Agnostics... C'mon down off the fence!

[Buckalew11]

not to mention, there are innumerable Christians waiting for the next grilled cheese sandwich with the Virgin Mary's figure to show up so they have another reason to cry... 'miracle'.

Actually, most of us here look for Hidden Mickeys!

 

[MouseWorshipin]

Actually, most of us here look for Hidden Mickeys!

Yo-yo-yo, Sup, my peep? (I had the same thought. Great minds thinking alike!)

 

[goofygirl]

See I have a similar problem. I'd love to join a church for the social aspect. They church just down the street from me does some nice things and has some great people in it. But I'm an agnostic and really would feel like a hypocite going to church.

I guess I'd like to believe but I don't. My life, my values and my logic all lead to me not believing in God. On the other hand I have no proof for his nonexistence. So in the end I'm agnostic.

What denomination is the church down the street? Perhaps you can learn more about their faith and then decide whether or not to join.

 

[goofygirl]

Actually, most of us here look for Hidden Mickeys!

Those would be a sign from Walt, not God

 

[flatline]

Go to Beliefnet.com and take the Belief-O-Matic quiz! It tells you what religion suits you best!

I'm supposed to sign up with Unitarian Universalism.

 

[goofygirl]

I'm supposed to sign up with Unitarian Universalism.

I came up as UU too, followed by Buddhist, Quaker, Liberal Protestant (which I wound up joining), in the middle was Reform Judiasm and dead last was Roman Catholic!

 

[BillSears]

Double post.

 

[BillSears]

What denomination is the church down the street? Perhaps you can learn more about their faith and then decide whether or not to join.

They're The Episcopal Church of Christ the King. I don't really know too much about the Episcopal religion.

The biggest hurdle to joining them is this whole belief in God thing.

 

[flatline]

I came up as UU too, followed by Buddhist, Quaker, Liberal Protestant (which I wound up joining), in the middle was Reform Judiasm and dead last was Roman Catholic!

I'm going to start telling people I'm a Quaker. the name sounds kind of cool. my #2 was Nontheist. I guess I'm climbing back up on the fence.

 

[AllAboutPluto]

The biggest hurdle to joining them is this whole belief in God thing.

Amen to that... Oh, wrong thread

BillSears, is there are UU congregation near you? That's the place where the "agnostics looking for people to play church with" hang out.

I'm classifying myself as an agnostic atheist (so as to further muddy the waters) who believes less in a God that controls my destiny and more in a ME that controls my destiny. But I also believe in spirituality and that whole power of the universe type thing. Karma, Vibes, "The Force", prayer or the ever politcally correct, positive thoughts... that sort of thing. And I'm so not a hippie or flower child. God to me is simply the miracle that made all this possible, not the foreman of the shop.

I also believe that I am responsible for my own behavior *gasp* and that I do what I do because it is right and good, not because an omniscient diety will condemn me to the depths of hell if I fail to do what is right and good or reward me for doing what's right and good. Sounds a lot like what a parent does with a child to me.

May The Force be with you (and also with you.)(Oh, come on... You know that was your first thought!)

 

[va32h]

Well, I think you're right, but the question is, "how does one obtain faith?"

My sister asks me this all the time. We grew up in a household that believed in God, but not organized religion. "Organized religion is a tool of the powerful, to control the masses", was my dad's philosophy.

We never attended a church or Sunday school. The first time I read the actual Bible was in a college Humanities class.

Today I am a practicing Episcopalian (note to BillSears - try us, you might like us!).

I can't explain how I acquired my faith. At a certain point in my life (specifically, when I gave birth to my first child), I just felt it. My theory is that while we often talk about people who are "looking for God", it's really God who is looking for us. Looking for an opportunity to introduce Himself, and give us that faith. Or perhaps just eliminate the walls or door that are holding back that faith.

Either way, I don't think you can get faith just by wanting it, or being told to have it, or wishing you had it.

 

[flatline]

Either way, I don't think you can get faith just by wanting it, or being told to have it, or wishing you had it.

I agree, I think of it like a switch, it's either on or it's off. I don't think religion should be taught to anyone under the age of 18. teach them to be good people, but leave all of the nonsense out of it. when they're adults, they can begin to make their own decisions.

 

[DisFlan]

My #1 on the Belief-O-Matic scale was Secular Humanism. Sounds about right. As I read down the list, I kept expecting to see Neo-agnostic. There was Neo-everthing else.

May the force be sorta with you. Maybe.



DisFlan

 

[stemikger]

I still practice my religion, but deep down inside I don't believe everything I'm supposed to. However, I do like the spiritual aspect of believing in something and I find that going to church makes me feel good. In times of crisis I pray and it seems to give me an inner strength.

I personally believe in God, but I don't think that any one religion really knows the whole story. The problem I have with very religious people is that if you don't believe the way they want you to - they become very hypocrtical and that is where I find a problem with all religions.

I want to believe in a higher power that is all loving and never judges anyone, but I don't know for sure, it's all about faith. And the bottom line is, nobody knows for sure.

 

[flatline]

Fossils have nothing to do with faith. You can believe in God AND evolution.

so God created man in his own image by the biblical account. in that case, fossil records show that God is an invisible chimpanzee relative, living somewhere in the sky and judging all of us.

I know, the bible is just a metaphor when it happens to be convenient with your beliefs and teachings.

 

[DisFlan]

You can believe in God AND evolution.

I never could. To me, that's fence-straddling.


DisFlan

 

[MouseWorshipin]

I never could. To me, that's fence-straddling. DisFlan

DisFlan, is that the the dessert flan? Cause...yummmm.

It isn't fence straddling. God created the world (creation), here's how he did it (evolution). That's my religions viewpoint, like I said.

 

[MouseWorshipin]

so God created man in his own image by the biblical account. in that case, fossil records show that God is an invisible chimpanzee relative, living somewhere in the sky and judging all of us.

I know, the bible is just a metaphor when it happens to be convenient with your beliefs and teachings.

The Very Religious folks (well the mean ones, anyway) suggest that I'm not a good Christian, and some say I'm going to hell for my lack of bible-reading. And the Non-Relious folks (again, the nasty ones, not all) suggest that I'm some kind of bible-thumping loon. I cannot win around here. Now I'm going to give them both more ammo.

I don't think the bible is literal. Lots of it IS meataphor (and allegory), IMHO. They told us at the time the bible was written, everyone "got" what they were saying. It didn't have to spelled out. They knew what things like "so-and-so lived to be 800 years old" meant. All of literature is filled with it. Movies, too! Like Pulp Fiction, for example, with its theme of redemption.

When it says that man was created in God's image, I think it meant spiritually, not physically. But, again, I am no bible expert. Maybe one will show up who knows more.

And all good parents teach their child what they believe to be right. I have tried to make my kids good Catholics. DH (a giant agnostic, bordering on atheism...basically, a heathen! ) has dragged them out from under the bed so I could haul their whiny butts to church. Nothing wrong with teaching your children to follow what you believe to be the correct path. A good parent has to do that. If I, believeing what I do, didn't teach my children about God and his love and all that, I'd be lax as a parent.

If someone told you that you shouldn't teach your children to be honest or kind or generous or whatever, because they didn't believe in that, would you stop? I doubt it. And I wouldn't stop teaching my kids what I believe, just because someone else doesn't.

Everyone has to raise their own children. We all do our best.