In the thread "What is your religion and why" there are responses that say things like I need proof etc. I am not looking for that kind of a response here.

I would like this thread to be educational (for me) As I know very little about the personal benefits of faith in anything other than God.

Hmmm... I'm from a very conservative Christian background. The beliefs that I grew up with have done anything but benefit my life. Hence, I have discarded most of them. The belief system that I currently lay claim to is quite vague so I'm also interested to see how people will respond to this thread.

I think belief in Religion is separate from belief in Spirituality.

I think one should be open to experiment with "Self" to begin in Spirituality.

The beginning is through Meditation.

Meditation has taught me to experience Love and appreciate the people who love me. By people I not only mean my wife but include my parents, friends and children.

I have reached a stage in Meditation where I don't need to believe in Spirituality, Religion etc. but experience it.

It has given me resolve in moments where I really felt like things were completely beyond control, for one.

It's also proved to be a means by which I can help alleviate things like stress.

I now appreciate the context of experience as much, if not more than, the experience itself. Where and when (i.e. here and now) something happens is unchanging, and it may sound banal but this context helps reveal a beautiful perspective on life, enabling one to feel compassion, because we all share this context - 'your' here and now has exactly the same timelessspaciousness as 'my' here and now, and in that we are conected.

I carefully worded this thread to avoid the term religion. it is indeed separate, and something that I am not interested in.

By asking you "How has what you believe in Spiritually" I meant Christian, Buddhism, Hinduism, etc. Don't all of those include Meditation?

How has what I believe in Spiritually personally benefited my life? Easy one. I'm a committed atheist and so I find my Sunday mornings are free.

Dave Mac

I am A Christian and my Sunday mornings are also free. But then again so is every other day of the week.

I'm Christian,

1) The people I generally mix with are friendly christians

2) It's brought stability to my life

Here comes the BELIEVE part

3) Praying has helped me through tough times in relationships, where I have failed before

4) Living with in the "laws" of the bible has kept me on the right track as I have once almost ended up in jail.

5) I find God's sense of humor in my life amusing, especially when I'm really pist off at some one or something. Especially if I'm angry for the wring reason He'll let me know pretty quickly.

6) Every time that I gave I received, and then I give more.

I combine Belief and Spirituality.

7) Prayer forces you to become quite in your mind - my bible instructs me so - and then I talk to God about whats current in my life and tell Him my wishes. After meditation\prayer your mind is clear and focused. you work better and more efficient and relationships work better.

8) When you meditate you learn to know who you are better.

9) I study a hectic degree and after a week my head is filled with a buzzing of ideas. When I meditate(not pray) these ideas each get some thought and get ordered. After a session your mind feels like a neat room or perfectly sorted filing cabinet or like a freshly made bed? get the idea? It helps bring peace to your life and mind.

I hope I've stayed on topic here.


Thanks,

Rudolf

I'll get slammed whether I preface my answer or not but I'll do it anyway in hopes that someone might understand.

I was not raised to be anything. Sometimes went to the United Methodist church til I was 10 years old. When I was 14 my parents separated and I went the sex drugs and rock-n-roll route. When I was 21 I started searching for God. I looked into a few 'religions' and new age things and then borrowed my sisters kjb. Read it for a few days. I had not been to church nor had anyone preached or witnessed to me, but one late night, 2AM in the morning, on my way home from partying I kinda had a breakdown. Called out to Jesus, the breakdown went away (I was born again) and I went home and went to sleep.

I was putting another band together and met a drummer that was going to visit a new little "spirit filled/non-denominational" church, so I went with him, then went regularly. Years later I went to bible college but quit. The doctrines people believe have always amazed me. I have studied the bible for 16 years in the hebrew and greek and have always had major issues with 98%+ of the 'church'.

Don't worry I'm getting to the point.

Something wasn't right. I was missing something but I couldn't figure out what it was. I finally came to the conclusion what I had, was not at all what God intended. I was born again, but there was still some major sin issues in my life that neither I or God was happy with, but I couldn't stop. This taking up my cross, dying daily, asking for forgiveness of sins that are already forgiven, knowing I would be doing it again that day and being unable to stop the never ending lifeless, religious, cookie-cutter-christian experience could not be anything other than what all religions offer and what I always resented. I refused. Not God. Just refused to be religious. I refused to 'go to church' (as if that's possible) and hear the heresy. I refused to be a part of the mustard seed church (Laodocian) that grew into a large tree inhabited by devils and false doctrine (leaven=corruption) of the pharisees. The mustard seed parable is not saying the church will be great and good. Just look around!!!

