Non-denominational Hearts Feel Free To Gather Here........

[Deleted member 12723]

@Rain EXACTLY

LOL:hug::hug::hug:

 

[Rani G2]

Scientifically spiritual

 

[AngelKeeperJ]

Thank you for starting this thread! I have strep throat at the moment, and don't have the energy to read or post much, but I will be back soon!
AKJ

Better late than never, ha! (I wrote the above in February)

I am very very spiritual, extremely spiritual but not in a religious way, always confused that spiritual is assumed to be synonymous with religion. There are many spiritual experiences in our life, and in nature such spiritual experiences are bountiful.

So many said this quite well! I am extremely spiritual, and am a FIRM believer that each and every other person has a right to their own beliefs. Period. (As long as it doesn't include killing of ANY kind!)

After being raised in an ultra religious home, the daughter of a minister, I have "swung" to extremes from one end of the spectrum to the other. Dancing, going to the movies, playing cards, wearing pants/shorts, and divorce were all "sins." TOTALLY RIDICULOUS!!!l It seems like I went out and purposely broke every sin on the list. Ha!

After my first divorce, I left the church for approximately 30 years. When I left my FIRST husband, I "told God" that I was finished and didn't believe in Him anymore. (Yeah, I was pretty smart) I started smoking cigarettes & pot, drank alcohol, cussed, and had sex without being married. Enjoyed it all, too!

Now, being happily single for 22+ years, after FOUR marriages/divorces, I have mellowed ENORMOUSLY! I believe in my Higher Power, and that EVERY single person has a right to their own beliefs. Period. I won't argue against anyones beliefs, except for racism and bigotry.

My FIVE (spiritual/religious) tattoos reflect my beliefs, and if asked I will share what I believe and why. Thankfully, my Dad was UNCONDITIONALLY loving and not ashamed of me. (It took my mom a while to accept and understand me) My extended family which includes "preachers", some being actual pastors/missionaries, has had MANY discussions and opinions about me. (I have kept them "entertained") I came up with a name for the practice of such judgemental crap. I call it "Praise the Lord and point the finger" and "habitual Christianity." (Yes, I am a smart a$$.)

Most of them STILL nauseate me to no end and I avoid/avoided them unless I have had to take my parent(s) to a reunion, or funeral. A few are like me and we love each other unconditionally. The way it's SUPPOSED to be!

I have had the "privilege" of being with four people as they have taken their final breaths, including my daughter, grandmother, good friend, and my father. It was an honor and I cherish each experience. I DO believe that I will see them in heaven when I get there, but that is MY belief and no one has to agree with me.

I am proud of my journey, and am now a loyal member of a church, that gives away MILLIONS of $$$ to the needy people around the community AND the world. Just like we are supposed to. The pastor preaches AGAINST being judgemental, FOR the rights of the LGBT community, and came from the same background as I do. It's been quite the AMAZING journey!

And yes, I did pick up the trait of being long-winded... thanks for taking the time to read this... If you made it through to now...

 

[Tornadic Thoughts]

This:
So many well said this here! I am extremely spiritual, and am a FIRM believer in each and every other person has a right to their own beliefs. Period. (As long as it doesn't include killing of ANY kind!)

I'm still looking for a church that supports vegan living and fragrance-free spaces to worship, albeit not very actively because I'm painfully aware that's non-existent in my hood. lol

I'd try some out just to see if they felt like a good fit, but I can't handle the social food gatherings and the synthetic stank of all the endocrine system disrupting perfumes/colognes/scented laundry detergents/hair products/etc. to be able to even think about giving it a shot.

Hearing the pulpit participant of the day, along with the rest of the congregation, preaching of widespread peace, love, acceptance, and whatnot, then going to munch on abused (unless they raise and kill their own) dead animal carcasses and such while choosing to marinate their own bodies in chemicals that harm the wearer and everyone who has to smell it leaves a bad feeling in my gut, in more ways than one.

 

[Deleted member 8714]

I'm a born-again Christian since February 16, 1991. I used to go to church regularly even when I was remembering what happened to me. Then I hit a spot or rather pothole in my healing and left the church. It was 2003 and I started to write a novel about what happened to me. My walk with the Lord was always a relationship and not a religion. I don't do religions.

Before I gave my life to the Lord, I was a New Ager for 25 years. I never knew a thing about Christianity. Not a clue. So when I accepted Jesus as my Lord and Savior it was a huge change in my life. Within a year after I became born-again, I found this pastor who stressed a relationship with Jesus rather than a religious experience. I'm thankful for meeting that pastor early on in my walk with the Lord.

