What is your religion/belief?

[Bunnywitch]

Usually I simply state im an atheist since thats what lots of people I met do understand a person to be who doesnt follow the mono-gods. Rest is mischief to them anyway, incl. hinduism, buddhism, wiccan, yea, that arrogant my folks tended to be some of the time :/

It might sound funny but my belief originates from stories i wrought about demons and demonesses from an outside realm teaching somebody the truths about the universe. it started in abotu 1992. i discovered it to become more and more fascinating to me to seek for the point in life to not just write a fiction. I have thought forth and back what i believe in, many years, until it manifested in its today-type of form, now, i suddenly had both, my story and a thing i believed in Oo Since this WAS no longer fiction, but named the "cevisk belief" after the stories beings, I was stunned - i do belief the truth surrounded by a fiction i have created.

I was about to test how it would stand and contradict with other religions, then discovered it to match / cover lots of the logical things from other religions rather than to blaspheme, it just didnt cover not the fantastic parts of miracles and things, and regarded mankind not precious but neutral. Sincerely I thought "In any religion seems to be a core of truths, surrounded by wishful thinking, you wrote all the cores from your feeling yet before you read them, so CAN your cores be wrong? These religions all claim to be true and you made them stop to contradict without to know them, this is cool Oo." - My belief worked great for me and had a name only i would use because its from that fiction.

When then, my trans prob filled my life so much I found philosophies in my belief, which added the final thing i had needed -- a purpose or need to actually practice my "beliefs". Now, the cevisk way to regard life and death really became part of my daily thoughts, if left all the initinal goddesses and demons out and it was a path... and since i had a name for my trans prob instead of calling it a transidental problem, more a path to walk, path of the mercury, i blended the paths and it was wonderful, renamed my belief the Mercurianism in which you have to travel the Mercurian Way leading to yourself if you decide to go it. But this is so difficult to explain in a language im not native in, i admit. I wish this "religion" would grow, imagine - christianity condemns our transgender ways, now, following the path of the Mercuy, ->-bleeped-<- is a path to choose for inner enlightment and tributing the female spirit and its acknowledgement to be the life-giving divine form (The big super vulva ^^), so you try to get close to that state of being divine (female) as you can, if you feel you were born to follow that path. There sure are other paths but I dont feel chosen to follow them, so i didnt search for what they consist of (to express it a little funny) - wouldn't that religion appeal  to you to join? Lets form a sect ^^

[Saraloop]

Agnostic is the only logical position.

[Lokaeign]

Up to a point.  It is correct to state that, since one can never prove a negative, one can never prove the non-existance of God or Gods.  However, in the absence of any credible poke in the direction of theism, I always found atheism the more rational position to take.*  Otherwise you also have to be "agnostic" about Bertrand Russell's teapot, various pink unicorns, spaghetti monsters etc.


*Up until I was forcibly dislodged from it by a very cross Norse God, that is.

[Carolyn]

Atheist/Nothing, We live, we die the world goes on without us here, so I just keep living till the day I die.

[imaz]

Only two of us on here and I don't even know who you are? Big hug my dear sister or brother whoever you may be

BTW here's a link to a new LGBT Muslim site from the UK: http://al-jannah.co.uk/

[lisagurl]

I am not an atheist that would require a belief. I never had a spiritual feeling and can only guess that there are things I do not know. It seems religion is man made.

[cindybc]

Me, I am Wiccan, lady of the mountains.

I have been told that to see, is to believe, even as we dream we see what tomorrow will bring. The great streams belongs to mother. It is ever flowing and never ending and steady as her "well of life". This is where all birth and manifestation occur. She gives us the ability to feel with our bodies. As stars in the night shine so does the unity of these lights as they wind around each other from light to light with pure(ness) darkness. The pillars of the pearly gates give us passageway between one realm of our hearts to the other realm of time, together we travel two roads as one journey. The love of the heart is as great as a mountain. Here where eruptions can occur, the law of love overcomes to build great things.

