Warning, Religious topic: Trying to find a faith

Hello all, I am wondering if any of you guys can help me out. I have been thinking about my spirituality a lot for a while now and I have decided to adhere to a faith. I have had no religious instruction so I know very little about religion and the various faiths outside of public knowledge. I have found myself leaning towards Christianity so I am going to read the bible, but I don't know which sects to look into after that. I wouldn't fit into a "fire and brimstone" church or really any extremist churches. But other than that I don't really know what to expect from a church.

So, to simplify, can anyone tell me the differences between say, Catholics, Protestants, Reformed, Baptists, Methodists, Evangelicals, Mormon, and Orthodox? Any info on other religions would be great too. I'm probably going to go with Christianity because of my friends/girlfriend/more comfortable with it but I'd be happy to learn something about Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, Paganism etc...

First read this book

Then, this one.

These two books, along with the rest of the series by that author has completely helped me reshape my ideas about God and this world, and everything in them makes more sense then to me then what most organized religions have told me my whole life. I'd don't align to any specific faith (though the closest would be Christianity, since I still help at the church), but I try to understand the various interpretations and understandings that different societies have about God to get a better understanding for myself. Hope this helps! :D

How does one "decide" to adhere to a faith? If you have no religion that makes sense to you, then it would make equally little sense to adhere to one of them.

They also believe in penance, and confession through priests, which isn't 100% necessary, but they get blessings if they do so.imaps3fanboy

torgies with temple priestesses.....pis3rch

Hello all, I am wondering if any of you guys can help me out. I have been thinking about my spirituality a lot for a while now and I have decided to adhere to a faith. I have had no religious instruction so I know very little about religion and the various faiths outside of public knowledge. I have found myself leaning towards Christianity so I am going to read the bible, but I don't know which sects to look into after that. I wouldn't fit into a "fire and brimstone" church or really any extremist churches. But other than that I don't really know what to expect from a church.

So, to simplify, can anyone tell me the differences between say, Catholics, Protestants, Reformed, Baptists, Methodists, Evangelicals, Mormon, and Orthodox? Any info on other religions would be great too. I'm probably going to go with Christianity because of my friends/girlfriend/more comfortable with it but I'd be happy to learn something about Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, Paganism etc...

SolidSnake2142

How does one "decide" to adhere to a faith? If you have no religion that makes sense to you, then it would make equally little sense to adhere to one of them.

GabuEx

So i guess the truth doesn't mean much to you guys does it? dkdk999

So i guess the truth doesn't mean much to you guys does it? dkdk999

How does one "decide" to adhere to a faith? If you have no religion that makes sense to you, then it would make equally little sense to adhere to one of them.

[QUOTE="GabuEx"]

How does one "decide" to adhere to a faith? If you have no religion that makes sense to you, then it would make equally little sense to adhere to one of them.

SolidSnake2142

How bout find a new hobby instead?

[QUOTE="GabuEx"]

How does one "decide" to adhere to a faith? If you have no religion that makes sense to you, then it would make equally little sense to adhere to one of them.

SolidSnake2142

Well, the main difference between all the different branches in Christianity are that they disagree on a bunch of stuff that has basically nothing to do with anything important Jesus ever said or did. :P I think it actively hurts one's ability to have a relationship with Jesus, really, if one concerns oneself greatly with all the doctrines and schisms that have plagued Christianity with division over the centuries. Jesus said that the two greatest commandments were to love God and love one's neighbor, and that almost all of the Old Testament could be summarized simply by the Golden Rule. I think an awful lot of people miss that point.

[QUOTE="dkdk999"]So i guess the truth doesn't mean much to you guys does it? Darth-Caedus

Not to mention arrogant and very dangerous. Look at what people have justified doing to each other because they believed they were in possession of the "one truth". Thinking you have the whole Truth and that your Truth is the only right one, closes off any avenue for growth and evolution through new ideas. This is one of my biggest issues with Christianity. They are a prime example of what happens when a group believes they are in possession of the one Truth.

The truth is, there is no Truth. There is no single one absolute unchanging Truth, because Truth is everything. Truth is ultimately unknowable by our small minds and is something that can ever be pointed towards with signposts and pointers, but never grasped or fully known itself.

Don't even touch Baptism and Catholicism with a long stick. Baptists are crazy (no offense to the Baptists out there, but I live in the Bible Belt, so I have a very poor opinion on Baptists), and Catholics are far too conservative (I used to be one myself). If you are pretty liberal, I would suggest you look at Presbyterian USA (not the other sects), Epsicapalian, or Luthern. I'm a Presbyterian myself.

If you really want to branch out, I would reccomend also looking into Buddhism and Islam. There is much wisdom in Buddhism, and Islam makes a lot of sense if you look at it in the way that only the stupid Muslims are terrorists.

Christianity FTW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hello all, I am wondering if any of you guys can help me out. I have been thinking about my spirituality a lot for a while now and I have decided to adhere to a faith. I have had no religious instruction so I know very little about religion and the various faiths outside of public knowledge. I have found myself leaning towards Christianity so I am going to read the bible, but I don't know which sects to look into after that. I wouldn't fit into a "fire and brimstone" church or really any extremist churches. But other than that I don't really know what to expect from a church.

So, to simplify, can anyone tell me the differences between say, Catholics, Protestants, Reformed, Baptists, Methodists, Evangelicals, Mormon, and Orthodox? Any info on other religions would be great too. I'm probably going to go with Christianity because of my friends/girlfriend/more comfortable with it but I'd be happy to learn something about Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, Paganism etc...

SolidSnake2142

Maybe no religion suits your spiritual beliefs. Why limit yourself?

Do you just want to be a part of a religious community or do you feel a need to conform your beliefs to something widely accepted?