I've spent most of my life, from the time I was about 15 or 16, looking for that place where I feel like I "belong" for lack of a better word. This meaning that: A: I agree with and practice the belief B: I felt included, welcomed and supported C: I was not judged by my past choices, current choices or future choices...but on the actions I followed after the choices were made.

To this point in time I havn't found anything that fits the above. I was raised Mormon and at 18, when my parents let me choose for myself, I left the church to explore my options. I've studied Christianity as a generalization and Mormon, Baptist, Catholic, etc etc to be more specific but don't really feel that it fits under the A, B and C categories. I've looked at Paganism as a generalization and Wiccan and Druidism as specifics but didn't fit into the B category (mostly because at the time, where I was living, I didn't really know any who practiced so it made it difficult as a beginner/curious learner).

So really, I'm feeling that "empty space" and wanting to find a nitch where I can belong and feel included and meet A, B and C above. I'm open minded and willing to learn about anything and everything, even religions I've already studied on my own. I still have questions that some religious officials weren't able to answer for me about their specific belief. I'm not looking to be "convinced" to join, or guilt tripped into joining a religion. Mostly I'm looking to have a well-rounded, open-minded conversation and gather some information, ask some questions that hopefully can be answered and then make my own choice based upon my own heart when and if I think the time is right.

Thanks :)

Go read Rob Bell's book "Velvet Elvis".

Then maybe read through as much of carm.org's stuff as you can stomach.

Oh, I also recommend all of Lee Strobel's books, and "Heaven" by Randy Alcorn.

Cheers!
D.

i say always go with your gut feeling it works for me.

Truly, the truth shall set you free.

Thanks Mars :) I'll go check out B&N for em, add them to the other books I've ordered lol

nice loved it thanks

It's not so much a "gut feeling" or "truth" as it is wanting to learn what it is that the religions believe and then follow my heart. Currently I don't go to church anywhere and I don't really know anyone from say, a Pagan path, to really get some good information and be able to ask questions and such. Dunno...I guess I like to be well informed....

And truth is in the eye of the beholder, so I'm not sure what truth you were speaking of hon. More specific?

sweetheart, you need to get beyond the "religion" part of it, and just meet Jesus.
there you will find a spot shaped just like you, that only you can fill.

religion is just a word-a word that defines man-made ritual.

Aye. There's religion...and then there's reality.

Sadly I've met reality, and that meeting taught me that everything has moments of hypocracy where you have to look beyond the faith and to the actions. It's part of the reason I'm expanding my search and looking at a broader picture. I think the confusion is that I am looking for something on a whole when truely I'm looking for something much more personal. As in, something for me. But in order to find that, I want to know what the different religions belive. Like I know Christians believe in God, Jesus and some go with a Holy Ghost as well..some believe those 3 are really 1 entity and some believe that they are 3 sperate entities. Most follow the bible, but some have other books they also believe in and follow. That much I know, and not much varies between the different forms of Christianity aside from slight details here and there.

But I'm wanting to look at Buddism and Paganism etc, and while I can look it up online and puzzle my way through that way, nothing beats being able to ask someone who personally follows the religion.

Is that somewhat clearer?

"before I formed you in the womb, I knew you"
Jeremiah 1:5

"The very hairs of your head are numbered"
Matthew 10:30

He knows the things that cause you sorrow, and everything that brings you pain.

we have to stop thinking in terms of what we think the world wants us to be, and learn to think of ourselves the way He knows us.

Lee Strobel is good.

Oswald Chambers is also awesome.

*sigh* Hon you're missing what I'm saying. I've read the bible, cover to cover and several different times.

I'm not worried about what the world wants me to be, because the world and my parents want me to be Christian. But before I jump on *any* bandwagons, I want to be able to make a decision based upon the 3 things I listed above. I'm not worried about the world, or my parents, or anyone else...I'm only worried about my personal feelings of points A, B and C. I don't mind at all discussing things, or like what Mars did and give me some reading material and websites and etc to gather some info from. I'm not biased, but I don't want to feel bullied either. I had enough of that growing up. I'm just wanting information on what the religions believe so that I can make a choice on my own.

I don't think I'm explaining things well enough...I've tried 3 different ways now and it's just not coming across right >.<

Just based on what you are saying here my first thoughts are as follows,…

1. Isn’t religion ultimately supposed to be about your personal relationship with your creator?

Therefore,…

2. Why do you feel a need to become involved with an organized “religious” group?

3. Why not just seek out social groups and activities that are focused on other projects or activities? Why the need to make your religion be a social thing?

I ask these questions because even though I was raised Free Methodist Christianity, and my family were all devoted Christians in faith I still never saw the religious organization or ‘church’ as being the focal point of my social life.

In fact, for me personally, I found that I was much more comfortable in the scientific and academic environments. I felt much more like I belonged to something bigger in those social organizations than in any religious organization.

In hindsight, when I look back over my life, I wish I had become more involved with other social ‘organizations’ as well, such as becoming involved with music and playing in concerns (I’m thinking classical orchestra here, but any kind of social organization that centers around music would have been cool).

I just don’t understand why you feel a need to make religion the focal point of your ‘social acceptance’.

