Confused? What church / religion am I? If any!

[FaithinQuestion]

I have recently (last few months)been thinking about God, religion and have ended up quite confused. I would be grateful for your thoughts.

basically, this is what I believe, does it match any religion?

I believe -
there is a creator (God) but is neither male nor female but has both elements - Father God/Divine Mother

that we do in fact re-incarnate, working out our sins or karma until we achieve self realisation and can return to the creator.

that Jesus was a great man, who had christ consciousness, and came to show us how to worship God/creator. I do believe he did in fact resurrect due to his god awareness/christ consciuosness.but i dont think he intended me to worship him,(jesus) but to worship/find God/Creator.

I believe that the New Testament has a lot of good stuff in it, but am confused as to why some things seem to be followed but others arent hence all the diff churches etc. For instance I read that women should keep their heads covered (to pray),and shouldnt cut their hair, why dont the majority of christians do this then? how come some things are taken "by the book" and others are disregarded ?
Also, regarding the Bible, did "God" suddenly change from being a vengeful and strict God, to being an all loving one, at the end of the Old Testament and start of the new?

Am confused by this! So any thoughts and comments are most welcome please.

If you are in the UK, be advised that Unitarian Universalism is the American version and is more popular over there. They are just Unitarians here, very small (about 5000) so some don't have a separate children's section. It is a place to learn about other faiths (not just Christian) because all are respected and celebrated.

So it's not surprising that many people who are interested enough to wonder what they really believe in, and take the quiz, might come out with Unitarian in the mix.

There are Huindu converts, after all what are the krishna adherents? Traditional hinduism requires Indian dexcent; but perhaps krishna-ism would suit?

I know a bit about Hinduism (one of the et religions for my degree, want to brrow a book ?). there is definitely one creator God, Brah'ma. he is non-manifest, and everything we think of that makes Hinduism a polytheistic religion is created of him. Now, in relaity that means that Hinduism varies throughout India- in the villages peole still trend to worship village deities and Polytheism is the most fitting description; pure Hinduism though, of the Mahabarata / Bhagavad Gita type is a monotheistic religion, even if not often portrayed as such. The other deities are stil rpesent- Shiva, Vishnu, kali, brahman, etc etc etc - but they reflect aspects fo the indefinable God, iyswim?

(Oh and yes your OP is Hindu- many hindu's have shrines that include jesus for example, for exactly the reaosns you give)

1. Unitarian Universalism (100%)

2. Neo-Pagan (96%) 3. New Age (94%) 4. Liberal Quakers (93%) 5. Mainline to Liberal Christian Protestants (85%) 6. Mahayana Buddhism (78%) 7. New Thought (75%) 8. Theravada Buddhism (74%) 9. Reform Judaism (73%) 10. Secular Humanism (73%) 11. Scientology (71%)

now, a Quaker- Pagan belief makes sense but Scientology? nah!.

Sorry Niecie, I misunderstood you when you said they were all loosely Christian. I thought you meant the answers that the quiz came up with in general, I didn't really take in what was in your list.

Very interesting.

1. Theravada Buddhism (100%)
2. Secular Humanism (94%)
3. Unitarian Universalism (90%)
4. Liberal Quakers (81%)
5. Nontheist (80%)
6. Mahayana Buddhism (65%)
7. Neo-Pagan (65%)
8. Mainline to Liberal Christian Protestants (61%)
9. Orthodox Quaker (61%)
10. Taoism (57%)

I like that link

1. Orthodox Quaker (100%)
2. Mainline to Conservative Christian/Protestant (87%)
3. Seventh Day Adventist (86%)
4. Mainline to Liberal Christian Protestants (86%)
5. Eastern Orthodox (78%)
6. Roman Catholic (78%)
7. Liberal Quakers (66%)
8. Orthodox Judaism (62%)
9. Islam (60%)
10. Reform Judaism (57%)

bobsmum - you're more of a catholic than I am. And I am one!

Do you suppose a faith school would accept this as "evidence" to save having to sweat it out for two years in the pews?
Interestingly, bottom of my list was Catholic. I was brought up a Catholic and made my first holy communion, confirmed etc. It rather destroys the myth "once a Catholic, always a Catholic". I can't wait to tell my mother that I am a Buddhist / Quaker cross.

I want Richard Dawkins to do it and come out a Seventh Day Adventist.

It's ages since I last did this. My results where surprising...

1. Seventh Day Adventist (100%)
2. Mainline to Conservative Christian/Protestant (99%)
3. Eastern Orthodox (98%)
4. Roman Catholic (98%)
5. Orthodox Quaker (97%)
6. Mainline to Liberal Christian Protestants (64%)
7. Orthodox Judaism (62%)
8. Hinduism (59%)
9. Islam (59%)
10. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormons) (56%)

I'm a Seventh Day Adventist, roffle.

"I believe that the New Testament has a lot of good stuff in it, but am confused as to why some things seem to be followed but others arent hence all the diff churches etc. For instance I read that women should keep their heads covered (to pray),and shouldnt cut their hair, why dont the majority of christians do this then? how come some things are taken "by the book" and others are disregarded ?"

