What do you believe?

[scrivener]

Re: What do you believe?

I will not speak for agnostics but I do not believe atheism to be a matter of faith. Quite the opposite.

I think there is a difference between believing that there is no god and not believing in a god. The former IS a matter of faith, because you cannot prove that something does not exist; therefore, to be convinced there is no god requires some amount of faith. Simply not believing in a god is different; it means that the evidence for a god's existence is unconvincing, and therefore requires no faith.

[sinjin]

Re: What do you believe?

if you're agnostic or athiest, does your faith (cause it is--i mean, to believe that there is no god is a faith of sorts, and choosing not to believe one way or another until one or the other is proven is a sort of faith, too) cause you conflict, too?

I will not speak for agnostics but I do not believe atheism to be a matter of faith. Quite the opposite.

[alohabear]

Re: god help me...but gonna ask y'all anyway

I'd like to apologize for being a sanctimonious creep. *hork*

I belong to the LDS(inactive) church. I find it ironic that your name is a LDS slang for Jehovah's Witnesses, are you one?

[jdub]

Re: god help me...but gonna ask y'all anyway

Having grown up Catholic, I'll admit that I'm likely predisposed to read the above as confessions. Those questions of faith are so many in number and and so few in answer as to stagger it, the very mind that seeks an answer. Faith is a gift.

I'd like to apologize for being a sanctimonious creep. *hork*

[jdub]

Re: god help me...but gonna ask y'all anyway

Having grown up Catholic, I'll admit that I'm likely predisposed to read the above as confessions. Those questions of faith are so many in number and and so few in answer as to stagger it, the very mind that seeks an answer. Faith is a gift.

[1stwahine]

Re: god help me...but gonna ask y'all anyway

I believe in God the father. I believe that he sent his son Jesus to die on Calvary for our sins. From personal experiences, I believe there is a heaven and a hell. I see Angels. Many Angels. I do not attend church as often as I want to because I do not want to be a hypocrite. I pray to the God I believe in every chance I get and I give him the honor and praise in everything I do. It is only by his grace that I live and continue to accomplish what he has chosen for me to do in Life.

This is what I BELIEVE.

Auntie Lynn

[cynsaligia]

i didn't see this covered elsewhere, at least not in this same manner. hopefully, i'm posting in the right place and am not repeating anything that has been done before, at least to the unhappiness of the members of this community.

since joining HT, i've noted with interest what people say about god/goddess/gods/goddesses/religion/organized religion/spirituality/the bible and for better or worse, i wanna ask y'all:

what do you believe?

do you participate in some sort of organized religion?

does whatever faith you practice sometimes cause internal conflict for you?

if you're agnostic or athiest, does your faith (cause it is--i mean, to believe that there is no god is a faith of sorts, and choosing not to believe one way or another until one or the other is proven is a sort of faith, too) cause you conflict, too?

do you think there is only ONE god? if so, how is s/he/it represented in your mind? nevermind the images you see in art or media or church or wherever--how you conceive of your supreme being(s)?

what do you think of holy books like the bible or torah or the koran?

i mean no disrespect and i hope this doesn't open a bitter hellfire of conflict amongst us; i'm just curious. after reading "velvet elvis" by rob bell (i described it a bit in the "what are you reading" thread), i've been thinking a lot about faith. i figure that in exploring my own concepts, i should be open to hearing what others believe, too.

i'll say a lil bit about myself and what i believe: i sometimes call myself an unorthodox catholic. i believe in women's reproductive rights. i would love to have female priests, and allow all priests to marry. i find solace in the ceremony of catholic mass, and seeing nuns and priests walking around town makes me happy. i grew up going to our lady of peace every sunday with my mom and mama (grandma). i don't go to mass much, but i'll pop into a cathedral or chapel and say prayers at least a few times a month. for a couple of years, i went to honpa hongwanji mission school and i attended temple, which i was sorta conflicted about but not enough to stop going. i then went to an episcopalian college prep school (some of you already know which one) and going to chapel once a week was good for me, even tho it wasn't a catholic church.

i don't think i could marry someone who believed in god and had at least some christian leanings (eric's dad was buddhist; his mom was raised catholic. for reasons i won't get into here, eric is angry at the church. no, he wasn't molested by a priest or anything like that). i'd like any children i have to be baptized in the christian faith when they're still wee but i don't think i'd despair too much what religion they were as long as they were spiritual and good to their fellow men/women.

oh, and i found russell wong as an angel in the "prophecy" film series a disturbingly guilty yet tasty thing.

i hope someone replies to this! i'm really interested to see what everyone says!