Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Religion Extinctions - Coming? Is there a trend where you live?

Here's the thing I just can't get my head around.

People say that faith in a Christian God - is a gift. I guess I was missed when that particular gift was handed out. I have found my faith - but it isn't in the faith of my ancestors.

I was raised in a Christian family. My Dad was schooled to be a Lutheran Minister - although he eventually chose another career after his schooling. My Mother was Methodist. I was raised in the United Church of Canada. My parents were wonderful people and we lived rich prayer filled lives. I even taught the teen youth group in church when I first moved out of my home. Familiar themes gave me a kind of security far from home.

But - I couldn't get the logical part of my brain to stop the questions. My brain needed logical answers. I always had the questions no one wanted to answer. I was told to rely on my faith. In my case, after over three decades, there was very little faith left.

I teach comparative religion to Gr.8 kids as a part of the prescribed curriculum. The more I learned about other faiths - the harder it became to believe my own Christian faith had all the answers to the exclusion of other faiths. I used to bring in guest speakers from different faiths to enlighten my students as to their own beliefs. I also was struck by the certainty that every non-Christian knew their own faith to be the one true one. That was the same with all of them. Except maybe the Buddhist lecturer - his branch of Buddhism was more a life philosophy than a religion - he said belief in God was optional. But other than him - every person of other faiths absolutely knew the other faiths were wrong - and theirs was right.

Personally I found myself doubting the idea of one faith being the only true one. I also couldn't wrap my head around the teachings of a loving God that put children in places where they could only be Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, Sikhs, animists or whatever. - so he could torture them in a lake of fire - forever - after they died. It made no sense.

So, still wanting to believe (against ever observation of nature) that I might be able to see people I loved after their deaths - and get to live on forever myself - because I do love every minute of the life I live - I became generically "spiritual". A theist, or deist. I wanted to believe in a generic God that could love all children - regardless of what their parents told them to believe - and regardless of where they were born on this earth.

Then, eventually I became an agnostic. I couldn't believe - but I wasn't capable of taking the next step - disbelief. So, I put the whole religious thing out of my mind - and contented myself with the thought that I'd just put all of my efforts into living the best earthly life I could live - and not worry about death - and what might happen after.

Eventually that didn't work either. I'm not one to not have a position. I took the biggest step - and took a position. I became an atheist. I accepted the lack of a God or gods. I also got rid of the idea that there is a devil, demons, angels, spirits and ghosts. My world started to make sense - to me. The more atheists I met (and many aren't at ease with "coming out") the more I came to identify with those kinds of people. The one thing I noticed with the ones I met was that, as a group, they were very good moral people who had come to their beliefs with much struggle, introspection, study and thought. None seemed to enter atheism lightly.

But there was a problem. Atheism only told me what what I wasn't. It defined me - by what I didn't believe in. It's been said that atheism is a religion. If that's true - not collecting stamps - is a hobby.

Atheism defined me - by what I didn't believe in.

But nothing truly defined what I did believe in.

That is, until my search lead me to Scientific Pantheism.

I had always believed I was part of the Universe. I always believed I was part of Nature. I was always in awe of the power of both of those things. I had a love for the earth that could only be described as thinking of it as a sacred place. I believe I am made out of the same matter and energy as the earth - and of the universe. I look at the earth and the universe with humility, awe, reverence and celebration. I have have have come from it, I am part of it, I will always be a part of it - even when my present form is changed.

I revere and love nature. With the same level of commitment to it that others find in relics, buildings, altars and sacraments. I was never fully comfortable in church. I am my most comfortable out in nature - in wild places. Close to the natural earth. It is there that I find answers to my questions and a sense of peace that can only be described as spiritual.

Life is not a path to somewhere else.

Life is the destination.

And so - I am an atheist. It does describe what I don't believe in.

But more importantly - I am a Scientific Pantheist. That philosophy fully describes what I do believe in.

My earthy faith struggles that dogged me since childhood are over now. I have no more doubts. I have arrived at a faith that fills me perfectly. It answers all of my questions. It defines my place in the universe. It brings me total peace. Total peace.

To those who find that in their present faith - I am happy for you.

I hope that people with other beliefs can understand the total peace and contentment that I find in my own faith - and allow me to share it with the same certainty and contentment that their own faith might bring them.

I have never been so content in my own beliefs - as I am now.

I am guilty of trying to spread my faith - as most believers do - from time to time. Just as when others try an convince me of their beliefs - I can't help but respond in kind.

I accept the motives of people of faith who try and share their own beliefs with me. I hope people can come to believe my own motives are the same.

When you find a belief system that totally sums up every thought within you - and answers all of your questions - you have found something precious.I have found that faith.

Here's the thing I just can't get my head around.

People say that faith in a Christian God - is a gift. I guess I was missed when that particular gift was handed out. I have found my faith - but it isn't in the faith of my ancestors.

