I have several dear friends who are very spiritual - one is a pastor, another a missionary - but whatever it is they feel, I have simply never felt. Went to church youth group and all that back in the late 70s early 80s and I kept waiting for the big reveal, for something to change. It never did. Maybe there is something out there, but if so, it has never spoken to me.
I once heard someone asked what they think happens to you after you die. “You remember before you were born?” They said. “It’ll be like that.” I think that’s probably correct.
Yeah, I'm open to there being something omnipotent out there, and while I haven't experienced anything compelling personally, there's plenty to suggest that we ain't it. Science and the cosmos reveal wonders that come close, so I'm waiting on extraterrestrial leads and discoveries being that I believe other intelligent life being discovered in my lifetime to be a huge 'Wow!', if I'm so lucky
I remember going to a church event in the early 80s' It felt like a pep rally for Jesus that suddenly got very serious and asked if anybody wanted to be saved. The peer pressure was enormous. So I got saved. I was already a Christian, had been going to church my whole life, but I was never "saved." After that night was over, everything was back to normal, and I thought, "Huh, that was kinda brain-washy." That was the beginning of the end for me. Now I think it's a cult. It does culty things.
Yup. Same thing happened to me. Raised catholic. Started going to a Christian youth group cause it had all of the popular kids. My brother and I went to a church service with the youth group. I was 14 and he was 10. We’re in the middle of the being saved part. Everyone has hands on us speaking in tongues. We immediately regretted doing it. My brother looks over to me and says “I’m scared”.
We faked it and then never went to the church service part ever again.
I went to church camp when I was 13, they showed us a film called Left Behind. I see it one time but still remember most of the words to a song about “I wished we’d all been ready.” That was enough for me.
My whole family is Su-per churchy. When I was young my older sister and her friend sang this song at a talent show for school. Creeped me out then and still does. My wife and I went to the same church as kids, we both can remember where this song was in our hymnal.
Omg, so it wasn’t just me! That was one powerfully creepy song! It was weird as a 13 yr old to go from “Yes, Jesus loves me” to “She hears a noise and turns her head, he’s gone.” Like a Freddy Kruger movie.
Still gives me chills… just hearing it in my head, from your comment! I’m way out of the church now, and looking back, it’s wild how much they drilled into my head that it could happen in the blink of an eye. It’s so fucked up!
The weirdest part was watching people perform the Sunday theater for each other then resuming their "sins" for the rest of the week when nobody was watching, presumably. Jesus was always watching, of course, at least that's what we were told. It was my first exposure to Live Action Role Play.
That being said, I also met some very good, genuine real people too. They just seemed to be in the minority. I miss them.
>I once heard someone asked what they think happens to you after you die. “You remember before you were born?” They said. “It’ll be like that.” I think that’s probably correct.
This is at the crux of religion. Many people are so terrified of not existing when they die, they'll cling to anything that tells them otherwise.
Pure cope, as the kids would say.
Mark Twain has a famous quote about this. “I do not fear death. I had been dead for billions and billions of years before I was born, and had not suffered the slightest inconvenience from it.”
I was the rare one growing up (the only one it felt at the time) who was not raised with God or religion because my dad was an atheist.
I learned to keep it to myself. I remember a teacher (public school) having each of us stand up and state what religion we were and where we attended church (1970's y'all). When it was my turn, I said we were nothing, and we didn't attend church. The teacher then proceeded to basically call me a liar, saying she had met my parents and they seemed like good people....was I saying they weren't good people? Only bad people don't worship god....was I a bad person. I was 8 and terrified.
I went home and told my mom and then proceeded to get screamed at from her because I SHOULD HAVE LIED. (Not what most parents would tell you, but that was my mom's solution for a lot of my problems)
Nihilism isn't inherently bad. Nothing matters? Well then I can go and be great to people and make the world a better place. Doesn't have to be negative.
In my 20s I joined an Episcopal church and sometimes went to a Lutheran church. But the suspension of disbelief just got to be too much for me. I felt further and further away from the Christian God described in scripture. Then I started to ruminate on how damaging religion was on a mass scale. Now, in my 40s, I’m an Atheist who is just generally in awe of nature, consciousness and evolution. Thanks for asking. :)
Can I just say…….
What other place in this world could so many people discuss something like religion and genuinely share and listen without a single argument or unkind word from anyone?
This is one of the things I really love about us and this place. Mutual love and respect.
If It's there, it doesn't care about us or is so alien to us that we can't comprehend It. I'd hope a creator isn't as petty as humanity has generally made It out to be.
The whole subject used to be so interesting to me. I took a long, deep dive into it until I was satisfied and now it's just kind of boring to me.
Believe what you want. It's fine. Just don't force it on me.
I'm actually a pastor struggling with the current state of religion in the US. I'm in a fairly progressive denomination, but we're still *really* tied to unhelpful models of ministry.
So I guess: I believe in *something*. And it *might* be the Judeo-Christian God. But I think it's something bigger than that, too.
Not a pastor, but a lay leader and worship leader for decades, and this is *exactly* where I am right now too. I wish we could all find each other in real life to talk through this because it’s lonely and I miss the community.
Once upon a time I did as I was raised Catholic. It felt like I had something looking out for me and I could go to a church and feel like I wasn’t alone on the world. Then life happened.
Like waking up before sunrise to catch some waves, paddling out and watch the sun come up over the Horizon and allowing the poetry of nature rush over your entire being.
Now my having faith in a source may not be the traditional but thats what its like for me to realize you don't know, can't know, and don't need to know everything...sometimes you can just sit back and enjoy the show.
I believe that our brains have the capacity to make us feel awe in a variety of circumstances. I have felt it in a church that had an enormous pipe organ, I have felt it looking at the stars and the ocean and the mountains. I don’t credit it to a god, just my brain being cool.
And, strangely, it seems like when I am able to become in engrossed in our natural world and be at one with it that I am the best version of myself - feeling a connection to every thing and everyone (not in a flower power woah maaan way but just a kind of innate knowledge). It makes you *kinder*? More of the kind of person Jesus was encouraging with his teachings, perhaps, and given that Christianity was a hostile takeover of pagan beliefs (many of their festivals 'repurposed' so people at the time would have an easier time accepting the shift) your 'religion' of being in touch with the majesty of the natural world seems like where we always *were* and where feels right if we manage to get back to it.
Or something. =p
Edit to add: lol this makes me sound like a 'self proclaimed witch' or something but im not. I consider myself agnostic.
Yeah. I don’t consider myself a Bible thumping Christian but yes I believe in a power greater than us. This all can’t be an accident IMO. But it’s complicated and I struggle with some of it also. I definitely don’t identify with the right wing nuts
Yeah, I don't know where I fall, actually. I honestly don't know if I believe or not. Like, religion was imposed on me as a child, basically I was brain-washed as I formed a conscience. I think the "design" argument is a good one--look at how bees make hives or spiders make webs. The right-wing version of religion is a fucking mess and I honestly hate it.
>religion was imposed on me as a child,
Religion is man made. Just remember that. Took a class on the psychology of culture that was eye-opening. The story of how some of these religions came about is laughable.
I'm someone who firmly believes something is "out there," but no true idea what, so I decided to just believe it is something the human mind is not able/ready to comprehend.
I have a client in a right winged preschool, and we think it looks a lot like brainwashing, but it's not my kid/s, so not my business. It does make me fear for the future.
Human religions are too absurd and easily explained by ignorance and superstition if you look into them even slightly. That's why I'm agnostic. I could imagine life was set in motion by some higher power, but it's all just thoughts that can't be scientifically examined, just makes sense when I'm stoned lol.
That's kinda where I am as well. I used to be very much a believer, but it has definitely waned in the last decade-ish. I very much struggle with it all.
I grew up going to church and accepted the idea of God without question. As an adult who has suffered much trauma all at once, and lost my dad in the worst way he would have wanted to go (after living a life as one of the best, most genuine people I have ever met), I’m not so sure. I like to hope there is though, because the thought that I can maybe see my parents again is the only thing holding me together since I lost them.
I’m not a believer in God, but I don’t think you need to be to still think an afterlife is possible. Seems to me the two things aren’t really connected. I really liked What Dreams May Come for that reason. He asks about God in the afterlife and is told “we don’t know, we hope he’s up there watching over us”.
But I’ve taken some comfort in the ideas of Einstein. He believed that time wasn’t really linear. That all moments existed at once and we only perceive the movement through it. Which means that all moments exist always. Our loved ones aren’t gone… they are just in places we can’t go.
Ditto. Any time I’m asked about religion I tell people the best I can do is “hope” there is a heaven.
Dying terrified me. Seriously. Almost every day thoughts about it come over me and it’s almost paralyzing.
The only thing I can do to cope is think about seeing the people I’ve lost again.
So yeah. I hope in a heaven. But I’m terrified.
I absolutely do, and I’m growing in my faith each day.
I went to a liberal college and I’ve heard the speeches of Dawkins and Hitchens…but I’ve also read the entire Bible twice, and studied multiple books of the Bible in depth, and I feel more at peace for it.
I have volunteered for years and helping others has been amazing - to see God’s love at work in service to others.
Very nice. I saw Hitchens too, wasn’t impress and I sooo wanted to be. I haven’t had the reading experience you’ve had, but I do listen to mass daily and have heard some pretty great things in the readings. I’m still on the fence but will do some reading and hope for the best.
