Could you describe your religious beliefs?
I am getting some mixed messages on the issue of religious beliefs. On the one hand, deeply spiritual people frequently seem to demonstrate deep autistic perception. We read the mythology of these spiritually endowed people who go off into the desert for weeks on end. This seems to be at the very heart of the experience of deep autistic perception. Paradoxically, persons with autism seem far more likely to be atheistic.
Please tell me about your religious beliefs. In addition, please tell me if anything that I stated above is in error.
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My website about autism, perception, and the mind:
www.manyperceptions.org
My son has autism.
I'm spiritual but don't follow any religion, too dogmatic and never make sense. I guess I am agnostic but in a way. Metaphysics and mysticism are a special interest or they used to be. I also was a professional psychic for a bit as I am intuitive and tarot is sometimes a special interest of mine.
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Aspie Score: Aspie 171/200, NT 50/200
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Autistic/BAP: 106 aloof, 104 rigid and 107 pragmatic
Personality: INFP
btbnnyr
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To explain my beliefs is a difficult thing for me. Most people don't get but maybe somehere here will. Basically I think I was doctrinized in a way to think my religeon is christianity. I partly believe in that but I'm kind of a philosopher about it and will not reject something just because it's not in the bible. That said I'm not a practising religeous kind as such so it's safer to say I'll take meaning and wisdom where I can find it. I don't have to practise a religeon to appreciate something that could be useful or practical to my life. Or just a really nice piece of philosophy :-p
Last edited by savvyidentity on 22 Jul 2013, 12:14 am, edited 2 times in total.
Webalina
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I grew up in Assembly of God (fundamentalist Christian), but I didn't stick with it. I've also attended Pentecostal and Baptist churches, but still got nothing out of it. I've toyed with the idea of Paganism, and have done some studying of Taoism, which probably has held my attention the longest.
I'd like to believe in a Supreme Being. After all, there are lots of things that seem too organized to be random, or even evolved. But the logical side of my brain won't allow me to believe in such fanciful things. I do believe Jesus existed and I think of him as a great teacher of morality and compassion and love, but they lose me when they start talking all the metaphysical stuff.
I took an art history class in college that specialized in primitive art and art from non-European countries. While we were studying the spiritual art of India, the professor mentioned that Buddha was supposedly born from his mother's armpit. Everybody in the class laughed at how silly that sounded, but I just thought "That's no more ridiculous than the idea of an immaculate conception/virgin birth,"
I've read the Bible through once years ago and it gave me more questions than answers. I'm in the process of doing it again, but on a scholarly level rather than a spiritual one. I also intend to read other religious texts -- the Qu'ran, the Book of Mormon, etc. I figure ultimately all religions can have something to teach us.
I was raised in a strict Roman Catholic family; I have an aunt that is a nun, and my parents took us to church every Sunday. My maternal grandmother had converted to Catholicism so was a very passionate catholic, and would go to mass every day when possible.
I grew disenchanted with the church when I got to my teen years, seeing the hypocrisy of people who would attend mass, talk of turning the other cheek and loving others as yourself, yet would abuse and ridicule their own children, often in public.
I sat on the fence for quite some time; when I got married the first time my then wife came from an Anglican (Church of England Protestant) family, so we had an Anglican wedding with a Catholic priest there to give a blessing on the union.
My daughter was baptised as Anglican.
I have not regularly attended church services since my late teens.
I was on the cusp of turning completely atheist/agnostic when my father in law was dying from cancer. In desperation I went to the church my maternal grandmother had attended mass in and prayed for his recovery or loss of suffering.
It did not come.
His suffering worsened, and I gave up all belief.
Since that time I have been on an internal spiritual quest, finally settling on accepting Buddhist philosophies, and beliefs.
I believe in karma, I believe in reincarnation, and I believe in treating others with respect, dignity and compassion.
I think it is perfectly acceptable to believe this without having to believe in a creator or god of any sort.
If you were to ask the Dalai Lama, or the Buddha himself about the existence or otherwise of god, they would say your thinking is better used on things that are comprehensible, and that scientific evidence confirms.
I believe in Buddhism because it makes sense and is logical in an otherwise chaotic and disorganised world.
It took me a very long time and a lot of inner turmoil and conflict to get to this point.
I think many from religious families that stick to their belief do so, as to question their beliefs is to shake the foundations of their understanding of the world around them, and most minds are not strong enough to face the challenge this constitutes.
I think everyone should be free to believe what they wish, but if they want to question the beliefs of others they should not consider their own beliefs to be above question and discussion.
For myself, I may never truly be accepted as a Buddhist, as I would have to surrender to the triple diamond; the Buddha, the dharma (holy writings), and the sangha (Buddhist community); I'm too much of a non conformist and too cynical about the mind manipulation that goes on within religious organisations to conform and accept someone as a religious leader without question.
I blame a lifetime of questioning my former Catholic beliefs for this, but perhaps in a future life I will come back as a dedicated Buddhist.
I made this up myself, I consider Independent Christian, I consider myself Christian however I don't attend or follow any one chruch or its teachings, orders or beleafs, thats what God gave me a brain, mind and concence for. Its hard to have Aspergers and take orders from churchs with outdated, flawed and political based ideals and just go along with it as if they are all great ideas from God when they are in fact coming from random human people with various motives for ther ideas.
auntblabby
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I am a half-assed new ager. I have vague beliefs in heaven and various forms of purgatory/outer darkness. I believe in reincarnation and have had illuminating dreams which showed me in various past-life tableaus. I believe that karma [law of cause and effect] is nothing to mock or ignore. I believe in the golden rule which also is something not to mock or ignore. I have read many metaphysical tomes and have vague recollections of the principles illustrated therein, just enough to help me remember the golden rule and the karmic consequences of when I forget the golden rule.
auntblabby
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Not really? My religious beliefs don't have a nice pretty label just like everyone else's. Though I guess that's a good way to describe myself as well.
It's similar to solipsism where there is only "me" per se. However, this "me" is also everyone else and every other "consciousness". And that there is both nothing and everything. There is simultaneously everything and nothing. And that we are merely a hypothetical thought. And that every possible configuration of atoms, movements, and physical laws exist. "we" are about as real as all those other configurations. And that we only exist because in some hypothetical thought we exist. I suppose you could say there is a "god" that is all of us, but I wouldn't call it "god". Merely a consciousness experiencing every single consciousness in the past, present, and future in every universe at the same time. This consciousness does not have a memory, emotions, nor does it have any sort of thought on it's own. And that each unique instance of the consciousness is different.
Simply put, the me 5 seconds from now is different than the me now. The physical presence of memory allows this "chain" of consciousness to appear connected.
I also believe time is similar to location. It doesn't "flow" in any particular direction, but due to more memory being available in the "future" that is the way we perceive time. There could just as easily be a consciousness that flows "backward" in time.
As there is nothing and everything at the same time, there is also no beginning or end. It just is and isn't.
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nominalist
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I blame a lifetime of questioning my former Catholic beliefs for this, but perhaps in a future life I will come back as a dedicated Buddhist.
There are a lot of independent Buddhists who don't belong to a community. I know some people who call themselves Buddhists, and all they have done is read one or two books. There is no "central" Buddhist authority which all Buddhists follow.
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Mark A. Foster, Ph.D. (retired tenured sociology professor)
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amaris74
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nominalist
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Many Perceptions: One Reality
↑
Nice website
_________________
Mark A. Foster, Ph.D. (retired tenured sociology professor)
36 domains/24 books: http://www.markfoster.net
Emancipated Autism: http://www.neurelitism.com
Institute for Dialectical metaRealism: http://dmr.institute
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