I guess I have spent most of my life searching for answers, but somewhere along the way have forgotten what the questions where.I am neither a believer nor an atheist, but have enjoyed exploring many ideas and beliefs along the way, going from Atheism through Buddhism to Non-Duality. I currently come from a position of I don’t know anything really, which helps me maintain an open mind to every idea and belief that comes my way, I strive to live by humanistic ideals which I guess are broadly similar to the Christian ones. I accept that others have strong beliefs and I admit it often seems to work well for them, but so far I haven’t settled for any particular religion or belief. For the past few years I have been in and out of what I guess some would class as New Age or Flaky ideas. It started with a “Prophets Conference” in Monterey in March 2002 http://www.greatmystery.org/ I was inspired by the speakers there particularly Greg Braden http://www.greggbraden.com/ and Stanislav Grof http://www.stanislavgrof.com/ I have also been following this channel for a couple of years https://www.youtube.com/user/FenandiCreations on YouTube and recently a series of 10 videos titled “Oneness” It’s a blend of different ideas presented by various speakers covering various spiritual ideas and beliefs. There are lots of other inspiring videos on there featuring the poetry of Rumi, Kahil Gibran and others. Here is one by Kahil Gibran called “Our Children”
My husband's aunt has been searching for the best religion since she got married. She would be getting inside other churches and joining conversations and fellowships with members of other religion as a way of knowing what that group has to offer. There was one time that she had been attending services in one local sect which was founded by a Filipino. But then she really couldn't find what she was looking for until the time she was recruited by Jehovah's Witnesses. She became a Witness in 1970 just in time for their predicted armageddon (that didn't happen). I wonder if she had found contentment now.
Wow. I just entered this thread for the first time. There's a lot of branches here reaching out in so many directions in search for the meaning of our existence. This is good. You both have probably guessed that I'm a Christian and you both probably have a good idea of what my belief is so I won't attempt to go into it unless you have any questions for me. I don't belong to any one particular denomination. I'm not catholic. I'm closer to protestant. I don't belong to any one particular denomination. I have attended presbyterian, baptist, lutheran, and methodist churches, and a few others. I currently don't attend a church. I pray for God to give me discernment to know the truth before I read directly from my Bible. I would call myself a devout Christian. God says in the Bible that he's not the author of confusion and I have found that to be the case. I have also found that there are no contradictions when everything is taken in context. I have found Jehovah's Witnesses to be confused and they have changed the wording from the original Biblical texts. As you say Corie, they have also tried over and over to predict the future. God says clearly in the Bible "No one will know the day nor the hour" of armageddon. He only says, "Be ready". I like the poems of Rumi and I like Kahlil Gibran's writings but a lot of what they write, I recognize as being in the Bible which was written and printed way before they were born. Gibran wasn't born until 1883 and Rumi was born in 1207. I feel they were highly influenced by Biblical scriptures. The Bible was written some 2,000 years ago, gathered into one document sometime between 150BC and 70AD (called the Dead Sea Scrolls) and printed as the Bible in 1456. An example of their ideas possibly coming from the Bible is in Gibran's video above. The New Testament of the Bible says we are God's children. There is a difference though. In the Bible, "God's children" is referring to believers only. Unbelievers can easily become God's children by simply believing the New Testament teachings. Gibran says everyone is a child of God no matter who or what you are or believe in.
My search is quite diverse, as well. I grew up in the Catholic teachings and faith-belief system. Early in college, I joined with an ultra fundamental Bible Baptist group/church. Throughout my early 26/28 married life, we have associated with the a conservative Baptist assemblies. Home-churched with other friends for a while. An then, joined with the Anabaptist/Mennonite friends for 4 years--long distance (they gather in another state). Our Mennonite brethren and sisters cam to visit with us 3-4 times every year. We attended their yearly Bible conferences. While home in our town, we joined the Fundamental Independent Baptists for 2 years. No growth in the IB, only cultish in their way of doing things. Unsatisfied, I've searched for who really is God. And found out some interesting Bible concepts in the Judeo-Christian Messianic assemblies: elshaddaiministries.us, bereansonline, and First Fruits of Zion. And I see the real nature of the "Jesus" Christians have been talking about. He was a Jew. He had a Jewish name called, Yeshua. And through the Jews, "God will bless all the families of the earth," Genesis 12. Currently, my family is divided among different congregations. We are now with a modern Baptist community in our city. We appreciate it here. I've learned to love and understand the meaning of my search and have gained deeper understanding of God in the Jewish perspective of the Hebrew Bible. I observe the Sabbath and the Torah. I'm very thankful for all my religious background. They gave me opportunities for knowing God in a personal and in more reverent way.
I grew up in a Bethel Covenant church, which was a small denomination that has since merged with the Evangelical Covenant Church. However, the pastors who served our church were from a variety of denominations, as I learned later, explaining why I was never clear on the specifics of our beliefs. After moving to California, where there were several different types of churches available, I spent some time deciding just what made the most sense to me, and joined a Grace Brethren Church, which has its roots in Anabaptism, and I still consider myself to be an Anabaptist, although the Grace Brethren Church has moved toward liberalism in the past several years, and I haven't lived near enough to an Anabaptist church to attend regularly since leaving California in 1983. Over the past thirty-some years, I have been a member of churches affiliated with the Churches of Christ (non-instrumental), Disciples of Christ, and the American Baptist Convention. In the past ten years, I have been attending a non-denominational church when I am up north, where our land is, but have not been attending a formal church here in Millinocket.