What Does Religion Mean To You?

[Altastrofae 933]

Title says it all folks.

For me, religion was never about all this faith crap. I always found that naïve. If you're doing that, you're blocking yourself off from other truths. You turn your back from other possibilities and in the end you know nothing.

This doesn't mean I think I know anything either, but I do think people take this blind faith shit too far and attack people because of it.

I think people, when it comes to religious beliefs, should understand that there isn't just the truth.

I think that religion is about finding YOUR truth. What works for you and sounds reasonable to you. Seemingly contrary to my statements above, I think that religion, for most people, is about finding themselves rather than finding the truth. I for one, am more an intellectual type, and finding the truth is a major part of finding myself for me.

But I always wondered if maybe other people had motivations of religion that made more sense, or were more complete than mine.

So, for research purposes, I want to know what religion means to you folks here.

If you're athiest, then say what that means to you, or something...

Just discuss.

[The Kaeya Simp 13,953]

Personally, I have belief adlnd finding out about myself but I am not a "blind" follower of my faith though.

[ManaMinori 4,143]

faith isn't meant to be 'blind'. It's about proving to yourself that what you're hearing, learning, or being taught IS true- whether through means of hard research, cross references, book study, or other means. You can "shop around" so to speak, but just prove to yourself that what you're being taught is the truth in order to establish whatever faith you have.

[Misty Shadow 7,065]

Religion itself has never had an effect on me. Never been a supporter of organized religion, the church, and the "You just have to believe!" mentality. I am a strong believer in "faith is works", however, and have always found spiritual comfort in my meditation, self-pruning in resisting selfish temptations, and believing that there is a divine purpose to our presence in this world.

[Altastrofae 933]

10 minutes ago, CloudMistDragon said:

Religion itself has never had an effect on me. Never been a supporter of organized religion, the church, and the "You just have to believe!" mentality. I am a strong believer in "faith is works", however, and have always found spiritual comfort in my meditation, self-pruning in resisting selfish temptations, and believing that there is a divine purpose to our presence in this world.

Let me guess, are you Buddhist. Don't take offense, I'm just wondering.

Personally, I'm Wiccan. Took me quite awhile to come to a satisfying religion. I was atheist for awhile.

[Lord Valtasar 12,685]

My father was a priest,so growing up i believed by default,i even went to theology for college,and there i saw things for what they were from the inside,so now i believe that if there actually is a god and if he is as good as they say then he will save us all without distinction(if we need saving from anything),so there you have it,i'm not exactly an atheist but i don't follow any kind of doctrine either

[碇 シンジン 27,427]

Religion is the meaning behind everything for me nothing means anything without religion it is the force that frees me from the shackles of this world 

[SharpWit 2,472]

Religion is fascinating when you view it from a cultural stand point, but as an atheist it's just an antiquated practice that's holding us back.

[Envy 5,996]

Religion really doesn't mean anything to me. I tried to understand what it was all about as a kid and teenager when my family went to church, but no matter how hard I tried I could never feel what they did.

[Alex2002ita 59]

For me, all religions (not cultures, that is another thing) are total bulls*it

Sorry for the rudeness, but for what the religion done in history and for how useless is imho, I really hate it

Atheist (or Celestia & Luna believer) for ever :b

Without offense to anypony of course

Edited June 22, 2018 by Alex2002ita

[Props Valroa 25,971]

It is a way of reaching what is beyond our knowledge. Religion fills in the gaps of what we don't know.

[MangoFoalix 24,898]

It's not my place to say what I feel about religion. I'm skeptical but I really don't entirely distrust it.

[cuteycindyhoney 13,282]

This is a real hot button topic. I'll just say that I have my own beliefs. There are just far too many cases of religious leaders being caught in illegal and immoral acts for me to trust any of them.   

[CherryAcorn 101]

I still believe in God 

But there are somethings like the fact of you had another lifes, it scary me...

[Rainbow Dash 1,471]

Growing up, religion was just a reminder that my parental units didnt want me to have fun playing nintendo. Growing older i got exposed to a lot of different religions. Now, i am and probably will always be a Roman Catholic. That said, I have visited temples and mosques and opened my mind to all possibilities. After more growing I realized that for me, religion is a reminder to not be a bad person and to accept all people no matter race, or orientation.

[Concerned Bystander 2,901]

Religion has never been more than a rather quaint curiosity to me, a collection of fairy tales that pose a lot of questions but never any answers.

I get that religion is important to those that choose to believe, and as long as you don't expect me to take your beliefs as seriously as you do then we'll probably get on just fine.

[Altastrofae 933]

53 minutes ago, Alex2002ita said:

For me, all religions (not cultures, that is another thing) is total bulls*it

Sorry for the rudeness, but for what the religion done in history and for how useless is imho, I really hate it

Atheist (or Celestia & Luna believer) for ever :b

Without offense to anypony of course

Excuse my bluntness, but if I may oppose.

Only two religions come to mind that ever caused any issues directly. Those would be Christianity and Islam, in the past.

Me personally, I'm Wiccan. I don't think the religion as a whole has caused much harm, and if someone did, it was either unintended or for good reason. It's like, our only rule.

Then again, I imagine that some people could think their reasons make sense and really hurt someone...

I'm getting off topic. My point being that the lot of religions are peace loving. Even Christianity claims to do so (even if that isn't achieved in their practices...)

You got Buddhism, Hinduism, Odinism, Egyptian Paganism, there are tons of religions that never directly harmed anyone with their beliefs.

But that's just my say on the matter. You need not take it to heart.

[Lucid_Nightlight 923]

I'm a Christian Methodist, so it's probably obvious.

