What's your religion and why?

[rccar328]

EXACT same thing with homosexuals. Examine yourself, look deep inside, and tell me that you could CHOOSE to be gay if you wanted. that it wouldn't bother you to have sex with a man. You can't say that can you, because you are NOT gay. just like they ARE gay. Gay men can't just decide, "well shoot, I'm a sinner, and I better stop my evil, I LOVE WOMEN!" Homosexuality isn't accepted because it's different, just as left-handed people weren't accepted. No difference.

 

But it isn't the exact same thing. Homosexuality is a personal choice - I could choose to be a homosexual if I so desired, but I don't. And I don't know what kind of Biblical argument people could have used against left-handedness, but in the Bible, homosexuality is clearly defined as a sin:

 

They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator--who is forever praised. For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due.

Romans 1:24-27

 

And I'm fairly certain the left-handed = evil argument had backing by the bible..something about how the left hand was related to Satan...

 

I don't know where they would have found that. I think it more likely that they took some passage from the Bible out of context - I've looked, but can't find anything equating the left hand with sin or Satan.

[Ray Jones]

Originally posted by rccar328

I apologize, and thank you for your honest questioning. I've run into so many people whose primary goal is to tear down my arguments that honest questioning is getting hard to recognize.

 

no problemo.

 

Well, as far as life (or intelligent life) on other planets, it is possible that it exists, that God created other people on other planets.

 

well, possible is possible. if it finally will happen that we know it happend or not.. well let's be patient.

the "how it perhaps happened" is of course another question, but considering a different definition/meaning of "god" and "creation" (from my point of view on the bible) is even possible to say "god created":

although i do not believe into the bible, i can say i, from my point of view, could interprete it in a way, so it could support the basics of evolution theory (for instance, like you've said, the word "day" must not mean "day"). also because it is an old book, we could hardly expect it is written for a nowaday understanding or concerning todays (technical, scientific or whatever) standards. i personally would also count things like evolution and gays (just to catch a recent topic) to that. with my views on the history/ development (evolution?) of mankind, i somehow can understand that things like "lefthanded people" or "gay people" has been seen as not "normal" back in history. for me this means morality values against gays are perhabs "out of time", while those against murder are still "good". no sex before marriage was of course a way to beware of (sexual) deseases, and is still, if you will. this i would support with the hygienical standards of those days. nowadays it has become less important from the point of the marriage (in my opinion), but still, it has a meaning if is somehow interpreted "against careless/unsafe sex".

"evolution theory" or such things could not be of matter because they were not known yet.

concerning these issues allows me to interprete "god" in a different way than you do and so it is possible that we talk about the same thing at all, just from a different (time?)point of view. and we could be both wrong and it has to be seen completely different. the same goes for "the process of creation".

 

.. it is possible that it was not mentioned in the Bible because the people of the time had no concept of other planets - the Earth was the center of the universe, the sun revolved around the Earth, etc. It wasn't until much later that scientists discovered the nature of our solar system as we now know it (planets revolving around the sun), and the concept of the existence of other planets.

 

The same applies to "cars, planes, weapons like guns and grenades, computers, condoms, radios, telephones, cameras, electricity, spaceshuttles, mars probes .. and much more."

 

that's what i think too. also i assume that you agree if i say that morality values (from which religious/ non religious source depends to the individual, i your case it yould be the bible) should apply to these "non biblic mentioned" (new?) facts..?

i would go even one step farther and say that sometimes those morality can be changed or adapted, due to the the "meaning" of a fact.

but should they be changed/ adapted, then? i would say yes, if this means to change "biblic" morality values like those against gays. (read: values which are based on a certain state of knowledge and experience). human values like "no murder" or whatever can hardly be changed, since they are somehow part of our basic instincs.

 

all that leads me to the conclusion that the intention of the bible and christianity was/is to "guide" humans through "lawless" times and therfore cannot be considered "wrong" or whatever. it is an attempt to organize (daily) life and to find reasonable (from a certain point of view) answers to the simple question "what's going on?".

the rest of the "christian story" is made up by human nature, but is/was, as a matter of fact, inevitable and just part of human history/ development (evolution?).

 

We can apply the teachings of the Bible to our lives, though, because we can look back and see how they lived, and thus understand the moral teachings of Jesus, who mainly taught through parables.

 

i agree, but of course that applies not only to the bible, but that is not the point here, so i agree.