 

[Tornadic Thoughts]

I'm glad it (christianity) works(ed) for some folks and you feel you've found your spiritual home, so to speak. Rock on with your chosen heartfelt denominations in the non-denominational thread. lol

The born again christian scene is where I had some of my worst experiences in life and choose not to open myself up to what I experienced as being many harmful charades being played by folks who truly and wholeheartedly believed in what they were doing and often stated they were doing it all from a place of "divine and unconditional love that they'd been strongly called upon to bring forth to others", so they said. I painfully learned that I can no longer afford to constantly outsource my life/actions/behavior/choices to some unknown fictional (to me) being.

The hardcore believers I encountered through the years supposedly wanted nothing more than to "help me see the light", "feel the love", "save me from the sins of the world", "accept the love of the lord/jesus/christ/god/holy spirit", "give my life over to the one and only supreme being", etc. sure had some twisted ways to go about spreading their flavors of so-called love, from the dinner table to the pulpit and everywhere in between. I still get nauseous just seeing the words, but it's an area I hope to more comfortably navigate one day.

Not sure anyone or anything will ever be able to change that neural pathway within my brain after the things I've experienced, but it would be nice to eventually not feel sickened by just the thought and the energies that surround said thoughts and actions. My logical brain can pretty easily work with and around it in the moments of unavoidable interactions and commentary, thankfully, but my cellular memories clearly still know better than to allow my body to ever go there again.

 

[Deleted member 8714]

Rock on with your chosen heartfelt denominations in the non-denominational thread. lol

It is non-denominational. I don't belong to any church. Belonging to a church is the denomination. I've tried the many flavors as I call them and didn't like them for various reasons. One tried to exorcise my demons who were in reality alters.

However @Tornadic Thoughts your the OP on this thread so this will be my last post.

 

[Tornadic Thoughts]

My mind's definition/understanding of denomination is strongly identifying with a particular religious organization/belief whether you physically attend the building(s) they inhabit or not. Yet another example of how language as well as our life experiences can be (and remain) our biggest hurdles at times.

 

[Justmehere]

@Congruency - I’ve undeleted the posts because the thread doesn’t make sense without them. If you have any questions, please direct them to a Help Ticket.

 

[ladee]

When I started my Trauma Diary, I made it a point to say I was going to be talking about God, and if for personal reasons others felt that offensive, they didn't need to read any further... I am selective with my wording in posts to others on the threads and in their diary's, not giving up my own beliefs, but also respecting others beliefs . That's not that hard to do... just respecting others... period.

In my younger years I was on a SEARCH for meaning in my life.. tho thru PTSD fog and brain, religion was just confusing to me... I've read a lot about other religions, have friends of many different religions, or , some, like me, who just have a God, a Higher Power, what ever, and it all works....

I'm am forever grateful to AA for giving me the space to find what that meant to me, and what worked for me... I was not raised in any religion... so, I didn't have things to 'unlearn'... I just knew what felt right in my gut, and what didn't.... and breaking rules was my purpose for many years.... lol, but didn't feel I had to do that in regard to religion.... just don't go back....

I do not apologize to anyone for having God in my life.. which I am a firm believer that people are more interested in your actions than your words anyway.... they have to match up... actions and words.... and I feel that mine do... most of the time...

I learn from everyone... my nephew is of a controversial relgion, and from the get go, I let him know that converting me was not an option, and if he wanted to talk about God and spiritual things... I was wide open... we have some very beautiful talks and conversations... and for someone who is from such a staunch religion, to say he had learned a lot from me, well, that spoke of his heart and open mind, not doctrine... I do not believe many things he does.... and he doesn't edit, but is respectful about not getting to pulpit pounding, because I just get deaf on him...

In my life experiances... there is definitely a power greater than me working in my life... too many things happen and come together in ways I would never had the brain cells to put together to make it happen... I don't get into gender god either... does it matter?? Not to me...

So, am grateful we have this space to come and talk about the miracles in our life, and not feel pressure to edit, to just share... we are all works in progress.... and that is a beutiful thing... and to have the pressure off to always be PC is very freeing.... thanks for this thread...

 

[Deleted member 12723]

I have had some bad religious experiences in my life and having my faith sustains me but I am not a church going person ever again.

i have learned along the way that if the words do not match up with right actions, it leads to serious distortions of reality.:)

 

[Freida]

I got thrown out of sunday school (as in go sit on the front step and wait for your parents) when I was 5 for asking if hell was big enough to hold all the buddists in china. I was thinking math problem - teacher said i was going to hell and was a bad influence on the other kids.

And I heard that over and over throughout my life because I grew up in a bible thumper area and my family was agnostic. Spiritual yes -- religious no.

I've visited many religious/spiritual places along my journey and I love discussing theology and what people believe and learning about their belief systems. But I've never really found one that fit because most religions require you to hate/judge/condemn someone and that isn't how I was raised. Christians scare the crap out of me but one of my closet friends is a missionary - how funny is that?

I love threads like this - where people can talk about what gets them thru the day, share their beliefs and feel comfortable being "different' (cause y'all know if you are not a Christian in America you are different)

thanks for starting it! It makes me feel less alone.....