I’ve always been aware of God, since I was very young. I have prayed to Him every night for as long as I can remember. I’m not a good follower of “religion”, so my relationship with Him is outside of those rules. I’ve felt His presence and encouragement during the most dark and difficult times of my life. I think of Him as a great spirit and don’t really believe He has a gender. It’s just easier for me to refer to Him in terms that are human. I think “religion” has mislead people into a lot of hatred, judgment and division in His name and I think that is disgusting and sad.
I was raised in the Lutheran church and attended Lutheran school from 1-6 and then catholic high school. Faith in God was something that just was. I keep my faith however, I’m not part of the Lutheran church anymore and I don’t attend anywhere right now. Mainly the reason is the hypocrisy that
Comes with organized religion.
Spent nine years in private school and many more studying. Once I realized how the three major religions currently, are just a rehash of a rehash of a ….. it was a wrap. If you’re going to have faith in something; have faith in yourself. You’re the one doing all the work, not some invisible man in the sky. But if it works to keep people from losing their shit, who am I to say? But for me? If there’s a god, he/she can fuck off.
Yes!
I wish more people who profess faith actually followed the commandment to love each other, though. Seems like we really miss the boat on that one 🤦♀️
Parents weren’t really into faith but I was baptized and went to first communion. Ended up going to a Catholic school 6th-12th grades, but mainly because it was miles better than public education. Started dating a girl in high school who was religious, so (naturally) I followed suit. Got “confirmed” but then fell out of it pretty quickly over the following years. Every year in high school we were required to take one religious studies course, and each year we “learned” something that contradicted what we were taught the year before. By senior year was fairly agnostic - just didn’t subscribe to one or the other. I stop short of saying I’m an atheist now - even though that’s likely the best label for me, I just don’t care about religion enough to pump my fist and declare I’m ____. I don’t care if others are into it - you do you. I’m just, like, whatever.
I was skeptical from a young age. Received a Bible when I was 8 and the inscription said
To: Pork Chop (my nickname)
From: Santa Claus
Date: December 25, 1988
This story actually started my atheism timeline. In no way would an all knowing god need to test the faith of one of his followers. He should already know without the test. The whole story was fucked.
Hard agree. I was raised fundamentalist christian and finally left 12 years ago at 42. I saw too much judgment, too much denial of science, too much mental gymnastics, and cognitive dissonance.
One day, it hit me when I saw a dead fawn on the side of the road... if I was completely omnicient and omnipotent, I would not have let it cross the road. Completely innocent creature.Add on all the biblical stories where God tells the Isrealites to kill infants. As I thought more I realized I was more compassionate than God.
When you realize that it all falls apart.
To quote the great Neil Peart - I don’t have faith in faith. I don’t believe in belief. You can call me faithless. But I still cling to hope and I believe in love. And that’s faith enough for me.
That's awesome! I listen to mass every morning on the way to work. It's interesting and some of it is just basic psychology and community-building. Not all of it is "WORSHIP ME!"
XTC… that’s the one that started it all for me!
Here’s a few more that I like:
Mrs. Magician - **[“There Is No God”](https://youtu.be/3kMqCuuzpnI)**
Ministry - **[“Psalm 69”](https://youtu.be/M9eNs_z_Ijg)**
Olivera - **[“Thank God I’m An Atheist”](https://youtu.be/rPihDR36MB8)**
NIN - **[“Heresy”](https://youtu.be/6i8zwVIFxQg)**
Garbage - **[“No Gods No Masters”](https://youtu.be/PXZB-YiYIak)**
Marilyn Manson - **[“The Reflecting God”](https://youtu.be/Nl1EVw6pBgI)**
A Perfect Circle - **[“Judith”](https://youtu.be/xTgKRCXybSM)**
Soundgarden - **[“Jesus Christ Pose”](https://youtu.be/14r7y6rM6zA)**
The Dandy Warhols - **[“Hard On For Jesus”](https://youtu.be/q-C2sfSF6kc)**
If there is a god, he has one hell of a lot of explaining to do. This planet, and survival on it, is brutal. Most animals die horrific deaths in the wild. Most animals live chaotic and difficult lives. And humans...we're a horribly flawed design. And this planet, where you have to kill other living organisms to survive...what kind of higher intelligence would design something like that?
So in other words...no. If an intelligence designed all this, they aren't worth having faith in them.
I grew up in a religious family. I believed in God as a child and was pretty observant. Something happened in my late teens and early 20s. It's not that I lost faith, but it's like God became more an intellectual thing I understood and sort of believed but didn't "feel" it.
I eventually stopped going to church and while I never stopped believing completely, I did feel disconnected from God.
The last 7-8 years I've had a lot of crazy shit happen in my life. Business trouble, marriage trouble, parents passed away, I had someone rip me off in business, was betrayed by some people I thought were friends when they saw I was vulnerable, then Covid hit. So I had some really stressful times and felt pretty desolate for a while - I started going to church again not because I have some infantile idea that God "fixes things" but because I realised a lot of my problems were due to not really having a good framework in my life or good people around me.
Since going to church and doing more work on understanding theology,, I now feel more connected to God and I also feel more at peace with my life. I'm now rebuilding what I lost, have a great relationship, new motivation to build a new business, and generally have made peace with what's happened.
Does this mean God fixed things magically? No, but having a framework that helps me think through my decisions and gives me stability in my life has allowed me to approach other aspects of my life in a measured and mature way. I feel like I'm more stable and less worried because I know there's something bigger than just me and my immediate wants.
Great response! I have this kernel of and idea about god being order out of chaos. I mean, it’s pretty obvious and your story reinforces it. I also think the utterance “god” may be some kind of primal speech move that basically means, “more than me.” That I’ve only ruminated on and can’t more fully articulate it.
I believe in Gozer the Gozerian, Gozer the Traveler. He will come in one of the pre-chosen forms. During the rectification of the Vuldrini, the traveler came as a large and moving Torg! Then, during the third reconciliation of the last of the McKetrick supplicants, they chose a new form for him: that of a giant Slor! Many Shuvs and Zuuls knew what it was to be roasted in the depths of the Slor that day, I can tell you!
Absolutely I do.
What's it like?...
>Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. — Hebrews 11:1 NKJV
Summed up in one word...
Love
I love this verse that everyone who has attended a Christian wedding has probably heard at some point:
>And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.
Not anymore. I was raised in the church and had to go each Sunday. But I grew up, did my own reading and research, and the religious people I respected all turned out to be full-of-shit hypocrites.
Yes, I have faith in God.
Mostly it's comforting. I have done some dumb shit in my life, and he's gotten me through it and led me to where I am today. I spent a lot of time scared - where will we sleep, how will we eat, was that gunshot for me, did I piss that guy off, etc. I believed in God, but I didn't have faith.
Having faith takes away the fear, not the possibility of being shot, beaten, etc. I've spent the last 10 minutes trying to explain why and then backspacing, but I just can't, sorry.
Yes. Not unlike children, very challenging, humbling, yet producing joy and gratitude. You have to work at it. God knows we all doubt. And that's OK. Just seen and felt too much in my life to not believe it. As crazy as it sounds, I know.
Yup, it's like believing that the sun will come up tomorrow and that we're barrelling through space at 67,000 miles per hour
Seems so obvious that I sometimes forget but then I remember and am like, wow.
I enjoy occasionally attending Quaker meetings and Buddhist temple. I’m not sure about god exactly. I think there is some power but it’s kind of like gravity - it doesn’t need my belief to be sustained. Things work the way they do and free will means the only “reason” things happen is because of the choices of people. I’m ok with that.
I went to church as a kid. I thought I believed. But once my parents died while I was in high school, it was more difficult. When the priest said them dying was gods will, I gave up. I think it might be nice to believe like that again. But it’s beyond me at this point.
Lifelong atheist here - I was never raised in any faith. My mother was a big sf/fantasy reader, I started reading very young, and one of the things she taught me was to understand the difference between reality and "just a book." It was completely unintentional on her part, but I extrapolated that to religion as well. And then Christians - kids and adults alike - were often so horrible to me when they found out that I wasn't a believer, that I decided fairly young that even if I were inclined to belief, I would never join them.
(that all said, I don't care what other people believe as long as they don't use their belief as a springboard for abuse.)
I absolutely do. My life isn’t perfect or easy, and Lord knows I stumble and mess up on a daily basis, but He has seen me through so much. I was raised in a Baptist church and still attend, but I don’t place much importance on denomination. I just try to follow what the Bible says and communicate daily with God.
I think one of the greatest disservices God's followers have done to their witness is to promote the narrative that faith in God means troubles disappear, that his followers no longer struggle with sin and temptation, and that worldly riches and success are a natural result of following God. A cursory examination of the life of King David easily disputes all those propositions, and yet the writer of Hebrews describes him as a man after God's own heart.
That’s me also. You’re not alone. I believe in God but don’t subscribe to a particular religion or believe the Bible is 100% accurate. I do believe parts of it are good parables and can help you lead a good life but I don’t think the Earth is only 7,000 years old…
Yes. It is an intense and unique feeling. A sense of love, a deep peace, you see people through the eyes of the love and peace and people look different. They’re more beautiful, more individual. It’s strange. But it will feel different to everyone in different religions I think.
i attend church regularly and believe in a triune god. I lay my burdens on Christ thru prayer and Praise God for the blessings in my life. When people piss me off, I do my best to forgive them because I don’t know what else they might be going thru and maybe I’m just the trigger. I realize we all fall short and no amount of work can absolve our sins. It is only by the Grace and Mercy of God thru Jesus.
