Would you change your religion?

@babykay (2131)
Ireland
January 19, 2008 4:24pm CST
Just wondering what are your thoughts on this. Most people are born into a particular relgion and tend to stay in it,from my observations anyway. It seems rare that someone would change from what their family practices. Would you consider changing your religion or are you happy with teh one you were born into? Or do you just not care too much :) What are your thoughts
5 people like this
23 responses
19 Jan 08
What circles ahve you been living in? My mother was born into an agnostic family and is strongly Christian. My father was born into a Catholic family and is an aetheist. I have many freinds born into Catholic families who are now agnostic or aetheist. I know of a couple of local people who converted to Islam. Anyone who puts any thought into the way theu live their lives might move away from their families religious, moral, ethical and political views. Look at the growing popularity of 'Wicca' *sigh* and paganism. Or the ever growing numbers of true aetheists. These people are almost all converts.
4 people like this
@babykay (2131)
• Ireland
19 Jan 08
hmmm maybe the people I know are rather lax regarding religion or else rather conservative!!
4 people like this
@lecanis (16647)
• Murfreesboro, Tennessee
19 Jan 08
The *sigh* after Wicca made me giggle. :P
1 person likes this
20 Jan 08
:P I'd been watching really badly researched BBC documentaries... they'd made me foam.
2 people like this
@lecanis (16647)
• Murfreesboro, Tennessee
19 Jan 08
I wouldn't change my religion, but I don't exactly see myself as having been born into it either. By the time I was born, my father had forsaken his religion, and my mother's mental illness means the religion she claims changes with her mental health and the influence of those around her. So I don't really see myself as having "inherited" a religion from either of my parents. The grandmother I lived with most often when I was a child is Christian, but she and her husband were both abusive of me, so her religion didn't really influence mine. The people in my family whose religion did influence mine were my great-grandparents. My great-grandmother moved to the United States from Ireland when she was young, and she follow the older pagan Gods of her homeland. My great-grandfather was Native American, and followed a path based on his heritage. They were kind to me before anyone else ever was, and taught me a lot about life as well as spirituality. I consider myself a Celtic Reconstructionist Pagan because I felt a calling from a Celtic Goddess when I was only four years old. So if I follow anyone in my family's path, it's my great-grandmother's. I wouldn't change my religion, but not because of my family, not even my great-grandmother whom I loved very much. I wouldn't change my religion because I feel an intense loyalty to my Gods, especially the Goddess who first called me.
3 people like this
@danzer (2723)
• Philippines
19 Jan 08
A person can be born into a religion but it takes personal decision to be a Christian. I was born in a Catholic background. In 1998, I accepted Christ as my Savior and Lord. From that time on, I am a Baptist by choice and I'm happy I made the best decision. Are you a Christian by choice? Or you're just happy with a religion?
@babykay (2131)
• Ireland
19 Jan 08
I am a seeking believer
2 people like this
@babykay (2131)
• Ireland
20 Jan 08
hey- I use some energy to get through the day, some to love, some to work, think and pray and do goodness knows what else.
@danzer (2723)
• Philippines
20 Jan 08
If you are seeking the true God with all your soul, and with all your heart, you will find Him. Ye shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free!
@Pose123 (21635)
• Canada
20 Jan 08
Hi babykay, I no longer have much time for organized religion. I believe that life is eternal, but that it is all a great mystery. I would not change my religion because I have no desire for someone to try to convince me of something of which they themselves know nothing. I am tolerant of all religions except when they try to take away the rights of others. Blessings.
1 person likes this
@Fidget (291)
20 Jan 08
My parents are very relaxed about religion. They didn't get us kids baptized or anything as they wanted us to make our own minds up. And I'm STILL making my mind up. When/if I commit to one particular religion if I discovered something that reached me more I would probably look into it further, I hate to think settling on a faith results in a closed mind. However, I expect I'll just end up being eccletic taking a bit from here and a bit from there until I have something that feels right to me.
1 person likes this
20 Jan 08
I would say that the closest to defining my religious stance would be a humanist agnostic. My father is Church of England while my mother is catholic. Both very liberal and believed it was my choice to decide a religious path. Unless I am particularly moved in the future by a particular religion I think it is safe to say that I am not keen on organised religion. If God does exist, why would he/she/it require a formalised religion? Worship is worship, and as individualism is a core aspect of humanity, surely the same should be said of how we worship? While I am uncertain as to an answer to whether God genuinely exists, I have constructed my own religion of sorts. Following a belief structure of my own devising, taking bits and philosophical stances from other religious thoughts (and other 'general' thoughts too!) to construct my own belief system. To say I am not religious is not true. For although I may not subscribe to a deity, I do have a belief structure of my own individualistic design.