As interpreted to me by White Feather Princess, an honored friend.

Cindy

[Ell]

I am not an atheist that would require a belief. I never had a spiritual feeling and can only guess that there are things I do not know. It seems religion is man made.

not all, but much spiritual thought, whether man-made or not, is actually helpful. many Eastern and Western principles are virtually free for the taking, and can actually improve people's lives.

-ell

[lisagurl]

not all, but much spiritual thought, whether man-made or not, is actually helpful. many Eastern and Western principles are virtually free for the taking, and can actually improve people's lives.

-ell

Philosophy also can improve people's lives. Less is more.

[TooManyToasters]

Agnostic, I guess. The way I see it, you can't prove or disprove the existence of God. I'll never know how we came to be or why we're here, and I guess I'm content just leaving it at that.
Suffice to say that I don't know and I don't care.

[Rachel]

the closest thing i could possibly qualify as is pagan, i believe in spirits not deities, and the one i hold the most reverence for is gaia (mother earth).  She is the spirit I love most and hold the greatest love and respect for, though there are many others, elemental spirits, grove spirits, the like.  Thats just my take on the matter though, and pagan is the only thing i think i can qualify as.

[cindybc]

*ONENESS*

What is the Oneness? The oneness experiencing all in creation within the One Consciousness? or the One consciousness experiencing all that is?

One of the most common experiences of this spiritual consciousness is feeling of "oneness." Or all experiencing all that is as a whole, or that we are all from one common source and share a common spirit. Let's then consider some ways that the spiritual beholder might experience the oneness.

To our ordinary perceptions, universe is an infinite increment of mass and energy containing an aggregate of individual life forms each seeking its own destiny as one consciousness. Behind this appearance is the essential nature of existence, the One Divine consciousness. This consciousness expresses itself in the universe in many forms, each with its own will to be. But in fact each form is an expression of the One seeking its infinite joy of existence. All true spiritual realization begins with this new perception of the essential Oneness of all beings and things.

The spiritual experience of Oneness often expressed by the feeling or understanding that we are of one essence or spirit. We experience that the same soul force that we feel in ourselves is there in each person we encounter.

Oneness = All in consciousness experiencing the Oneness of all, or Oneness experiencing all that is through us in consciousness.

Cindy
A New Dream ( Metta)

[imaz]

Looking at the poll results, zero Hindus being a case in point, it seems ethnic minorities are under represented here. Any thoughts?

[tekla]

Well the server is located in the US, the standard language is English, so that might figure in.  The digital divide also is a factor. 

In Northern California at least - which has a high Indian population, the whole Desi culture seems to be very inward, with few outsiders joining in, and few Desi people seeing outside deals.  So, where I rarely - if ever - see ads that would say "Black Man seeks Black Woman" or "Latino seeks Latina", I see "Desi Man seeks Desi woman" all the time.  In keeping with that, perhaps they just have their own sites.

[Pica Pica]

Philosophy also can improve people's lives. Less is more.

not BA philosophy, that's for sure.

Nor BS philosophy I suppose.

[Genevieve Swann]

I beleive that there is a superior entity. I don't know HER name. Taking care of the earth is most important since I seemed to stuck to the ground. Mostly people invent a way to be spirtitual. I think someone invented "satan" to scare people into being moral or as an excuse for being evil. "The devil made me do it."

[imaz]

Well the server is located in the US, the standard language is English, so that might figure in.  The digital divide also is a factor. 

In Northern California at least - which has a high Indian population, the whole Desi culture seems to be very inward, with few outsiders joining in, and few Desi people seeing outside deals.  So, where I rarely - if ever - see ads that would say "Black Man seeks Black Woman" or "Latino seeks Latina", I see "Desi Man seeks Desi woman" all the time.  In keeping with that, perhaps they just have their own sites.