I was raised in a Christian family. My Dad was schooled to be a Lutheran Minister - although he eventually chose another career after his schooling. My Mother was Methodist. I was raised in the United Church of Canada. My parents were wonderful people and we lived rich prayer filled lives. I even taught the teen youth group for years in church when I first moved out of my home. Familiar themes gave me a kind of security far from home.

But - I couldn't get the logical part of my brain to stop the questions. My brain needed logical answers. I always seemed to think about questions no one in church wanted to answer. I was told in times like that - to rely on my faith. In my case, after over three decades, I found there was very little of that kind of faith left.

I teach comparative religion to Gr.8 kids as a part of the prescribed curriculum. The more I learned about other faiths - the harder it became to believe my own Christian faith had all the answers to the exclusion of other faiths. I used to bring in guest speakers from different faiths to enlighten my students as to their own beliefs. I also was struck by the certainty that every non-Christian knew their own faith to be the one true one.

That was the same with all of them. Except maybe the Buddhist lecturer - his branch of Buddhism was more a life philosophy than a religion - he said belief in God was optional. But other than him - every person of other faiths absolutely knew the other faiths were wrong - and that theirs was right.

Personally I found myself doubting the idea of one faith being the only true one. I also couldn't wrap my head around the teachings of a loving God that put children in places where they could only be Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, Sikhs, animists or whatever. - so he could torture them in a lake of fire - forever - after they died. It made no sense.

So, still wanting to believe (against all observations of nature) that I might be able to see people I loved after their deaths - and get to live on forever myself.I loved that idea - because I do love every minute of the life I live - I became generically "spiritual". A theist, or deist. I wanted to believe in a generic God that could love all children - regardless of what their parents told them to believe - and regardless of where they were born on this earth.

Then, eventually I became an agnostic. I couldn't believe - but I wasn't capable of taking the next step - total disbelief either. So, I put the whole religious thing out of my mind - and contented myself with the thought that I'd just put all of my efforts into living the best earthly life I could live - and not worry about death - and what might happen after.

Eventually that didn't work either. I'm not one to not have a position. I took the biggest step - and took a position. I became an atheist. I accepted the lack of a God or gods. I also got rid of the idea that there is a devil, demons, angels, spirits and ghosts.

My world started to make sense - to me. The more atheists I met (and many aren't at ease with "coming out" at least to believers) the more I came to identify with those kinds of people. The one thing I noticed with the ones that I met was that, as a group, they were very good moral people who had come to their beliefs with much struggle, introspection, study and thought. None seemed to enter atheism lightly.

But there was a problem. Atheism only told me what what I wasn't. It defined me - by what I didn't believe in. It's been said that atheism is a religion. If that's true - not collecting stamps - is a hobby.

Atheism defined me - by what I didn't believe in.

But nothing truly defined what I did believe in.

That is, until my search lead me to Scientific Pantheism.

I had always believed I was part of the Universe. I have always believed that I was part of Nature. I have always been in awe of the power of both of those things. I had a love for the earth that could only be described as thinking of it as a sacred place. I believe I am made out of the same matter and energy as the earth - and of the universe. I look at the earth and the universe with humility, awe, reverence and celebration. I have have have come from it, I am part of it, I will always be a part of it - even when my present form is changed.

I revere and love nature. With the same level of commitment to it that others find in relics, buildings, altars, prayer and sacraments. I was never fully comfortable in church. I am my most comfortable out in nature - in wild places. Close to the natural earth. It is there that I find answers to my questions and a sense of peace that can only be described as spiritual.

Life is not a path to somewhere else.

Life is the destination.

And so - I am an atheist. It does describe what I don't believe in.

But more importantly - I am a Scientific Pantheist. That philosophy fully describes what I do believe in.

My earthy faith struggles that dogged me since childhood are over now. I have no more doubts. I have arrived at a faith that fills me perfectly. It answers all of my questions. It defines my place in the universe. It brings me total peace. Total peace.

To those who find that in their present faith - I am happy for you.

I hope that people with other beliefs can understand the total peace and contentment that I find in my own faith - and allow me to share it with the same certainty and contentment that their own faith might bring them.

I have never been so content in my own beliefs - as I am now.

I am guilty of trying to spread my faith - as most believers do - from time to time. Just as when others try an convince me of their beliefs - I can't help but respond in kind.

I accept the motives of people of faith who try and share their own beliefs with me. I hope people can come to believe my own motives are the same.

When you find a belief system that totally sums up every thought within you - and answers all of your questions - you have found something precious.

I have found that faith.

What I find funny is these atheists always have to start threads against religion......

I have yet to find a religious person starting a thread about atheism...

Seems like there is an agenda....

Ricky, he speaks of the Roman Catholic church.

Catholic simply means, right, correct, etc.

Demanding loyalty is a human not godly trait.

I love it when Christians tell me - with certainty - about my life. It's part of the reason it didn't work for me. It's that arrogance.

If someone started a religion that required you to give up your possesions, worship a god without question and drink human blood and eat human flesh once a week so you could live forever. would that be considered a cult?