Introduce yourself!

[Joseph_F]

Hi everyone,

Welcome to the Religion & Spirituality board. Take a second to say a little bit about yourself so we know who we're talking with.  Where are you from? What kind of religion-related books do you enjoy? What, if you feel comfortable mentioning it, is your religious background? And any other info that you feel like sharing (well, I can't do all the work for you).

Alright..........go! 

[Joseph_F]

Ok, so I'll go ahead and start.

I'm from the West Coast but recently moved to the East Coast and am now learning about weather (we didn't have any where I grew up).

I was raised Reform Jewish and I'm still somewhat religious. Six months ago I would have described myself as pretty religious but I haven't gone to synagogue in three or so months, so I don't think I can accurately say that anymore.

Thanks to my religious studies degree, I know a little bit about most religions and a lot about a few religions, but since I'm only a little over a year out of college I certainly would not describe myself as an expert. 

When it comes to books about religion, I tend to prefer history over theology, but I occasionally read the latter. I also like books by Joseph Campbell even though I recognize that his ideas have some major problems with them. Oh, and 1 Samuel and 2 Samuel. They're a really enjoyable read, like a mini-suspense novel in the middle of the Bible. 

Your turn! 

Message Edited by Joseph_F on 03-24-2009 08:38 AM

[L_Monty]

Hi, Joseph.

Despite a pretty rich religious family background (I got all the big WASP credentials—alls 'em, I tell ya), a childhood spent in daycare at the local Jewish community center, an Episcopal school for elementary, moving to the south for high school and discovering half the people I liked hanging out with wanted to drag me to Catholic or Presbyterian youth groups on Wednesday and Sundays, despite a mom who'd drive me to a mosque or an ashram if I'd expressed the slightest interest, and despite some overenthusiastic girlfriends who did religious studies, I somehow wound up a boring old agnostic anyway.

That said, one of my favorite professors in college — one of my history thesis advisors — also had a doctorate in divinity, so I took a lot of tutorials with him on the English Reformation. Owing to reasons I can't pinpoint, my religious interests really stalled out and remain lingering there, although I'll watch or listen to anything about the Albigensian heresy and like reading about Christian gnosis, though I don't profess to really knowing all that much about it.

[Ryan_G]

My name is Ryan.  I'm am a non-church going Southern Baptist who has had some issues dealing with my faith due to my sexuality.  I won't go into to much detail on that since I have already on another board, unless the subject comes up during a related discussion.  I would like to explore faith in a modern society as it relates to social justice issues.  I would also rather enjoy exploreing faiths that I don't know much about, Islam and Hindu primarily.

[Everyman]

They say one should avoid discussion politics and religion, and here I am a fairly active poster on the Current Events (largely political) board and peeking my nose in here.  (I also recognize Ryan from both, so hi, Ryan, and I see you're a fellow non-believer in that precept!)

In the old Barnes and Noble University there was a course on Reading the Bible as Literature, which I tried to participate in several times, but each time it drifted off into doctrinal disputation without much attempt at understanding other viewpoints, which wasn't of much interest to me.  I'm curious whether this group will be able to avoid that.

My spiritual journey has been perhaps a bit convoluted.  I come from a long line of Quakers stretching back several hundred years, some of them quite distinguished, and remain a Quaker today.  My paternal grandfather was a Quaker medical missionary in China, and my maternal grandfather an Episcopal minister in Philadelphia, so in addition to my core Quaker upbringing I also had some experience of the Episcopal church.  In my early years I worked for several Quaker schools and an adult study center as a teacher and financial manager, had a stint working for a Presbyterian seminary, then moved across the country, the opposite way from Joseph, and left the religious world for a more secular career.    

I will be interested in seeing how this board develops.  

[Dreamer4ever]

I'll start off saying that my name is Dara and I don't actually read many spiritual books or books relating to religion despite being a Christian. I'm non-denomination, but come from a family of Presbyterians and Southern Babtists.

Some of the most important experiences in my life were related to church and the people I've met there. I've gone through depression and when I was to the point of suicide it was a Methodist youth pastor that reached out and helped me back to God. Unfortunately, he died a while back. It's taken time to come back from the pain and hurt that that caused in my faith.

I don't read many religious books because, most of the time, they would bore me out of my mind. But I'm glad they started this board because I feel like it may help me reach for those books that would challenge a deeper faith in my life.

[Nelsmom]

Hi my name is Toni and I live in Utah though I also live in Iowa for quite a few years.  I am a member of The Church Of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints or more commonly refered to as Mormons.  I enjoy learning about all religons to help me understand the people I meet.

Toni

[Nadine]

Under the umbrella of Christianity we already have two interesting religions mentioned that people know little about and probably don't understand: Quakers and Mormons. Focusing on something like those two would make for a much more enlightened discussion then treating Christianity as a whole.

[Nelsmom]

I can list quite a few religions that we could do.  Here are just a few of them

Catholics

Greek Orthodics (may be misspelled)

Lutherans

Latter-Day Saints

Methadist

Baptists/ Southern Baptists

Evangicals

Islam

Judaism

HIndu

Buddist

Shinto

Sikhism

I'm sure that I have missed some but those are the major ones that I have heard about.  But there are also a lot of regional differences within religons too.

Toni

[Everyman]

A couple of other Protestant sects that might be included in your good starting list are  Presbyterians, Episcopalians, Unitarians (though maybe they shouldn't be classified as Protestants), and Calvinists.