Edited June 21, 2018 by Lucid_Nightlight

[Altastrofae 933]

39 minutes ago, cuteycindyhoney said:

This is a real hot button topic. I'll just say that I have my own beliefs. There are just far too many cases of religious leaders being caught in illegal and immoral acts for me to trust any of them.   

That's why I don't like organized religion. Spiritual practices should only be solitary. Different ideas between people just causes disagreement. Groups should be kept small and the people should be able to agree on most topics. Otherwise there'll be these problems. There shouldn't be leaders in religion. Just my opinion.

In my practices, groups (or covens) will select a high priest/priestess, and they'll make basic decisions, like the meet up schedule, where we meet up, whether we use cow skulls or wolf skulls (XD just a normal day at the office...)

But I think that's better than someone who's basically of a much higher position than other people. In Catholicism they confess their wrongs to them as if the priest has a direct link cable to God. To speak to a literal god is fucking rare! It doesn't just happen! Gods are busy, they don't have time for our shit! Even if they're omnipresent, you can't expect them to come to our every whim, it would get annoying.

So unless they have a magical tool to bring down God, I highly doubt the entire concept of Priests in the Catholic Church.

But maybe I don't understand Christianity enough, so if I just sound like a total deuce here,.and you know I'm wrong, please correct me.

[Libra 11,690]

Religion means to me as more or less an expansion of faith. See, religion requires faith In order to suceed. That being said, i dont like it when people exploit religion for monetary or personal gain.

[Concerned Bystander 2,901]

23 minutes ago, Altastrofae said:

Only two religions come to mind that ever caused any issues directly. Those would be Christianity and Islam, in the past.

That is entirely untrue, there is no major religion that has not at some point perpetrated violence upon others, even Buddhism doesn't have hands entirely free of blood.  We hear mostly about Christian and Islamic violence because it is a large part of the history (and present) of the western world.  If you spend a bit of time browsing on the internet you will be able to find many examples from further east of violence involving pretty much any religion you search for, to a greater or lesser extent.

23 minutes ago, Altastrofae said:

Me personally, I'm Wiccan. I don't think the religion as a whole has caused much harm, and if someone did, it was either unintended or for good reason. It's like, our only rule.

This is probably true, but Wicca is a very small niche religion that has only existed since the 1940s.  Having never been in a shrinking majority, or even particularly significant minority, anywhere they have never felt the pressure of being pushed out by other faiths, and so there has never been any real 'need' (or capacity) for violence on their part.

Edited June 21, 2018 by Concerned Bystander

[Guest]

Religion to me is a safety net of morality one can fall in if they lose their way. I grew up Catholic, married Catholic and have still maintained that I'm Catholic but just not really practicing it. When I'm in a bad place I can look to God to have someone of a higher virtue than myself to talk to or look to stories from the Bible to give me direction, but that's really the extent of it. Having an imaginary friend to talk to and old self-help stories.

[Gestum 2,493]

11 minutes ago, Altastrofae said:

Only two religions come to mind that ever caused any issues directly. Those would be Christianity and Islam, in the past.

Then you should read more history books.

For an example there's the Aztec religion. Where the Aztec went to war with their neighbors constantly just because the Aztecs wanted to sacrifice them to their gods.

17 minutes ago, Altastrofae said:

I'm Wiccan. I don't think the religion as a whole has caused much harm,

To be fair a religion created in 1951 will obviously do less harm then a religion created around 2000 years ago. 

[Altastrofae 933]

12 minutes ago, Concerned Bystander said:

That is entirely untrue, there is no major religion that has not at some point perpetrated violence upon others, even Buddhism doesn't have hands entirely free of blood.  We hear mostly about Christian and Islamic violence because it is a large part of the history (and present) of the western world.  If you spend a bit of time browsing on the internet you will be able to find many examples from further east of violence involving pretty much any religion you search for, to a greater or lesser extent.

This is probably true, but Wicca is a very small niche religion that has only existed since the 1940s.  Having never been in a shrinking majority, or even particularly significant minority, anywhere they have never felt the pressure of being pushed out by other faiths, and so there has never been any real 'need' (or capacity) for violence on their part.

I'm referring to major violence. Like the Crusades or mass bombings. Obviously, there're always gonna be violent people, and sometimes they'll claim it to be part of their religion. But the religions themselves very rarely say that doing so is right. With the exception of Christianity, Islam, and a few others.

3 minutes ago, Gestum said:

Then you should read more history books.

For an example there's the Aztec religion. Where the Aztec went to war with their neighbors constantly just because the Aztecs wanted to sacrifice them to their gods.

To be fair a religion created in 1951 will obviously do less harm then a religion created around 2000 years ago. 

I know that, they were primitave, it made sense to them, that's different. And I hardly see how the age of a religion correlates to damage caused.

And I was referring to religions that still exist today. To offer a proper perspective. Plus, who thinks to put that as an example. That rarely ever comes to my mind. Come to think of it, it's been awhile since I've worked with Aztec dieties...

[Gestum 2,493]

11 minutes ago, Altastrofae said:

I know that, they were primitave, it made sense to them, that's different

That same thing can be said for Christians during the crusades. How was that different? 

12 minutes ago, Altastrofae said:

And I hardly see how the age of a religion correlates to damage caused.

You really don't?  Do you think that today's society and it's views on violence is slightly different than how the view on violence was 2000 years ago? And you don't think that those views may influence the religions created in those times?

14 minutes ago, Altastrofae said:

And I was referring to religions that still exist today. To offer a proper perspective.

But you bring up the crusades who took place roughly hundreds of years before the Aztec empires religious war.

16 minutes ago, Altastrofae said:

Plus, who thinks to put that as an example.

I put the Aztec as an example as their wars were arguable the only wars fought only because of religious reasons. Even the crusades have several reasons for starting and most of them aren't really religious.