My "beliefs"

[Venzor]

First, I want to say, I'm not pushing my beliefs in this thread, nor should anyone else. I want this to be a friendly discussion, perhaps to open peoples' minds to non-mainstream spiritual views. I know religion can be a touchy subject, so please be respectful. If this topic doesn't belong here, or gets out of control, I will take no offense in having the thread closed or removed.

I have been a spiritual "seeker" for nearly a decade. I'm not sure what I believe so I suppose I am technically agnostic. Here, though I will list some of the things that make the most sense to me. I've studied many religions and am very familiar with a lot of the mainstream ones. A lot of my spare time has been spent studying Christianity, Catholicism, Islam, Judaism, Taoism, Wicca, and other beliefs.

I guess I want to see if anyone thinks the same way I do

I don't have a catch-all category for what makes sense to me, but I think a good starting point would be the movie Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within.

I believe that everything is connected, plants, animals, rocks, elements, and probably many things we don't know about yet. I feel that everything has an "energy" or spirit to it. I believe that any action we take affects everything we know, in some way, quite similar to the Butterfly Effect. I think these basic principles can explain anything, and truly, they make the most sense to me.

Everything we do modifies the energy around us, including our thoughts. This is what I think makes telekineses, mind-reading, and other phenomenae possible. I think "vibes" describe this perfectly.

I believe that everything is equal and should be treated with the same amount of respect. I feel that eating plants is the same thing as eating meat, you are killing one living thing to sustain another living thing. That's a fact of life. I must say I disagree with the fact that being a vegetarian is any better than eating meat as far as what you're doing to living things is concerned. I do agree with the fact that nothing should suffer or be treated cruelly.

I think death is also a part of life, ironically enough, and should not be something seen as negative. I believe that matter cannot be created or destroyed, and feel the same way about energy. What goes around comes around, and nothing or no one ever truly ceases to exist. I can't say that I really believe in a Heaven or a Hell, just that everything kind changes into another form of energy to be reused as another part of this ongoing cycle of life.

I wonder if every religion is really just lead to the same conclusions, just said in different words. Everyone has their own interpretations of everything else.

Now this is where my core beliefs pretty much stop. They are incomplete, as I can't explain a lot of things, and I don't know if we, as humans, are destroying the Earth or whatnot. Perhaps we are just changing it? Can it truly die? A lot of issues I don't know where to stand, because I'm not entirely sure what right and wrong is in specific contexts.

Well, that's all I can think of to write, and my post ends here, for now. Please, tell me if you feel the same way, or have a slightly different idea about things, or just have any general thoughts. Learning what others believe in can really only help my own spiritual growth, so I guess this is a bit selfish. Who knows, if it makes me think, then maybe it'll make others think too?

[ryno]

I've never been into religion much, but there is one thing I beleive in. I have recently thought that one's conscious in them in a past life trying to better themselves, whether it be for the good or the bad. This also explains deju-vu to me some because your conscious recognizes this situation from a past life.

[OPR234]

I was raised as a christian, and to this day I still believe in God. However, my personal standpoint on this subject may suprise you, so please dont write me off as some bible-thumping goody-two shoes.

To to put my opinion on the things youve left open- Of course we're simply just changing the earth, whether the change is for better or for worse is up for you to decide. I dont believe the earth is actually alive, so can you actually kill that which doesnt live? I mean, its just a planet just like the other billions of planets out there. Other than that, I see your words as simple philosophical questions that only you can decide upon. However, I believe that you should make the most of what youve got, and if you have the time to ponder upon these things, life cant be TOO terrible to you, so take a step back, relax, and enjoy.

[ilikemyusername]

First, I want to say, I'm not pushing my beliefs in this thread, nor should anyone else. I want this to be a friendly discussion, perhaps to open peoples' minds to non-mainstream spiritual views. I know religion can be a touchy subject, so please be respectful. If this topic doesn't belong here, or gets out of control, I will take no offense in having the thread closed or removed.

I have been a spiritual "seeker" for nearly a decade. I'm not sure what I believe so I suppose I am technically agnostic. Here, though I will list some of the things that make the most sense to me. I've studied many religions and am very familiar with a lot of the mainstream ones. A lot of my spare time has been spent studying Christianity, Catholicism, Islam, Judaism, Taoism, Wicca, and other beliefs.

