Thanks, Ace.  Very well said.

Not all religious people are evil.

And you are right about the rules.  When you enter the chat room, you see them including: "Thou Shalt Not: Use language that is racist, sexist, anti-religious, homophobic, or heterophobic in nature".

How about that?

*hugs* Very very well said. Some of my best friends are Christians/Catholics and they still love me Just have to be patient with those that are disrespectful - not all religious people are nutjobs and its a shame that the small number cause problems.

I am not a religious person but am 100% for the teachings in the Bible or any religious text for that matter - there are so many great lessons that can be learnt from the holy texts that anyone can benefit from - even if they don't believe in a higher deity. 

Also - you are allowed to talk about anything in your blog Politics and Religion

Thank you JC and MikeL. It's good to see that some people are not taking this lightly, which i believe is the main problem

I, too am not an overly religious person but I do believe. And seeing your beliefs ridiculed and your effort of defending it overlooked can be hurtful, especially when you have given your full support to the opposite party.

Personally, I am very atheistic but I did grow up in the Bible Belt.

Like  JC, I have Christian friends that know about my orientation, one of them is Catholic and she has no problem with who I am. Which, if I must admit, surprised me because she came across as the good Catholic girl (heck, she wanted to become a nun ) But, she is a growing number of young Christians (Catholics in this case) who are not as strict on social issues as their parents or grandparents are

There is a lot to criticize about religion... yet there is a lot to laud about religion

Tolerance is another application of the Golden Rule.  Do unto others as you would have them do unto you!   It is a good compass in a world full of differences....

I think a lot of people, especially LGBTQ people, equate religion with being uptight. We still see religious beliefs used in a bigoted way. The key word here is 'beliefs'. They get twisted to serve an intolerant purpose. I truly believe this group, while still impacting society, is getting smaller. More and more religions are embracing all peoples, and that needs to be acknowledged. We as a group, have wrested religion from those who say we don'[t deserve it and have no right to it. In Toronto, Canada, we have a thriving gay religious community. MCC, our church is a prominent and successful part of our city, and I take great pride in being able to sit comfortably in a house of God, and hear his Word spoken by our wonderful Pastor Brent. Gay marriages are performed in this House of God! I loved, Ace, what you said about praying. It is between God and me, when I do pray, and no one else. Do I pray regularly? No... but when you have some one close to you who is sick or dying, prayer can give great comfort... for me, anyway. Religion itself is no longer the enemy... it's the bigots who CHOOSE to hide behind it in order to support their own agenda... their own narrow views. Lets call a spade a spade. Thanks for posting this, Ace. Religion is normally, for me, a subject to be avoided, but you said what needed to be said. Intolerance is intolerance, no matter what the subject...  cheers... Gary.

Faith is what keeps you alive in the darkest times

Faith is the sustenance of the poor, the unwanted, and the dying

Faith sustains mankind

I am less religious than I am faithful, I believe in a God and even am open to the idea of him/her/it being mankind's progenitor (creator is an absolute term, but I think progenitor is a better concept, but that's mincing words).

Religion is not bad or good, it is merely an organized interpretation, which groups of people coalesce around. I share some tenets wth Christians, Jews, Muslims, Taoist, and buddhists, so to me, Religion really isn't a big deal, just an interpretation.

Faith is what keeps you alive in the darkest times

Faith is the sustenance of the poor, the unwanted, and the dying

Faith sustains mankind

 

I am less religious than I am faithful, I believe in a God and even am open to the idea of him/her/it being mankind's progenitor (creator is an absolute term, but I think progenitor is a better concept, but that's mincing words).

 

Religion is not bad or good, it is merely an organized interpretation, which groups of people coalesce around. I share some tenets wth Christians, Jews, Muslims, Taoist, and buddhists, so to me, Religion really isn't a big deal, just an interpretation.

