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my thoughts on spirituality and religion.

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posted on Feb, 7 2012 @ 10:59 PM
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first and foremost. this is not a meant to offend those of you who might walk a different path. ive been soaking up information and done some significant thinking in the last few months. i have started altering my thinking and the shift has helped a great deal.


ask yourself, what is religion?


what is is to be religious?




think about it, and give it a little indepth review.


now, what is spiritual?


what is spirituality?


think about those now.


here is what ive come up with. in religion, you are devoting yourself to a set of rules and boundaries to live by. you develop utter faith in which you have invested much time. belief in religion has caused quite a bit of death for quite a while.we are now about to witness the slow stop to religion and its many holes in its logic. however, it was based off of the true message and religion took off on a whole different tangent than intended. it helps you spiritually up to a point.


in spirituality, you grow your inner mind, become satisfied and knowledgeable of who you are, you exercise your spirit with positive growth everyday. spiritual people dont become defensive and narrowminded when another persons ideas are different. however a religious person in my limited experience do get pushy. ive met a few who dont and i respect them fully for their beliefs and personality.


its the pursuit of truth in our own individual way. to grow spiritually and recognize and learn about the chakras, metaphysics, dimensions. these things are real. farfetched to some, but real nonetheless. i have so much i wanted to put into this but the time i have wont allow it. ill write more later. ill spread em out so i can join the big boy conversations later.
edit on 7-2-2012 by mactheaxe because: (no reason given)



posted on Feb, 7 2012 @ 11:04 PM
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Well first of all...welcome mac!!

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edit on 7-2-2012 by jerryznv because: (no reason given)



posted on Feb, 7 2012 @ 11:06 PM
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Welcome to ATS...



posted on Feb, 7 2012 @ 11:22 PM
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Spiritual health is important to overall human health. Religion helps certain people to gain spiritual health, for other people religion is detrimental to their spiritual health. As long as it works for the individual. Welcome



posted on Mar, 1 2012 @ 12:12 PM
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Here are my thoughts on religion from a couple years ago.

What does it mean to be a Christian, Muslim, Jew, Hindu, or any other religious affiliation? One way to ponder this question is to ask, “Who is the deliverer of the word?” Some people read and interpret the texts of their choice independently, while others simply listen to what the religious authority preaches to them, and some have no choice. Some are actively involved in one or more of the above behaviors. And then of course there are others, like Monks, who question their religion on a regular basis as a means to keep it as pure as possible. “Doing” religion is what really empowers people to survive comfortably in this world, as opposed to just affiliating themselves. It is important for a person to do things that connect him to the spoken word and text of his religious and ideological preference so he can synchronize and align with his family or group as a whole; thus creating the greatest possible outcome for new members of the family.

There is a hypothesis that religion serves as a survival mechanism and is part of evolution. Some will argue that “the Crusades and self -sacrificing by Monks” -- things that go against survival, proves this hypothesis wrong . The answer to this lies in the fact that these individuals (Crusaders, Monks) were and are doing these things for the benefit of their greater good, which, not for their own personal gain does increase their childrens’ chance of survival and quality of life in the long run.

The famous evolutionist Theodosius Dobzhanksy quotes Pierre Teilhard de Chardin: "Evolution is a light which illuminates all facts, a trajectory which all lines of thought must follow." A Christian will quote the sayings of Jesus as quoted in John 8:12 (NIV): "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life." “Lines of thought” can be interpreted as every individuals’ thought processes, and Jesus, the light of the world, his spoken word, keeps people on that trajectory when they are fully engaged believers and doers of that word. When biological relatives are not engaged in a similar belief and behavior system, it could be argued that the trajectory of their evolution as a species is changed. It is as if all of a person’s ancestors have left an imprint of their schema in his genetic material. As more people with the same core belief system reproduce and teach their young and repeat, the more that biologically related group will evolve towards the ideals of that belief system. As the group grows, they positively reinforce each other’s behavior and belief systems simply by example, and also by engaging with one another in the sacred.

For someone to name himself as affiliated with any such religion or ideology is one thing, but to actually produce fruit from their labor is another. The very nature of the fruit produced depends on the core beliefs of that person, their actions following, and how close their actions line up with what they believe or preach. Some will produce nothing, others will produce something malnourishing, others will produce enough to survive, and still others will produce an abundance that can be shared if they choose. If they choose not to share with the ones they love, it becomes an object of envy and greed to those with less or nothing or those unloved. All religions and ideologies exist to manifest something from the will of man. What is actually created can change depending on the individual’s own belief and behavior pattern.