1 person likes this
@sedel1027 (17846)
• Cupertino, California
20 Jan 08
I was born Catholic and am now Pagan. My brother isn't concerned with religion whatsoever. My cousins (all raised Catholic), one has stayed Catholic, one is an Athiest and the other, doesn't care about religion at all. My husband was raised Catholic he is now Pagan, one of his sisters is an Atheist, the other sister and his brother are not concerned about religion. Almost all of my friends were raised in a mainstream religion and changed their religion. Based on that, I would say that more people change religions based on their own personal ideas and do not limit themselves.
@sedel1027 (17846)
• Cupertino, California
20 Jan 08
To me that is still changing your religious beliefs and hence your religion. The people I know that are indifferent or atheist have been that way for years and I don't think they will be changing their minds ever. Just because they don't participating in a certain religion, doesn't mean that their religion has not changed.
@babykay (2131)
• Ireland
20 Jan 08
like you I know many who were born into a particular faith and now consider themselves 'no religion' or atheist. To me that;s not quite the same thing as changing u religion as it is more of a lapse or simply no longer caring about that area of life. If some one got babtized into say, the Baptist faith having been born a Muslim - now that is changing religion.
@lpetges (3036)
• United States
20 Jan 08
i dont put much value on labels of religion. i am a catholic, and barely a good one at that. i do, however, dont believe that whatever religion you are, is fine with me. everyone has to have some belief., i just dont push mine onto others. whatever you want to believe in or who, is fine with me.. you just need to be happy in your own beliefs. thats it!
@sungat (1015)
• Pakistan
20 Jan 08
i realy not happy with my religion i want to change it as a matter of fact i change it but by the law it is as muslim i think there should be relife for people to change there religion and i think it would help people to make new religions and adoptions and people get innovative later on
• United States
26 Jan 08
I was raised in the church of christ and baptised in the baptists church. I married a Catholic. I was willing to change my religion when we first got married but my husband would not take the time to go to church with me. He still will not go to church with me but does not want me to go to anyother church. After so many arguements I do not fight with him anymore so I worship on my own but not in any type of church. I feel if your spouce wants you to change your religion then they should participe in the church.
• Panama
23 Jan 08
I would change my religion if I could be convinced that mine is wrong. I would never want to follow a lie. The only reason I am a Christian is because I have seen that it is real and it works. Check out my blog! http://seekingtheking.blogspot.com/
• United States
20 Jan 08
I was born and raised Catholic...went all the way through sunday school and got my confirmation...as I grew older I strayed away because there are just too many things I disagree with when it comes to catholic religion..
• United States
20 Jan 08
I have changed my family religion because i found truth in true christianity. Not christianity that everybody seems to claim. You were born with free will to choose differently than every one else in your life. You can do anything say anything and think anything, whether it effects anyone else or not. You are your own responsibility. Noone else can make choices for you. Thats why your held accountable for yourself on judgement day. Noone else can make dicisions for you. free will.
• United States
20 Jan 08
I have changed my family religion because i found truth in true christianity. Not christianity that everybody seems to claim. You were born with free will to choose differently than every one else in your life. You can do anything say anything and think anything, whether it effects anyone else or not. You are your own responsibility. Noone else can make choices for you. Thats why your held accountable for yourself on judgement day. Noone else can make dicisions for you. free will.
@Ravenladyj (22902)
• United States
20 Jan 08
Growing up there was no religion in our home..When I started on my christian path as a kid it was with the guidance of friends and their families...As a teen I started to realize the flaws and how it didnt "fit" with my beliefs (most of which I had since i was very young..thats a whole different story though) and slowly moved away from it and in my 20s I started on the path I'm on to this day which is where I should have been right from the get go...but growing up there was no info for me on Paganism or Buddhism etc etc in fact i didnt even know Paganism existed until I was in my 20s...
@Galena (9110)
20 Jan 08
if I encountered another set of beleifs that rang true to me more than those I already hold, then yes I might. it would take a lot of "ringing true" though, as I do have a personal relationship with my Gods, have seen and spoken with them, and there is little that can be a stronger form of beleif than that brought on by personal experience.
• United States
20 Jan 08
no i would never change my faith, I am a Christian and i have no interest in changing, now i like to try to understand others but no i would not change in any way
@adnanezzi (243)
• India
20 Jan 08
rewligion is something which i follow with my heart. but the point u heve made is valid
• Italy
20 Jan 08
If I had sufficient motives and evidence that a particular religion is more true than my present belief, I would change. You don't BORN into a religion, you should CHOOSE one. If you didn't choose then you have been indoctrinated into a particular series of practices and dogmas BEFORE ever knowing what all that was about. In this case you should reconsider and ask yourself if that is what you want. If it isn't and/or you like something else as better, then change! It is YOUR conscience, it is YOUR mind, so the only person who has to decide which religion to belong to is YOU. And if you don't like any of those religion, be an atheist!
@egr134 (192)
• Argentina
20 Jan 08
Personally, I don't care too much about religion. I think that it doesn't matter very much what you believe, it's more important what you do about it.