Lease this WebApp and get rid of the ads.
Kevin
How will an answer to that question help?
Fri Jun 15, 2012 6:07am
75.17.34.110

And how can I answer? It is not as simple a question as you think. It would require an entire telling of my faith journey from birth until now.

The answer I would give initially: When did I "get involved with my religion"? College is the first time I took it very seriously. Although I was raised in a faith background and I had a pretty powerful experience at age 11 -- I had not taken it completely seriously through my teen years and was ready to drop it. Even after college I struggled -- especially with the institutional aspects of the religion that angered me.

How did I get involved in my religion? After years of study and extreme doubt and misunderstanding including a period of years not practicing and considering myself an atheist and some years experimenting with other faiths.

In college I became a Religious Studies major and immersed myself in every possible topic on religion. I read and studied the following: 1) tons of philosophy and focused on epistemology and consciousness studies although I spent a large amount of time reading in the entire field of philosophy; 2) all the best critiques of religion throughout history; 3) all psychology and religion interactions; 4) all the science and religion stuff including all the info on evolution vs creationism but eventually turning to neuroscience; 5) studied about the different religious traditions around the world getting more than the basics in many of the major religions including Judaism, Hinduism, Islam, Taosism (Daoism), Confucianism, Buddhism; 6) intensive scriptural studies that looked at everything one could look at in scripture including redactive criticism, form criticism, literary criticism, source criticism and various aspects of the historical-critical method; 7) historical studies of my faith expanding and looking at the development of the religion over time and the various ways it interacted in the different cultures it came in contact with over time -- including the Eastern Christian traditions that often get ignored in the West.

I also practiced the faith in ministry work -- doing lots of social justice and service work to the poor and lots of retreat/prayer time.

I went on to law school and practiced law (although I kept researching and reading about religion and faith on my own in my spare time) but then law no longer interested me and I left the practice of law to go back and get my Masters degree in theology -- getting even more intense scripture studies, church history, study of ritual and liturgy and sacraments, much more theology and philosophy -- with focuses on continental philosophy from the modern through the post-modern period and mystical theology. Finally, I am currently finishing my doctoral work in theology by writing my thesis with a focus on inter-religious dialogue and understanding/learning. I am looking at religious epistemology in Roman Catholic and Tibetan Buddhist thought and practice. So I have been studying religion in general, their critiques (including lots of atheist thought) and my own tradition non-stop for close to 25 years.

So I am not sure how that helps. But there it is....

  • If God didn’t manifest itself as it is said in the holy — Anonymous, Wed Jun 13 8:07pm
    books. And I use the word holy books with a lot of deserved contempt. So if god didn’t do that than what evidence is there that a god even is. It is than very clear that a god only reveals itself in... more
    • There IS no real evidence — greenman, Sat Jun 16 3:57pm
      All religion is purely and simply a matter of belief and faith. There IS no objective proof that ANY faith is real, much less unique and requiring one's belief.
    • Hmm I didn't noticed that I didn't put it under Δι — Διός, Fri Jun 15 7:09pm
      Sorry about that. Διός
    • Sophistry as usual. — RthB, Fri Jun 15 12:57pm
      If you didn't exist, you wouldn't exist, eh? RthB
    • Inother words if god only reveals himself to the very few — Anonymous, Thu Jun 14 4:49pm
      Διός, then could God be a scam invented by those that would benefit by the scam, hence the priests and religious leaders who would gain both political lower and wealth from the... more
      • Well it lets in a whole host of frauds of course. — Διός, Fri Jun 15 7:15pm
        And the vision one might get in it personal life is no more than a personal experiance. But as we see everyday the frauds run the show. Which is getting very dangerous with the connections to... more
        • Re: Well it lets in a whole host of frauds of course. — yome, Sat Jun 16 12:59am
          Father God, help this man, he sees every one's sins but his own.
          • How does that relate to what he said about frauds — ChristopherBlackwell, Sun Jun 17 5:46pm
            yome, Christians often claim that other religions are frauds. So that does bring up the question of how can one tell if a religion is real or afraid, including Christianity. After all religions are... more
            • great question. — yome, Sun Jun 17 11:33pm
              you'll know in your heart chris when all is at peace between you and your creator, there will be no doubt if you ever experienced Christ, i have peace and assurance in my being, my heart is at peace, ... more
              • yome. but I have that already — ChristopherBlackwell, Tue Jun 19 6:25pm
                Yome, You cannot understand that people in other religions feel this in their own religion. It is not something unique to Christianity. I am sure that Jews,Hindus,and and most modern Pagans feel... more
              • Another quickstep past the real question welldone! — Διός, Mon Jun 18 3:25am
                Tammy and Jim Baker weren't fraudsters? The raping preacher weren't fraudsters either? Holy Mary what a dirty mess! Διός
            • Yome doesn't answer plain questions. — Διός , Sun Jun 17 6:52pm
              But is very good in pushing hid fraudulent sin thingie' Without much susses I might add. Διός
          • Really what are they? — Διός , Sat Jun 16 5:02pm
            And don't spare me, make me laugh I need one right now. Διός
      • Oops my response , Διός, (nm) — ChristopherBlackwell, Thu Jun 14 4:50pm
    • Your question doesn't even compute. — Kevin, Thu Jun 14 7:55am
      The way you frame it already assumes an answer. You don't think holy books are holy? I would ask: What do you mean by Holy Book? What do you think holy means? Also, you are looking for "evidence of... more
      • Okay let ask this simple question which might helps. in the — Διός, Thu Jun 14 9:19pm
        end. When and how did you get involved with your religion? And what I think is a holy book doesn't matter the bible is called the holy bible isn't? Saintly it isn’t and certainly not for children or... more
      • The believer also works on assumptions — ChristopherBlackwell, Thu Jun 14 5:01pm
        Kevin, So one could also say that the believer assumes much, including that the alleged holy books was somehow influenced by God. there is no way to actually prove such a things so it becomes a... more
        • Your response.... — Kevin, Thu Jun 14 7:36pm
          demonstrates that we are talking about totally different things or misunderstanding each other. I never said anything about facts or logical arguments. I am simply pointing out that there is no... more
          • But your method does not work in screaming matches — ChristopherBlackwell, Fri Jun 15 7:43pm
            Kevin, And so much of what passes for religious discussion here ends up in being screaming matches. I have no problem with the idea that a god would be unknowable,that is beyond human understanding.... more
            • Norhing you say... — Kevin, Mon Jun 18 8:41pm
              Goes against the idea of orthodoxy or the tradition as I have come to understand it and teach it. As much as certain voices in and out of the tradition are sure they know what the tradition is, there ... more
            • And you're right we still have many others that either fall — Διός, Fri Jun 15 8:36pm
              under (grin hopefully not busses) mainstream religion and are not the real self thinkers but mainly followers and do as told. And it is just those that are in the category you mentioned. That is why... more
            • Might be wise to start anew string — ChristopherBlackwell, Fri Jun 15 7:45pm
              Kevin, Because who knows what direction this conversation will go.
    • IMHO ... — OldCM, Thu Jun 14 7:09am
      ... that is happening by those who want to have power and control over other people. And what greater power can one have than to claim to hear from the Almighty? And have those who believe him or her ... more
Click here to receive daily updates


Religion and Ethics BBS