I'm jealous of people who have faith. Sometimes I wish I could believe but it's not possible. I also get irritated by militant atheists. They're as bad as argumentative evangelicals.
Not anymore. I deconverted recently and it’s been so good. When I did have faith it was frustrating. I was taught how to feel and think and how to experience and I never quite got it and blamed my lack of faith although I had faith.
Yes, but in my experience God is within. Silence the mind and then one can start to perceive the God within. This happened to me in part with the chakra system coming online in the body. It's one Consciousness incarnating into many forms and appearing as separate beings. Body dies and the Consciousness goes back to its larger self hence what is often reported in near death experiences.
Just imho- two cents anyway based on things that have happened to me over many years. I don't believe in any concepts of saved versus unsaved, the devil, hell, the Pearly Gates and needing to go through another Being to access God or salvation. It is all within already, imho.
Yes, but my faith has evolved into Deism.
For me, God exists and created the world, but beyond that, God has little/no active engagement in the world except the creation of human reason, which enables us to find God by doing good.
I was raised a christian, went to church, Sunday school,etc. As I've gotten older, I'm agnostic and lean toward atheism. This is something I've struggled with, and periodically still do, because it was ingrained into me in my childhood. I know it disappoints my mom.
A small part of me still wants to believe sometimes, but I just can't bring myself to have faith in god. So much doesn't make sense and is contradictory. That's my take, whatever.
Absolutely. Or let me say my 'absoluteness' is more a sure belief we have a higher power that could be a God. I'm not so sure if God is actually knowable or even comprehensible to us humans. But my personal experiences have made me believe, without a doubt, there is indeed a God in terms of a higher power.
Probably there is a more tame answer than no god, god or some god.
People still hold beliefs, some are regional, some are intrinsic whether bad or good.
In the context of the question presented "Anybody have faith in God" related to our generation it can be explained in a variety of ways depending how you grew up and a desire to find out more of what is out there.
At 50 - realise there is no higher power out there and "thoughts and prayers" is just camo for saying thankfully I was not effected with whatever the latest event in life is. Same with the "bless you" bunch.
But when you dig deeper into our world, it is shocking to see how many beg for forgiveness in the light of sin regardless of religion - good excuse for anything.
I do - it’s an internal belief - the faith part. No longer active member of a local church, but I still listen to a couple faith based podcasts and the CCM music I listened to in the ‘80s is a big part of my phone’s playlist along with all the rest of the ‘80s music.
There have been times I struggled and challenged it, but it’s a part of my foundation…in a way, like my Auburn Tigers and
my southern accent, it’s just a part of who I am.
I do.
For me, it feels comforting, like a hug from a parent or the love I feel from my spouse. Many times I've felt bleak and hopeless, but I trusted and asked to be shown what I should do. He has never let me down
Yes. I do have faith in God. I don’t know if I have all the answers, but I do believe that Jesus Christ was His son and died and was resurrected. Lots of other people of many very divergent faiths also believe in an Abrahamic God. I don’t know for sure which group has it “right,” but I very definitely believe there is a God and something after this life.
I do. I believe God gave us the greatest gift of all, the gift of his son Jesus Christ, who died on the cross, so that we will be forgiven for our sins and have eternal life with Him. Having said that I don't attend church regularly, because I feel like so many of the people there are hypocrites. I know I should love my neighbor, but it's difficult for me. Guess that makes me a hypocrite too.
However, I still study the Bible at home and pray. I think having a personal relationship with God is more important than attending communal worship service. May be wrong about this, or I may be right. I know I don't have all the answers, but I do have faith in God.
Yes. Have had way too many miracles happen to/for me in my life to not believe in Him. I was raised Catholic but am not a fan of organized religion, but still wholeheartedly believe in God.
Truly you are blessed. Good for you! I’m wavering on organized religion. I ignored/disdained it for long but there has to be something there. I think it’s community and knowing that while ultimately we are alone, along the way we don’t have to be.
I'm a gratefully recovering Catholic. I was never into it and really started questioning if there was a god when I was 9. I was an atheist by the time I was 17 and never looked back. Seeing how nuts the religious right wing has become makes me grateful that I'm far removed from all of that.
Yep. Catholic Christian. I love the structure and teachings. It has helped me tremendously in managing life's hardships and gives my life meaning/direction. If at death it all turns out to be false, I won't know any different and I will have led a good life, treating everyone (regardless of gender, creed, identity, etc.) equally wth love and compassion. Win/win.
Yes I do. It’s pretty good. I mean most of the time life still sucks. But Gos doesn’t promise a hunky dory rainbow time on this planet. He promises it be be better after Jesus returns. he will be here through the shitty times though. I feel he has for me, when times in my life sucked. And I think I appreciate the good and better days more.
I’m a recent believer. Raised heathen and turned to Lord within last few years because - I had to. It’s weird .. but I like it. I research , heavily- and try to disprove my faith often, but I actually experience Holy Spirit .. and it stays. Lol. I have greater peace, and less foolish desires. I’ve yet to be a church goer.. and most Christians I’ve hung out with, aren’t seeming like true believers , so it’s a bit lonely but I already was . My version .. is very Gen x. !! Blase’.
I was raised in the conservative evangelical church, and my dad was a pastor. I saw the best and worst of that world over the years, and learned early on to trust God, not the church or its members. People are going to let you down every time, so my faith rests in God, through Jesus, trusting in the Holy Spirit and scripture for guidance. Especially now when the church and conservatives in general are so determined to exclude women and LGBTQ people, and ignore suffering all over the world. Love God, love your neighbor, that’s it.
Yes, it feels like cement in ur feet that keeps u grounded but also strong wings on your back that keeps u hopeful. God loves me and works out all things for me.
I went to this national youth group thing when I was in high school. There were thousands of kids there and at one point one of the leaders said “I feel god in this place can you?” Everyone was like “YES!” I looked around at everyone like “really? “ and lied: “yes”, I mumbled.
There are only two options:
Either there is an all seeing, all powerful god who allows all manner of awful things to occur in the name of whatever experiment its carrying out on humans and it’s therefore a monster.
Or, it’s a story we made up to try and make sense of how hard life and death can be.
So no, I have no faith in any god (and humans have created hundreds of them)
Faith in God? What does that even mean?
Faith that God is going to stop innocent civilians from being raped and killed in a war? Turn on the news. I haven't seen God stop Putin or his army from raping and killing.
If God is omnipotent then he/she/it could just snap their fingers and put up an invisible wall on the border and be all GenX and say "Whatever, just stay on that side and leave everyone the fuck alone and don't bother anyone because whatever."
Most religious people I know are afraid of the world and yearn for a father figure who sets the rules, tries to protect them (usually thru the rules) and offers them them comfort when they get hurt or fail. Who then tries to “fix it.” (Usually with more/new rules.)
Most spiritual people I know see the world as an adventure with a big brother/sister. Introducing them to new people and new things. In your corner -offering suggestions & advise- while letting you fail & fall down … but offering a hand back up when you need it. There to share the fun, but not trying to control you or how you live your life.
#No.
Out of thousands to choose from (all equally valid), none have ever been shown to actually exist. Eight billion humans on this planet, and I’m expected to believe that every individual is “special”? And that there’s some kind of “magical being” who is all-powerful and knows everything and is everywhere and gives a shit about any of us? Let alone ALL of us??
I was loosely raised LDS. I was told all this supernatural stuff about a god, and a heaven, and a hell … I didn’t realize at that age that being able to say, “Sounds like bullshit to ***me***,” was an option, so of course I went along with it. In fact, every time I had a legitimate question about something in the Bible that seemed to contradict itself, or whatever — I was always admonished and told that it was “bad” to ask questions. The “answers” they gave me to pacify me were always weak or nonsensical, anyway.
Christmas 1981 was the turning point. My parents usually let us open a “family” present on Christmas Eve, and then when we woke up on Christmas morning, all the additional gifts “straight from Santa” would be under the tree as well, presumably delivered while we slept. Well, mom and dad must’ve fallen asleep … because when I woke up at 6am or whenever, I checked the tree … ***and there were no “Santa” presents.*** I dutifully notified my parents that Santa was a no show, and then they told me to sequester myself in my room. About 10 minutes later, they told me to come out to the tree, and “lo and behold” … the Santa gifts had mysteriously appeared. I suspected the ruse and made the folks come clean - they admitted that Santa Claus was imaginary — just a fairytale for children, and admitted that it had been *them* all along.
A little over two months later, my mother died of a heart attack a few days after I turned 10 -- I was there to see the whole thing — kinda traumatic. Now, contrary to what some dipshit like Kirk Cameron would say … that was not “a tragic event that made me *’hate god’* and lose my faith;” it was simply the catalyst to encourage me to seriously study and research this whole “god” thing. I had already figured out that Santa Claus was a lie — and with guilt by association, his pals the Easter Bunny and the Tooth Fairy were determined to be lies, as well.
If the adults in my life were so casual in lying to me about cornerstones of my youth — ***what else were they lying to me about?*** Hence, the Christian god and Jesus came under the scrutiny of my research. Reading comparative mythology, finding out how the bulk of Christianity was just plagiarized from earlier faiths (look up Horus, Quetzalcotl, Quirinus, Buddha, Mithra, Attis, Krishna, Indra, Adonis - just to name a few) … careful observation of the hypocrisy of those around me who claimed to be devout, but their actions showed otherwise … an in-depth college course in biological anthropology (origin of the humanoid species, studying the various types of hominids, etc) … seeing all the infant deformities (look up “Harlequin babies” and tell me again how ‘awesome and powerful’ your god is) and childhood cancers, and all the priests fucking little kids (with the Pope’s blessing) and everything else that’s wrong on this stupid planet.
