Are you religious? Why or why not?
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I know this is meant to be a casual conversation and this topic can get deep fast, but I’d love to hear everyone's elevator pitch for their religion or lack thereof. peace and love<3
I'm not, but I kind of miss the community connection and discussion of life wisdom that religion serves.
I've thought about trying to go to a universalist Unitarian service sometime, since I've heard they dont really care if you are a more secular person, they're not a Christian church, and welcome folks of all sorts of world views
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I know this is meant to be a casual conversation and this topic can get deep fast, but I’d love to hear everyone's elevator pitch for their religion or lack thereof. peace and love<3
I'd like to think I'm a person of free will but... no, I'm not religious mainly because I was raised atheist. China was mostly folk religion (with a good bit of Buddhism) and in modern history it became aggressively atheist so... It's probably quite fascinating for ppl interested in history/religion studies, because I don't know any other country that is over 90% not religious
Obviously with scientific training & stuff I probably would have become an atheist or an agnostic anyways, but it's not because of my education that I became not religious so I can't really pitch it or anything...
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I know this is meant to be a casual conversation and this topic can get deep fast, but I’d love to hear everyone's elevator pitch for their religion or lack thereof. peace and love<3
Nah, catholic church was very boring and always seemed like a scam to me as long a I can remember. Also Occam's razor. I'm not an evangelical atheist though: that seems like a waste of time and effort.
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I'd like to think I'm a person of free will but... no, I'm not religious mainly because I was raised atheist. China was mostly folk religion (with a good bit of Buddhism) and in modern history it became aggressively atheist so... It's probably quite fascinating for ppl interested in history/religion studies, because I don't know any other country that is over 90% not religious
Obviously with scientific training & stuff I probably would have become an atheist or an agnostic anyways, but it's not because of my education that I became not religious so I can't really pitch it or anything...
I wouldn't call weird spiritual stuff "atheist", per se.
Does your family burn those fake heaven money thing? Burn incense? Put a chicken on a huge plate as a "sacrifice", then like hold the fake heaven money in their hand then like pray to spirits or whatever while muttering weird 4 character phrases like 心想事成，快高長大, 學業進步。。。 etc... then throw the fake money into a metal container with burning fire... you know what I'm talking about, right?
Idk wtf they are even doing lmao... so weird, I just never participate since I was a teen because those traditions just felt silly.
That, to me, is religion, even though its not "officially" religious.
I don't think I'm gonna be burning fake heaven money if I have kids... like... nah... kinda weird lol... I don't really believe in the spirits stuff and feels like its adding more pollution for no reason. Maybe I'm just too westernized and don't feel attached to Chinese culture anymore.
My family is from Guangdong btw, maybe your family is different, idk, does your family do those weird rituals?
I feel like a "banana" lmfao... ("asian on the outside, westerner on the inside"), the only attachment I have is that I can still read basic Chinese characters... and speak on a 2nd grade level, that's about it...
Oh btw, my mom is very anti-mental-health care and constantly think my depression is just “鬼纏住你” and tells me to wear some necklace or some dumb shit that "wards off evil" lmfao...
And wasting food will “被雷公劈” lolol.
I threw away food I didn't like (I was a kid okay lol) and I never got struck by the lightning god or whatever so... okay boomers.
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I know this is meant to be a casual conversation and this topic can get deep fast, but I’d love to hear everyone's elevator pitch for their religion or lack thereof. peace and love<3
No. I convinced myself I was until I was 16 or 17. It wasn't compatible with my worldview and it was completely unscientific.
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I wouldn't call weird spiritual stuff "atheist", per se.
Does your family burn those fake heaven money thing? Burn incense? Put a chicken on a huge plate as a "sacrifice", then like hold the fake heaven money in their hand then like pray to spirits or whatever while muttering weird 4 character phrases like 心想事成，快高長大, 學業進步。。。 etc... then throw the fake money into a metal container with burning fire... you know what I'm talking about, right?
Idk wtf they are even doing lmao... so weird, I just never participate since I was a teen because those traditions just felt silly.
That, to me, is religion, even though its not "officially" religious.
I don't think I'm gonna be burning fake heaven money if I have kids... like... nah... kinda weird lol... I don't really believe in the spirits stuff and feels like its adding more pollution for no reason. Maybe I'm just too westernized and don't feel attached to Chinese culture anymore.
My family is from Guangdong btw, maybe your family is different, idk, does your family do those weird rituals?
I feel like a "banana" lmfao... ("asian on the outside, westerner on the inside"), the only attachment I have is that I can still read basic Chinese characters... and speak on a 2nd grade level, that's about it...
Oh btw, my mom is very anti-mental-health care and constantly think my depression is just “鬼纏住你” and tells me to wear some necklace or some dumb shit that "wards off evil" lmfao...
And wasting food will “被雷公劈” lolol.
I threw away food I didn't like (I was a kid okay lol) and I never got struck by the lightning god or whatever so... okay boomers.
My family is from Manchuria/Beijing where the communist party has a much stronger grip so... I'm not kidding, a lot of ppl literally practice no religion whatsoever; probably got stamped out by the CCP. I think there might be a rather strong North/South divide in China: the North unfortunately has always been under stricter supervision by the party so...
