What Was Your Spiritual Upbringing?

I was raised to be an ELCA Lutheran (the most liberal of the different synods, or sects, of Lutheranism). My mom was raised in this tradition and sent me to Sunday school, communion training, and then confirmation. At home we were really not overtly religious. We didn't pray before meals, and my parents pretty much taught me to be a good person because it was the right thing to do, not because the Bible told me to.

My paternal grandmother was a pretty devout Catholic, but was never obnoxious or pushy about it. She would light the special prayer candles, always had a rosary somewhere on her person, and would buy bottles of holy water by the box. She would let me drink the holy water as a child for some reason-lol.

My mom did try to read me stories from my children's Bible when I was little, but told me she stopped because I asked questions she didn't know how to answer. I was especially distressed by Exodus. I would ask here why God would kill the Egyptian first born when they themselves hadnt done anything wrong (I was the first born and knew I wasn't a Hebrew, so this concerned me), I would ask why the Egyptians didn't try to fool the angel of death by putting the blood on their doors and pretending to be Hebrew, and why God drowned the Egyptian's chariot horses after the Red Sea was parted (I was a horse lover from an early age).

Eventually mom gave up and read me Greek mythology instead since she was a teacher that taught it as a unit and she could pretty much answer any questions I had about those stories-lol.

Now I consider myself a Christian but am a pretty liberal and inclusive one. I would probably be a liberal Quaker if self defense wasn't so frowned upon and I thought I could sit still in silent contemplation for an hour in meeting. I don't feel the Bible is meant to be taken super literally, and do wish I had the ability to read the different parts of it as they were first written to compare them to the translations we have today. And I'd still like to know what gives with all the horse drownings....

So what was your spiritual or religious upbringing? how does it compare to what your beliefs are today?

a reply to: mavra81

Forced to go to church and Sunday school, and sing in the church choir. Now I follow no religion. Though I'm very open minded to spirituality over any religion.

What Was Your Spiritual Upbringing?

Despite the world best efforts to cloud the issue, for most people it begins with the very first spiritual experience.

i was raised by a catholic mother, and a druid father. The rest of my immediate family is Odinists, but honestly they're all white supremacists which to them is a religion, and my gf is a pagan/witch. and honestly i've been lost and confused for a long time. thats a lot of different philosophies to take in.

For my religious background? I was raised in the United Methodist Church. We went most Sundays as my parents had an awesome Sunday school fellowship ground led by the church's associate pastor and us kids all got along pretty well. My parents pretty much laid down the law that my sister and I would attend regularly until we were old enough to be confirmed and then we could make up our own mind about it after that.

I sang in the church choir mainly because the local select kids' choir director was also the choir director at church, so I felt like it was expected and I did have lots of fun. I also served as an acolyte clear up into high school on a voluntary basis because it was always fun to wear the robes and stoles and carry the lighted tapirs up to the alter and them extinguish the candles at the end of the service.

For me, my personal spiritual growth had more to do with my own personal prayer and reflection, however. I found my church learning to be very valuable in this process, but I have always felt closest to God when quietly on my own praying/reflecting. So when it comes to the necessity of a church today, I don't feel the compulsion to be in one although at times the fellowship would be nice for its own sake.

I´m Lutheran ( like majority of Finns are ). My home wasn´t much religious, i remember evening pray mother taught. We only went to church when there were a special occation ( babtize, confirmations, funerals etc ).
My mother passed away long ago. My great aunt ( grandmother's sister) was an important person in our family, she took care of us when father was away in army trips etc. She was devoted Lutheran, and every sunday she listened sermon from radio and went to church every now and then ( Church even it was close ) she wanted to serve in privacy.
As a kid i was in Sunday school also in choir to 14 years old ( i am sure my father did not put me there.. so i guess my aunt had something to do with it ).
My father is atheist and his favourite movie "Monty Python-meaning of life ". His mother was orthodox ( catholic ) but it never played any role in our home. Grandmothers house was typical orthodox home with home altar and pictures. Father never talked about religion he preferred talking about nature and science.
I was babtized as Lutheran as a baby and had confirmation at age 16.

I was raised Roman Catholic even though my mother married a divorced man (also Roman Catholic) and the church ostrasized them both, so they harboured resentment. Still, she sent me to Sunday school and through the church's programming. It was during the time when women and girls were required to cover their hair in church, and quite often I would ask different people why women and girls were required to cover our hair and not men, and the responses were either to brush me off and say "because you have to" or "because women are vain" - answers along those lines. Being a very inquisitive and intelligent child, I became more confused and felt intimidated and not nurtured in the faith.

Edit to add: That was my religious upbringing, my spiritual upbringing was a very slow process of awakening and knowing.

I was raised protestant but only until about the age of 8 when I was told not to come back to Sunday school as my attitude was not to their liking outside of church.

That was about the end of the religious experience.

However, by the age of 10 I was experiencing premonitions which peaked my curiosity and it began a very long road of self exploration and spiritual self empowerment.

I now lean much closer to spiritualism and Buddhism although I won't slap a religious title on myself as I leave it all open as possible.

I was raised Catholic, but don't really follow any one religion or path. I just take whatever is good and inspiring and try to be the best person that I can be with love and compassion.

originally posted by: mavra81
I was raised to be an ELCA Lutheran (the most liberal of the different synods, or sects, of Lutheranism). My mom was raised in this tradition and sent me to Sunday school, communion training, and then confirmation. At home we were really not overtly religious. We didn't pray before meals, and my parents pretty much taught me to be a good person because it was the right thing to do, not because the Bible told me to.