I guess I want to see if anyone thinks the same way I do

I don't have a catch-all category for what makes sense to me, but I think a good starting point would be the movie Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within.

I believe that everything is connected, plants, animals, rocks, elements, and probably many things we don't know about yet. I feel that everything has an "energy" or spirit to it. I believe that any action we take affects everything we know, in some way, quite similar to the Butterfly Effect. I think these basic principles can explain anything, and truly, they make the most sense to me.

Everything we do modifies the energy around us, including our thoughts. This is what I think makes telekineses, mind-reading, and other phenomenae possible. I think "vibes" describe this perfectly.

I believe that everything is equal and should be treated with the same amount of respect. I feel that eating plants is the same thing as eating meat, you are killing one living thing to sustain another living thing. That's a fact of life. I must say I disagree with the fact that being a vegetarian is any better than eating meat as far as what you're doing to living things is concerned. I do agree with the fact that nothing should suffer or be treated cruelly.

I think death is also a part of life, ironically enough, and should not be something seen as negative. I believe that matter cannot be created or destroyed, and feel the same way about energy. What goes around comes around, and nothing or no one ever truly ceases to exist. I can't say that I really believe in a Heaven or a Hell, just that everything kind changes into another form of energy to be reused as another part of this ongoing cycle of life.

I wonder if every religion is really just lead to the same conclusions, just said in different words. Everyone has their own interpretations of everything else.

Now this is where my core beliefs pretty much stop. They are incomplete, as I can't explain a lot of things, and I don't know if we, as humans, are destroying the Earth or whatnot. Perhaps we are just changing it? Can it truly die? A lot of issues I don't know where to stand, because I'm not entirely sure what right and wrong is in specific contexts.

Well, that's all I can think of to write, and my post ends here, for now. Please, tell me if you feel the same way, or have a slightly different idea about things, or just have any general thoughts. Learning what others believe in can really only help my own spiritual growth, so I guess this is a bit selfish. Who knows, if it makes me think, then maybe it'll make others think too?

two books you might be interested in, PRIME CHAOS by phil hine and BE HERE NOW by Baba Ramm Dass, both of those books are amazing and they're fun to read

[Bushbr]

the full legistics of my beliefs aren't important but I'll put it in a nutshell

I am a Lutheran, and a conservative one at that.

Martin Luther was a monk in the 16th century who studied the bible and realized that some of what the catholic church was teaching had no stance in the bible. He was looking for a debate, but was eventually called befor the Emperor and the Pope. they told him that he either recanted (took back) everything that he had wrote and said, or they would excommunicate him from the church, and brand him a heritic. the life of a heritic was a tough one, a man would be ostrisised(sp?) shunned from his community, family, and church, and thats if he was lucky. usualy a heritic was burned at the stake, with the flames being fueled by their own writings. this was the choice put befor martin luther, he felt so strongly about his beliefs that he stood in front of the most powerful men in the world at that time and said "Unless I am convicted by Scripture and plain reason. I do not accept the authority of popes and councils, for they have contradicted each other. my conscience is captive to the word of God. I cannot and will not recant anything for to go against conscience is neither right nor safe."

According to tradition, Luther is said to have spoken these words: "Hier stehe ich. Ich kann nicht anders. Gott helfe mir. Amen." ("Here, I stand. I can do nothing else. God help me. Amen.")

Martin Luther was branded a heritic, but escaped to the castle wartburg, and hid under the name Junker George, or Sir. George.

this is just a brief history of my church, as for what i believe, this can be easily stated with the following "Nicene Creed"
We believe in one God,
the Father, the Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all that is, seen and unseen. We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,
the only Son of God,
eternally begotten of the Father,
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made,
of one Being with the Father.
Through him all things were made.
For us and for our salvation
he came down from heaven:
by the power of the Holy Spirit
he became incarnate from the Virgin Mary,
and was made man.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate;
he suffered death and was buried.
On the third day he rose again
in accordance with the Scriptures;
he ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead,
and his kingdom will have no end.

We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father and the Son.
With the Father and the Son he is worshiped and glorified.
He has spoken through the Prophets.
We believe in one holy christian and apostolic Church.
We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.
We look for the resurrection of the dead,
and the life of the world to come. Amen.




any questions? you are all MORE then welcome to pm me

[chromecarz00]

I agree with the OP, I have united the ideas in your post, in fact I would love to take a smoke and talk over ideas if you are ever in cali
two books you must read; the celestine prophecy and the secret.

