What are your religious beliefs?

[Mosasauria]

Why?

It's nice to see that the agruments we make occasionally cause people to question their beliefs. Gives us a sense of progress.

Actually, your arguments only progressed me to Deism.
I asked myself personal questions, the results of which convinced me I was an agnostic atheist.

[The Halbetan Union]

Why?

It's nice to see that the agruments we make occasionally cause people to question their beliefs. Gives us a sense of progress.

Your arguments have convinced me there must be a god, if that helps you at all.

[Mosasauria]

It's nice to see that the agruments we make occasionally cause people to question their beliefs. Gives us a sense of progress.

Your arguments have convinced me there must be a god, if that helps you at all.

Ssssshhhh!!!
Don't say the g-word in front of Seperates!

[Seperates]

It's nice to see that the agruments we make occasionally cause people to question their beliefs. Gives us a sense of progress.

Your arguments have convinced me there must be a god, if that helps you at all.

Good for you. You're not thinking. If there really was a God he probebly would have struck me down already. But that's right... he doesn't give a crap really, does he?

[Seperates]

It's nice to see that the agruments we make occasionally cause people to question their beliefs. Gives us a sense of progress.

Actually, your arguments only progressed me to Deism.
I asked myself personal questions, the results of which convinced me I was an agnostic atheist.

I can only get you to deism. The rest you must do yourself.

[Seperates]

Your arguments have convinced me there must be a god, if that helps you at all.

Ssssshhhh!!!
Don't say the g-word in front of Seperates!

Don't worry... I won't rip him a new one... yet...

[The Merchant Republics]

Sorry I wasn't clear. What I mean to say is that Hinduism to my understanding takes the long view of Karma. You can be for instance because you lived a virtuous previous life be born a king and then from their live a wicked life in luxury but by doing so your next life will be far worse. The Hindu concept of karmic punishment is too long acting for my own tastes. Perhaps it's just that I think that life ought to be a one-shot thing. Rather than a constant cycle headed towards reattaining oneness.

Again, I suppose it's a matter of taste, I'm sure many people would prefer the idea those who inadvertently fell to evil be given another chance.

... I'm not sure what the problem is. Is it so hard to be a virtuous king?

Not really. I don't believe in a collective oneness, either. I changed religion to match what I thought from the beginning.[/quote]

No problem, I'm just over-thinking it.

I done much the same thing as you, though I don't like to think I changed anything, reinterpretation perhaps. Though it's more like a revaluation in my case. My views on hell are pretty much the only difference I have with most Churches. And outside of that it's mostly my placing more value on personal excellence than proselyting. Because I personally view personal excellence as the best form of proselytizing and because I really hate when any fellow Christians act preachy.

[The Halbetan Union]

Your arguments have convinced me there must be a god, if that helps you at all.

Good for you. You're not thinking. If there really was a God he probebly would have struck me down already. But that's right... he doesn't give a crap really, does he?

God loves you as you are, there's no need for him to strike you down.

[The Rich Port]

No problem, I'm just over-thinking it.

I done much the same thing as you, though I don't like to think I changed anything, reinterpretation perhaps. Though it's more like a revaluation in my case. My views on hell are pretty much the only difference I have with most Churches. And outside of that it's mostly my placing more value on personal excellence than proselyting. Because I personally view personal excellence as the best form of proselytizing and because I really hate when any fellow Christians act preachy.

Okie-dokie.

Ah, preach by example, eh? Elaborate further, plox. Paint me a picture of your beliefs.

[Seperates]

Good for you. You're not thinking. If there really was a God he probebly would have struck me down already. But that's right... he doesn't give a crap really, does he?

God loves you as you are, there's no need for him to strike you down.

Yup, he loves me so much he made me my own little place in hell. How thoughtful of him.

[Ceannairceach]

Good for you. You're not thinking. If there really was a God he probebly would have struck me down already. But that's right... he doesn't give a crap really, does he?

God loves you as you are, there's no need for him to strike you down.

Unless you're gay, Muslim, Hindu, Animist, transgendered, Hindi, not-a-specific-brand-of-Christian, atheist... Et al.

[Seperates]

God loves you as you are, there's no need for him to strike you down.

Unless you're gay, Muslim, Hindu, Animist, transgendered, Hindi, not-a-specific-brand-of-Christian, atheist... Et al.

[The Halbetan Union]

God loves you as you are, there's no need for him to strike you down.

Yup, he loves me so much he made me my own little place in hell. How thoughtful of him.

There is no hell, there is no damnation. God doesn't condemn his children, you'll return to him in your own time.

[The Rich Port]

Yup, he loves me so much he made me my own little place in hell. How thoughtful of him.

