[Closed] The First STW Religion Poll

1.

Against all logic and not as a result of my upbringing.

Rather, it's because I choose to and I get something from it.
Inexplicably, it fills a hole in my being that would otherwise be empty.

Vicars son so 4 obviously

4

1. My religion is bikes. Trails are my church. I pray before the gods of Santa Cruz and Maxxis.

That and Jedi (my official response on the last census)

(Sorry, non serious answer 😛 )

4

5.

But, I am interested in religion as it has a huge impact on the world we live in. I just don't like it and I certainly don't want someone to come to my house to convince me.

None of the above - sorry (hybrid of several)

4.
[Sith on the last census]

3.
Atheist and scientist, and have always taken an interest in history, which has to include the effects of religion throughout the ages.
No particular interest in religion itself, though.
But.. I regularly find myself edging towards 5, but then I remember that it is often people that are the problem, not the books that they read.

4/5 . A vicar did pray for/with me yesterday and I cried.

I'm messed up

3

5

5.

4.

Occasionally interested but more intrigued as to why and how some of my seemingly otherwise rational and (very) intelligent and well educated relatives are massively god fearing full on believers.

4.

4.

Although, I regularly make blood sacrifice to the Great Deity of Bicycle Maintenance and to the casual observer, my frenzied utterances may constitute some religious significance.

None of the above really, I guess it would be a modified 4
4a 'completely disinterested until someone tries to force their ideas on me then (politely) anti-religious for as long as it takes for them to go away then back to completely disinterested'

4

Occasionally 5

5

5 I think. I'd rather live without the impact those who claim to be religious have/had on humanity

4, but 5 if pushed

4

5

5

Occasionally interested but more intrigued as to why and how some of my seemingly otherwise rational and (very) intelligent and well educated relatives are massively god fearing full on believers.

If you've already accepted that they are very intelligent, yet they still believe, this might be a question you'd do well to ask..!

2.

4.5

4 mostly but sometimes 5.

just that you find the topic interesting and have no hostility against any particular religious position.

I 3) find the topic interesting and have no hostility against a particular religious position, however I'm 5) anti-religious when it comes to people following organised religions using ancient fairy stories and superstitions to demand preferential treatment, justify their bigotry, persecute others, or otherwise get their own way.

I don't doubt that there are positive aspects to religion; community, support and suchlike. But all the increasingly implausible goddy bits really have no place in a 21st Century society.

Douglas Adams once said, "isn't it enough to say that a garden is beautiful without having to believe that there are fairies at the bottom of it?" - turning that on its head, if we got rid of all the fairies we'd still have beautiful gardens. Some theists lose sight of this I fear (as evidenced in previous threads where some have alluded that religion is a prerequisite for morals, for instance).

So I'm a 3, 4, 4.5 or 5 depending how you look at it I suppose. Sorry, I appreciate that doesn't help your poll much.

4

5.

4+. spouse is 1/2.

@Cougar: No, it's fine. I don't want people to feel pigeon-holed by the categories; I just wanted to throw together something succinct-enough to cover as many eventualities as I could think of.

5

Need another category:

6) Cougar

4.999 (unless someone tries to "sell" religion to me, and then it's a 5)

OP you need a category of aggressivley anti-religious. That's seen quite freequentiy on STW

4.999 (unless someone tries to "sell" religion to me, and then it's a 5)

I'm not surprised, what [url= http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/so-how-does-inflation-work-then ]with inflation the way it is[/url] and all.

jambalaya - Member
OP you need a category of aggressivley anti-religious. That's seen quite freequentiy on STW

But I don't want the thread to be in any way inflammatory, jambalaya. I am just hoping that people, as objectively and as concisely as possible, feel able to state where they are coming from with respect to religion.

'Aggressively' is an editorial word that I don't think would help us along! 🙂

5

1. practising

I've noticed that the only other 1 is the OP.

Psalms 118:18 Open my eyes so that I may see clearly The wonderful things from your law.

4 or 5 depending on how angry I am.

5, Scotroutes nailed it

3 ranging to 5.

Four or five here too, so 4.5?

Cougar's 6. ish.

Still not quite right but getting there.

perchypanther - Member
1.

Against all logic and not as a result of my upbringing.

Rather, it's because I choose to and I get something from it.
Inexplicably, it fills a hole in my being that would otherwise be empty.

"Hole"?

2.

I won't be a hypocrite, I got Married in Church, and had our Daughter Christened there last summer. I get on pretty well with the Vicar, but I only go for Wedding and Funerals.

4, unless riled, in which case 5

"Hole"?

