[widgets]

Not intending a debate, just wondering who is religious and how it and if it helps.

Personally I am completely ambivalent, i don't believe but I don't not believe. I sometimes wish I did.

Originally Posted by widgets

Not intending a debate, just wondering who is religious and how it and if it helps.

Personally I am completely ambivalent, i don't believe but I don't not believe. I sometimes wish I did.

Great topic ! Thanks for posting.

I'm spiritual, but not religious. I believe in one nameless God. I would never impose my beliefs on others, but I know that there is a God in my life and in my universe. And, I know I will meet Him someday.

I'll tell you what I know about religion, and how I think it might help: Pack mentality ... wolves. People tend to feel a sense of security when they're surrounded by others who share their belief system. Also, it's really easy to connect with others who think alike. Church singles groups for example. I've met numerous couples who say they met at church. It's not hard to see why. So, religion can have its benefits.

Same thing with cults, I suppose. Shared belief systems can help form really strong and intense bonds between people, and some people might crave such bonds. One fascinating story is that of the Japanese religious cult "Aum Shinrikyo", which was responsible for the 1995 Tokyo metro attack. As a neutral observer, you might wonder why those people committed such a heinous act on their fellow citizens, but such is the power of a religious cult and the bonds it can create, resulting in a fierce loyalty to the cult.

One other thing about religion and cults that is particularly relevant to us borderlines: Identity ! When we devote ourselves to a religion or cult, we are, in essence, surrendering our personal identity (at least to some extent) to that of the religion or cult. As borderlines, obtaining a strong sense of identity externally can be very appealing. It can provide something we can hold onto, when our own identities or goals are unclear.

I occasionally fantasize about finding a cult whose beliefs match my own. I wish I could experience the intense human bonds I imagine cult members experience. I'd spend the rest of my life in such a cult.

I would call myself a pragmatic agnostic. (From the wiki: The view that there is no proof of either the existence or nonexistence of any deity, but since any deity that may exist appears unconcerned for the universe or the welfare of its inhabitants, the question is largely academic. Therefore, their existence has little to no impact on personal human affairs and should be of little theological interest.)

I don't necessarily believe in a higher power but nor am I entirely sure there isn't one.

I can say I do not believe in any current religious texts. Although I do appreciate Buddhism. (If reincarnation exists then I better be the most well adjusted doted on person ever next life lol)

Mormon is meant to be good religion. I am undecided religion wise hut u do find mediation practice helps and some of Buddha teachings and karma xxx

[glok]

The omnis, the fictions, the wrath, the apologists who tell us we are incapable of understanding, invite the faith of a zealot to accommodate.

[Pierro]

I was brought up Catholic but all I ever seen it as something we were made do. Go to mass on Sunday. If I was to choose a religion I think it would be Buddhism, but maybe I don't know.

[Astriferous]

I was raised catholic, but I consider myself an agnostic and a humanist now. I do believe in guardian angels, and that my loved ones who have passed on are watching over me and care about me. While I disagree with a majority of what the Catholic Church preaches, I can't let go of that part of my identity. My family is primarily Polish and Hungarian, so Catholicism is kind of a part of me.

I really enjoy learning about different religions, especially Islam and Buddhism. I think that religion does do a lot of bad in the world, but it also brings people together.

My relationship with religion is very confusing.

[Phreak]

@Pierro Buddism isn't a religion.

All religion is predominantly designed to make people conform to a certain way of existing.

There has been studies which show advantages of practicing a religion however. IIRC things like a sense of togetherness and belonging.