Very interesting. I have direct experience of this as being Muslim and LGBT I've come up against it loads of times.

Used to be part of the UK branch of al-Fatiha for my sins... One of the reasons I left was not just South Asian domination but it got to the point of Pakistani and then Punjabi domination. I really think this is a cultural thing as frankly I haven't encountered it in the other Muslim cultures I've been directly connected to. There were also issues with misogyny and transphobia in that organisation which have since caused a mass exodus here in the UK.

Have to say the easiest Muslim country I've lived in has to be Indonesia. OK, they aren't great when it comes to the Chinese for historical reasons, and there's always been tension with Malaysia for various reasons, but generally I have to say I've never encountered racism.

[Kaitlyn]

I... actually had a bit of a spiritual crisis recently.

I'm going to become a Wiccan.

I was an atheist for a long time (and I think I still am in a weird sense), but I felt I needed something... more. Part of it is that I'm just so tired of being one of those hard-headed rationalists who stick to their convictions no matter how miserable they make them. I'm tired of thinking that I can't relate to other people and the world in a spiritual way. I'm tired of feeling alone and isolated because of it. I want to feel a connection to the universe, to see things in a different way. I want - I need - to bring some kind of magic and mystery and spirituality into my life. That admission was just as big a moment for me as when I accepted my transness.

The thing is, I have issues with most theistic religions, both logical and personal. I was an atheist for a reason. I needed to find something where I don't necessarily need to believe literally, and I won't feel like a hypocrite for it. I also need something without - as I see it - a tainted legacy.  Of course, it also needs to be trans-friendly. It came down to Wicca in the end, and making the decision was... wonderful.

(Theravada Buddhism was a distant 2nd)

[Mr. Fox]

Well the server is located in the US, the standard language is English, so that might figure in.  The digital divide also is a factor. 

In Northern California at least - which has a high Indian population, the whole Desi culture seems to be very inward, with few outsiders joining in, and few Desi people seeing outside deals.  So, where I rarely - if ever - see ads that would say "Black Man seeks Black Woman" or "Latino seeks Latina", I see "Desi Man seeks Desi woman" all the time.  In keeping with that, perhaps they just have their own sites.

There's definately a distinct community in Cincinnati as well.  Our family is always the only white family at dancing events (my sister does Indian dance), and everyone else is Indian.  It doesn't seem like snobbery, but more that no white people are very interested in Indian culture.

[Rachel]

I... actually had a bit of a spiritual crisis recently.

I'm going to become a Wiccan.

I was an atheist for a long time (and I think I still am in a weird sense), but I felt I needed something... more. Part of it is that I'm just so tired of being one of those hard-headed rationalists who stick to their convictions no matter how miserable they make them. I'm tired of thinking that I can't relate to other people and the world in a spiritual way. I'm tired of feeling alone and isolated because of it. I want to feel a connection to the universe, to see things in a different way. I want - I need - to bring some kind of magic and mystery and spirituality into my life. That admission was just as big a moment for me as when I accepted my transness.

The thing is, I have issues with most theistic religions, both logical and personal. I was an atheist for a reason. I needed to find something where I don't necessarily need to believe literally, and I won't feel like a hypocrite for it. I also need something without - as I see it - a tainted legacy.  Of course, it also needs to be trans-friendly. It came down to Wicca in the end, and making the decision was... wonderful.

(Theravada Buddhism was a distant 2nd)

Well people find their ways to spirituality in their own way for many reasons.  If it helps you and makes you happy, then go with it, its your beliefs/religeon, and you should be able to glean something out of it.

My beliefs too came from a sudden realization type thing, a feeling i have always felt but never really acknowleged.  I feel more connected with the earth the farther i transition, as if mother earth is accepting me the more i become me.  Its a nice feeling, too bad I don't know of others like me, but meh thats ok.  When you feel a connection to the earth, and the love that is resulting from that, having others like me really doesnt matter.  I may sound nutty, but hey, im happy.