Void....empty space...NOT orifice 😀

Church of Scotland, Not Catholic!

3/4/5

I was going to explain why, but cougar has done so far more eloquently than I could... Ta for that!

None of the above, although I do attend church at least twice a month and sit on a few local church committees. I do this because I understand the importance of the CofE to the fabric of our nation and therefore am keen to support it at a time when it is subject to misinformed criticism.

4 if you keep it to yourself.
5 if you start prattling on about it.

SaxonRider, there's a research paper in here somewhere. STW is clearly some demographic that is more hostile to religion...

5. I don't see why I should tolerate the effect of religion. If others want to believe and practice it then fine, I respect your right, but do so in your own time with no impact on me or my life. Religion should be relegated to the same status as a hobby, I disagree with people having dispensations against normal rules of the land on the basis of religion and because some old bearded fool once decreed something hundreds of years ago, like not having to wear motorbike helmets, tolerating sexual discrimination, practicing barbaric law system, being able to carry lethal weapons, allowing cruelty to animals etc. Religion has been the cause/justification of some of the most henous acts ever performed by mankind and imparting misery on millions of people over thoysands of years, we just need to take that excuse and justification away. There, I said it!

STW is clearly some demographic that is more hostile to religion...

It's hard to be open to the notion of a benevolent deity watching over us when the bald spot starts showing through..

3

in the past 4 and then latterly 5 but have come to realise that to have an ill-informed egocentric opinion on another person's belief system is pretty childish at best

5

STW is clearly some demographic that is more hostile to religion...

Sshhh, that upsets folk on here mol dont forget - best kept unsaid

In spritual terms, agnostic. I believe that there is "something" I don't know what it is.

When it comes to religions, then probably 5. They are largely mysoginistic organisations created by men to control other men and women.

Spiritual but not religious

I enjoy the practice of meditation/buddhism and some druid/pagan festivals but i do not believe anything made us or there is a purpose.

Probably a 5 but if they left me alone/crated a truly secular society then i would shut up

STW is clearly some demographic that is more hostile to religion...
Sshhh, that upsets folk on here mol dont forget - best kept unsaid

It gets the same respect as vegans do on a vegan thread or cyclists on a two abreast thread etc.

In a more serious answer.

3. in that I find some religions fascinating, mostly those more based on a way of living than a fictional being. Though I never would follow anything that dictates the way you live your life, but some have decent ways of living life that you could adopt without actually signing up.

Also interested in that I love films like Last Temptation of Christ. I mean, Scorsese, Harvey Keitel, David Bowie! 😀

I can't say 5 as I don't hate all religions. I have respect for people who have faith or belief enough that keeps them happy in life and can die happy, even if I may not believe it myself.

Though a world without religion would at least be one without religious wars, and that's probably the majority of wars we've had over history. Then again, are they just an excuse to fight. Without religion we'd find something else to fight about.

2

...want to take the buddhist path, but dont know how.

Ho! For Junkie's word is the TRUTH! And we will know when Junkie spaketh the truth for the fire and damnation from THM and Jambalaya will fall with great ferocity.

(So now we need to write books about him and then reinterpret what he said so that it bears absolutely no resemblance to his original teachings, okay?)

...want to take the buddhist path, but dont know how.

Pop down to your local pizza shop. They'll be happy to make you one with everything.

For Junkie's word is the TRUTH!

You might have a point there. Most statues and paintings I've seen of the messiah look far more like Junkyard than they do to any bloke who was likely to be wandering around the middle east 2,000-odd years ago.

Will I get statutes made in my likeness?

EDIT: Corss post but its a fair point

Binners can be Buddha then 😉

Binners can be Buddha then

He's a poor copy TBH. More like, I Can't Believe He's Not Buddha.

He preys in the direction of Gregs..
4

2 and 4

Raised as a Catholic but never really went to chuch.
Not at all interested now.

4.5

I couldn't give two hoots about religion normally but my gears start to grind when I hear it being promoted as 'a good thing'- you can waste your time however the **** you like in the comfort and safety of your own home/church/satanic pit of depravity but don't you dare try to foist your beliefs on my and mine.

5

Time we all moved on.

5

1

1.

I was 4 going on 5 at times, but the older I get (I'm not old though) I've moved to a 1. because to me, now I've grown up a bit it makes sense (somehow)

Binners can be Buddha then

No, wait.

He's clearly a Pastiefarian.

3

I've fluctuated between 1 and 2 all my life. For several years on the recent past I was a 1.
At the moment it's between 1 and 2.

4 but 5 if someone gets preachy/uses it to justify acts against some other group.

Quite definitely atheist.