Anyone non-religious here? Please be nice!

[redux]

I consider myself spiritual, not religious. I believe that God created man, and man created religion to help explain God.

Is there anyone else who believes in a creator, but not a religion?

And please, those of you who hold your religions dear, do not debate them here. I respect your beliefs. I have no intent to denigrate anyone's beliefs.

I just have the personal opinion that God spoke to mankind and different people interpreted it in different ways. That is why I think all the contradictory religions are equally valid. I find it impossible to believe in a God that would single out one small group for salvation and burn the rest of the population in hell.

Any thoughts?

 

[DuckLady]

This thread is posted with permission.

Trolling will not be tolerated. If this subject doesn't float your boat, walk away silently.

Be civil and follow all rules of BYC.

 

[redux]

Like I said, this thread is for the non religous. Not for the religous who want to stir up trouble.

Thanks.

 

[SilverPhoenix]

I was hoping for a thread like this! I've toyed with the idea of creating one, but after creating the vegetarian thread I wasn't sure I wanted to make any more topics that might stir the pot.

I consider myself agnostic. I would say atheist, but I don't believe in sealing off the possibility of their being some deity out there entirely, so agnostic works for me. I am spiritual in a way, though--I believe in perhaps a collective unconscious (which perhaps in a way could be considered a form of God), so to speak, I believe that all living things have some sort of "soul" or life force, and sometimes I consider reincarnation as far as answering the question of "What happens when we die?" I've had some paranormal things happen in my lifetime, too, so it's not like I'm just a totally sealed-off person as far as non-scientific beliefs go. I think there's a lot out there that humanity doesn't understand yet. I'm just not into established religion for a wide variety of reasons, and prefer to seek my own truths.

I've got to say, I enjoy being non-religious. It allows me to explore my own ideas of morality based off what I observe in the world, and I can then set my own boundaries for myself. A lot of people will (oddly enough) question how non-religious people form and maintain morality, but I think there's something beautiful about morality for morality's sake--not doing bad things simply because I feel they're wrong and I don't want to do harm, not because I worry about being punished for them.

Thank you for starting this thread--I look forward to seeing where it goes, and seeing who else here doesn't consider themselves religious.

 

[Eggstra New]

Quote:
You couldn't have written it more perfectly. I've always tried to say this, but never gotten it down in the right words. Thanks.

 

[redux]

Thank you!! I am glad that I am not alone.


To me, morality is based on respect. Respect for one's self, one's fellows, animals, the planet, etc. We all stumble at times, religious or not; but I think people instinctively need a code to live by; whether it is imposed from within, or externally motivated.

Many of my friends are religious, and we find that on many issues, we think the same. On some we differ, but always, always, respect each other's views.

I find learning about different religions interesting. My best friend is Christian and her husband is Muslim and they celebrate religious holidays on both sides.

Her son gets gifts from Santa and Babu Noo Rooz.

Like you, though, I prefer to explore my own truths.

 

[PotterWatch]

Though I am Jewish, my husband is not. He doesn't identify with any one religion but does believe that there is probably a higher power of some sort. We both agree that all religions are trying to tell the same basic story, just in different ways and that they can all be just as vaild. My husband is fond of saying "I don't care if you think a milk carton is God. As long as it motivates you to be a good person, that is all that matters."

 

[babylady4]

This is why on my facebook it states "Spiritual Fruit".

I have been burned by too many organized churches with their rules and regulations, and their whacked-out interpetations of the bible..... maybe there is someplace out there for my family to attend services but for now I am content with what I am doing.

I am NOT going to abandon my friends and family because somebody preaches to me I should due to their 'sinning' ways.

 

[redux]

I agree with you babylady

 

[SilverPhoenix]

Quote:
That's a wonderful way of putting it! I agree, we're all searching for our own ways to become better people, and whatever helps us on that path is a beautiful thing. (So long as we respect others as well, and so on.)

And redux, I agree with you in regards to morals. If we don't have some form of morality, how would we determine our actions, and what's objectionable or all right? It would get confusing awfully fast without some form of ideas as to what is moral/immoral. Most everyone needs to have some sort of "system" to live by, be it established already or formed from their own perspectives.

I love finding out all about different religions, too! I find them all so interesting, even though I don't "buy into" them. It's just so fascinating hearing about what people believe and why. Many of the stories are really interesting from even just a mythological perspective, or a storytelling perspective.