[Venzor]

I agree with the OP, I have united the ideas in your post, in fact I would love to take a smoke and talk over ideas if you are ever in cali
two books you must read; the celestine prophecy and the secret.

Where in Cali? I'm from there, originally, and still have friends and family there. I'll probably make my next trip out there this summer.

[gaia.plateau]

Predicting this thread's self destruction within 4 pages.

[Bulldog_916]

Between Atheist and Agnostic. Proud to be this way. I'm a questioner. I ask questions of those that purely believe on faith. I talk candidly with those of the Atheistic persuasion to figure out how they came to that. Everyone is different, with different experiences and different reasons. That's all there is to it.

[ilikemyusername]

i have both the celestine prophecy and the secret, dont waste your time on those.

[Perrj99]

Predicting this thread's self destruction within 4 pages.

[ZenSilk]

Basically follow the Dalai Lama and you'll be perfect.

[thecoalition]

atheism is the key. atheism is for me.

[gaia.plateau]

atheism is the key. atheism is for me.

no one is as strong in their faith, as the non-believers.

i have both the celestine prophecy and the secret, dont waste your time on those.

You need to seriously re-examine your life and the circumstances that led you to make those purchases, and make some very necessary adjustments.

[Luke bL00k]

smoking a bowl of starbuzz blue mist with milk base :]... i find myself to be an atheist, i believe it comes from a strong catholic upbringing where it is forced upon you and no one ever asks you to question what youre taught. When i became older and was able to question the catholic church i turned to atheism. Free thinking and evaluating ones own mind can be quite relaxing.

[ilikemyusername]

atheism is the key. atheism is for me.

no one is as strong in their faith, as the non-believers.

i have both the celestine prophecy and the secret, dont waste your time on those.

You need to seriously re-examine your life and the circumstances that led you to make those purchases, and make some very necessary adjustments.

i used to work at barnes and noble, i pretty much just collected everything in the "new age" section... at a five finger discount!

[gaia.plateau]

Well then you can redeem yourself by using those books as projectile weapons against other people that own them.

[ilikemyusername]

Well then you can redeem yourself by using those books as projectile weapons against other people that own them.

hey, one cool thing i managed to get was the complete collection by carlos castaneda, i'm quite proud of myself for that one.

[gaia.plateau]

Props for that. Castaneda is the man.

[chromecarz00]

Props for that. Castaneda is the man.

why such harsh words?

oh and socal, near irvine... Edited April 9, 2008 by chromecarz00

[ilikemyusername]

Props for that. Castaneda is the man.

why such harsh words?

oh and socal, near irvine...

que? castaneda IS the man! i get MAD! props. OI HOI HOY!

[chromecarz00]

naw, for the books...

[ganesha]

Because I am curious to see if this thread self destructs (Gaia I agree with you on this one...) I was raised a catholic. When I left home after high school I shifted to paganism.. I looked at wicca and thought it was too "nice" so I gravitated to a darker path so to say. Now that I am older I re-evaluated my beliefs a few years ago and I practice hinduism. For me, it makes more sense. I also think that if you seriously evaluate most religions they are lead to the same place...they just take a different road or path to get there...
Just my opinion

[r1v3th3ad]

Because I am curious to see if this thread self destructs (Gaia I agree with you on this one...) I was raised a catholic. When I left home after high school I shifted to paganism.. I looked at wicca and thought it was too "nice" so I gravitated to a darker path so to say. Now that I am older I re-evaluated my beliefs a few years ago and I practice hinduism. For me, it makes more sense. I also think that if you seriously evaluate most religions they are lead to the same place...they just take a different road or path to get there...
Just my opinion

Something similar for me.
Raised Catholic, started into Wicca about 8 yrs ago, studied it for a year prior to...Moved onto a more broader path of Paganism a few years later, and have taken on the Shamanic path to it.
Overall, I want to follow in my father's footsteps, he has studied the religions of the world past and present over entire life, still doing it(hes 67). Hes a member of the Rosecrucian Order, which I as well am considering joining one day. Right now, I'm studying Christianity a bit, but ya, wanna try to know em all one day

[ganesha]

Right now, I'm studying Christianity a bit, but ya, wanna try to know em all one day

I think that's a good idea...then you will know what works for you...