I'm sure we've had this discussion before, but here we go again!
How important is it to you that what you believe is supported by objective facts?
Over this past year, I've felt as though I'm waking up in regards to my world view. Beforehand, I really believed beyond doubt that God is present in this world, interested and directly involved in the every day and special occurences, too. Now I'm beginning to re-assign my religious experiences and beliefs about people and God into a more secular stance. I've found that nearly all of my experiences and beliefs still have depth of meaning if I reframe them into an atheistic-agnostic world view.
For me, I've found that extremes (such as a completely Holy, loving, just, all-powerful God) can no longer fit into what I observe in the day-to-day. My view of the nature of God and what it is capable of is transforming. I'm in mourning for all I've lost, but I also feel empowered.
Objective facts are very important to me when I'm making claims of what my God would be capable of doing. Wouldn't acts of God as described in the Bible require observable evidence? So far, I have not been able to assign any occurence in every day life to the kind of God that has been described to me without being able to explain it through mundane causes. This might not mean God doesn't exist, it just might mean that my view of God was wrong. It gives me pause before I bandy about phrases such as: My God wants to heal you completely! Or, My God is going to send sinners to Hell! My God can save you from whatever drama you're currently experiencing! The fact remains, I don't know if God will or even can do any of that. I'd much rather focus on my subjective experience of religion and it's secular value.
At the moment, the only thing that is keeping me to my faith are my subjective experiences. When I am leading worship especially, I feel and other people report a change in the room that is like thick air or electricity. I feel like I'm tuning into a sense beyond my five senses, I pay attention to that feeling and try to interpret that feeling through music for my congregation. Some Sundays, people have gone to my Pastor and reported physical healing and a sense of enduring wellbeing. I can't say that I know for sure what is making these experiences happen, but they are very special and valuable to me and my congregation, so I keep facilitating them.
How about you? How much do you value objective observations in relation to religion and every day life? What do you know of your God/Goddess through observations or subjective experience?
How important is it to you that what you believe is supported by objective facts?
Over this past year, I've felt as though I'm waking up in regards to my world view. Beforehand, I really believed beyond doubt that God is present in this world, interested and directly involved in the every day and special occurences, too. Now I'm beginning to re-assign my religious experiences and beliefs about people and God into a more secular stance. I've found that nearly all of my experiences and beliefs still have depth of meaning if I reframe them into an atheistic-agnostic world view.
For me, I've found that extremes (such as a completely Holy, loving, just, all-powerful God) can no longer fit into what I observe in the day-to-day. My view of the nature of God and what it is capable of is transforming. I'm in mourning for all I've lost, but I also feel empowered.
Objective facts are very important to me when I'm making claims of what my God would be capable of doing. Wouldn't acts of God as described in the Bible require observable evidence? So far, I have not been able to assign any occurence in every day life to the kind of God that has been described to me without being able to explain it through mundane causes. This might not mean God doesn't exist, it just might mean that my view of God was wrong. It gives me pause before I bandy about phrases such as: My God wants to heal you completely! Or, My God is going to send sinners to Hell! My God can save you from whatever drama you're currently experiencing! The fact remains, I don't know if God will or even can do any of that. I'd much rather focus on my subjective experience of religion and it's secular value.
At the moment, the only thing that is keeping me to my faith are my subjective experiences. When I am leading worship especially, I feel and other people report a change in the room that is like thick air or electricity. I feel like I'm tuning into a sense beyond my five senses, I pay attention to that feeling and try to interpret that feeling through music for my congregation. Some Sundays, people have gone to my Pastor and reported physical healing and a sense of enduring wellbeing. I can't say that I know for sure what is making these experiences happen, but they are very special and valuable to me and my congregation, so I keep facilitating them.
How about you? How much do you value objective observations in relation to religion and every day life? What do you know of your God/Goddess through observations or subjective experience?
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