Is your faith the same as your parents?

[jacquie4000]

My parents each had their seperate beliefs. My mom was a very religous person, my dad more scientific. I fall in the middle.

 

[9harmony]

I was raised Catholic. My parents are still Catholic, and I am now Baha'i for past 13 years.

 

[Booko]

Just curious.

Interesting question, comprehend! I know sometimes those who are not religious seem to think we're all just following uncritically in our parents' footsteps, and while that probably happens sometimes, I think it's an unwarranted assumption to think that even those who have kept the faith they were raised in haven't bothered to look at it fairly.

1. Is your faith the same as your parents?

No.

* If no, what is your faith and what were your parents?

I'm a Baha'i.

My mother was raised Christian (Dutch) Reformed and my father raised Catholic. My father was never a serious Catholic, but he did get very serious in the Reformed Church.

My husband was raised Catholic, and they were serious about it, but the boys all became agnostic or atheist, and in the past few years my husband became a Baha'i as well.

And no, I never "preached" in any way to him at home. I believe he has a right not to be religiously harassed in his own home, and besides, if I did that we probably would be divorced by now.

There have always been books around, and if he chose to read them, fine and if not, also fine.

 

[Pardus]

Most of us are of course different religions to our parents, else we would not be seeking answers, we would have just accepted what we were told.

 

[Real Sorceror]

I'm some sort of diest/pagan thing.

My dad is a Methodist. My step-mom is Catholic.
My mom will claim to be Christian. My step-dad is an athiest, but not the smart kind.

 

[Mike182]

no, my parents are semi-Chrisitan, my grand parents and my aunt are devout Christians, and i am Pagan.

 

[gnomon]

No.

Pretty much my entire extended biological family are Southern Baptists. My in-laws are primarily Buddhists with protestantism (baptist) as a chosen religious view. It's a bit of a miz there.

Me, I have no faith.

And for the record, not one of them has told me I'm going to hell.

 

[BFD_Zayl]

no, my religion is drastically different, As i am a necromancer, my parents...well...i think they are Lutherans

 

[painted wolf]

Both of my parents are LDS
I am "Native American/Cherokee"

wa:do

 

[jonny]

I'm a tenth generation LDS. My family first joined the LDS Church in 1832. The church was organized in 1830. The last branch of my family that joined the church did so in around 1900.

 

[Hacker]

My WHOLE entire family claims to be Catholic, although I never told them that I changed belief systems(whatever exactly that may be), because to me, it's not necessarily important for them to know.
Although my mother knows about my reluctance and apprehensive nature about Catholicism since she's raised me...I was always asking questions out of confusion.

 

[XAAX]

My mother is a Baptist, my father knows there is a god, and also knows that religion isn't the path to it, but hasn't progressed farther than that. As for myself, I follow my own path.

 

[Tigress]

My mother is a Pentecostal (Christian), and my father was raised Unitarian Universalist, though I have no idea what he believes now, so no, I'd say that it's largely different.

 

[Comprehend]

I think the poll results are really quite amazing. At the moment, 73% of RF members have a different religion than their parents. What does that mean? Is this signaling a change within religion? I have the impression that in years past, changing religion was less common but I really have no reason for this other than my impressions.

What do you guys think, is the world getting restless with religion, are we in a stage of temporary change that will settle down again? or is there a fundamental shift going on?

 

[James the Persian]

I think the poll results are really quite amazing. At the moment, 73% of RF members have a different religion than their parents. What does that mean? Is this signaling a change within religion? I have the impression that in years past, changing religion was less common but I really have no reason for this other than my impressions.

What do you guys think, is the world getting restless with religion, are we in a stage of temporary change that will settle down again? or is there a fundamental shift going on?

I actually think it signifies something rather more prosaic, which is that people who convert from one faith to another tend (just because that's the way they are) to be more interested in discussing religion and hence more likely to end up here. In my experience amongst those of my own faith, whilst the cradle believers will often provide you with valuable answers to questions you usually have to draw them out and more often its their example rather than words you learn from. The eager, bouncing bunnies who just have to discuss the latest book they've read are 99.9% of the time converts - we tend to refer to it as convert zeal and I certainly suffered from it badly (almost destructively at first). Now it's tempered but I still really enjoy long chats with the clergy that most of my cradle friends would likely not consider having.

James

 

[Shadow Wolf]

My mom is Christian, and my dad is whatever.
My faith is much different.