 

 

The last book of the Bible was written between 90 & 96 AD, and at that time, it would have been counterproductive to try to teach the people by talking about cars or telephones, simply because the people had no concept of what those things were.

Once again, it has to do with how the people of the time were living. They did not know about electricity, or computers, or telephones, and it would have been impossible for them to understand communicating via the internet because they had no understanding of all of these other things. It would have been counterproductive to bring it up at the time because it just would have confused the people.

 

would have been a bit confusing and perhabs an early form of science fiction, too. also i dont know any "classical" religion "talking" about the future in that concern.

[ET Warrior]

Originally posted by rccar328

But it isn't the exact same thing. Homosexuality is a personal choice - I could choose to be a homosexual if I so desired, but I don't. And I don't know what kind of Biblical argument people could have used against left-handedness, but in the Bible, homosexuality is clearly defined as a sin:

 

But you COULDN'T choose to be a homosexual, it's completely against everything your body tells you. It's just like me. There is no way I could ever have sex with a man. I just COULD NOT do it. I am not attracted to them the way i'm attracted to women. And homosexuals have the same thing. They're attracted to their own sex, they're not sinning, they're doing what they were MADE to do. If God exists he MADE them gay, and then they burn in hell because of how he made them. Sounds a little unfair to me.

 

Homosexuality is no more a choice than being left-handed.

[Tyrion]

But it isn't the exact same thing. Homosexuality is a personal choice - I could choose to be a homosexual if I so desired, but I don't. And I don't know what kind of Biblical argument people could have used against left-handedness, but in the Bible, homosexuality is clearly defined as a sin:

 

It isnt a personal choice, it's a natural instinct. You and I both like women, we both couldnt possibly think of dating the same sex. Homosexual males are just like us, they cannot just will that they like women- or else they would've for obvious social reasons. Try to abstain from liking women, and go onto men for the rest of your life. That's how hard it is for them.

 

Believe me, you couldnt choose to be homosexual. Now, I'd imagine you could control where you show your feelings and how much you show it, but to deny it totally is extremely hard to do.

[SkinWalker]

I think that the jury is still out whether or not homosexuality is something that can be "turned on" or "turned off," but there is some evidence to suggest that it may be a combination of nature (genetics) and nuture (early childhood development).

 

Regardless, I find it hard to conceive that so many people would choose a lifestyle that automatically makes them targets for terrorist attacks, ridicule, exclusion of civil rights, etc.

[El Sitherino]

Originally posted by rccar328

Yes, there are. However, there is no 100% sure way EXCEPT ABSTAINING FROM SEX UNTIL MARRIAGE!

The problem is the lack of education that the only safe sex is no sex at all!

 

wrong. Before I have sex I always get a blood test from both myself and the girl I'm about to have sex with. This is safe sex.

[ET Warrior]

I just cut off my penis. No STD's for me!

[El Sitherino]

Originally posted by ET Warrior

I just cut off my penis. No STD's for me!

you could get it in your mouth still

[toms]

Well, my parents are Church of England (protestant i guess), and i went to sunday school when i was younger and to church for christmas and easter... but that was about it. Like 90% of all christians in the UK i would guess.

 

Once i got to being about 16 or so and old enough to start questioning things for myself I kind of just drifted out of it. I wouldn't class myself as strongly [edit]athiestic[/edit], or strogly anything really. [edit] agnostic i guess, mixed up agnostic and aethiest[/edit]

 

I just tend to generally believe that there is a near enough standard set of "right and wrong" and I try to stick to it. A moral code, if you will. I probably couldn't tell you what it was, but i feel that i can tell whether something is right or wrong. I suppose you could say it is based on empathy, or understanding or "do unto others as they would do unto you". So it is kind of based on my christian upbringing i guess.

 

It seems to me that people generally fall into two groups that could be called liberal and conservative. These aren't exactly religious or political views, more a general way of approaching life and other people.

 

It always occurs to me that people's religious beliefs are almost always entirely based on their place of birth and upbringing. As such, i can't bring myself to feel that a lot of people's religious beliefs are due to any sort of spirituality, as if they had been born somewhere else they would almost certainly believe something else with equal certainty.

 

I suppose therefore i have more respect for "evangelical" believers who at least say that they believe what they do because they have had some sort of spititual experience. Having never had any such experience I can't tell if it is true, but it seems more "logical" to me to believe something "for a reason". Unreasoning and unquestioning belief is something i dislike as i feel it gets in the way of understanding and empathy with those who are different.

