People with fervent beliefs in one particular religious system should give some thought to what they would believe if they had been brought up in another.  A fundamentalist Christian, born, instead, into a Hindu family?  An Orthodox Jew, born, instead, into a Shinto family.  A Muslim, born, instead, into a Jain family.

A dear friend, a pillar of the his Christian (granted, not fundamentalist) church always said he was sure had he been born in a different country, into a different culture, his faith would have been as strong, be it Hindu, Muslin, etc.  I always appreciated his honesty and his counsel.

I just love reading the posts of the wonderful women here, and I appreciate the opinions of the women ‘of faith’, he wonderful thing about our melting pot country is that we are allowed to do ‘what works for us’ and yet we are exposed to the beauty of all interpretations of faith and increasing reasonings for lack thereof. We must strive to keep this freedom… just witness what is happening in fundamentalist countries, especially when it comes to the freedom of women.

I was raised as a very strict Catholic, 16 years of Catholic education, but I remember even as a child in Mass before school thinking " Come on, you don’t expect me to believe that " but I stayed with it. I loved singing the wonderful old holiday songs in Latin, still love them. There is something to say about rituals and traditions, makes us feel part of something, you know, security in numbers, "how can I NOT believe all this when everyone around me seems to ", BUT, I have a questioning personality, I want to know WHY, I want to read, think, wonder. Then the 60s happened, and I felt permission to think for myself, become part of a wider world, learn about Judaism, Buddhism, Atheism ( OMG it is OK NOT to believe !, is it possible? ) I think what finally drove me running was the guitars and Kumbaya … that is a joke, but it was at the time when I said ENOUGH !

But What DO I have ? I know the only thing that has ever given me goosbumps, made me feel one with the universe  was music. With all the reading I do I’ve learned that music is really a mathetical expression and that the world around us is ruled by physics and math, that music is processed in a special part of the brain, it is what makes us connect it with emotions and memories. When I meditate to a Symphony, or listen to a Cello, or the special connection of a jazz combo, or hear that Motown song that reminds me of an old boyfriend, it gives me peace. 

And a walk in the woods with my iPod set to my music choice of the day is much more spiritual than anything I ever felt in Church … well, maybe singing Panus Angelicus in the choir up in the choirloft at Christmas …. the ONLY thing I remember about Christmas in Church.

As so many have said above  …. whatever works for you.

I was raised a Roman Catholic - Catholic schools from 1st through 12th grade - my uncle, now deceased, was a priest -

for me now, it’s more of a cultural/ethnic connection, it’s a part of who I am -I am more akin to European Catholics who don’t get bent out of shape about catechism and the like

I think I am typical of many American Catholics, many of us are really cafeteria Catholics, we get irritated with the Pope, we pray for the unborn but think people have a right to choose life (or not), we see benefits to stem cell research - we hope that women will be priests in our lifetime and that all priests can marry but know it’s doubtful

the Catholic Church has mysteries and traditions that span the centuries and that’s what I love about it - the fact that it isn’t perfect, that we have done some really dumb things makes it that much more human to me - perfection is not found on Earth-even Luther found that out -

more recently, the Church has done some pretty horrific things that did not protect our children and ruined lives, and I always believed that arrests should have made of higher Church authorities for that - these things happen everywhere but other groups do the right thing and call the police which we should have done but did not - this time period caused me to consider leaving the Church but I just couldn’t let "management" disturb my faith so I stayed and found a parish that seeks forgiveness for what happened and is more left leaning (they are out there)

it has been researched that when people feel vulnerable, whether physically, emotionally or financially, they turn to what they believe is traditional - that is, fundamentalism - degradation of women, loss of freedom to make independent or personal decisions,  strict adherence to rules that are meant to suppress free thinking - this can be found in any religion, including Christianity - it’s not the religion that’s at fault, it’s the people in "management" that decide "we must return to our fundamentals" as a way to stay-safe that is at fault - organized religion is about humanity and sometimes we really mess it up bad - but don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater!

personally, I think the Buddhists have it right but I don’t have the inclination to convert - lol/smirk

This seems to be quite a touchy subject here.  I mentioned this before - I am a practicing Episcopalian.  I think however anyone believes is their business. 

Is it me, or have some of the extreme Christian views of exclusivity made many of us all a bit on edge about faith?