This is my second post on this blog and series of “Different people with various perspectives” and I hope you enjoyed the first one and hopefully this one as well. I enjoyed interviewing these various folks as well who have different stories and thoughts on the world we live in. Perhaps you (my audience) might learn something new that you didn’t know or just find these people’s thoughts interesting. I can’t give up these people’s username on Reddit, which is where I interviewed them (read The Purpose of the Blog) for security reasons . I’ll copy the conversation.
If you want to see part 1 with the atheist, ordained minister, and Satanist, go here: The atheist, ordained minister, and Satanist
Here is the spiritual person.
Tell me a bit about yourself? Age, what country you live in, what you do for a living.
I am 28, from the USA and I currently own a few internet business’s, group homes and I work for the Salvation Army.
What are your current views? Religious or not. How long have you been that way? Were you raised that way?
I am spiritual yet I do use religion. Occasionally although not for answers but use it to help others. My mom raised me to be spiritual, this means we went to many different types of churches and explored many religious views. From a young age I always seen the same message in most. That is love and oneness with the divine, and a personal relationship was more important than any theology to me.
Since you’re more spiritual, what do you get from being spiritual? Is it powering? What are the positives? Any details?
Spirituality removes boxes and allows you to see God in all things. This means his truths and love and wisdom can be expressed in many religions. The person who looks for the one way thinking his religion is above others will be disappointed. An awakened person sees God in all goodness and righteousness.
I would say that my awakening was in a deep meditation, before I studied religions from the ages of 15-18 day and night it was my only interests to know God personally, it was never enough to read about him in religion that would always be an unknown God.
From there I started to explore the inner God to know it personally. So my focus was on how spirit and the minds of man work as one force. This is when I started meditating and I would simply still my mind and I would become one with spirit in a way that I could start manifesting things and even being filled with light and love and leave my body and this is when I discovered God as a part of my being. I knew God was spirit and I was a temple to bring its spirit through.
I understood teachers like Jesus and Buddha came to show the way and not be simply worshiped as man does but to follow them. They all made of themselves no reputation and lived in spirit as a means for God to manifest itself.
What books, articles, etc made the most difference in your difference to believe in whatever you believe?
I would say Edgar cayce has helped me the most understand the nature of spirit and mans relationship with God. I believe we are evolving spiritually more than ever now and it will start to pick up, we are living more as a collective and everything is out in the opening.
The atheist/anti-theist.
Tell me a bit about yourself? Age, what country you live in, what you do for a living.
24 year old married male living in the U.S.A. Have a degree in secondary (middle school/high school) group social studies. Love to run, read, care for reptiles, and learn!
What are your current views? Religious or not. Are you a strong atheist?
Strong atheist and anti-theist. I don’t hate or think religion is necessarily evil but I have a hard time standing it and the [negative] impact it has on society here in the U.S.A on both the political, cultural, and social spheres of life.
Since you’re an atheist, what is your atheist philosophy? Naturalism, Absurdism, Nihilism, Materialism, etc
Naturalism would be the most accurate.
How confident are you that you are correct?
As close to 100% as I can be without claiming I know for a fact.
What books, articles, etc made the most difference in your difference to believe in whatever you believe?
Reading the Bible, listening to various debates from the heavy hitters of atheism (Hitchens, Harris, etc.), and exploring the Christian apologetics of people such as W.L.C.
What are your views on how the world is today? Is it bad, good, etc? What needs to improve
The world is better now than it ever has been. It still sucks a lot but…that is life. What needs to improve in my eyes if people learning to fuck off and keep to themselves more often than not. That applies on the small scale when it comes to one’s neighbor or on the big scale when it comes to the governments of the world.
Here is interview I had with the Catholic.
Tell me a bit about yourself? Age, what country you live in, what you do for a living.
I’m 26, live in the U.S., and I coordinate and teach craft classes as well as teach religious Ed at my church.
What are your current views? Religious or not. Are you protestant, Catholic, etc? How long have you been that way? Were you raised that way? Are you more of a liberal or conservative kind of Christian theologically and politically?
I am happily religious. I was born and raised Catholic. I’m pretty conservative in my religious views, but go back and forth between liberal and conservative as far as politics go. I’m registered as independent.
How confident are you that you are correct?
I’m very confident that God exists and is watching over us. A lot of personal things that have happened in my life have led me to believe that. I do get into funks sometimes where I question things, but then I pray or think of other things that I’ve witnessed and I feel, I don’t know, complete again? It’s hard to put into words. My faith never really wavers but it’s hard to not question things when you live in such a secular world.
What books, articles, etc made the most difference in your difference to believe in whatever you believe?
Reading parts of the bible have had a huge effect on me, but a lot of other sources have helped as well. Reading about the saints and their struggles and triumphs and even defeats is unlike anything else. It’s amazing to see what they did in the name of God. The catechism has been helpful in answering questions when I didn’t know where else to look. Also, I absolutely LOVE our traditional prayers. I love hearing and praying the rosary, it includes a lot of them.
What are your views on how the world is today? Is it bad, good, etc? What needs to improve?
I don’t think the world is bad or good. I think there are extremes on both ends just like there are extremes of religion and lack thereof. I think instead of appreciating our differences, people dwell and see only those differences. Do I think more people need God? Of course. Do I think the only way to go about it is shoving it down their throats? Absolutely not. I think opening a line of communication would help tremendously, but no one wants to start it. And even then it’s so difficult because everyone thinks they’re right and everyone else is wrong.
We all have individual upbringings and experiences that have led our beliefs to where they are today. All of that has to be taken into consideration. Even within our own churches the interpretations can vary. But that’s why communication is the key to all of it. It’s good to be able to talk about what we believe and why.
Once again, pretty interesting! I plan on having at least 1 more part to this series as well.
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Steve
Debating and Discussing the World's issues 