This makes sense WL yes I could say I am more faithful than religious myself. I don't participate much in my church's activities nor do I attend weekly. But growing up with religion, it is like I am tied to my beliefs and thay tie is faith. And and to whom my faith rests on is clear. Thus, making me a part of a religion. And that is the only thing I still hold on to even if I failed to delivery much to give back to the church and society. Either way faith or religion, please don't belittle my beliefs, that's all i ask. Even if I believe in the great Spaghetti Monster is that really a thing tho?

This makes sense WL yes I could say I am more faithful than religious myself. I don't participate much in my church's activities nor do I attend weekly. But growing up with religion, it is like I am tied to my beliefs and thay tie is faith. And and to whom my faith rests on is clear. Thus, making me a part of a religion. And that is the only thing I still hold on to even if I failed to delivery much to give back to the church and society. Either way faith or religion, please don't belittle my beliefs, that's all i ask. Even if I believe in the great Spaghetti Monster is that really a thing tho?

If you believe in the spaghetti monster, Yes, but if you start talking about the possibility of Meatballs or Sausages cohabitating with the Supreme Pasta or Tomato sauce can change into Marinara sauce, you might get a schism

I don’t usually leave comments, but this is a very interesting topic.

I was raised in the Baptist church, but am now a non-believer. My family is full of serious Bible thumpers, and I love them all. lol My uncle who was seriously wounded in Italy during WWII, began his journey of lifelong devotion to Christ in a foxhole. It is the truth, my uncle promised his life to God from a foxhole in Italy, and he was the most faithful man I’ve ever known.  

For me, being a non-believer does not mean that I do not love those who have faith and participate in organized religion. As a matter of fact I sincerely respect those who are TRUE followers of their faith, whether Christian, Jewish, Muslim, or whatever god or goddess they believe in. 

I did not become a non-believer overnight. It took more than forty years. I can remember going to church one fine Sunday morning and sitting in sinners row with the rest of the Saturday night hangover crowd. While belching gin and tonic on the neck of the parishioner in front of me, I realized I no longer felt anything. Even as the soloist in the choir was singing one of my favorite hymns, His Eye Is on the Sparrow, all I kept thinking about was a cool drink of water for my hot liquor pipes, and a cigarette.

When I began to find folks with more spirituality, humility and faith on street corners than I did in the Church of Christ, I knew it was more than a crisis of faith that I was suffering from.

W_L, you are right. For some folks faith is what keeps them going in the darkest of times. I believe resilience is what keeps me afloat when hard times come knocking. And faith can be nourishment to the believers who are poor and unwanted. I recently experienced a financial setback and scuffled to survive. I did not rely on prayer, but sheer willfulness and ingenuity. This is what put bread on the table. Rubbing two pennies together until my luck changed. In my youth, I was unwanted...and I won't lie, it was tough. At the time I relied on prayer, but did not find acceptance until years later. Some would say my prayers were answered, just not in my time. I think it was just the passage of time and putting myself around the right kind of people. Also from that bad experience, I developed a wicked sense of humor. Laughter truly is one of the best medicines. Well…maybe after prayer for some folks, which is fine. Whatever gets you through the rough patches, prayer, laughter, or just waking up every morning and putting your feet on the floor, just be kind, loving, and treat others humanely. Isn’t that what it’s all about? Isn’t that what Jesus preached to his followers?

Two weeks ago my seven year old niece passed away, but I did not ask God why. A beautiful child who had so much to offer the world is gone, but still I did not shake my fists at the heavens. My grief shall pass, but I will never forget her. As unfortunate as her death was, it is a part of life. One day I will be gone, we all must go, but I do not spend my days thinking of where I'll end up. I have enough crap to deal with in the here and now. lol So sorry for being long winded, I just got caught up in it.

Just to end this on a light note, here is one of my favorite quotes:

"I get the devil-worship thing a lot. They'll ask me, 'You worship the devil?' he says. "No, bro, I don't believe there's a God, why would I believe there's a devil?" ~~ NFL player Arian Foster (ESPN Magazine)