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I forgot it. If I could edit the poll I would. I apologize if I offended in anyway. I did not mean to leave out any religions. There are literally hundreds to list.
It's simple - I believe whatever I believe. My name is Heather so I call msyelf a Heatherist! Basically - I don't know if there is a supreme being or divine force or simply just gases and energy and rocks and such. I believe that we should be the best people we can be - loving, kind, understanding, funny, sympathetic, etc. I don't really believe in an afterlife or anything - but I believe in making the most of the time we do have. Those are my basic beliefs. Some of the things I believe in change from day to day, week to week, year to year. I guess I just take each day as it comes and try to make the best of things! So far, it's worked pretty well for me!
I don't go to Church, but I'm theologically closest to being a Mormon. I think you should have broken down Christianity into different categories (Catholic, Mormon, Evangelical Protestant, non-Evangelical Protestant, etc.).
I also like many aspects of Buddhism and how they focus a lot on learning to cultivate the right state of mind, although I don't believe in reincarnation.
Last edited by mysticaltyger; 02-22-2011 at 12:14 AM..
To say athiesm is silent regarding the origins of the universe is a joke.
To say you read and understood Hueffenhardt's point is a joke. He spelled it out right in the first sentence, that someone can be an atheist and believe something else, but that belief comes from something else such as secular humanism.
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Athiests have a major opinion when it comes to religion.
Muslims have a major opinion when it comes to Christianity. Therefore, they are involved in Christian beliefs! Actually, no.
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It also does have a position on religion and religious practices. Why do athiests care so much about people believing in a God(s) or practicing their faith?
Some atheists spend their time arguing about religion; ergo, atheism as a whole has an opinion on religion? Uh, no.
You could make the argument that by disbelieving in God(s), atheists are opposed to religion, but then you have to consider situations like Buddhism, which says there may be, or Confucianism, which doesn't even care.
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I know most people would say they only care because religious people shove it down our throats. Again, that is only a select few. The vast majority of religious people could care less about what you believe in.
Actually, most I've met (including me) do care what atheists believe or disbelieve in, but they do not waste their time being rude about it ("God is coming tomorrow! You will burn in hell!").
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I know several people who are atheists who live to prove religion wrong and to end it for everyone. There are even major organizations, protest groups, charity events and groups that are all atheists, the live as atheistic as possible. Many would say that being an atheist is a way of life.
Look up the definition of religion. Atheism is a religion that just doesnt believe in a god, period.
Okay, so if an atheist is in an organization opposed to something, atheism as a whole is also opposed to it?
No, not at all. You're being silly. And even if all that was true, it doesn't make atheism a religion....
I didn't think there was much of a difference between Catholics and Christians, until a few christian friends of mine said something. Some of my family are Catholic and some are Christian. The Catholic side doesn't agree with the way the Christian side prays, teaches the bible and such. It can get kind of annoying.
To me anyone who believes in Christ is a Christian.
To me anyone who believes in Christ is a Christian.
I think you're on the right track, but missed the mark a little. Muslims believe in Christ, and see Him as a prophet, but they're definitely not Christians. To me, anyone who believes in Christ as our Savior and Redeemer is a Christian.
Criticisms of poll choices aside, I like the way you ask the question, what religion do you "practice", because that's what my religion is to me, something I practice, and kind of feebly and sporadically at that. My practice waxes and wanes according to life circumstances. I have had exposure to different major religions, Eastern and Western, through friends and family, and try to find common ground with them, and think it's good to find the truth and wisdom in all of them. Each one is a cultural treasure. I want to foster mutual understanding, and I like Thich Nhat Hanh's statement, "we are here to awaken from our illusion of separateness." I feel fortunate to live among many different Native American groups and to participate as a guest in their feast days. I like to draw strength and inspiration from many sources and focus more on the connections than the contradictions.
But at one point I felt it was best for me to cultivate a personal faith through practice, so I returned to the Episcopal Church (which is both Catholic and Christian), which I find very active in exploring intersections with other faith traditions while holding fast to its own long traditions (without being "stuck in the past"). I find it less important to be a "believer" in doctrines than to be a seeker after truth and to serve.
I have had exposure to different major religions, Eastern and Western, through friends and family, and try to find common ground with them, and think it's good to find the truth and wisdom in all of them. Each one is a cultural treasure. I want to foster mutual understanding, and I like Thich Nhat Hanh's statement, "we are here to awaken from our illusion of separateness." I feel fortunate to live among many different Native American groups and to participate as a guest in their feast days. I like to draw strength and inspiration from many sources and focus more on the connections than the contradictions.
truth is found in what the opposites have in common. you and i share much the same viewpoint. i see much value and purpose in every religion i've ever been exposed to, but have never felt the need or desire to embrace one above any other. what delights and inspires me when i read the texts from different theologies is finding the golden thread of truth that runs through them all.....and it has nothing to do with the invention/personification of any entity/deity, and certainly not the elevation of any human as a savior of all mankind.
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