<p>Hey guys, I was wondering what kind of religious beliefs (if any) a forum of academic elitists hold. </p>
<p>I can candidly say I am a follower of Christ.</p>
<p>well, raised catholic (loosely, comes with hispanic culture) but i consider myself more agnostic i guess. i don't trouble myself with finding the right "definition" or denomination to describe myself. can there be a god...yes. can there not be a god...yes. who knows the answer...nobody.</p>
<p>agnostic
I don't like ignorant religions and i hate those ignorant christians (but the rest are cool!)
I don't really care about faith and stuff. God or no god, it's all good to me.
My Belief: I believe that if I believe in something alot, it will happen and come true.. Dreams always come true :) Call me optimistic :P
And I believe in Karma.</p>
<p>Atheist. Ironically, I've been in the same Christian school all my life, and I hate those idiotic Christians in my school. Not that I hate all Christians, just those especially stupid ones. = =</p>
<p>I have some religious beliefs, but nothing that fits neatly into any existing categories.</p>
<p>Many of my beliefs are a bit neopagan, but not really, since I'm essentially a monotheist. Religion and theology make for interesting discussions, but I don't practice anything too actively.</p>
<p>Raised Catholic, but have been an atheist since the age of 12.</p>
<p>I'm sensing a pattern.</p>
<p>Raised Catholic, now I'm not sure, probably leaning towards agnosticism. I've been meaning to check out some other religions (Quaker, Buddhist, etc.)</p>
<p>thanks for all your input i respect each and one of them</p>
<p>whoa, 3 who were raised roman catholic and turned agnostic/athiest...a pattern indeed. what drove you guys away, the pedophilic priests?</p>
<p>Raised atheist. I believe not in gods, but in humanity.</p>
<p>Raised Catholic, now not sure at all. I know I believe in something like a higher order or something that passively governs the universe or whatever, just not sure if it's the anthromorpic entity called God.</p>
<p>I think for Catholics, it's the constant hammering of the faith into us (especially those who, like me, who have had 10+ years of Catholic education) that makes us more inclined to doubt and seek other solutions. My faith started to ebb in 7th grade - too many fire and brimstone talks in class by our associate pastor - it's those kind of priests that turn me off from the faith.</p>
<p>Based on this thread an other such queries with fellow students, it seems (and I'm sure it comes with being a teenager) as if most teens are almost afraid to call themselves religious. It's cooler to say, "I'm agnostic" or "I'm spiritual, just not religious", or deeper to say "I've been checking out several different religions" than to "admit" to being a member of a certain religion. This is not meant to be didatic in any way, just something I've noticed when some of my fellow classmates spoke of their faith (when I say I'm a practicing member of a faith, it induces several shocked stares). </p>
<p>Myself, I'm a practicing Roman Catholic.</p>
<p>im catholic.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Based on this thread an other such queries with fellow students, it seems (and I'm sure it comes with being a teenager) as if most teens are almost afraid to call themselves religious. It's cooler to say, "I'm agnostic" or "I'm spiritual, just not religious", or deeper to say "I've been checking out several different religions" than to "admit" to being a member of a certain religion.
[/quote]
Really? Almost everybody at my school is noisily Christian, with some Jews here and there. I haven't heard of too many teens hiding or lying about the fact that they're religious... I guess it varies based on the area that you're in, and whether or not you're on an internet forum. :P</p>
<p>Yanners, I love your response. </p>
<p>I guess I'm a weak atheist. Religion has never been important in my life, and I doubt it will chnage. From my personal experience, it is so much easier to proclaim your faith rather than admit you are agnostic or atheist. i can't count the times someone has offered to save me from eternal damnation......</p>
<p>Hate to add to the list, but I was raised Catholic before becoming an agnostic. It definitely wasn't the pedophilic priests that drove me away, because you can't reasonably change your spiritual beliefs over what a few members of a religion do. I just reexamined the basic beliefs of Catholicism and decided that I was in no way qualified to call myself a Catholic when I definitely didn't believe in the pope's infallibility or transubstantiation, for example, and couldn't begin to firmly say that I believe in God, especially the Catholic idea of God.</p>
<p>
[quote]
whoa, 3 who were raised roman catholic and turned agnostic/athiest...a pattern indeed. what drove you guys away, the pedophilic priests?
[/quote]
Not really that, but a combination of other things too. Tbh, I just can't accept the existence of a higher power.
Also I just can't agree with the role of women in the Catholic Church. Having seen the effects of a virtual Catholic theocracy on women of a certain age in Ireland (contraceptives were banned here until the early 1980s and abortion is still illegal), I just can't follow teachings like that. So many women in this country had massive families (anything up to 15-20 children) up until very recently... And up until the early 1980s quite a lot of women who had children outside of marriage were locked up in virtual slavery in the Magdalen laundries. Sometimes they'd be there for their entire lives "paying for their sin". They would be beaten and in general treated like scum by the Catholic nuns who ran the laundries. For me, it's just horrible to think that women of my mother's generation lived like that in this country.</p>
<p>Agnostic/atheist.</p>
<p>My thoughts on the issue: I can easily see how religion was created by humans in the same vein as the legends and myths... I find it much easier to see it as a human creation than as something believable. Like anything in life, religion can be good and bad. If you practice, fine, if not, also fine.</p>
<p>I am Muslim :)</p>
<p>catholic, 7 yrs of catholic school, dubts do arise, but yeah there has to be a god, but besides that ?????????</p>
<p>Two of my friends are hardout christians and about 2 years ago, I was like, "I don't believe really believein God but I don't realy care.. I just believe in myself.. I'm not against the whole God religion.. I just don't really care." (which I later found, meant that I was a agnostic)
Well, 2 years ago, these girls said I was an ATHIEST. and I was like, "ohhhhh.. i see!" as at that time, I didn't know any of these things.
And then they were like, "yeah"
And so for 2 years, I thought I was an athiest, and when people asked me about my religion, I jsut said I was an athiest. And some people even gave me horrible looks.
And then like half way through last year, I found out that i was AGNOSTIC.
(I am agnostic by the way)
And so I confronted my 2 friends and I was like, "i am agnostic, not athiest!" and they were like "what's agnostic?" and I told them. And they are like, "well that's the same as not believing in God so you are athiest." and I was like, "no, agnostic is when you are umm nothing" and they are like, "well, if you don't believe in the our chrisitan god, you are an athiest" and I was like "No.." and they were like "yeah.. you just don't know about these things" and I like "... right"</p>
<p>oh and this other time, I told them about the 'religious gene' researchers are reasearching on. And they were like "WHAT?? THOSE PEOPLE ARE CRAZY!! WE ARE CHRISTIANS BECAUSE WE WANT TO BE! AND JUST BECAUSE THEY ARE JEALOUS OF US! EVERYONE KNOWS THAT OUR FAITH IS THE REAL FAITH. THEY SHOULD JUST GIVE UP."
and i was like, "umm ok.. right"</p>
<p>Ignorant!</p>