The way I understand it, it depends on the teaching. Certainly "all scripture is beneficial for teaching, for reproving, for setting things straight, for disciplining in righteousness," but most of the old testament was the Mosaic Law which was specifically brought into being for the Isrealites via Moses. The arrival of Jesus brought about Christianity and a refining of the Mosaic Law. Some of the Law was kept and updated for the wider percentage of people who Jesus was trying to reach.

"Also, regarding the Bible, did "God" suddenly change from being a vengeful and strict God, to being an all loving one, at the end of the Old Testament and start of the new?"

When God needed to bring judgement on Mankind, he always preceeded it with a warning from a prophet, therefore giving humans time to see that what they were doing was not what he wanted, and time for them to adjust their ways and thinking. Reading the stories which go with the floods, plagues etc, we can see that man was "behaving badly" at these particular times and something needed to be done about it. That's what I think anyhoo

Si i did the belief o matic test:

100% Humanist

How can this be true when i don't like people very much?????

1. New Age (100%)

2. Neo-Pagan (98%) 3. Mahayana Buddhism (91%) 4. Unitarian Universalism (88%) 5. Liberal Quakers (87%) 6. Taoism (77%) 7. Jainism (77%) 8. New Thought (75%) 9. Scientology (73%) 10. Hinduism (71%)

My Results...Hehhe

Hey Faith. Im in the same boat as you. It is confusing & wondering where do I fit in. Don't really know what to tell you except I can relate to what you are going through spiritually & wanting to bump your thread up.

Good Luck ...

1. Secular Humanism (100%)

2. Unitarian Universalism (92%) 3. Nontheist (77%) 4. Liberal Quakers (71%) 5. Theravada Buddhism (66%) 6. Neo-Pagan (60%) 7. Mainline to Liberal Christian Protestants (58%) 8. Taoism (45%) 9. Reform Judaism (44%) 10. New Age (43%)

Pretty spot-on, I reckon.

im pretty similar to unquiet dad

i doubt it would be much use getting together with other humanis/unitarians -wed probably all sit around being nice and moderate

Yes, newgirl, at least until the schisms into the Reformed Secular Humanists, the Secular Humanitarian Reformers and the Formerly Secular Re-Humanists. There'd be splashed tea and biscuit crumbs everywhere!

1. Secular Humanism (100%)
2. Unitarian Universalism (93%)
3. Nontheist (76%)

that was fascinating

1. Unitarian Universalism (100%)
2. Liberal Quakers (83%)
3. Neo-Pagan (83%)
4. Secular Humanism (83%)
5. New Age (78%)
6. Mainline to Liberal Christian Protestants (74%)
7. New Thought (71%)
8. Theravada Buddhism (71%)
9. Mahayana Buddhism (67%)
10. Scientology (64%)
11. Nontheist (59%)
12. Reform Judaism (59%)
13. Taoism (57%)
14. Christian Science (Church of Christ, Scientist) (56%)
15. Bahá'í Faith (44%)
16. Orthodox Quaker (44%)
17. Hinduism (38%)
18. Sikhism (37%)
19. Jainism (36%)
20. Orthodox Judaism (33%)
21. Islam (24%)
22. Mainline to Conservative Christian/Protestant (24%)
23. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormons) (23%)
24. Seventh Day Adventist (16%)
25. Eastern Orthodox (15%)
26. Roman Catholic (15%)
27. Jehovah's Witness (5%)

I am so pleased so many people are coming up as Unitarian - I hadn't heard of them till a few years ago, but they turned out to be so damn cool we ended up getting married in a Unitarian chapel. They are woefully underrated and little-known imo, in the UK at least.

ooh mrs badget tell us about the cool church we could be going to? as i have now found my new religion is it a corker?

Unitarians don't sit around being nice OR moderate IME. They are supposed to give other ideas a hearing with an open mind, but that doesn't mean they have to agree with those ideas. Most are pretty opinionated.

I have sent DH the link to do it

and if he comes out the same I might try to track down a 'meeting' somewhere

1. Secular Humanism (100%)

2. Unitarian Universalism (97%) 3. Liberal Quakers (79%) 4. Nontheist (77%) 5. Theravada Buddhism (75%) 6. Neo-Pagan (72%) 7. Mainline to Liberal Christian Protestants (69%) 8. Reform Judaism (55%) 9. New Age (54%) 10. Taoism (46%) 11. Mahayana Buddhism (43%) 12. Scientology (42%) 13. Orthodox Quaker (42%) 14. Bahá'í Faith (40%) 15. New Thought (39%) 16. Sikhism (38%) 17. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormons) (35%) 18. Christian Science (Church of Christ, Scientist) (34%) 19. Mainline to Conservative Christian/Protestant (29%) 20. Islam (27%) 21. Jainism (27%) 22. Orthodox Judaism (27%) 23. Seventh Day Adventist (21%) 24. Eastern Orthodox (20%) 25. Roman Catholic (20%) 26. Hinduism (20%) 27. Jehovah's Witness (13%)

What about 'wafty lucky-bag spiritualists'? (people who pick and mix the lovely bits from a range of beliefs because they are so spiritual....on the BluBelief-O-Matic)

newgirl, twas here

if you want to find the nearest one try this www.unitarian.org.uk/movementb.htm

This is a good one covering London, www.ukspirituality.org/FAQs.htm