 

[Comprehend]

I actually think it signifies something rather more prosaic, which is that people who convert from one faith to another tend (just because that's the way they are) to be more interested in discussing religion and hence more likely to end up here. In my experience amongst those of my own faith, whilst the cradle believers will often provide you with valuable answers to questions you usually have to draw them out and more often its their example rather than words you learn from. The eager, bouncing bunnies who just have to discuss the latest book they've read are 99.9% of the time converts - we tend to refer to it as convert zeal and I certainly suffered from it badly (almost destructively at first). Now it's tempered but I still really enjoy long chats with the clergy that most of my cradle friends would likely not consider having.

James

Great point. That is something I had not considered but makes a lot of sense to me. Anyone have a happy case of convert zeal?

 

[James the Persian]

Great point. That is something I had not considered but makes a lot of sense to me. Anyone have a happy case of convert zeal?

I'm not sure about a happy case of convert zeal. I think it usually tends to be unhappy. People with too much enthusiasm and too little wisdom often tend to jump off the deep end a little. Luckily there are usually peple around to keep your feet on the ground and most people get over it. If they don't though, they quite often seem to end up with the extremists. Honestly, if you ever meet an Orthodox layman who dresses like a monk, is bearded, and convinced all heterodox (and in all likelihood any Orthodox on the New Calendar) is damned to hell, I'd lay better than even odds on them being an adult convert who didn't have the support they needed. I was lucky that I did because there honestly was a point when I could have gone that way (though probably not so far as to end up being so judgemental of others). I don't think we'd call the sort of enthusiasm that ex-converts often still display after they've become a bit more grounded convert zeal, but it does still often mark us out from the cradles. We tend to hold our faith in our heads and struggle to get it to permeate our hearts. The cradles often seem to be the reverse - there's nothing so striking to me as meeting an old lady who, whilst uneducated, seems to have the faith in her bones. You can learn an awful lot simply by quietly being around such people. And now I'm rambling so I'll stop.

James

 

[Comprehend]

I'm not sure about a happy case of convert zeal. I think it usually tends to be unhappy. People with too much enthusiasm and too little wisdom often tend to jump off the deep end a little.

ah, I see what you mean. I was picturing more of an excitedness to have joined a new group, but I see the potential dangers of high enthusiasm and low wisdom. (I am a 7th generation LDS and have no experience with feeling convert zeal).

Luckily there are usually peple around to keep your feet on the ground and most people get over it. If they don't though, they quite often seem to end up with the extremists. Honestly, if you ever meet an Orthodox layman who dresses like a monk, is bearded, and convinced all heterodox (and in all likelihood any Orthodox on the New Calendar) is damned to hell, I'd lay better than even odds on them being an adult convert who didn't have the support they needed.

I have noticed that those who have left religion all together have a sort of zeal for condeming those who still believe. I guess one could say they are new converts to athiesm. I certainly see your point.

I was lucky that I did because there honestly was a point when I could have gone that way (though probably not so far as to end up being so judgemental of others). I don't think we'd call the sort of enthusiasm that ex-converts often still display after they've become a bit more grounded convert zeal, but it does still often mark us out from the cradles. We tend to hold our faith in our heads and struggle to get it to permeate our hearts. The cradles often seem to be the reverse - there's nothing so striking to me as meeting an old lady who, whilst uneducated, seems to have the faith in her bones. You can learn an awful lot simply by quietly being around such people. And now I'm rambling so I'll stop.

James

I think I am a faith in the bones guy although as an adult, I have spend a good deal of time studying my faith to help my mind catch up. you seem well grounded to me. Thanks for sharing your insights. It was very informative.

 

[Green Gaia]

No. My dad was raised in on military bases and, knowing my grandfather, attended the Christian services offered there. My father's side of the family attended, and many still do, a church of Christ. My mother was born into the Methodist church, attended a country Christian church for most of her youth until she met and married my dad. They both started attending a church of Christ then and that was the church I and my siblings (I'm the oldest of 6 kids) were born into. When I was about 14, we left that church. My parents and two youngest sisters now attend a Presbyterian church. After much searching for where my beliefs fit in, I became a Unitarian Universalist when my son was a baby, about 6-7 years ago. One of my sisters attends a Baptist church because that's what her husband was raised as, another sister is non-religious/atheist, and my brother goes wherever it is his new wife's mother tells him to (Christian church).