Birth Religion and Current Religion.

[Tay Redgrave]

Does how you were raised, religion-wise, impact your current practices? How?

I don't know if I can exactly answer the question as I wasn't raised in a religion (Nor can I even remember what went on in the Baptist Church I went to. I went during Sundays and certain events... and it was all to hang out with my friends and have fun at the events going on. Hehe.) Even if I believed in the idea of God and Satan, I was pretty agnostic (or irreligious would be a good term, too) as a child but I did absorb and take in a lot of what I was told.

So in a way, it does have an impact on me. As I did take what made sense to me as a child but question what didn't. ("Mommy, if we are children of God then why do we marry our brothers and sisters? Isn't that incest?" :rolleyes:)

But as for my practices? I don't know. What I have learned while studying and seeking has an impact on my practices but I don't think my agnosticism/irreligionism has that much of an impact besides how I take what works/makes sense and reject what doesn't and is probably the source of my eclecticism and questioning mind.

[starlilica]

I was raised in a household where there was no regular religious practice, but my parents were still Christian. So the idea of having regular religious practice appeals to me, but putting that into practice is hard, because I have no previous experience with it. (That, and I am chronically lazy!)

 
Ha, that's describes me as well!

I find it difficult to put a practice into, well, practice because I have very little experience with it. Prayer is difficult, as is communicating with deities.

[Emma]

Does how you were raised, religion-wise, impact your current practices? How?

 
To quote Jack Donaghy in 30 Rock, "Whether things are good or bad or you're simply... eating tacos in the park, there is always the crushing guilt." Jack Donaghy was referring to Catholicism, but given Lutheranism's heavy similarities, and my own resulting "crushing guilt," I feel it is appropriate.

I'm honestly not sure if it's the dogma and policies of Missouri Synod Lutheranism itself, or just my family's original Catholic background seeping into their Lutheran beliefs, but the impressed guilt and fear are what I continually struggle with: the guilt of going against my family's wishes and the fear of angering God.

The way I have worked around this is to remain non-denominational as a disclaimer and hide my perceptions and craft from my family--that way, I could always say I've never really switched religions and I'm not using witchcraft in God's name, I'm just flowing with the intuitive knowledge that comes to me naturally, and anything I learn from other religions continues to honor the essential spirit and values of what I was taught.

Anyway, I feel like that's kind of a cop out, and it's causing a lot of heartache for me. I feel I am ready to try a new religious path now, and after considerable research of other traditions, I think the Feri tradition may be it. My concern is reconciling with my past, because I think there's no point in embracing such a future if I'm still going to be chained to harmful perceptions from the past, so I've emailed my doctor to request therapy sessions.

I don't know if this is the kind of answer the original poster intended to get, but this is where I'm at.

[Vale]

Does how you were raised, religion-wise, impact your current practices? How?

I was raised in a nominally christian household insofar that I was christened as a baby by my grandfather.

Other than that though there was no religious input at all other than a secular celebration of Christmas and me being sent to a convent school as a child. That was simply because it was the only one locally that taught in English and I was excused from all the religious element.

So I guess the answer is no - it doesn't impact at all as a birth religion.  I don't even accept that I have a birth religion really, it really was non existent. If it was possible to be "un-christened" though I would choose to be so.

[Emma]

I was raised in a nominally christian household insofar that I was christened as a baby by my grandfather....I don't even accept that I have a birth religion really, it really was non existent. If it was possible to be "un-christened" though I would choose to be so.

 
This is interesting to me because my family was highly insistent that I get my son baptized "so his soul would be saved." Even though they knew I wasn't very religious, and probably would not become so simply because I have a child, they were absolutely convinced of the value of baptism.

I never had him baptized. It was partly rebelliousness and partly because of my agnosticism at the time. The answer I gave my family is that baptism is meaningless unless the person understands the significance of the ritual. I could have pushed the point about being raised to believe Jesus is "the way to salvation," not a traumatic public ritual of dunking an infant's head in cold water in a church full of humorless old fogies whose religion I don't even share (and whose church they weren't even attending anymore!), but I decided the energy would be best spent elsewhere.

Thanks for sharing this; you've just affirmed for me what I already knew was the right decision. =)

[Thorn]

Does how you were raised, religion-wise, impact your current practices? How?

 
Good question.  My upbringing was nominally Christian, but even as a Christian I was always more religious than either of my parents.  I'm pretty sure my dad was an atheist - I've said elsewhere on this board that the only time I ever heard him say anything remotely religious was when he swore.  

My mom is different.  She is a Christian with a very deep belief in god, but she hardly ever talked about it, she only went to church when she was trying to help me find one to belong to, and I don't know if she's ever read the Bible.  She knows the stories and seems to believe they're literally true, though as far as I can tell that's never stopped her from believing scientific truths like evolution.

I think I owe a lot to my mom.  I got my idea of a personal relationship with the divine from her, which sparked my interest in mysticism.  Her approach to Biblical stories is similar to my approach to the myths - sometimes one just has to accept the paradox of conflicting truths.

I'm not sure where the other half of my equation came from - my love of ritual and longing for religious community, and the ideal of communal worship.  It's completely alien to my experiences as a child, but it was with me even then.

[Leg1onna1re]

Does how you were raised, religion-wise, impact your current practices? How?

 
It does to an extent.  After growing up in a intolerant Evangelical Christian church, I was completely turned off to any religion/spirituality.  I turned into the angry atheist and eventually began cycling through angry atheist, atheist, agnostic and belief that there is some form or higher power, for years until finally settling on "there's some form of higher power" just not sure what it is yet.  The point being, my upbringing made it very difficult, and sometimes still does, for me to believe in anything.