Ten years later the truth, and what I had missed, was revealed. Romans 5-8, Galations, and Colossians tell me I am dead. I am to live as one alive from the dead. I am crucified with Christ, yet I live, but it's not me, it's Christ in me the hope of glory. Dead men can't sin. He that is dead is free from sin and alive unto God. Yes, here I am typing on a computer. Like Abram believed his dead body was able to produce seed, I believe I was crucified with Christ and I'm incapable of sin. Yes, I do still sin, but so much less it's like being born again, again. I have completely stopped sins in a few days that I struggled with for 14 years!

When I do sin I have an advocate. That is his office. What he does. He is already mine. I do not need to confess the sin that has already been forgiven for him to speak on my behalf. He is God, he knows, and defends. You'll have to re-read 1John 1 which is a contrast themed book showing the saved and the sinner. It is not telling you to confess to be forgiven! How could it if you already are forgiven past, present, and future?

If I want to carry a cross I will need to risk my life for preaching the gospel because in every case that is what carrying the cross and dying daily is in the bible. How can I die to self when myself was crucified 2000 years ago? The old man is dead and I am a new man. Christianity is not ancient greek dualism.

All 143 times in the bible flesh is flesh. The word is sarx in the greek. The sinful nature doctrine is bunk. Spiritual death is bunk. I can show you a lot of scripture that say mans spirit is alive, well, and functioning, but no one can show me one verse that speaks of spiritual death. Adam was already corruptible and so was the world in which he lived. He had the tree of life from which if he ate he would live forever, remember? He was mortal before 'the fall'. The day he ate from the tree of knowledge the tree of life was guarded and 'dying he would die' (translation -look it up!). Animal blood was spilled so something did died that day for immediate payment of sin. So Adam lived, had sons and daughters, and died. So did all of his descendants. So in Adam all physically die and physical death passes on all men because we don't have the tree of life to counter our mortality. Jesus died physically and killed us physically to answer the problem. Flesh.

Point? The truth has set me free! Free from false doctrine of men and doctrines of devils, which are religion. I have absolute confidence in Jesus, the God-man. I have his resurrection power and his provision displayed in my life for all to see. When temptation comes I believe I am dead to sin and the power of God intervenes in a moment of worship far greater than I ever imagined. Try it!

You actually follow the levitical law? The law that says that shrimp is an abomination unto god and that you should never wear clothing made of two different fabrics?

It's no different then buddhist monks in tibet. They follow the Pali Canon exactly as it was written. There are some people that do that, does that bother if he does.

STOP! Law VS "Law" VS "what you thought i take to be law"

No dude - This thread didn't ask for details your Christian belief, just for the spiritual side of it so I didn't bother expanding on the law's. What I meant was the same laws that govern some meditation practices and what was given in the New Testament of the Christian Bible by Jesus.

in no particular order:

Do to others as you would have done to yourself

(try to)Live and Do everything in/with love

Help those in need.

Give freely with out wanting anything in return (and you will receive.(so that you can give some more - is the part that most people don't get))

These are the laws I live by, including the 10 commandments: Honor your God,Honor your parents, don't cheat, don't lie,don't steel.

No offense to the very committed Christians/Jews out there but I don't believe what you where or eat(unless it's human of origin ), or when you eat it will govern whether you get thrown into Hell or not. It's how you live.

Hope that cleared up some of it for you without being too personal. Any questions feel free to ask.

Rudolf

I don't believe in the religion I was raised in. However, the values (If that's not too cliche a word) it left with me remain deeply embedded. The whole Golden Rule thing and what-naught.

i.e. I'm an agnostic goodie-two-shoes and I like it that way. Respect for others and holding myself to a high standard for success is how my [former/parents] belief in spirituality has improved my life.

Then again, my morals and goals could just be from the genes.

SigmaX

Uh, yes, it's quite bothersome if someone follows the Levitical Law to the letter. It's a quite barbaric law and should immediately discredit anyone that claims that such a thing is or ever was the commandment of a loving god.

Just throwing this out there... was it so barbaric relative to the flavor of culture surrounding them at the time?

SigmaX

Not really, which just goes to show even further that it's a creation of man as opposed to some divinity.

Agreed.

How does the content of any of the posts on page two contribute to the title of this thread?

I know this wasn't your point but Tibetan Buddhist's don't really use the Pali Canon as their spiritual texts at all. The Pali Canon is mainly followed by Theravadan Buddhists, those in Thailand, Myanmar and Sri Lanka amongst others. In Tibet, they have their own scriptures which stem from the arrival of Buddhism in Tibet through Padmasambhava in the 8th Centuary. Tibetan Buddhism is a Mahayana School, quiet different in scope and presentation to that which you find in the Pali Canon, encompassing many esoteric practises and having a beautifully nuanced pantheon of Buddha's!!