I think that for me, I came to realize that religion isn’t God. God is omniscient. Therefore, for me, even in scientific, academic, musical, or anything, is ultimately spiritual in nature. The event itself does not need to focus on the idea of ‘god’. Science is focused on God as far as I’m concerned. What could be closer to God than to study God’s very creation? Scientists attempt to read the universe like a book. What ‘doctrine’ could be more accurate than the universe itself? No question about who the author is!

I guess I just don’t understand your need to make “religion” the focal point of your social acceptance.

God lives with me, and is with me at all times. Therefore I have no need to become part of a religious ‘organization’. Creation itself is already the omniscient ‘church’, anything you do is ultimately ‘religious’. So why bother to restrict yourself only to those organizations that think they are closer to God than any other activity?

Just a thought.

Just for the record, I personally have a natural pantheistic view of life. But I don’t associate with any religious organizations. I just don’t feel any need to make my relationship with my maker a social event.

You spoke about ‘acceptance’. The only entity I need to feel accepted by is God. Isn’t that the way it should be? Works for me anyway.

Best of luck to you in your search.

Again...perhaps a poor way of explaination. I don't need religion to be the focus of my social life, I meant more like...I don't want to feel like a fly on the wall when I go to meetings or whatever. The thing of being a drone...we go...we listen...we leave. I'd like to actually be able to talk to people there and feel included when I'm there rather than utterly outcast. While I understand that "socializing" is supposed to be the least thing on anyone's mind when they are going to church, let's face it...it happens. No one likes to feel like they arn't wanted somewhere. So perhaps I need to break down everything that I wrote above and completely reword it word by word since it keeps getting completely misunderstood and I keep getting the complete opposite of what I'm wanting.

I have a social life, it does not nor has it ever revolved around a religion or church, nor will it ever. I'm much more comfortable having my social life around my volunteer work (nothing fancy, I volunteer at retirement homes and humane societies helping out with the cats and dogs) my kids and my personal interests.

Again...I am only wanting information and open discussion on those beliefs and maybe a few questions answered. I didn't realize that was so impossibly difficult and nigh unto impossible.

Well, for what it’s worth, I’ve never felt like I ‘belonged’ in any kind of religious setting either.

I finally realized that I’m just not into ‘religion’.

Once I realized that, for me, God is a personal experience, I just plum did away with religion altogether and never gave it a second thought. I avoid bars and churches with equal passion.

I tend to think more along the lines of Abra on this... to me God is a personal thing for me as well. I never could find a church that I felt like I truly fit into either yet I still knew that being close to and learning about my creator was still very important to me.

I turned to a theoligist for answers instead. There were many things I couldn't grasp just from reading the bible or listening to the sermons at church. A lot of times those sermons deviated from the bible and left me feeling like I was listening to something that didn't quite sit right with me sometimes as far as being able to believe in it's validity.

Purely accidentally I happened upon a theologist on channel 57 on TV one night who is more of a non denominational pastor. He reads the bible verse by verse and truly answered many questions I had searched for all of my life. He has a website www.shepherdschapel.com He has studied Arabic and other languages in which the bible was originally written in and is a historian as well. He was able to cast alight on so many things I had questioned before that he blew my mind. His teachings are based on scientific facts in unison with the bible that are based on a more realistic view about God.

There are a few other sites that also accept his revelations as truths http://www.biblestudysite.com/1stage.htm It actually made a lot of since as opposed to the traditional Adam & Eve eating the apple stories that I was taught all of my life. He is not a money hungry type teacher like so many out there seem to be. I hope this helps.

I am in no way an authority. Just a believer and my own salvation through HIM.

The best way to approach and receive; is to let your heart lead.

Kat

I would also like to add this:

When you search, do it slowly. Don't be in a hurry. Listen, watch, question. Allow for change. Be aware.

Boisterous believers can be a bit scary.

There are signs to heed. There are those that will lead you away. There are those that will unknowingly and knowingly lead you positively.

What I would do if I were you; is to watch those that walk the path you find to be you. What you want in your life. It is not the words so much as it is; the walk.

Be leary of the net. Liars do abound there. As do truth tellers. Just be aware.

Kat

It is a mess out there. It is hard to know what is what. Many look for what to beleive in and I think this will always leave us empty. It is not so much of what we beleive but that we live by something within us. It is about who we are who we are becoming.

We don't need to be social or to have social events, they can never satisfy that longing within ourselves for connection. Where we can speak heart to heart, soul to soul. To much has been taught of our brian where what is of our spirit or heart, what is of our very essesne is processed and pasterized through our mind and what comes out is devoid of life and the passion that exist within us.

It is not a matter of being right, it is a matter of bieng who you are. I would even say not to read books, but to trust something within yourself, so that when you continue to look for that you desire, it rings true within your spirit and soul. The mind is a poor judge of these things and denies part of who we are. Discover that within yourself, develope it, do not quench it, when you communicate it do not let your mind filter out the life that wishes to come out of you. It is there within you. Yet it does not focus on you and what being right. It focuses on a life that brings, love and joy and peace within. It feels light sunlight within your heart, it is warm and peaceful and it does not teach you to love yourself but to love what you can share with others, not what you do but who you are.