religion
Posts about religion, skepticism, and how it fits into the scientific world.
Secular Buddhism
Religion is something that has been dwindling in the west for some time. The latest polls from Britain indicating that 53 percent of the British public now belong to no religion. This is true mostly in younger generations where the belief in religious doctrine is clashing with the main values of young people today.
By Cosmic Peak8 years ago in Futurism
A River Runs Through It
It’s 10:58 AM Sunday morning and you can almost choke on the dust in the air being shaken off of the bones of the townsfolk. Not some toothless yokels in a barn spitting up each others’ already half chewed tobacco, not quite suburban wistful classism, but that happy medium where the railroad tracks split the folks that have too much pride in their wallets and those that have too much worry about having a wallet at all. Here we are smack dab in the middle of small town America where you step foot on sacred carpet; where everybody knows your name and the donations determine whether or not that name holds merit — the Southern Baptist church. A name as relatively spoken is that which spurns contempt amid an ever changing society, progressively wavering away from the construct of organized religion. Rightfully so. This rural existence centers mostly on God’s law and not much else. Funny enough, the ideals of such have reached far beyond small town America where the beer is good, and the guns are loaded and is concrete across itself in whole. 11:00 o’clock. Will the congregation please stand?
By Bones Hamilton8 years ago in Futurism
I'm Jewish, but Also Not
When I was 12, I started high school. That was already a big transition, but there was an added change for me. For the first time in my life, I wasn't in a religious school. Growing up Jewish, I had always been in a religious school. Praying for 20 minutes every morning, before and after eating, having Hebrew class, and reading the torah. It was fine, and I went to a good school. The only problem was that I never really felt like a part of the community. Once I got to a secular high school, things fell into place. I made friends, I liked school, and I truly felt like a part of the tiny community I had joined. Meanwhile, my family had maintained its religion. Talk of my brothers religious education made me uncomfortable, and during Shabbat dinners I would look at the floor and mumble the prayers, feeling out of place and sick to my stomach. I was terrified of being questioned.
By Jess Marshall8 years ago in Futurism
Being a Medium
So what is a medium, you may ask. A medium is a person who can talk to the dead and spirits. Mediums can also sense when there is a presence near them. Medium and psychic aren't the same. A psychic isn't necessarily a medium, but a medium is always a psychic. This is an important distinction. Psychics tune into the energy of people or even objects by feeling or sensing elements of their past, present, and future. To put it simply, psychics rely on their basic sense of intuition and their psychic ability to gather information from the person being read. However, mediums are different. They take it a step further. A medium uses her or his intuitive and psychic abilities to see into the past, present and future events of a person by tuning into the spirit energy that is around that person. In short, this means, they rely on the presence of not physical energy, but spiritual energy outside of themselves for the information that is relevant from the the person who is being read.
By Serena Fix8 years ago in Futurism
Buddhist Doctrines
Hello, again New Age Thinkers! I am extremely glad to be writing part two of the Buddhist document. This article is going to observe and discuss the various doctrines that make up Buddhism. Like stated in the last article, this is a three-part series. I will be posting one more article about Buddhism! There are many doctrines that make up the Buddhist faith. Although at first glance they may seem complicated, they are not. The intention of these articles is to break down the religion so that it is simple enough to understand while still introducing the religion for you.
By New Age Thoughts Chicago8 years ago in Futurism
Introduction to Buddhism: a Three Part Series on Buddhism
Buddhism is a spiritual path that is difficult to call a religion. This is because there aren’t any gods or goddesses that are prayed to. However, it does have some creeds that make it similar to religions. Since Buddhism is such a broad topic, there will be at least three articles that discuss the Buddhism. The first article will cover the history of Buddhism, which consists of who the founder is, and it will introduce some of the doctrines. The second will deal directly with core doctrines that are found in Buddhism. It will go into detail about them. The third will give some ideas of how to implement Buddhism into your daily life, or if you so decide, convert to Buddhism. It will also include some of the various sects of Buddhism that are found around the world.
By New Age Thoughts Chicago8 years ago in Futurism
Non Pagans Are Suspicious
We pagans are an altruistic lot, what with giving each other rides to covens as well as events. We pagans do our best to help our species as much as the rest of humanity does. But then there are some people who are perpetually suspicious of good intentions. The sorts of people who are cynical and don’t lift a finger. I’m contemplating volunteering at a soup kitchen sometime soon. I need to do something with my time other than writing. So yes, I have to go volunteer at places like my local mental illness support group branch.
By Iria Vasquez-Paez8 years ago in Futurism
A Witch's Guide to Faeries
If an object were to go missing in your house and you can’t find it anywhere there is a possibility that faries took it. They like shiny or pretty things for themselves or their homes. To get this object back I suggest writing a small note to the fairies asking for this object back and explain its importance. Leave the note out and/or around the area that the object was last seen. Don’t forget to leave an offering for the fairies, though. In the note tell them that they can have the offering in exchange for the missing object. Usually the fae will accept pressed flowers, herbs, jewelry, nuts and seeds, fresh flowers, berries, shiny or pretty stones, or milk and bread. If you have left one offering and the switch has not been made try leaving a different offering as different fae like different things and it might simply not appeal to that particular fairy or type of fae. Remember to always be respectful in your letter or notes. If the object is not returned, then perhaps you lost it somewhere else or the fae are simply being dicks.
By Lilli Behom8 years ago in Futurism
The Witches' Guide to Elementals
Mystical creatures have power over and dwell within the elements Earth, Air, Fire, and Water. "Elemental" includes gnomes, sylphs, salamanders, and undines. Some Elementals can also be creatures that are spirit-like in nature and human-like in appearance. While each elemental is different and has a different personality, they tend to share characteristics with other Elementals in their element. For instance, a fire elemental is passionate and easily angered while an earth elemental is grounded and takes a lot of time to think/reflect or act. Often, Elementals are found close to a certain area where their element is most prominent, however, over the past few years they have been seen less and less. For all Elementals, it is very dangerous to your and your bloodlines' health to misuse their aid or deserve them.
By Lilli Behom8 years ago in Futurism