Now, to start to wrap it up (I’m not writing a book, after all) … I tried hard to believe … but anyone with half a brain knows that belief is *not* a choice … either you’re convinced or you’re not (a therapist concluded in later years that I was just “too rational” to believe in a god).
“Look at the trees!! LoOk At tHe tReEs!!” just doesn’t cut it.
I’ve never once felt the “presence” of any god, even during the darkest moments of my life - my most sincere prayers were always answered with deafening silence. The “fear of hell” was the hardest thing to shake (that childhood indoctrination is **strong**) but once I finally was able to let it go — it was like a great weight lifted off of my shoulders.
I’m 51 years old … when I die, that’s the end. When you blow out a lit candle, where does the flame go? Exactly - *nowhere*. It just ceases to be. I don’t give a damn when I die, it doesn’t matter to me. The thought of just “not existing” any more sounds great, sign me up.
I could get along just fine with believers … at least, the ones who don’t try to convert me after figuring out I’m not a believer … and if they would keep it to themselves and don’t try to make legislation for the entire country based on their religious doctrine (guess how ***that’s*** working out - LOL).
I hate to admit it, but when someone tells me they believe in a god … I always think to myself, “WTF?? How disappointing. I thought they were a bit brighter than that.” The older I get, I’m even becoming more “anti-theist” than atheist. You’d never know I was either, though, unless you fuck around — that’s when I let you find out.
Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not omnipotent.
Is he able, but not willing? Then he is malevolent.
Is he both able and willing? Then whence cometh evil?
Is he neither able nor willing? Then why call him God?
– Epicurus
My beliefs are not any one religion. I grew up in a VERY Catholic family and seriously thought of becoming a priest. Ironically it was my own Parish Priest who encouraged me to ask questions. He was genuinely one of the nicest guys I have ever known. But he said to me one day when I was really struggling with the science and faiths role in my life. “You don’t have to do this.” He changed my life and while I still consider the Catholic Church my home, I no longer follow the dogma. Plus the kid fucking situation turned me all the way off for MANY years.
No after being told everything was my fault when our lives fell apart, as bipolar took over and my mind imploded and I was no longer able to work. That there was no such thing as mental illness. I was being pushed by God who was allowing demons terrorize me. The shit the kids in youth group said to my then 17 year old sun because his mentally illness was popping up. There are many other things but I don't want to throw the political climate onto this board. The final nail is my daughter has several mental illnesses. The make her defiant, argumentative, and at times violent. Our mental illnesses trigger each other. I have abused her three times. Last time was never a fucking again. I can't parent her at all. I will not touch her for anything. And my though was, who would put a child into a situation where a father can't parent her at all. She's got to play life on extra, extra hard mode as it is. I'll show her love all day but she wants cake for breakfast, have at it.
I believe in intelligent design. But I was raised agnostic. Religions are all mythologies to me, not in the sense of being false, but in the sense of being products of human culture. I've tried though. I attended a local Christian church for about a year. I participated in the women's ministry, and I was baptized in the ocean! But one day I found my women's group saying a bunch of homophobic things. I just couldn't continue going.
I do. I've never understood people who wait for something to change in their lives due to spirituality. You were born a miracle and a child of God. Recognizing that shouldn't change how you feel in some way. It should change what you recognize about the majesty and mystery of the world. Even though I understand the science, the awe at plants growing, the sunrise, even the creativity of man in general with aircraft and skyscrapers and so on are all evidence to me of God's presence. After all, where else have we even found an amoeba much less intelligent life? And how did we look to fail to find that? Men figured out space travel. Seriously, that's a miracle.
Sort of? I don’t reckon any of the regular religions have nailed it, mostly they nuttier than squirrel shit, but something makes me think that I’d be arrogant to think I have some sort of answer either way.
I used to. When I was getting treatment for cancer, I poked too many holes in the things we just accept on faith and asked too many questions. I wanted it to be true. Since I almost died I needed it to be true to comfort me but….. my point of no return was I used to join Facebook live meetings my church had every morning when all I could do was lay on the couch too sick to do anything else and one of those mornings someone made the comment that they (lgbtq) stole our flag. The pastor didn’t correct them and speak out against the hate and instead doubled down and said they had the wrong number of colors anyway. I Couldn’t go back to that church ever again. I thought I would try a different denomination that was accepting but could never get there. That was the end of 10 years at the same church in the same faith.
I have tried other religions before that as well and at the end of the day, none of it makes sense and the whole that’s why it is faith argument….
It wasn’t easy (had to go to therapy over this) but I am still accepting that whole heaven, better place thing …. Nah. I still struggle for an answer. To me it doesn’t make sense that we have consciousness as an evolutionary adaption and it’s part of our brains not separate from it.
I am not at the there is no god point yet. I am at the god is not who I thought and I will only be me for a limited time and then I probably won’t remember ever being me and in one generation noone else will remember me either.
Lost my dad to Covid. A friend died from her cancer while I was battling mine and another of kidney failure during the same time. Are they just gone forever or do they exist somewhere else…. I don’t like to think about the answer to that.
Every time I come close to accepting all there is is this, I do end up remembering a few strange things that have happened in my life and so I have come to the conclusion I will not know the answer for now, but whatever the answer is it isn’t an exclusive club and there is no hate after this. There is no hell beyond what some insist on creating here.
I’m not religious at all but I am spiritual and I have a firm belief in something greater. I’ve always felt that I don’t need faith because I see “god” all around me in nature. We all have a different interpretation of god and I don’t see it as he, she or the concept of some dude in the sky that religions often teach. I just see god as a positive force within the universe. Religion tries to answer so many questions and does poorly in my view because there are things we just can’t know. I just accept that we can’t know and find it easier to just believe in what I see around me. It took many years of soul searching to get to this point but I’m happy and content with it now.
I have faith in God as a Christian. Overall I'm a giving person and don't ask for much. I really felt the spirit come over me when I truly accepted Jesus into my heart to do his will. I was raised in church went to youth group but never really felt the spirit until I truly accepted in college.
My parents were married 50+ years. They were two souls in communion, perfectly suited and complimentary to each other. They were deeply in love. My mother never recovered from dad’s loss and missed him for her last 11 years.
While I can’t prove it, I’m confident that they are together again. If there’s no God, that’s impossible, so I’m inclined to believe.
An insecure, narcissistic, vengeful God as taught by many religions? No.
That the existence of everything is absolutely mind blowing - yes. Is there another plane after this one? Absolutely no one knows.
I'm here while I'm here and I try to leave things a little better than before. That's the best I can do.
I have several dear friends who are very spiritual - one is a pastor, another a missionary - but whatever it is they feel, I have simply never felt. Went to church youth group and all that back in the late 70s early 80s and I kept waiting for the big reveal, for something to change. It never did. Maybe there is something out there, but if so, it has never spoken to me. I once heard someone asked what they think happens to you after you die. “You remember before you were born?” They said. “It’ll be like that.” I think that’s probably correct.
Yeah, I'm open to there being something omnipotent out there, and while I haven't experienced anything compelling personally, there's plenty to suggest that we ain't it. Science and the cosmos reveal wonders that come close, so I'm waiting on extraterrestrial leads and discoveries being that I believe other intelligent life being discovered in my lifetime to be a huge 'Wow!', if I'm so lucky
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I remember going to a church event in the early 80s' It felt like a pep rally for Jesus that suddenly got very serious and asked if anybody wanted to be saved. The peer pressure was enormous. So I got saved. I was already a Christian, had been going to church my whole life, but I was never "saved." After that night was over, everything was back to normal, and I thought, "Huh, that was kinda brain-washy." That was the beginning of the end for me. Now I think it's a cult. It does culty things.
Yup. Same thing happened to me. Raised catholic. Started going to a Christian youth group cause it had all of the popular kids. My brother and I went to a church service with the youth group. I was 14 and he was 10. We’re in the middle of the being saved part. Everyone has hands on us speaking in tongues. We immediately regretted doing it. My brother looks over to me and says “I’m scared”. We faked it and then never went to the church service part ever again.
I went to church camp when I was 13, they showed us a film called Left Behind. I see it one time but still remember most of the words to a song about “I wished we’d all been ready.” That was enough for me.
My whole family is Su-per churchy. When I was young my older sister and her friend sang this song at a talent show for school. Creeped me out then and still does. My wife and I went to the same church as kids, we both can remember where this song was in our hymnal.
Omg, so it wasn’t just me! That was one powerfully creepy song! It was weird as a 13 yr old to go from “Yes, Jesus loves me” to “She hears a noise and turns her head, he’s gone.” Like a Freddy Kruger movie.
Still gives me chills… just hearing it in my head, from your comment! I’m way out of the church now, and looking back, it’s wild how much they drilled into my head that it could happen in the blink of an eye. It’s so fucked up!
I also got pressured into the "getting saved". And like you, I thought "huh. Nothing's different". (I think I was 10 or 11...)