 

having said that, i can't see why an evangelical believer in something who HAS had a religious experience would think that I SHOULD be a christian (or any other religion) simply because they are, or because it is the accepted religion of the country. I haven't had any such experience, so acting in accordance with any religion would be a LIE and a waste of time spiritually.

 

My head hurts...

[Prism]

err..agnostic

 

ex-christian

[Master_Ginn]

First off i'm a christian, and i believe what I believe because i've put two and two together and found truth.

Second I belive that the ACT of homosexuality is wrong. I believe that people do have tendancies towards others of their own gender are not wrong. It is the act of homosexuality with another of the same gender. But i also think God tests people and people do go through hardships to depend on God more and not on their own stregnth. Who is it, i think Job, who's entire family was killed by the devil and he lost all his money and crops and such yet he never turned and blamed God or acted against Him in any way. Perhaps that could be the case of homosexuality.

[brd91lan]

I think that dicussions like this are a good thing although it tends to bring out the worst in people that ( in my opinion) have doubts or belive "just in case" so they go to telling peps there all going to hell blah,blah,blah.

 

For Americans I feel it is important to remeber that one of the founding fathers intentions was to have a place where you were not told what to belive and had a choice to belive as you choose with out someone in your face yelling about going to hell.

 

For me I practice what I call a version of wicca, Iam not a witch nor do I claim to be but, I can tell you most of the people I know who belive in god and the bible generally went into it wanting to belive and came out beliveing. I went towards wicca not wanting to belive but, tring to find something I could belive in that again (in my opinion) that was not based on a text with questionable origins.

 

So you found a reason to belive? good Iam truely happy for you if you are happy with it, good go with it and live in peace my freind but, for those of us that have not or choose to wonder or question this method, get over it. If I go to hell how does this affect you? Not at all I would think.

 

The basic structure of what I belive is this,

 

1. Be nice to people simplely because they are there.

 

2. Do not condem someone simply because your belifs conflict with theres.

 

There is more but, thats the basic structure and as this is already a long post and Iam tring not to ramble Ill leave it at that.

 

I have many freinds in many different religions and sometimes we get together to talk religion but, we dont condem or try to sway others we simply share our points of veiw.

 

In closeing I would like to say just this, The one thing that annoys me most is that many people asume that my disbelife in god is due to a lack of knowledge or that this means i worship satan.... Wrong on both accounts, I choose not to belive based upon my studys while I was practiceing many different forms of the christain religion and the belife in god and the belife in satan go hand in hand you cant worship satan with out beliveing god exists weither or not you belive in his power is another matter all together.

 

I wish you all well no matter what you belife system might be

[Astrotoy7]

I would describe myself as a 'non practising muslim' (and I know there'd be ppl/other muslims out there who'd say, 'well you're not a muslim at all'......)

 

why ?

 

As much as I have thought about it, I dont feel 'right' describing myself any other way.....I have a muslim name, I was born and raised in a muslim community, I know more about the koran than any other of the holy books, nothing else feels right. and I must add, I do feel *comfortable* with that description.

 

mtfbwya

[te27ch]

Atheist.

 

someone once said:

 

"If atheism is a religion, then health is a disease."

 

so if anyone gets angry please ban "someone"--not me.

 

My dad was pretty much always, he was a Lutheran by birth, mom was some doesnt-matter-what-kind-of-christian, still dont know if she believes in god (i didnt capitalise it).

[Doomie]

[reelguy227]

die hard catholic here !!!! dont want to start any debates ,just telling my religion . i was born Catholic ,and I like being Catholic , i wasnt forced into my religion ,i love it with a passion ,just telling everyone ,no offense or anything .

[kailaurius]

I was raised methodist and attended several baptist and penticostal churches. I'm happy to say I don't claim to be any religion, and it feels great. I was confirmed catholic not long ago only because my wife is catholic and she wanted our kids to go to church, but we havn't been in a few years now mainly because we're just too busy. Besides that going to church is just plain boring as hell.

 

Anyway no religion for me, thanks.