Another effect was my upbringing made me hate Christians and their religion.  It didn't matter which denomination.  Now however, I realize I just was raised in a screwed up version of Christianity and that there are many beautiful things and teachings that can be drawn from Christianity.  When I actually began reading and researching other religions including different denominations of Christianity, it opened my eyes to all the great things that are out there in the pagan and Christian circles.

[Vale]

This is interesting to me because my family was highly insistent that I get my son baptized "so his soul would be saved." Even though they knew I wasn't very religious, and probably would not become so simply because I have a child, they were absolutely convinced of the value of baptism.

I never had him baptized. It was partly rebelliousness and partly because of my agnosticism at the time. The answer I gave my family is that baptism is meaningless unless the person understands the significance of the ritual. )

I came under similar pressure from my MiL to have my own children baptised. I don't think she ever forgave me - the moral blackmail of how she couldn't sleep at night for worrying about what would happen to their souls if they were to die unchristened fell on stony ground I'm afraid.

My own parents have never mentioned it and I suspect only had me "done"  to keep the peace.

My  children are now in their 20s and both have chosen not to be baptised - if they change their minds in the future then that is fine by me - I think the choice should be their's alone.

[Wood Rose]

Does how you were raised, religion-wise, impact your current practices? How?

 
I was raised fundmental christian, when I started actualy reading the bible and questioning I was asked to leave the church.

Knowing the bible has helped me deal with the door to door missionaries, but not in my daily practice.

[Asch]

I was raised fundmental christian, when I started actualy reading the bible and questioning I was asked to leave the church.

Knowing the bible has helped me deal with the door to door missionaries, but not in my daily practice.

 
This isn't the first time I've heard of someone 'being asked to leave the church' which, imo, is a weird reaction from an evangelical org, seems counter intuitive if they're trying to save souls.

I'm not sure how my birth religion informs my current work, I'm sure that it does but I'm not clear on specifics. I think one area it probably does is in my attitude toward dogma, that is, me no likey.

[Micheál]

Does how you were raised, religion-wise, impact your current practices? How?

Not at all really. I was raised Catholic, but my mum also went to some crazy Evangelical, talking in tongues, faith healing church, and because of that place all of the cool stuff I was interested in wasn't allowed, like ouija boards, having a Skeletor action figure, and even saying,"By the Power of Grayskull," because there's only "one" true power eh? :rolleyes:

Anyway, I got nothing religious out of it at all. Mass was only a quiet place to sit, and stand up every now and then, and communion was something that we took to get gifts and money from our family. I basically gave up on it before I was even a teenager, and have been a practising pagan far longer than the years spent in my birth religion. If anything, I've been involved with martial arts six I was 6 years old(that was threatened at one stage because of the crazy evangelical place), where I was first introduced to Eastern mysticism, and probably retained more from that than any shred of experience in Christianity.

[Penelope]

Does how you were raised, religion-wise, impact your current practices? How?

 
I was brought up in an irreligious household. In fact, none of my family are religious at all, so I was given the freedom to explore any spiritual option I wanted. I went to a Church of England primary school which gave me an introduction to Christianity and religion as a whole.

I do believe that having the freedom I did, I could look into Paganism without the fear of guilt or that I may upset my friends and family.

[Sadistica]

Does how you were raised, religion-wise, impact your current practices? How?

 
My mother was Jehovah's Witness, while I was growing up. My dad is an atheist. :p My house was turmoil because of various things so I moved in with my Grandmother who practices Wicca and Voodoo. I really loved the structure and the idea of Wicca. It felt good but not right. My Aunt who lives and England, would call me once a week and she would tell me about Celtic Paganism and the more I learned and studied, the more it felt right for me. I guess I knew that "Christianity" was not my thing just from my mom and I knew there was more than "nothing" out there so Atheism wasn't for me.

[Stone Temple Roses]

Does how you were raised, religion-wise, impact your current practices? How?

Well, my parents baptized me Roman Catholic but never really in forced any of it. The only reason that happened was because we were moving from one province to another when I was seven days old and my Oma and Opa were freaked out because Goddess forbid I passed on the way and my "immortal soul" was trapped in limbo.

I see where their coming from but being baptized kind of left a stigma on me. Finding a religion that I felt comfortable with was hard since I was supposed to be Catholic. It took a while for me to get over the guilt of switching from one to another. After a while I became more comfortable switching over and now I can read about it and have an alter in my room with out feeling like I'm so sort of devil worshiping freak.

[Chatelaine]

Does how you were raised, religion-wise, impact your current practices? How?

I was raised in the Church of England, baptised but not confirmed, and I haven't been far enough or long enough from it to have a clear perspective of everything that has changed or stayed the same. I remember that our parish was generally very Broad Church, which, as I grew up, struck me as too neutral and wishy-washy. I craved ritual, and I might have ended up RC instead, if some life circumstances had been different. What can I say, I love my candles and incense!

My attitude towards deity hasn't changed significantly; I 'walk with' Hecate pretty much the way I used to be encouraged to 'walk with' Jesus. I have no issues with Christianity (I still believe in the Christian God, just not the One True part) - my beef is with 'churchianity' and its spazzing attitudes over the role of women and their relationships. A church created over a divorce that doesn't allow divorcees to remarry? I'd have left even without changing religion.