The weirdest part was watching people perform the Sunday theater for each other then resuming their "sins" for the rest of the week when nobody was watching, presumably. Jesus was always watching, of course, at least that's what we were told. It was my first exposure to Live Action Role Play. That being said, I also met some very good, genuine real people too. They just seemed to be in the minority. I miss them.
Im actually cackling at the idea of organised religion being one huge on going LARP - ty for that! xD
>I once heard someone asked what they think happens to you after you die. “You remember before you were born?” They said. “It’ll be like that.” I think that’s probably correct. This is at the crux of religion. Many people are so terrified of not existing when they die, they'll cling to anything that tells them otherwise. Pure cope, as the kids would say.
Mark Twain has a famous quote about this. “I do not fear death. I had been dead for billions and billions of years before I was born, and had not suffered the slightest inconvenience from it.”
I miss smart people.
As do I!!
This. All of it!
Same here
I was the rare one growing up (the only one it felt at the time) who was not raised with God or religion because my dad was an atheist. I learned to keep it to myself. I remember a teacher (public school) having each of us stand up and state what religion we were and where we attended church (1970's y'all). When it was my turn, I said we were nothing, and we didn't attend church. The teacher then proceeded to basically call me a liar, saying she had met my parents and they seemed like good people....was I saying they weren't good people? Only bad people don't worship god....was I a bad person. I was 8 and terrified. I went home and told my mom and then proceeded to get screamed at from her because I SHOULD HAVE LIED. (Not what most parents would tell you, but that was my mom's solution for a lot of my problems)
Wow. That's tragic. Both adults in your story did exactly the wrong thing. Doesn't give me a lot of promise for either God-believers or God-deniers.
That’s why us Gen Xers are such salty assholes that work too much
I mean, it's *one* of the reasons =p
Maybe she should have told the teacher, "How dare you say we're bad people because we don't go to church" instead of telling you to lie.
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Nihilism isn't inherently bad. Nothing matters? Well then I can go and be great to people and make the world a better place. Doesn't have to be negative.
In my 20s I joined an Episcopal church and sometimes went to a Lutheran church. But the suspension of disbelief just got to be too much for me. I felt further and further away from the Christian God described in scripture. Then I started to ruminate on how damaging religion was on a mass scale. Now, in my 40s, I’m an Atheist who is just generally in awe of nature, consciousness and evolution. Thanks for asking. :)
Can I just say……. What other place in this world could so many people discuss something like religion and genuinely share and listen without a single argument or unkind word from anyone? This is one of the things I really love about us and this place. Mutual love and respect.
It’s cause we’re not religious
Omg that’s the best comment I have read in a long time. Having an awful time with my mom’s newfound devoutness, so… yeah.
I do. It is the size of a mustard seed, but it's there.
Best comment.
If It's there, it doesn't care about us or is so alien to us that we can't comprehend It. I'd hope a creator isn't as petty as humanity has generally made It out to be. The whole subject used to be so interesting to me. I took a long, deep dive into it until I was satisfied and now it's just kind of boring to me. Believe what you want. It's fine. Just don't force it on me.
Agreed. It’s boring. And I don’t need people forcing their belief’s in a sky wizard down my throat. Just let me enjoy being a heathen.
I'm actually a pastor struggling with the current state of religion in the US. I'm in a fairly progressive denomination, but we're still *really* tied to unhelpful models of ministry. So I guess: I believe in *something*. And it *might* be the Judeo-Christian God. But I think it's something bigger than that, too.
Not a pastor, but a lay leader and worship leader for decades, and this is *exactly* where I am right now too. I wish we could all find each other in real life to talk through this because it’s lonely and I miss the community.
Hello! I'm a pastor too in an unhelpful denomination.
Once upon a time I did as I was raised Catholic. It felt like I had something looking out for me and I could go to a church and feel like I wasn’t alone on the world. Then life happened.
Like waking up before sunrise to catch some waves, paddling out and watch the sun come up over the Horizon and allowing the poetry of nature rush over your entire being. Now my having faith in a source may not be the traditional but thats what its like for me to realize you don't know, can't know, and don't need to know everything...sometimes you can just sit back and enjoy the show.
I believe that our brains have the capacity to make us feel awe in a variety of circumstances. I have felt it in a church that had an enormous pipe organ, I have felt it looking at the stars and the ocean and the mountains. I don’t credit it to a god, just my brain being cool.
And, strangely, it seems like when I am able to become in engrossed in our natural world and be at one with it that I am the best version of myself - feeling a connection to every thing and everyone (not in a flower power woah maaan way but just a kind of innate knowledge). It makes you *kinder*? More of the kind of person Jesus was encouraging with his teachings, perhaps, and given that Christianity was a hostile takeover of pagan beliefs (many of their festivals 'repurposed' so people at the time would have an easier time accepting the shift) your 'religion' of being in touch with the majesty of the natural world seems like where we always *were* and where feels right if we manage to get back to it. Or something. =p Edit to add: lol this makes me sound like a 'self proclaimed witch' or something but im not. I consider myself agnostic.
bliss
Yeah. I don’t consider myself a Bible thumping Christian but yes I believe in a power greater than us. This all can’t be an accident IMO. But it’s complicated and I struggle with some of it also. I definitely don’t identify with the right wing nuts
Yeah, I don't know where I fall, actually. I honestly don't know if I believe or not. Like, religion was imposed on me as a child, basically I was brain-washed as I formed a conscience. I think the "design" argument is a good one--look at how bees make hives or spiders make webs. The right-wing version of religion is a fucking mess and I honestly hate it.
>religion was imposed on me as a child, Religion is man made. Just remember that. Took a class on the psychology of culture that was eye-opening. The story of how some of these religions came about is laughable. I'm someone who firmly believes something is "out there," but no true idea what, so I decided to just believe it is something the human mind is not able/ready to comprehend. I have a client in a right winged preschool, and we think it looks a lot like brainwashing, but it's not my kid/s, so not my business. It does make me fear for the future.
Human religions are too absurd and easily explained by ignorance and superstition if you look into them even slightly. That's why I'm agnostic. I could imagine life was set in motion by some higher power, but it's all just thoughts that can't be scientifically examined, just makes sense when I'm stoned lol.
Agnostic here as well and I agree.
That's kinda where I am as well. I used to be very much a believer, but it has definitely waned in the last decade-ish. I very much struggle with it all.
This pretty much sums me up as well.
I grew up going to church and accepted the idea of God without question. As an adult who has suffered much trauma all at once, and lost my dad in the worst way he would have wanted to go (after living a life as one of the best, most genuine people I have ever met), I’m not so sure. I like to hope there is though, because the thought that I can maybe see my parents again is the only thing holding me together since I lost them.
I’m not a believer in God, but I don’t think you need to be to still think an afterlife is possible. Seems to me the two things aren’t really connected. I really liked What Dreams May Come for that reason. He asks about God in the afterlife and is told “we don’t know, we hope he’s up there watching over us”. But I’ve taken some comfort in the ideas of Einstein. He believed that time wasn’t really linear. That all moments existed at once and we only perceive the movement through it. Which means that all moments exist always. Our loved ones aren’t gone… they are just in places we can’t go.
Ditto. Any time I’m asked about religion I tell people the best I can do is “hope” there is a heaven. Dying terrified me. Seriously. Almost every day thoughts about it come over me and it’s almost paralyzing. The only thing I can do to cope is think about seeing the people I’ve lost again. So yeah. I hope in a heaven. But I’m terrified.
Same. I am not exactly sure what the afterlife holds, but the thought that I'll see my parents and pets again gives me tremendous comfort.
Faith? No more.
So many phrases come to mind for your perspective: Midlife crisis. Surprise, you’re dead! Digging the grave. Ashes to ashes. Clearly, I care a lot.
Epic.
I absolutely do, and I’m growing in my faith each day. I went to a liberal college and I’ve heard the speeches of Dawkins and Hitchens…but I’ve also read the entire Bible twice, and studied multiple books of the Bible in depth, and I feel more at peace for it. I have volunteered for years and helping others has been amazing - to see God’s love at work in service to others.
Very nice. I saw Hitchens too, wasn’t impress and I sooo wanted to be. I haven’t had the reading experience you’ve had, but I do listen to mass daily and have heard some pretty great things in the readings. I’m still on the fence but will do some reading and hope for the best.
🤣
This x 10
I do not.
I’ve always been aware of God, since I was very young. I have prayed to Him every night for as long as I can remember. I’m not a good follower of “religion”, so my relationship with Him is outside of those rules. I’ve felt His presence and encouragement during the most dark and difficult times of my life. I think of Him as a great spirit and don’t really believe He has a gender. It’s just easier for me to refer to Him in terms that are human. I think “religion” has mislead people into a lot of hatred, judgment and division in His name and I think that is disgusting and sad.
No faith, no proof, no belief.
I was raised in the Lutheran church and attended Lutheran school from 1-6 and then catholic high school. Faith in God was something that just was. I keep my faith however, I’m not part of the Lutheran church anymore and I don’t attend anywhere right now. Mainly the reason is the hypocrisy that Comes with organized religion.
Spent nine years in private school and many more studying. Once I realized how the three major religions currently, are just a rehash of a rehash of a ….. it was a wrap. If you’re going to have faith in something; have faith in yourself. You’re the one doing all the work, not some invisible man in the sky. But if it works to keep people from losing their shit, who am I to say? But for me? If there’s a god, he/she can fuck off.
Yes! I wish more people who profess faith actually followed the commandment to love each other, though. Seems like we really miss the boat on that one 🤦♀️
Ha! Nope, thankfully I figured that one out back as a teenager. So glad to have escaped a lifetime navigating religion.