Like they separate it very clearly. My grandparents' generation have old folk religion but ppl would call them "Mi Xin" so... my dad did burn the fake money things, but only during my grandparents' tomb cleanings or anything to do with the older generation. One of my grandparents is Buddhist, but she does make it quite clear. Otherwise most ppl I know literally have nothing remotely resembling religious in their apartments
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I know this is meant to be a casual conversation and this topic can get deep fast, but I’d love to hear everyone's elevator pitch for their religion or lack thereof. peace and love<3
Nope.. I dont buy into modern mythology.
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I know this is meant to be a casual conversation and this topic can get deep fast, but I’d love to hear everyone's elevator pitch for their religion or lack thereof. peace and love<3
No. It's a scam created by humans to control the behavior of other humans. And to steal their $$ with false hopes of a nonexistent "paradise".
I find it mind boggling that people still get indoctrinated into the Cults. It's sad and pathetic.
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Yes because I find it fascinating and meaningful and I'm open to new ideas.
Do you identify yourself with a specific religion or are you just generally spiritual?
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No. It's a scam created by humans to control the behavior of other humans. And to steal their $$ with false hopes of a nonexistent "paradise".
I find it mind boggling that people still get indoctrinated into the Cults. It's sad and pathetic.
Do you think that religion as a whole is unproductive/useless? Maybe even borderline harmful?
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No. I convinced myself I was until I was 16 or 17. It wasn't compatible with my worldview and it was completely unscientific.
What about your worldview was incompatible with religion? Secondarily, do you think there is any religion that might be compatible with your worldview?
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I'm not, but I kind of miss the community connection and discussion of life wisdom that religion serves.
I've thought about trying to go to a universalist Unitarian service sometime, since I've heard they dont really care if you are a more secular person, they're not a Christian church, and welcome folks of all sorts of world views
What type of community were you a part of before you chose to walk away?
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My family is from Manchuria/Beijing where the communist party has a much stronger grip so... I'm not kidding, a lot of ppl literally practice no religion whatsoever; probably got stamped out by the CCP. I think there might be a rather strong North/South divide in China: the North unfortunately has always been under stricter supervision by the party so...
Like they separate it very clearly. My grandparents' generation have old folk religion but ppl would call them "Mi Xin" so... my dad did burn the fake money things, but only during my grandparents' tomb cleanings or anything to do with the older generation. One of my grandparents is Buddhist, but she does make it quite clear. Otherwise most ppl I know literally have nothing remotely resembling religious in their apartments
Wow, this is so interesting. I feel like the fact that the Communist Party “stamps out” all types of religion is simply a testament to how important it is for humans to share with eachother something higher than our mortal plane. Would you be willing to share more about your experience with your grandparents, and how the culture has now switched to a vast majority practicing no religion at all?
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Religion is abuse.
Do you actually believe that all religion is abusive?
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I consider myself Buddhist. Im not a particularly good Buddhist and im not an asshole so I generally keep it to myself.
When I was a teenager 20+ years ago I learned as much as I could about it. I wasnt ready to commit to anything so I carried on as an atheist, but I always felt that if anyone got it right, it was Buddha. If youre going to have a spiritual/religious philosophy, being devoted to the elimination of suffering seems like pretty much the best central concept you could go from IMO.
Im particularly drawn to Soto Zen. Theres a straightforwardness to it and zazen that makes sense to me. I really do need to sit zazen more regularly though.
Would you be willing to share why you feel so drawn to Soto Zen?
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Would you be willing to share why you feel so drawn to Soto Zen?
I read Hardcore Zen by Brad Warner at a fairly young age and liked his characterization of it. Like I said, it has a straightforward, practical quality to it that I appreciate. Most of what ive read on it since (im currently reading The Three Pillars of Zen, which is also from a Soto perspective) emphasizes discipline more than "religious" practices, which appeals to me. Im not much for religious ceremony or ritual, but i can understand discipline and practice. Even if I often fall short.
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Do you actually believe that all religion is abusive?
It's mind rot
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Yeah. I didn't use to be but now I am, and I'm very happy about it. And why? Because God guides whom He wills, I guess.
Because God guides whom He wills, I guess.
And fuck everyone else, right? Including literal children with terminal cancer.
Sorry kids, God didn't will it. You gotta die painfully at 4 years old.
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Because God guides whom He wills, I guess.
And fuck everyone else, right? Including literal children with terminal cancer.
Sorry kids, God didn't will it. You gotta die painfully at 4 years old.
? God guided me so I have an opportunity not to damn myself and end up in Hell. Cancer is just another feature of this imperfect universe (if you want it differently, you have to go to Heaven), and these kids have pure souls and will meet the Creator and enjoy peace. Of course we mourn them because they left us, but just like in the case of adults, we have to make peace with the fact that every day is a gift and without God making this entire universe we wouldn't even have had a second of consciousness, so be grateful. And haven't you heard the story of Abraham? There's a way to process the death of your child better, but it'll take faith in God.
Also, everyone else? My man, all the information is freely available and you even have silly folks like me online trying to direct people to a better path... you're already being helped, you're already bombarded with calls to be mindful of God. When the Day comes and you stand in front of Him, don't say you were not warned.
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Do you identify yourself with a specific religion or are you just generally spiritual?
I'm Christian, guess i'm a little scared of an avalanche of hate comments for saying that.
