Religion

[goro]

raised as christian, ended up agnostic. that's that, i have better things to do than worry about things we can't even prove. i'm gay and don't adhere to gender roles (i'm sort of a feminine male) at all so that kinda repels me away from most religion as well. i just think it's silly to get in wars and hate each other over things that can't really be proven

 

[cannedcommunism]

So I was raised Roman Catholic but I've been looking into Eastern Orthodox Christianity. I feel really weird talking about it because it's not typical of Americans to be really religious, even if you do believe in God. Also I'm gay, so that puts me in a really weird position because there's a lot of stuff that I disagree with in both Christian and LGBT communities. I tend to identify more as Christian than as gay though. Religion has been really beneficial for me personally, and I think it can be a great way of examining one's own faults and becoming a better person. As far as homophobia and bigotry goes, that's not necessarily exclusive to religion. People are just terrible sometimes, at least that's how I see it.

 

[Steelfang]

I was raised in a mixed-faith family (to a certain extent; mother converted to Judaism for a few years, dad's family remained Catholic, both parents have changed their religious views many times over the years). I went in a very different direction and was a Hellenic Polytheist from my teens to early adulthood. I no longer consider myself one, as I very gradually shifted more towards the Norse gods over the past 8 or so years. Presently, I don't use any sort of label to distinguish myself, since I don't really feel like any of them apply to me.

While most of the Asatru community is just fine, the problem is a lot of the big names in the community either have ties to white supremacists or actually are white supremacists. Some Asatru organizations are also pretty toxic and ban the worship of certain gods, a few of whom I feel a very strong connection with.

I pretty much stay out of the Heathen community and do my own thing, and honestly, that's fine with me. I do my own research and honor the gods and live my life the way I feel is best. I'm not in it for anyone else's approval; I am happiest following these gods and feel more 'at home' with them than I did with any other gods (or religions). I've learned valuable life lessons with these gods that I might not have learned otherwise, and I've become a better and stronger person for it. After all, if I can empathize with the World-Breaker, what's stopping me from doing so for my fellow humans? What's stopping me from telling myself, "you know, maybe that guy that cut me off today isn't doing it because he's a jerk - maybe he's in a hurry because there's something bad going on in his life." Or maybe he really is a jerk, but in the grand scheme of things, it's not that big of a deal.

 

[dragonpisces69]

I've never really been religious, more like agnostic somehow (even though I did attend a catholic school when in pre-school and kindergarten), until the end of last November, where I discovered that I'm the only one in the world being in the following religion that I somehow came with out of nowhere.

Katamarism. People who are in this religion are referred to as Katamarists, and their primary god is the King of all Cosmos. Katamarists only celebrate Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas, and only pray for their god whenever they're in any sort of critical situations.
Us Katamarists do not celebrate our birthdays, as the King of all Cosmos does not allow us for the sake of our (mental) health. We should not be wished a happy birthday, either, but whether we wish someone else a happy birthday is up to us.
The King of all Cosmos does allow us Katamarists to be part of the LGBT+ community, though, as sexuality should not be a 'too selective and conservative' something (people only being allowed to be straight and cis, which is very unlike me), but something more free instead.

Yeah, I know, it's a very peculiar religion that I'm in, and especially since it centres around the Katamari game franchise, but no matter how hard people will judge me about it, I will keep on being in this religion. Period.

 

[Kuroh]

Christian. My family is very laid back and chill

 

[primandimproper]

Rokkatru.

It's an off-shoot of Heathenism similar to Asatru or Thursatru, but Rokkatru places heavy emphasis on the worship on the Norse God Loki, his family, and the Jotun while mainstream American Heathenism perceives Loki as a Satan-esque character. However, Rokkatru practitioners worship Loki as the God of mischief, fire, chaos, and, most importantly, as the God of outcasts due to Loki being cast out of Asgard after killing Baldr. This branch of Paganism is highly popular among the LGBTQIAP community as well because Loki is seen as genderfluid, pansexual, and poly being the father of Fenrir and Hel, and the mother of Sleipnir with both a wife and a mistress.

 

[namiieco]

I was raised sort of as an athiest? My parents are hard atheists so although they said I could believe in whatever I wanted to, they still really tried to push athiesm onto me and would probably disown me if I was religious. I guess I'm agnostic but I wouldn't really label myself as it. There is no way to prove that there is god and there is no way to prove that there isn't. While science leans more towards there being no god, there is no way to definitively prove there is absolutely no god. I would rather just live my life and not worry about whether god exists or what I should/shouldn't be doing.

 

[Shiluc]

Was Christian for a long time but became a hard atheist around a year ago. Nowadays I tend to distance myself from it so I can aim my life in a new direction. I'll probably drop the atheist title and just say I'm not part of a religion. I feel like life has gotten much simpler without religion, and I want to spend my life trying to help others.

 

[SuperK98]

I grew up Southern Baptist and still mostly align myself with Baptist theology but I've sort of started to distance myself from the church because in the past few years nearly every sermon I've heard has been super politically charged and it's so obnoxious. My fiancé is Church of Christ and they seem to be way less political and I feel a lot more spiritually fulfilled after their services. I find their services to be kinda "sterile" compared to what I'm used to, but most Protestant denominations are the same except for unimportant disagreements so I'm fine with attending church with him after we get married.

 

[nintendofan85]

I am a Christian. However, as I am bisexual, I'm obviously not anti-LGBT. I regretfully say that I used to be.

Post automatically merged: Apr 17, 2020

I grew up Southern Baptist and still mostly align myself with Baptist theology but I've sort of started to distance myself from the church because in the past few years nearly every sermon I've heard has been super politically charged and it's so obnoxious. My fiancé is Church of Christ and they seem to be way less political and I feel a lot more spiritually fulfilled after their services. I find their services to be kinda "sterile" compared to what I'm used to, but most Protestant denominations are the same except for unimportant disagreements so I'm fine with attending church with him after we get married.