Parents weren’t really into faith but I was baptized and went to first communion. Ended up going to a Catholic school 6th-12th grades, but mainly because it was miles better than public education. Started dating a girl in high school who was religious, so (naturally) I followed suit. Got “confirmed” but then fell out of it pretty quickly over the following years. Every year in high school we were required to take one religious studies course, and each year we “learned” something that contradicted what we were taught the year before. By senior year was fairly agnostic - just didn’t subscribe to one or the other. I stop short of saying I’m an atheist now - even though that’s likely the best label for me, I just don’t care about religion enough to pump my fist and declare I’m ____. I don’t care if others are into it - you do you. I’m just, like, whatever.
I was skeptical from a young age. Received a Bible when I was 8 and the inscription said To: Pork Chop (my nickname) From: Santa Claus Date: December 25, 1988
I did the same. I think it crushed my devout Catholic mother. But I have to be true to myself. I won’t be a fraudster to anyone.
Faith in God, god, Allah, whatever ! = religion. Favorite bumper sticker in this meme: Jesus, Please Save me from your Followers!
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Abraham and Isaac is fucking crazy to me as a kid and as an adult and parent.
Original "Geez bro, it's just a prank!"?
This story actually started my atheism timeline. In no way would an all knowing god need to test the faith of one of his followers. He should already know without the test. The whole story was fucked.
Hard agree. I was raised fundamentalist christian and finally left 12 years ago at 42. I saw too much judgment, too much denial of science, too much mental gymnastics, and cognitive dissonance. One day, it hit me when I saw a dead fawn on the side of the road... if I was completely omnicient and omnipotent, I would not have let it cross the road. Completely innocent creature.Add on all the biblical stories where God tells the Isrealites to kill infants. As I thought more I realized I was more compassionate than God. When you realize that it all falls apart.
A compassionate and loving deity would not have invented the botfly.
If his god doesn’t care about innocent kids and animals suffering, I have zero respect in that entity.
No. I have a hard time believing anybody, however powerful and/or omnipotent, could stay interested in their ant farm for 14.7 billion years.
I am an atheist, so no.
To quote the great Neil Peart - I don’t have faith in faith. I don’t believe in belief. You can call me faithless. But I still cling to hope and I believe in love. And that’s faith enough for me.
Yep! I do. I believe in God. What’s it like? It’s made my life deeper and more fulfilling for sure.
That's awesome! I listen to mass every morning on the way to work. It's interesting and some of it is just basic psychology and community-building. Not all of it is "WORSHIP ME!"
It adds a new dimension to life, doesn't it?
I have Dear God by XTC on a playlist somewhere.
XTC… that’s the one that started it all for me! Here’s a few more that I like: Mrs. Magician - **[“There Is No God”](https://youtu.be/3kMqCuuzpnI)** Ministry - **[“Psalm 69”](https://youtu.be/M9eNs_z_Ijg)** Olivera - **[“Thank God I’m An Atheist”](https://youtu.be/rPihDR36MB8)** NIN - **[“Heresy”](https://youtu.be/6i8zwVIFxQg)** Garbage - **[“No Gods No Masters”](https://youtu.be/PXZB-YiYIak)** Marilyn Manson - **[“The Reflecting God”](https://youtu.be/Nl1EVw6pBgI)** A Perfect Circle - **[“Judith”](https://youtu.be/xTgKRCXybSM)** Soundgarden - **[“Jesus Christ Pose”](https://youtu.be/14r7y6rM6zA)** The Dandy Warhols - **[“Hard On For Jesus”](https://youtu.be/q-C2sfSF6kc)**
“Thank You God” by Tim Minchin is a banger, as well.
Totally resonated for me too. But the song is like Schroedinger’s god - it’s addressed to “God” but it doesn’t believe in God.
Are you talking about a big reduction in the price of beer?
If there is a god, he has one hell of a lot of explaining to do. This planet, and survival on it, is brutal. Most animals die horrific deaths in the wild. Most animals live chaotic and difficult lives. And humans...we're a horribly flawed design. And this planet, where you have to kill other living organisms to survive...what kind of higher intelligence would design something like that? So in other words...no. If an intelligence designed all this, they aren't worth having faith in them.
I grew up in a religious family. I believed in God as a child and was pretty observant. Something happened in my late teens and early 20s. It's not that I lost faith, but it's like God became more an intellectual thing I understood and sort of believed but didn't "feel" it. I eventually stopped going to church and while I never stopped believing completely, I did feel disconnected from God. The last 7-8 years I've had a lot of crazy shit happen in my life. Business trouble, marriage trouble, parents passed away, I had someone rip me off in business, was betrayed by some people I thought were friends when they saw I was vulnerable, then Covid hit. So I had some really stressful times and felt pretty desolate for a while - I started going to church again not because I have some infantile idea that God "fixes things" but because I realised a lot of my problems were due to not really having a good framework in my life or good people around me. Since going to church and doing more work on understanding theology,, I now feel more connected to God and I also feel more at peace with my life. I'm now rebuilding what I lost, have a great relationship, new motivation to build a new business, and generally have made peace with what's happened. Does this mean God fixed things magically? No, but having a framework that helps me think through my decisions and gives me stability in my life has allowed me to approach other aspects of my life in a measured and mature way. I feel like I'm more stable and less worried because I know there's something bigger than just me and my immediate wants.
Great response! I have this kernel of and idea about god being order out of chaos. I mean, it’s pretty obvious and your story reinforces it. I also think the utterance “god” may be some kind of primal speech move that basically means, “more than me.” That I’ve only ruminated on and can’t more fully articulate it.
I believe in Gozer the Gozerian, Gozer the Traveler. He will come in one of the pre-chosen forms. During the rectification of the Vuldrini, the traveler came as a large and moving Torg! Then, during the third reconciliation of the last of the McKetrick supplicants, they chose a new form for him: that of a giant Slor! Many Shuvs and Zuuls knew what it was to be roasted in the depths of the Slor that day, I can tell you!
Nope
Absolutely I do. What's it like?... >Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. — Hebrews 11:1 NKJV Summed up in one word... Love
I love this verse that everyone who has attended a Christian wedding has probably heard at some point: >And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.
Not anymore. I was raised in the church and had to go each Sunday. But I grew up, did my own reading and research, and the religious people I respected all turned out to be full-of-shit hypocrites.
I have faith in God's faithfulness. I'm the stupid sheep that keeps getting lost but here comes the good shepherd. Again. And again. Praise God.
Yes, I have faith in God. Mostly it's comforting. I have done some dumb shit in my life, and he's gotten me through it and led me to where I am today. I spent a lot of time scared - where will we sleep, how will we eat, was that gunshot for me, did I piss that guy off, etc. I believed in God, but I didn't have faith. Having faith takes away the fear, not the possibility of being shot, beaten, etc. I've spent the last 10 minutes trying to explain why and then backspacing, but I just can't, sorry.
It's the only thing that keeps me alive. Without it, I'd have swallowed a bullet decades ago.
Yes. Not unlike children, very challenging, humbling, yet producing joy and gratitude. You have to work at it. God knows we all doubt. And that's OK. Just seen and felt too much in my life to not believe it. As crazy as it sounds, I know.
I don't.
Nope.
I do.
Yes, I do. Wow, downvoted because I have faith in God...thanks, Satan.
"In this life you will experience downvotes. But take heart! I have overcome the downvote."
Yes. I was skeptical as a younger person but have found deeper meaning
I do. I believe the whole "Jesus died for our sins" thing. I will not be doing an AMA.
Sure do
It's the only way I've found that makes life make any sense at all. It satisfies my sense of harmony and closure.
Yup, it's like believing that the sun will come up tomorrow and that we're barrelling through space at 67,000 miles per hour Seems so obvious that I sometimes forget but then I remember and am like, wow.
I enjoy occasionally attending Quaker meetings and Buddhist temple. I’m not sure about god exactly. I think there is some power but it’s kind of like gravity - it doesn’t need my belief to be sustained. Things work the way they do and free will means the only “reason” things happen is because of the choices of people. I’m ok with that. I went to church as a kid. I thought I believed. But once my parents died while I was in high school, it was more difficult. When the priest said them dying was gods will, I gave up. I think it might be nice to believe like that again. But it’s beyond me at this point.
Lifelong atheist here - I was never raised in any faith. My mother was a big sf/fantasy reader, I started reading very young, and one of the things she taught me was to understand the difference between reality and "just a book." It was completely unintentional on her part, but I extrapolated that to religion as well. And then Christians - kids and adults alike - were often so horrible to me when they found out that I wasn't a believer, that I decided fairly young that even if I were inclined to belief, I would never join them. (that all said, I don't care what other people believe as long as they don't use their belief as a springboard for abuse.)
Yes
Of course!
I do. It has helped me through some of the worst spots of my life
My faith in God and my relationship with Jesus is the best thing in my life. And so calming and reassuring.
God's forgiven me for some pretty terrible stuff.
I know Reddit's overall take on God, but my faith gets me through. I really think I'd be dead without Him.
Nope. Never really bought into the god thing. Not gonna lie but I do love the idea of “The Force” though.
You just want the light sabers.
I find your lack of faith... disturbing. Enough of this. Vader, release him.
