasses]

I wasn't raised in a religious family and I grew up not believing in anything. Then I had 2 experiences that changed that forever.

1. I was sitting on the bed with my step-grandma who was sleeping, and she had been very very sick and basically they said she has maybe a day left of living. all of the sudden she shoots up in her bed with her arms out in a surrender form saying "please Jesus, no, not yet, I want to see my kids" like her body was possessed. Her body was very weak and she couldn't get up on her own. Yet her body sprang up like it was on a string. I asked her what happened and she said there was a bright glowing gold light with Jesus at the end of it. her kids got in later that night and she died 2 hours later.

2. I was in a very dark place mentally and I didn't want to live anymore, for no apparent reason. I had a good life and was suffering from extreme depression and anxiety. To the point where I would isolate myself because I couldn't be around anybody. Went to psychiatrists, therapists and got dozens of medications prescribed. none of them worked. They couldn't even proper diagnose me because it wasn't actual depression, it was something else unknown to them. Things got worse and I wished I could die everyday, just being alive was unbearable. Then one day after just literally begging to die and I was at the end I surrendered. I said "God, spirit, who ever is out there if you are real, i need help, I can't do this anymore and I don't know why this is happening to me" . About a week after that I was completely cured of all my dark thoughts and situation. I felt renewed and that I was given a second chance at life.

I know religion and religious people can come off nutty and rub people the wrong way. And be seen as delusional. I thought the same thing. And I know it's hard to believe something without actually seeing it, I was the same way. Then I was shown, I was saved, and that can never be taken away from me or try to be discredited.

Yes, I do go to church now on my own. not out of fear or guilt. but because I was given a second life, So I want to give God my life in return as thanks.

 

[Master Zik]

I was raised in a somewhat religious household.  Went to church and Sunday School up until about age 7 when my parents got divorced.  Throughout my childhood into my late teens my belief waned to the point where I became apathetic.  Nowadays I would consider myself an agnostic atheist.  I can't say for sure whether or not God exists, but I realize that there's no solid evidence for me to believe.  I've also grown to resent organized religion in the past few years.  My resentment has been reinforced by watching shows like The Atheist Experience (Matt Dillahunty, in particular).  I encourage all believers to watch these videos in order to get a better understanding of atheism.  Atheists will obviously enjoy these videos, but it's pretty much preaching to the choir.  Please disregard the goofy techno music in the second clip: 

is this the homie SillyFuturePuttyMD? 

So because son said he was an agnostic atheist he's Putty/Future? You do know being an agnostic and being an atheist answer two different questions right?

 

[generaldiscussion]

Agnostic.

I respect religions, but enough is enough.

 

[acemaster193]

Where's silly putty to make sense of this?

 

[picknroll24]

My parents are devout Catholics, the type to never miss church on Sundays. Because of some inconsistencies in Catholicism and my general knowledge about other cultures and religions I believe religion is cultural. Even though I am not a firm believer of religion I can't help but think there is a higher being because science doesn't have all the answers.

 

[Comparison Ford]

 I can't help but think there is a higher being because science doesn't have all the answers.

That's the reason I respect science so much.  It doesn't pretend to have answers to questions that are currently unanswerable.

 

[thadocta]

i believe in my beliefs because i choose to

 

[cj863]

That's the reason I respect science so much.  It doesn't pretend to have answers to questions that are currently unanswerable.

lol wut?

 

[Comparison Ford]

lol wut?

Science doesn't fill gaps of knowledge with "God did it" or anything that can't be tested and proven, but it still strives to answer unexplained questions. I don't see how that's confusing.

 

[dominikid]

I used to be forced to go to church every sunday up until about my junior year of hs. Haven't been back since. I don't disrespect others of faith who attend church, but it just isn't for me.