[HeavenSeeker]

Originally posted by MasterSidious

I could be wrong but it doesn't matter what your parents or whatever are, it matters what YOU want to believe. I myself live in a very strict Christian family with no ties to the outside world (no movies past y7 or sometimes y, no chatting, ect. but I've gotten around that ). I mean, as you grow up you decide what you want to do with your life and sometimes it includes religion. Buddhism sounds pretty cool cause there's no breaking down any other principals/gods. NICE As for you Darth Eggplant, you're cool too cause you don't give a ****. lol

 

BTW ppl, I beleive also that you don't actually have to have a religion to be a "kind and decent human being" also. You can have both

 

 

Agree do I. Freely Choosing is the only to practive Religion.

 

To the East do I look, but Rome is my Home.

[Tyrion]

Originally posted by reelguy227

die hard catholic here !!!! dont want to start any debates ,just telling my religion . i was born Catholic ,and I like being Catholic , i wasnt forced into my religion ,i love it with a passion ,just telling everyone ,no offense or anything .

 

Dont want to be rude, but please use less commas in your sentances, they are just as hard to read as sentance without commas.

 

For instance, your post would be easier to read as:

 

"Die hard catholic here! Don't want to start any debates, just saying that I was born Catholic and I like it. I wasn't forced into my religion, infact I love it with a passion. Just telling everyone, no offense or anything."

 

Still uses commas, but not as often and much easier to read(others may not agree, but it might do good for your posts).

 

Anyway, I'm sure I posted this somewhere before in the thread, but I'm Agnostic. Don't believe that one can prove there is a god, but don't believe one can prove there isn't.

[THE BADGER:]

I follow the Christ. That means I'm a Christian. Not that I read the Bible, or go to church. Christian mean "Christ follower".

 

I'm really not into church. I can worship Jesus in my livingroom. Ya know. Jesus was antiestablisment and I guess I am to.

[toms]

where do all these epic threads pop up from?

 

Anyway, out of interest, how many people here are the same religion as their parents/family and how many are a different religion?

 

I was raised christian (CofE) and now i'm semi christian/agnostic.

[THE BADGER:]

I was raised Christian, my whole family is, however, I have different believes in what is wrong or right per say.

 

I'm not a church going kinda guy. Not my cup of tea.

[Druid Bremen]

I was/is being raised as a Buddhist. My parents believe in a god, that is, Buddha, and think of it more as a religion than as a philosophy. However, I do not think of Buddha as a god. In fact, Buddha himself tried to prevent people from worshipping him. He is simply a NORMAL human being who has discovered the morals of human life. Thus I think of it as a philosophy. So he is non-egoistical.

[90SK]

I was baptised a Lutheren, but now I generally am unitarian. I dont have a certan set of beliefs, mostly I just flow with it. I just accept a higher power and get on with things. Its quite nice really. Not obsessing over one religion because you have already accepted all religions as a whole. That doesnt really make sense but thats the only way I can describe it.

[Writer]

I am a Christian, though I use the term lightly. I don't like how people who claim to be Christians just walk up and try to 'convert' people. I think it's insensitive and inefficient. People don't want somebody to come up and scold them for choosing the 'wrong religion'. I don't and neither does anybody I know.

 

"You're going to hell thanks to the way you're living," they say. "Repent now and you can be saved."

 

While this may be true, it's not the kind of thing a person wants to hear when they're out for a leisurely stroll with their family. My church's high school youth group has a saying. "Preach Christ always. When necessary, use words." This is how Christians should live.

 

I guess I'm not saying that handing out tracts is a bad thing, but it's definitely not the best way to go about it. Get to know a person and love them for who they are instead of trying to change them. That's God's job, if they choose to allow him to do so.

 

Back on subject now (sorry, but I just had to do that), I became a Christian when I was 5 years old. I'm not saying it was smooth sailing from then on out because it wasn't. For several years, I struggled with liking myself. I pretended to be other people because I thought I wasn't cool enough.

 

Now, I'm done with that, but I don't doubt there will be challenges ahead. I know God is with me when these come and He will get me through them. It's not something I can do alone.

 

If you didn't want a sermon, you've probably already tuned me out, but my reasons for staying a Christian are very simple. I can feel God working in my life, changing me to be who He made me to be. I read the Bible and sometimes I wonder, 'How can this be true? Is it even possible?'

 

These doubts have actually strengthened my faith. It is no longer my parents faith that I follow. It is my own. My doubts have brought me to the point where, though I can't explain how some things were possible, I know they happened... it's like I can't believe anything else could have happened.

 

Call me a reluctant believer because I don't understand how Jesus could have walked on water. What my faith comes down to is what I have seen in my own life. It is the things I have seen that make me believe the things I read in the Bible.