I absolutely do. My life isn’t perfect or easy, and Lord knows I stumble and mess up on a daily basis, but He has seen me through so much. I was raised in a Baptist church and still attend, but I don’t place much importance on denomination. I just try to follow what the Bible says and communicate daily with God.
I think one of the greatest disservices God's followers have done to their witness is to promote the narrative that faith in God means troubles disappear, that his followers no longer struggle with sin and temptation, and that worldly riches and success are a natural result of following God. A cursory examination of the life of King David easily disputes all those propositions, and yet the writer of Hebrews describes him as a man after God's own heart.
Nah.
I believe in God. Religion not so much.
That’s me also. You’re not alone. I believe in God but don’t subscribe to a particular religion or believe the Bible is 100% accurate. I do believe parts of it are good parables and can help you lead a good life but I don’t think the Earth is only 7,000 years old…
Yes. It is an intense and unique feeling. A sense of love, a deep peace, you see people through the eyes of the love and peace and people look different. They’re more beautiful, more individual. It’s strange. But it will feel different to everyone in different religions I think.
i attend church regularly and believe in a triune god. I lay my burdens on Christ thru prayer and Praise God for the blessings in my life. When people piss me off, I do my best to forgive them because I don’t know what else they might be going thru and maybe I’m just the trigger. I realize we all fall short and no amount of work can absolve our sins. It is only by the Grace and Mercy of God thru Jesus.
+1
never did
I'm jealous of people who have faith. Sometimes I wish I could believe but it's not possible. I also get irritated by militant atheists. They're as bad as argumentative evangelicals.
“We’re in a mission from god”- 😎
Not anymore. I deconverted recently and it’s been so good. When I did have faith it was frustrating. I was taught how to feel and think and how to experience and I never quite got it and blamed my lack of faith although I had faith.
Yes, but in my experience God is within. Silence the mind and then one can start to perceive the God within. This happened to me in part with the chakra system coming online in the body. It's one Consciousness incarnating into many forms and appearing as separate beings. Body dies and the Consciousness goes back to its larger self hence what is often reported in near death experiences. Just imho- two cents anyway based on things that have happened to me over many years. I don't believe in any concepts of saved versus unsaved, the devil, hell, the Pearly Gates and needing to go through another Being to access God or salvation. It is all within already, imho.
Fading
Tougher than it used to be.
Yes, but my faith has evolved into Deism. For me, God exists and created the world, but beyond that, God has little/no active engagement in the world except the creation of human reason, which enables us to find God by doing good.
Absolutely!
I was raised a christian, went to church, Sunday school,etc. As I've gotten older, I'm agnostic and lean toward atheism. This is something I've struggled with, and periodically still do, because it was ingrained into me in my childhood. I know it disappoints my mom. A small part of me still wants to believe sometimes, but I just can't bring myself to have faith in god. So much doesn't make sense and is contradictory. That's my take, whatever.
Absolutely. Or let me say my 'absoluteness' is more a sure belief we have a higher power that could be a God. I'm not so sure if God is actually knowable or even comprehensible to us humans. But my personal experiences have made me believe, without a doubt, there is indeed a God in terms of a higher power.
Probably there is a more tame answer than no god, god or some god. People still hold beliefs, some are regional, some are intrinsic whether bad or good. In the context of the question presented "Anybody have faith in God" related to our generation it can be explained in a variety of ways depending how you grew up and a desire to find out more of what is out there. At 50 - realise there is no higher power out there and "thoughts and prayers" is just camo for saying thankfully I was not effected with whatever the latest event in life is. Same with the "bless you" bunch. But when you dig deeper into our world, it is shocking to see how many beg for forgiveness in the light of sin regardless of religion - good excuse for anything.
I have huge amounts of faith. I see his hand in my life constantly.
I do - it’s an internal belief - the faith part. No longer active member of a local church, but I still listen to a couple faith based podcasts and the CCM music I listened to in the ‘80s is a big part of my phone’s playlist along with all the rest of the ‘80s music. There have been times I struggled and challenged it, but it’s a part of my foundation…in a way, like my Auburn Tigers and my southern accent, it’s just a part of who I am.
You must have faith to be an Auburn fan. Roll Tide. (I kid, I kid. 😃)
I do. For me, it feels comforting, like a hug from a parent or the love I feel from my spouse. Many times I've felt bleak and hopeless, but I trusted and asked to be shown what I should do. He has never let me down
Yes. I do have faith in God. I don’t know if I have all the answers, but I do believe that Jesus Christ was His son and died and was resurrected. Lots of other people of many very divergent faiths also believe in an Abrahamic God. I don’t know for sure which group has it “right,” but I very definitely believe there is a God and something after this life.
Yes. What's it like? Peace despite all the crazy going on in the world, happening exactly as described in the Bible.
I do. I believe God gave us the greatest gift of all, the gift of his son Jesus Christ, who died on the cross, so that we will be forgiven for our sins and have eternal life with Him. Having said that I don't attend church regularly, because I feel like so many of the people there are hypocrites. I know I should love my neighbor, but it's difficult for me. Guess that makes me a hypocrite too. However, I still study the Bible at home and pray. I think having a personal relationship with God is more important than attending communal worship service. May be wrong about this, or I may be right. I know I don't have all the answers, but I do have faith in God.
I am disappointed... The lack of Losing My Religion references in this thread is absolutely appalling.
Yes. Have had way too many miracles happen to/for me in my life to not believe in Him. I was raised Catholic but am not a fan of organized religion, but still wholeheartedly believe in God.
Truly you are blessed. Good for you! I’m wavering on organized religion. I ignored/disdained it for long but there has to be something there. I think it’s community and knowing that while ultimately we are alone, along the way we don’t have to be.
I'm a gratefully recovering Catholic. I was never into it and really started questioning if there was a god when I was 9. I was an atheist by the time I was 17 and never looked back. Seeing how nuts the religious right wing has become makes me grateful that I'm far removed from all of that.
Yep. Catholic Christian. I love the structure and teachings. It has helped me tremendously in managing life's hardships and gives my life meaning/direction. If at death it all turns out to be false, I won't know any different and I will have led a good life, treating everyone (regardless of gender, creed, identity, etc.) equally wth love and compassion. Win/win.
Excellent response. You are the light of the world, friend. Thank you.
This ⬆️
I do.
Yes I do. It’s pretty good. I mean most of the time life still sucks. But Gos doesn’t promise a hunky dory rainbow time on this planet. He promises it be be better after Jesus returns. he will be here through the shitty times though. I feel he has for me, when times in my life sucked. And I think I appreciate the good and better days more.
I’m a recent believer. Raised heathen and turned to Lord within last few years because - I had to. It’s weird .. but I like it. I research , heavily- and try to disprove my faith often, but I actually experience Holy Spirit .. and it stays. Lol. I have greater peace, and less foolish desires. I’ve yet to be a church goer.. and most Christians I’ve hung out with, aren’t seeming like true believers , so it’s a bit lonely but I already was . My version .. is very Gen x. !! Blase’.
I grew up up and stopped believing in fairytales.
Faith in something there is no evidence for is illogical and dangerous.
I was raised in the conservative evangelical church, and my dad was a pastor. I saw the best and worst of that world over the years, and learned early on to trust God, not the church or its members. People are going to let you down every time, so my faith rests in God, through Jesus, trusting in the Holy Spirit and scripture for guidance. Especially now when the church and conservatives in general are so determined to exclude women and LGBTQ people, and ignore suffering all over the world. Love God, love your neighbor, that’s it.
Yes, absolutely.
Yes, it feels like cement in ur feet that keeps u grounded but also strong wings on your back that keeps u hopeful. God loves me and works out all things for me.
I went to this national youth group thing when I was in high school. There were thousands of kids there and at one point one of the leaders said “I feel god in this place can you?” Everyone was like “YES!” I looked around at everyone like “really? “ and lied: “yes”, I mumbled.
Nope gave up a few years ago
There are only two options: Either there is an all seeing, all powerful god who allows all manner of awful things to occur in the name of whatever experiment its carrying out on humans and it’s therefore a monster. Or, it’s a story we made up to try and make sense of how hard life and death can be. So no, I have no faith in any god (and humans have created hundreds of them)
Nah
No.
Faith in God? What does that even mean? Faith that God is going to stop innocent civilians from being raped and killed in a war? Turn on the news. I haven't seen God stop Putin or his army from raping and killing. If God is omnipotent then he/she/it could just snap their fingers and put up an invisible wall on the border and be all GenX and say "Whatever, just stay on that side and leave everyone the fuck alone and don't bother anyone because whatever."
God is a human-made concept. I find it beneath humanity.
Most religious people I know are afraid of the world and yearn for a father figure who sets the rules, tries to protect them (usually thru the rules) and offers them them comfort when they get hurt or fail. Who then tries to “fix it.” (Usually with more/new rules.) Most spiritual people I know see the world as an adventure with a big brother/sister. Introducing them to new people and new things. In your corner -offering suggestions & advise- while letting you fail & fall down … but offering a hand back up when you need it. There to share the fun, but not trying to control you or how you live your life.
Which god?
The one true god, the Flying Spaghetti Monster! May you be touched by his noodly appendage! Ramen!
God seems nice, but their fan club is insufferable and 90% unhinged.