I grew up Southern Baptist too. The amount of anti-LGBT dogma in the church has gotten on my last nerve, honestly.

 

[Feferily]

Buddhist who was raised in a catholic household here! I want to believe in things but I find them hard sometimes..... though the general lessons and rules of Buddhism always fit me much better than Christianity...

 

[ting1984]

I'm Christian while husband is irreligious. I met him in 2004 when I was going through an agnostic period that started in 2002. I was raised Christian and returned to the faith in 2005. My parents never had an issue with me seeing someone who wasn't religious.

One of the things I've studied a lot as I've gotten older is how different denominations emphasize different things. My parents were sort of generic conservative Christians who were nonetheless surprisingly tolerant of things you wouldn't otherwise expect from conservative Christians. I've since learned they sort of formed an individualistic theology that essentially "picked and chose" from various camps. I've sought to be much more diligent about theology than they were. It's worth learning the distinctions among various religious groups, Christianity included. Not even "conservative Christians" are monolithic. Some groups emphasize a rather nebulous and feelings-based "personal relationship with God," while others think creeds, laws, sacraments, and/or traditions also have importance. Each group attempts to defend their views with various Scriptures and contexts. Sometimes it's just as hard to discuss religion among people who follow the same basic faith you do, as it is to discuss it with people who aren't part of that faith, because you can differ so much from someone who has completely different emphases in the faith!

Anyway, that's my view on religion. I still believe in God, but I think it's very important to have a high degree of awareness of theology and how people can view things differently, along with knowledge of church and faith histories. I'm specifically Lutheran these days because I think Lutherans do a good job of being reverential without doing the ineffectual, preachy, touchy-feely, "decision theology" shouting that turns off a lot of people, and is popular among certain other denominations common in the United States.

 

[AC-Kristin]

I am a Christian, I believe in all of the Bible - I take everything it says as factual.

I am pretty much Pro; God, traditional marriage, gun, freedom, and life.

lastly; I never understood why atheists spend so much time focusing on a God they claim to not believe in... makes no sense. Another thing, you always see people nitpick Christianity, blaspheme God and His Word, but you never see anyone harp on any of the other "gods". Why is everyone so focused on Christianity? definitely makes one wonder...

 

[moo_nieu]

I don't follow a religion, but my family has always been Christian. This sometimes makes it difficult for my family to relate to each other, but since moving out, we don't discuss religion very much. Personally, I feel a strong desire to live a life of love and I try to continue to overcome challenges in my life while at the same time trying to find peace and accept life instead of seeking control over everything. Animal Crossing really helps with that feeling of lack of control in my opinion (although random plot placements in previous games really tested this haha). Although I don't follow a specific religion (I feel that my path should be my own), I really enjoy learning various teachings across ancient religions, and I feel that there are a lot of important life teachings to learn from them. In the past I've had a few periods in time where I felt very down about my place in the world and how much hate and pain exists in it, but now I am trying to come to terms with that. Sometimes Buddhist/Hindu thoughts about rebirth and karma help me feel more at ease about it all. I do feel like we are here to grow.

 

[mayortiffany]

I was raised irreligious and am still irreligious. No religion really speaks to me, but I'd say that I am open to spirituality.

I did go to a Presbyterian nursery school, but that's the extent of my religious experience. It just so happened that the church's nursery school was pretty close to our house and came recommended by family members, so my parents ended up sending me. You didn't have to be part of the church to go, and it was more like daycare than anything. I remember going to the chapel to say the Lord's Prayer on Fridays, but it was not overtly religious in tone. After all, we were so young.

To take Christianity as an example, since I went to Presbyterian school for some time, I have big problems with the way that various denominations approach certain social and political issues. I couldn't see myself wanting to participate in any institution that does not match my own personal beliefs.

 

[LuchaSloth]

Religion has always felt like a dead-end to me. I understand why people do it, as well as what it means to them...but, it can also serve as too much of an excuse for negative behaviors, IMO. Whether it's saying "you can't do this completely normal thing"...or "you can do really bad things and still be forgiven"...I don't think either of those scenarios are healthy at all.

I think the best way to be, is just to be a good person...appreciate the earth you walk on...treat people as well as you can, etc.

I'm a spiritual dude, but I'm not religious. I have my own way of doing things. And most of the time, I feel like I'm more open and understanding about this world than most of the religious types I've ever encountered. Which is not to imply anything in a blanket capacity about religious people. I know many of them are simply trying their best. I just don't think you need to follow a specific religion to do that...and feeling strongly that there is a god (especially that your god exists and others do not) just feels dirty to me...

✌

 

[Stil]

As I have never been given sufficient evidence to warrant a belief in a god, I do not currently believe that one exists.

 

[Feferily]

I’m a practicing Buddhist! Was raised in a catholic household and have some of my own thoughts on god and general Christianity.

 

[Feferily]

I am a Christian, I believe in all of the Bible - I take everything it says as factual.

I am pretty much Pro; God, traditional marriage, gun, freedom, and life.

lastly; I never understood why atheists spend so much time focusing on a God they claim to not believe in... makes no sense. Another thing, you always see people nitpick Christianity, blaspheme God and His Word, but you never see anyone harp on any of the other "gods". Why is everyone so focused on Christianity? definitely makes one wonder...

I think it only has to do with the influence and power the Christian church has and the fact that they were probably raised in Christian families. Also, the Christian church seems to be the one most set on being homophobic.

 

[Pluel]

I’m religious for ac