There is no hell, there is no damnation. God doesn't condemn his children, you'll return to him in your own time.

Now then, try explaining that to your fellow Christians.

[Free Soviets]

If you want an even more accurate answer, then I'm Baptist.

this reminds me...do you guys know why there are 'southern baptists'? slavery. see, the baptists in the south didn't like the fact that their northern co-religionists thought slavery was wrong. so they invented their own religion that said slavery was good.

(this has been another edition of the 150th anniversary of the civil war: fuck the south)

[Ceannairceach]

Yup, he loves me so much he made me my own little place in hell. How thoughtful of him.

There is no hell, there is no damnation. God doesn't condemn his children, you'll return to him in your own time.

Because the Bible is totally not full of fire and brimstone.

[Syvorji]

In a sense, Kimilsungism, and to an extent, Kimjongilism.

[Seperates]

Yup, he loves me so much he made me my own little place in hell. How thoughtful of him.

There is no hell, there is no damnation. God doesn't condemn his children, you'll return to him in your own time.

Really? Jesus says there is.

But even if you truely believe that, God is a terrible person for loving everyone... I for one condemn the pedophiles and rapists. Guess I have a better moral compass than God himself.

[The Halbetan Union]

There is no hell, there is no damnation. God doesn't condemn his children, you'll return to him in your own time.

Now then, try explaining that to your fellow Christians.

I did, and was rejected time and time again; and in some cases was called a liar and a blasphemer. My own philosophies and belief in God were stifled early, and died of asphyxiation; though I guess I should be grateful, since this rejection moved me away from religion entirely. I guess I only wish that a fair chance had been given me. Meh.

[The Halbetan Union]

There is no hell, there is no damnation. God doesn't condemn his children, you'll return to him in your own time.

Really? Jesus says there is.

But even if you truely believe that, God is a terrible person for loving everyone... I for one condemn the pedophiles and rapists. Guess I have a better moral compass than God himself.

When I was a believer, and even now; I think all people have intrinsic worth regardless of their failures, shortcomings or wrong doings. They deserve our pity more so than our scorn.

[Severra]

Maybe you do not know, Pacis, but Christianity is not a religion. It can be used used to generalize about a grups of different goups that separated of their religion (also called
Christianity, but more on that later), because they disagreed with it, so the went and created their own religion, with the same name.
Now the root of all (or most, at least) Christian groups is called Roman Catholicism. It changed names so people could diferentiate it from the other groups.

And you might want to add it as an option in your poll, just to be nice

[Seperates]

Really? Jesus says there is.

But even if you truely believe that, God is a terrible person for loving everyone... I for one condemn the pedophiles and rapists. Guess I have a better moral compass than God himself.

When I was a believer, and even now; I think all people have intrinsic worth regardless of their failures, shortcomings or wrong doings. They deserve our pity more so than our scorn.

I cannot believe you can say that with a straight face. Life does not have much intrinsic worth. It is easy to make life. But what value you have can be risen or degraded, based on the actions that you do throughout your life. And to pretend that it is otherwise degrades what little value we are born with into dust. It is the same as original sin...

[Shadow25]

Muslim

[Furious Grandmothers]

I came to a sudden realization over dinner. What are the religions that do not place humans on a high pedestal over other animals, plants and organisms? Alternatively, religions whereby humans may be reincarnated into other organism? This is because many simple organisms, especially unicellular ones that reproduce by mitosis, do not actually age and therefore, cannot die of aging. So once you are reincarnated as that form, you are stuck there, forever.

However, I linked this to a rather popular scientific hypothesis that death evolved as a way to prevent some harmful mutations that can occur with too many cell divisions. To put it simply, complex enough organisms that do not die would have their cells divide to the extent that enough mutations occur to lead to the organisms being less fit to survive as compared to organisms which die but accumulate less harmful mutations over their lifetimes to be fit enough to outcompete the "immortal" but unfit organisms. "Immortal" in the sense that one cannot die of aging.

Therefore, I was thinking that IF humans happened to mutate and regress to being immortal, since natural deaths cannot occur, would it be that the concept of afterlife becomes irrelevant? What becomes of the various beliefs of world religions, then?

Also, I was thinking of another point more important than what I mentioned in the third paragraph above. But it was a bit of a mindfuck for me, so I lost the train of thought while typing this verbose post, hopefully I will recall it soon. Obviously, also to do with religion.

[Speranzia]

Roman Catholic by practice and tradition, but I vary in my faith. Most of my moral outlines and my deepest held beliefs, however, are from the New Testament. Loving those around you - your neighbors, your family, your friends, your enemies, yourself, and God included - is the most important thing, though, and what all my beliefs hinge on.