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The only personally meaningful religion which I in the slightest way believe in, is one which I created in my mind. My life on Earth is a small part of that story... a mostly inconsequential part of the story, except to provide a lengthy interlude that explains my presence here on Earth. Once I die here on Earth, there's no reason for my existence to continue on based on the religion/story, since I've already played it out in my mind. Perhaps my existence will continue in some other related or unrelated manner. Or perhaps it won't continue.
My "belief" in this religion is not strong nor constant. Most of the time, I simply consider it a fantasy. Most of the time, I don't believe in it at all. I wouldn't consider it a religion from anyone else's point of view. The only way it could be a religion for anyone else, would be if they too were a part of the story. But the story does not explain the existence of anyone else on Earth, nor does anyone else on Earth take part in the rest of the story. That isn't too say that the rest of the story couldn't include other Earthlings, but that so far my mind hasn't felt any reason to include them in my part of the story.
The religion/story itself has changed over time, and incorporates various unrelated and even contradictory parts - alternative story-lines.
The religion/story does not explain my existence in the Universe, nor does it really explain anything else, so perhaps "religion" is not a good word for it. But the story does include some "gods" and "magic". The gods are powerful beings who occasionally interact with the less powerful beings like me. The god I'm affiliated with is a very mischievous god.
My god dispensed some crushing poetic justice in the part of the story I was thinking about this morning.
My "belief" in this religion is not strong nor constant. Most of the time, I simply consider it a fantasy. Most of the time, I don't believe in it at all. I wouldn't consider it a religion from anyone else's point of view. The only way it could be a religion for anyone else, would be if they too were a part of the story. But the story does not explain the existence of anyone else on Earth, nor does anyone else on Earth take part in the rest of the story. That isn't too say that the rest of the story couldn't include other Earthlings, but that so far my mind hasn't felt any reason to include them in my part of the story.
The religion/story itself has changed over time, and incorporates various unrelated and even contradictory parts - alternative story-lines.
The religion/story does not explain my existence in the Universe, nor does it really explain anything else, so perhaps "religion" is not a good word for it. But the story does include some "gods" and "magic". The gods are powerful beings who occasionally interact with the less powerful beings like me. The god I'm affiliated with is a very mischievous god.
My god dispensed some crushing poetic justice in the part of the story I was thinking about this morning.
Interesting reading
Date: 2011-08-15 05:06 pm (UTC)From: (Anonymous)http://www.sullivan-county.com/news/deist1999/paine_deism.htm
Re: Interesting reading
Date: 2011-08-16 12:47 am (UTC)From:"Every person, of whatever religious denomination he may be, is a DEIST in the first article of his Creed. Deism, from the Latin word Deus, God, is the belief of a God, and this belief is the first article of every man's creed. ...
When we see a watch, we have as positive evidence of the existence of a watchmaker, as if we saw him; and in like manner the creation is evidence to our reason and our senses of the existence of a Creator. "
That assumption of belief in a God is faulty. I do not have any inherent belief in a God. I do not have an inherent assumption that because something exists, that something else must have created it. If one were to believe that everything that exists must have been created by a Creator, then how would one explain how the Creator was created?
For me, believing in a God/Creator makes no more sense than believing that everything that exists has always existed in some form or another, or that everything just poofed into existance for no reason at some point in time, etc. I don't actually believe in any of those (although any could be true), and none of them seems inherently more believable to me than the others.