With this being said, it can be difficult to tell which religion or ideology is the correct one. Differences in culture, along with different groups, families, races, ages, etc; make it hard for one to fit all, unless it is tailored to meet the needs of each group. A noticeable change in contemporary society’s religious preference can be seen by the increasing secularization of religion on all fronts. This secularization is occurring to meet the needs of specific groups of people. The problem with this is that, although each group exists to have people believe its message and create fruit from their actions; It is difficult for a person to truly take something to heart and do something about it if they don’t understand it the way it was when it was written. Families are smaller now in modern societies than ever, which create even more specific belief systems. This secularization occurs every time a new group forms that is cut off from its originator.

How can many people resonate with the same core beliefs across all boundaries? Does the answer lie in symbolic interaction? Internalized symbols and spoken words which we all identify each other and ourselves with? Who has the authority to say what should be taught? In times of dis-ease, people will take suggestions from just about anyone.



posted on Mar, 1 2012 @ 12:13 PM
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When that person is actually in a position of power such as in government, it is his responsibility to gauge the needs of the people he represents and act accordingly. It is also his people’s responsibility express their concerns to him regularly and make every effort possible to help, preferably in the same realm. Unfortunately, the dominating world agenda was put in place by British and Neo-Colonialism through military means. Campaigns carried out by good hearted men, but hijacked and exploited by uncompassionate minds to serve the interests of those minds.

One thing that is happening through these campaigns is the spread of the English language and Democracy around the world. Although Christianity is the religion packaged with this expansion, the actual symbols and words of the English language have brought once disconnected groups closer together in terms of understanding. The explosion of information and the increase of global communication and awareness also attributes to this fusion of culture through conflict of ideas. It has been the dream of our founders to have a place where everyone can live together peacefully and be free to produce their own fruits.

It has been stated by Edmunde Burke: “When bad men combine, the good must associate; else they will fall one by one, an unpitied sacrifice in a contemptible struggle.” This is where the quote “All that is necessary for the triumph of evil, is for good men to do nothing” comes from. When people feel that their needs aren’t being met at the group level, however big or small their group is, they will look for their own ways to meet those needs. If there are groups which have all of their needs met, they should give to those that they love, unfortunately love only travels as far as the in-group for most. There are people who will fight and or die for what they believe in, even if it is the lack of common understanding with those not in their in-group that is causing their foe’s dis-ease.
Many people believe that this is the era in which “good men will do something,” and more people can be united than ever before. Has the “aha” moment taken hold for enough people to join together or will it continue to be suppressed by other forces? How much more unrequited love must be sacrificed until it is taken for what it is and shared by all? Today is an exciting time to live and watch as humanity plays out its struggle to attain happiness. The global conditions are ripening for a major shift in human understanding. Religions are disintegrating into smaller and smaller parts, people are creating their own realities individually and cooperatively, while others are holding on to or fighting for what they believe in as one triumphs over the other, until only one remains.





Edmund Burke. (2010). Retrieved December 08, 2010 from Wikipedia: en.wikiquote.org...

Dobzhansky, T. (1973). Nothing in Biology Makes Sense Except the Light of Evolution. The American Biology Teacher, 35, 129.

Ham, K. (1987). The Lie : Evolution. Colorado Springs: Master Books.
Mirza Tahir Ahmad, H. (1997). Christianity, A Journey from Facts to Fiction. UK: Islam International Publications Ltd.

The Holy Bible: New International Version. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1984. Print.



posted on Mar, 1 2012 @ 12:53 PM
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reply to post by mactheaxe
 


Religion is scary. I do believe there are more opinions without proper commonsense to back it up. Church goers are scary,they are constantly fed fear and promised glory. There is nothing that can be accomplished in a church. Saints are sinners who care... All you have to do is love and care... Every little thought is heard by God, right, so He knows your desires before you even voice them, so why pray? Life is to be lived with abundance, abundance is to give yourself to others, not to a church. Abundance is give love and happiness, not solemn prayer. Church goers make God routine, as in Sundays I do church, on Wednesday I play golf. But He isn't a part of their lifestyle. It doesn't matter which church, whether you call it a synagogue or a cathedral, you end up thinking you have God in your back pocket, because that's what your rabbi, minister or imam says. Most religions force themselves on others, and they use love between men and women to do this. Most religions say things like 'you must have blind faith', like 'you cannot question what is written'. Most religions prey on fear, cause fear, and leave you spiritually dead. I so wish I could help those around me realize that God is everything, but if things are hidden in catacombs or were burnt in bonfires, then you need to realize that religions may have been started by God, but they were torn apart by men, just like men tear at everything. God is everything, but religion is the death of God!




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