And if we wanted to get a bit esoteric we could include smaller sects like the Shakers, Amish, Swedenborgen, etc. 

---

Nelsmom wrote:

I can list quite a few religions that we could do.  Here are just a few of them

Catholics

Greek Orthodics (may be misspelled)

Lutherans

Latter-Day Saints

Methadist

Baptists/ Southern Baptists

Evangicals

Islam

Judaism

HIndu

Buddist

Shinto

Sikhism

I'm sure that I have missed some but those are the major ones that I have heard about.  But there are also a lot of regional differences within religons too.

Toni

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[Nadine]

Oh, Everyman! You have been kissed by a Princess and you turned into a Panda!

Don't forget the other big religion areas have different beliefs within them. I have no idea of why the Sunni and Shi'a hate each other and are trying to kill each other. So within Islam there is are Sunnis, Shi'a, and maybe Sufism.

And don't forget the Pagans. There are very legitimate religious group within that group. I think I read someplace that Wicca was the fast-growing religion in the US.

Message Edited by Nadine on 03-24-2009 11:51 PM

[Joseph_F]

That is always the problem with discussing a broad religious category (Christianity, Islam, Judaism). Different sects might have almost nothing to do with each other except for some link in distant history. And that's not even getting into all the varieties within Hinduism. Let's move this discussion over to the "What would you like to talk about?" topic though.

[Peppermill]

Joseph -- I wish you as moderator and those who choose to participate on this board the best.

Since I am currently a member of a group that reads spiritual/religious books for about nine months out of each year and meets to discuss them bi-monthly, I am not certain time will permit me to participate here.  But, I think it is a wonderful opportunity that the participants can (and hopefully will) make very enriching.

I will try to throw out some possibililties another time, but for now let me say that, among many other interests, I continue to try to increase my understanding of Sunni versus Shia (Shiite) Muslims.

Your suggestion, Joseph, of the books of Samuel is very interesting for a  cross-section of history and religion and spirituality they could offer.

Pepper 

Oops!  I see while I have been diddling with this post, Nadine has introduced the issue of understanding the differences and similarities of the major sects of Islam!

Message Edited by Peppermill on 03-25-2009 12:14 AM

[Melissa_W Moderator]

Well, I'll probably poke my nose into the group depending on what's on the schedule. 

I moderate the Literature by Women and Knitting boards and jump in and out of others.  I'm a corn-fed Iowan, raised a Lutheran, and we thought the family was Lutheran back to Luther on most of my mom's side until we found out my grandmother was raised Apostolic Christian (who knew? she never talked about it).  I can be forced into going to church on holidays to please my grandfather (if we're visiting him) but years of being the organist's child, which is second only to being the pastor's kid, has made me a little churched-out.  God and I get along on a one-on-one basis just fine.

When I read religious-type books, I tend to go for nuts-and-bolts or theological pieces; I've been working through some of CS Lewis's works and I've been reading through a number of the Gnostic gospels and Apocrypha.

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Joseph_F wrote:

Hi everyone,

Welcome to the Religion & Spirituality board. Take a second to say a little bit about yourself so we know who we're talking with.  Where are you from? What kind of religion-related books do you enjoy? What, if you feel comfortable mentioning it, is your religious background? And any other info that you feel like sharing (well, I can't do all the work for you).

Alright..........go! 

---

[Raven_Lunatic]

Hiya! I'm Raven Lunatic, an Orthodox Jew and amateur theologian. (Did I spell that right?) Here's to hoping the R&S board gets off to a good start!

[yeshuasgirl]

Hi my name is Yeshuagirl.  Ilove the word of ADONAI! I write poetry and do alot of studing on God's word.  I am currently looking into the roots of my faith which is full gospel- Christianity.  I have alot of poems i would like to submit here can I ?

[yeshuasgirl]

Oh ya i guess i would say that my faith is in line with the messianic faith- i'm not Jewish by birth, I've been Adopted.

[Joseph_F]

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yeshuasgirl wrote:
Hi my name is Yeshuagirl.  Ilove the word of ADONAI! I write poetry and do alot of studing on God's word.  I am currently looking into the roots of my faith which is full gospel- Christianity.  I have alot of poems i would like to submit here can I ?

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Hi Yeshuagirl. I would suggest that the Writing board would be a better venue for your poems. Feel free to discuss books and poems that you've read here, though.

[Fozzie]

Hi!  I'm Laura and I live on the south coast of Maine.  You can read more about me in my profile.

I am Roman Catholic and interested in the beliefs of the major religions.  I don't want to study religions, per se, but enjoy learning through fiction books  (i.e.  I enjoy learning history through historical fiction, but hated studying history).

[Laurel]

I'm Laurel, and I'm a Christian. I was raised by an agnostic, so I had to think through my beliefs very carefully as I was growing up. (The agnostic who raised me is now a Christian.) I am back in the little town in northwest Washington State where I grew up, after living and working for many years in northwest Florida.

My favorite religion-related books besides the Bible are Paradise Lost, The Divine Comedy, The Pilgrim's Progress, Idylls of the King, The Lord of the Rings, and the works of C.S. Lewis, G.K. Chesterton, Dorothy Sayers, Charles Spurgeon, etc. I believe that the Bible is the Word of God. I wish I were more skilled at explaining why I believe as I do.

I don't know how much time and energy I'll have to spend on this board, but I'll try to at least come by every once in a while.