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Very rarely will an evangelical on sites like CARM etc declare their denomination. You have a congregation, a church group etc, then you are part of a religion, whether you like it or not.
Amen! Non-denominational, my foot. That word is meaningless. It's just a word people use when they want to be part of an organized religion but can't decide which one.
I didn't tell you you had the wrong answers because you weren't answering but asking a question instead.
You told me I was asking the wrong question. There is no such thing as a "wrong question."
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Are you feeling ok?
I'm rather sick of you. Other than that, I'm fine.
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You are asking what religion does for you.
Again my answer to that question is don't be so self centered.
I'm not being the slightest bit self-centered.
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Stop being defensive and snarky because you received an answer you didn't like.
I received a commentary, but it wasn't an answer to the question I asked.
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We both know what you asked and that question was answered head on.
No, it wasn't -- at least not from you. All you did was to label me as self-centered because I see any religion as having some value even if it errs in some of what it teaches.
I don't think it's such a stretch to conclude that most religious people affiliate, either officially or otherwise, with the religion that seems to them to be the most "valid," "legitimate" or "true." After all, if you're going to worship some kind of a Higher Power, you'd probably want to do so in a way that this Higher Power approved of. The problem is that religious truths are impossible to prove. People have told me that regardless of what I believe the benefits of my chosen faith are, they don't matter since my religion is all a pack of lies anyway.
Still, I contend that regardless of whether any given religion is "true" or not, there is little point in choosing one that doesn't speak to you in some way. So what do you think your religion should do for you? Aside from "being true," what makes a religion "good"? Or is "truth" the only thing that matters?
Personally, I believe that if a religious path provides you with guidance and direction to help you navigate life, if it brings clarity and meaning to how you see the world, and if it makes you a better person, then it's a good path for you to be on, and a good religion. Obviously, if the things it teaches are "true," that makes it even better, but since it's impossible (IMO) for anyone to know for sure that his religion meets that qualification, then there are other things to be considered, too. So what do you think?
Everyone has their own unique path. That's what I think.
Sure, religions have benefits, but they are detrimental too. If we use truth as our objective yardstick, perhaps minimizing religion, would these horrible things have happened?
It's hard to say. They probably wouldn't, but how on earth do you think that "truth" might even be seen as an "objective yardstick"? We are, after all, speaking of "religious" or "spiritual" truths. Most of the horrible things that have happened in the name of religion are because people are at odds as to what the truth even is.
My whole point was to discuss whether a religion that may be flawed in a number of ways can still be a good thing in the life of its practitioners, or whether "truth" is the sole qualifying factor.
I'm rather sick of you. Other than that, I'm fine.
You received an answer that obviously offended you. Again, it isn't about YOU or how YOU feel of whether a religion should do something for us.
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I received a commentary, but it wasn't an answer to the question I asked.
The answer was direct to your question and answered head on. You just didn't like the answer so keep re-writing my answer to say what you want it to say.
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All you did was to label me as self-centered because I see any religion as having some value even if it errs in some of what it teaches.
I did not say "you were self centered because you see value in religion even if it contains errors"
You posted that.
I keep my spirituality pretty much private. One thing daddy always said (and he was a wise man) was...never discuss religion, politics or abortion. Two I don't talk about much. The middle one...well...guilty.
Whatever tickles the ear is what attracts people to any particular belief or religion. (Those were daddy's words too).
My path is a strange one. To briefly describe what tickles MY ear is...follow the best you can to the ten commandments although its impossible..but at least try; my path consists of paganism, christianty (Jesus and the Christian God without the christians, lol), pantheism and other names given to such faiths/beliefs.
You received an answer that obviously offended you. Again, it isn't about YOU or how YOU feel of whether a religion should do something for us. That's a false premis
The answer was direct to your question and answered head on. You just didn't like the answer so keep re-writing my answer to say what you want it to say.
I did not say "you were self centered because you see value in religion even if it contains errors"
You posted that. I posted an emphasis on seeking the truth then basing it on other factors which don't involve self and something you feel is owed to you
religion is about our direct and intimate relationship with the Creator.
of course the self is involved.
if you take your self out of it, there is no relationship.
how can you talk about marriage if you take yourself out of the relationship?
it is simply empty words if you are not involved at a deeply personal level.
if it's just a bunch of theory and words without personal involvement, there is no point.
if you distance yourself from the Creator, and you are not only distancing you are removing yourself entirely, then there is no relationship
Last edited by Tzaphkiel; 10-01-2017 at 10:38 PM..
How does religion gets in your way? What is it that you want to do and religion stops you from doing it?
It doesn't get in the way of my life whatsoever, but history proves it gets in the way of a lot of things (many wars religiously based).
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Non-denominational, my foot. That word is meaningless. It's just a word people use when they want to be part of an organized religion but can't decide which one.