My paternal grandmother was a pretty devout Catholic, but was never obnoxious or pushy about it. She would light the special prayer candles, always had a rosary somewhere on her person, and would buy bottles of holy water by the box. She would let me drink the holy water as a child for some reason-lol.

My mom did try to read me stories from my children's Bible when I was little, but told me she stopped because I asked questions she didn't know how to answer. I was especially distressed by Exodus. I would ask here why God would kill the Egyptian first born when they themselves hadnt done anything wrong (I was the first born and knew I wasn't a Hebrew, so this concerned me), I would ask why the Egyptians didn't try to fool the angel of death by putting the blood on their doors and pretending to be Hebrew, and why God drowned the Egyptian's chariot horses after the Red Sea was parted (I was a horse lover from an early age).

Eventually mom gave up and read me Greek mythology instead since she was a teacher that taught it as a unit and she could pretty much answer any questions I had about those stories-lol.

Now I consider myself a Christian but am a pretty liberal and inclusive one. I would probably be a liberal Quaker if self defense wasn't so frowned upon and I thought I could sit still in silent contemplation for an hour in meeting. I don't feel the Bible is meant to be taken super literally, and do wish I had the ability to read the different parts of it as they were first written to compare them to the translations we have today. And I'd still like to know what gives with all the horse drownings....

So what was your spiritual or religious upbringing? how does it compare to what your beliefs are today?

Mine? My religious upbringing was sparse. My dad came from the Pentecostal Holiness Int. church, his parents were Pentecostal Holiness, but they became that through my great-grandparents.

My mother's dad was Nazarene, but only when he was older. His mother was Amish and his dad was nothing. Though on that one side my great-grandparents were Bavarian and Ashkenazi.

My mother's mother was originally Presbyterian, her parents had been but at some point they became Oneness Pentecostal snake handlers.

I can't say that we went to church often when I was young, so my understanding came as an adult. I made the choice of what I identified with. I have a brother that is Celtic Pagan. My father was Schizophrenic so he didn't take us very often.

I would say that if I was identified with anything when I was younger it was Pentecostal, but not through an organization. My paternal grandparents both died too early to have any influence on us.

The funny thing was, I had never heard the word Pentecostal while growing up, it was not until I was an adult and talking to someone about religion, they said "oh, you are one of those Pentecostals". Well, I didn't know that is what it was called. I grew up in a school of majority Roman Catholic, so I actually knew more about that.

Now, I am Pentecostal/Quaker.

I never had any spiritual or religious based upbringing. I was far too busy being a reprobate minded heathen busy breaking all of the commandments more than once, no, not on purpose at the time of course but I never gave church or god for that matter much thought. (I suppose one must know evil before one can know good) Around the age of 24 or so I began studying and researching the field of Parapsychology yes I know some 'scientists' don't consider that to even be a legit field of study.

I personally got into it out of simple curiosity considering it was a fact that human beings die I wondered if there was a chance that we lived on, even after death. While in the middle of this research I also used an Ouija board or witch-board which ever you choose to call it. Those things most 'certainly' are not toys and if one knows what they are doing many answers can be gained and even wealth from using them.

I quickly found out that it's best to not even fool with them because at some point it WILL become a spiritual struggle just to maintain your soul. At around the age of 31-32 (37 now) I had two experiences (spiritual level) that actually showed me what was true and untrue as far as religions go. I have visited many denominational and non-denominational churches and I felt no desire or need to become a member of ANY church, far too much foul under current flowing through them and that's putting it politely.

And one quick thing (for believers) always be VERY careful when asking for a spiritual gift, some can truly be a burden as well as a blessing. Due to lack of time at the moment and to keep from rambling on and on, that is basically my case, as far as religious or spiritual upbringing goes. So thank you, and all the others in this thread for sharing yours.

Welcome to ATS!
For more stories about personal religious experience, here's an old thread with many people's descriptions.
The Varieties of ATS Religious Experience

raised in a Methodist church... Not devout just a liberal church...

Didn't actually believe in God till I searched him out myself though..

a reply to: mavra81

I was brought up in the Unity School of Christianity (considered a "New Age" religion by many, and a cult by some). We were there to learn and study and practice and worship together, and we were encouraged -- nay expected! -- to walk the walk, to question and challenge and learn by living -- for better and worse. I guess in the tradition of the Gnostics, personal knowledge is always preferable to faith, with faith left for that which is unknowable. We were taught to live our whole life as a prayer, because even when we're not paying attention to God, He is paying attention to us!

My parents were very involved in the church, and even brought it home with them, as we had a "prayer hotline" in our home, and they would find and/or provide whatever help they could for anyone and everyone who called... some were our temporary house guests until more permanent housing could be found... others joined us for holiday dinners... we never knew what strays they would be bringing home.

The two things I remember being impressed upon us most by my parents was (1) the one and only commandment Jesus gave -- to love one another as He loved us -- and (2) that we had to do a good deed every day, because what we do "for the least among us" we do for Jesus; and after the age 13, that good deed had to hurt somehow... we had to make some kind of sacrifice or inconvenience ourselves in a significant way.

We did not look down on other faiths, but instead understood that we're all imperfect beings doing our best, none of us knows everything, God and Jesus love everyone equally so we can do no less. And, of course, Jesus told us not to judge. We were to worry about ourselves and our own consciences. We could also learn from and share with other faiths. When I was a teenager, the church sponsored "Two Weeks of Love," and every night for two weeks a different faith came to our church and shared the tenets of their faith, their holy figures, their sacred symbols, etc. I really enjoyed it.

(I have to add though that while my parents told us to love everyone, they also said we don't have to like them or their actions!)