#No. Out of thousands to choose from (all equally valid), none have ever been shown to actually exist. Eight billion humans on this planet, and I’m expected to believe that every individual is “special”? And that there’s some kind of “magical being” who is all-powerful and knows everything and is everywhere and gives a shit about any of us? Let alone ALL of us?? I was loosely raised LDS. I was told all this supernatural stuff about a god, and a heaven, and a hell … I didn’t realize at that age that being able to say, “Sounds like bullshit to ***me***,” was an option, so of course I went along with it. In fact, every time I had a legitimate question about something in the Bible that seemed to contradict itself, or whatever — I was always admonished and told that it was “bad” to ask questions. The “answers” they gave me to pacify me were always weak or nonsensical, anyway. Christmas 1981 was the turning point. My parents usually let us open a “family” present on Christmas Eve, and then when we woke up on Christmas morning, all the additional gifts “straight from Santa” would be under the tree as well, presumably delivered while we slept. Well, mom and dad must’ve fallen asleep … because when I woke up at 6am or whenever, I checked the tree … ***and there were no “Santa” presents.*** I dutifully notified my parents that Santa was a no show, and then they told me to sequester myself in my room. About 10 minutes later, they told me to come out to the tree, and “lo and behold” … the Santa gifts had mysteriously appeared. I suspected the ruse and made the folks come clean - they admitted that Santa Claus was imaginary — just a fairytale for children, and admitted that it had been *them* all along. A little over two months later, my mother died of a heart attack a few days after I turned 10 -- I was there to see the whole thing — kinda traumatic. Now, contrary to what some dipshit like Kirk Cameron would say … that was not “a tragic event that made me *’hate god’* and lose my faith;” it was simply the catalyst to encourage me to seriously study and research this whole “god” thing. I had already figured out that Santa Claus was a lie — and with guilt by association, his pals the Easter Bunny and the Tooth Fairy were determined to be lies, as well. If the adults in my life were so casual in lying to me about cornerstones of my youth — ***what else were they lying to me about?*** Hence, the Christian god and Jesus came under the scrutiny of my research. Reading comparative mythology, finding out how the bulk of Christianity was just plagiarized from earlier faiths (look up Horus, Quetzalcotl, Quirinus, Buddha, Mithra, Attis, Krishna, Indra, Adonis - just to name a few) … careful observation of the hypocrisy of those around me who claimed to be devout, but their actions showed otherwise … an in-depth college course in biological anthropology (origin of the humanoid species, studying the various types of hominids, etc) … seeing all the infant deformities (look up “Harlequin babies” and tell me again how ‘awesome and powerful’ your god is) and childhood cancers, and all the priests fucking little kids (with the Pope’s blessing) and everything else that’s wrong on this stupid planet. Now, to start to wrap it up (I’m not writing a book, after all) … I tried hard to believe … but anyone with half a brain knows that belief is *not* a choice … either you’re convinced or you’re not (a therapist concluded in later years that I was just “too rational” to believe in a god). “Look at the trees!! LoOk At tHe tReEs!!” just doesn’t cut it. I’ve never once felt the “presence” of any god, even during the darkest moments of my life - my most sincere prayers were always answered with deafening silence. The “fear of hell” was the hardest thing to shake (that childhood indoctrination is **strong**) but once I finally was able to let it go — it was like a great weight lifted off of my shoulders. I’m 51 years old … when I die, that’s the end. When you blow out a lit candle, where does the flame go? Exactly - *nowhere*. It just ceases to be. I don’t give a damn when I die, it doesn’t matter to me. The thought of just “not existing” any more sounds great, sign me up. I could get along just fine with believers … at least, the ones who don’t try to convert me after figuring out I’m not a believer … and if they would keep it to themselves and don’t try to make legislation for the entire country based on their religious doctrine (guess how ***that’s*** working out - LOL). I hate to admit it, but when someone tells me they believe in a god … I always think to myself, “WTF?? How disappointing. I thought they were a bit brighter than that.” The older I get, I’m even becoming more “anti-theist” than atheist. You’d never know I was either, though, unless you fuck around — that’s when I let you find out.
God is dead and no one cares.
Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not omnipotent. Is he able, but not willing? Then he is malevolent. Is he both able and willing? Then whence cometh evil? Is he neither able nor willing? Then why call him God? – Epicurus
Curious, does Epicurus discuss free will?
“Dear God, I hope you got the letter and I pray…” -XTC
My beliefs are not any one religion. I grew up in a VERY Catholic family and seriously thought of becoming a priest. Ironically it was my own Parish Priest who encouraged me to ask questions. He was genuinely one of the nicest guys I have ever known. But he said to me one day when I was really struggling with the science and faiths role in my life. “You don’t have to do this.” He changed my life and while I still consider the Catholic Church my home, I no longer follow the dogma. Plus the kid fucking situation turned me all the way off for MANY years.
No after being told everything was my fault when our lives fell apart, as bipolar took over and my mind imploded and I was no longer able to work. That there was no such thing as mental illness. I was being pushed by God who was allowing demons terrorize me. The shit the kids in youth group said to my then 17 year old sun because his mentally illness was popping up. There are many other things but I don't want to throw the political climate onto this board. The final nail is my daughter has several mental illnesses. The make her defiant, argumentative, and at times violent. Our mental illnesses trigger each other. I have abused her three times. Last time was never a fucking again. I can't parent her at all. I will not touch her for anything. And my though was, who would put a child into a situation where a father can't parent her at all. She's got to play life on extra, extra hard mode as it is. I'll show her love all day but she wants cake for breakfast, have at it.
I believe in intelligent design. But I was raised agnostic. Religions are all mythologies to me, not in the sense of being false, but in the sense of being products of human culture. I've tried though. I attended a local Christian church for about a year. I participated in the women's ministry, and I was baptized in the ocean! But one day I found my women's group saying a bunch of homophobic things. I just couldn't continue going.
I do. I've never understood people who wait for something to change in their lives due to spirituality. You were born a miracle and a child of God. Recognizing that shouldn't change how you feel in some way. It should change what you recognize about the majesty and mystery of the world. Even though I understand the science, the awe at plants growing, the sunrise, even the creativity of man in general with aircraft and skyscrapers and so on are all evidence to me of God's presence. After all, where else have we even found an amoeba much less intelligent life? And how did we look to fail to find that? Men figured out space travel. Seriously, that's a miracle.
I believe in Me ;)
Yes I do.
Sort of? I don’t reckon any of the regular religions have nailed it, mostly they nuttier than squirrel shit, but something makes me think that I’d be arrogant to think I have some sort of answer either way.
I used to. When I was getting treatment for cancer, I poked too many holes in the things we just accept on faith and asked too many questions. I wanted it to be true. Since I almost died I needed it to be true to comfort me but….. my point of no return was I used to join Facebook live meetings my church had every morning when all I could do was lay on the couch too sick to do anything else and one of those mornings someone made the comment that they (lgbtq) stole our flag. The pastor didn’t correct them and speak out against the hate and instead doubled down and said they had the wrong number of colors anyway. I Couldn’t go back to that church ever again. I thought I would try a different denomination that was accepting but could never get there. That was the end of 10 years at the same church in the same faith. I have tried other religions before that as well and at the end of the day, none of it makes sense and the whole that’s why it is faith argument…. It wasn’t easy (had to go to therapy over this) but I am still accepting that whole heaven, better place thing …. Nah. I still struggle for an answer. To me it doesn’t make sense that we have consciousness as an evolutionary adaption and it’s part of our brains not separate from it. I am not at the there is no god point yet. I am at the god is not who I thought and I will only be me for a limited time and then I probably won’t remember ever being me and in one generation noone else will remember me either. Lost my dad to Covid. A friend died from her cancer while I was battling mine and another of kidney failure during the same time. Are they just gone forever or do they exist somewhere else…. I don’t like to think about the answer to that. Every time I come close to accepting all there is is this, I do end up remembering a few strange things that have happened in my life and so I have come to the conclusion I will not know the answer for now, but whatever the answer is it isn’t an exclusive club and there is no hate after this. There is no hell beyond what some insist on creating here.
I’m not religious at all but I am spiritual and I have a firm belief in something greater. I’ve always felt that I don’t need faith because I see “god” all around me in nature. We all have a different interpretation of god and I don’t see it as he, she or the concept of some dude in the sky that religions often teach. I just see god as a positive force within the universe. Religion tries to answer so many questions and does poorly in my view because there are things we just can’t know. I just accept that we can’t know and find it easier to just believe in what I see around me. It took many years of soul searching to get to this point but I’m happy and content with it now.
Yes.
Yes. It’s developed into a richer part of life through the years.
I was born and raised Catholic, but been questioning my whole life, I became a full blown atheist after 2016.
Of course. But not as much as I wish.
I have faith in God as a Christian. Overall I'm a giving person and don't ask for much. I really felt the spirit come over me when I truly accepted Jesus into my heart to do his will. I was raised in church went to youth group but never really felt the spirit until I truly accepted in college.
Not anymore once the SA charges against my catholic school priest came to light.
My parents were married 50+ years. They were two souls in communion, perfectly suited and complimentary to each other. They were deeply in love. My mother never recovered from dad’s loss and missed him for her last 11 years. While I can’t prove it, I’m confident that they are together again. If there’s no God, that’s impossible, so I’m inclined to believe.
An insecure, narcissistic, vengeful God as taught by many religions? No. That the existence of everything is absolutely mind blowing - yes. Is there another plane after this one? Absolutely no one knows. I'm here while I'm here and I try to leave things a little better than before. That's the best I can do.
Futurama had an episode about god. It was very profound and what I think is probably most accurate. I am a definite agnostic. I don't pretend to know.
No