Project: Religion Slut

[Autumnal Light]

So, this year, I came up with what I think is an interesting goal for myself. I'm planning to talk to representatives of every religious group on campus, participate in activities, etc. I've already started with the Mormon missionaries that tend to ambush people around campus (I'll be going to church with them tomorrow).

My primary motivation for this has been the realization that while I've studied a lot of religions to varying extents, I've never really tried practicing one or talking to the practitioners themselves. I'm seriously lacking in hands-on experience here. It also helps that my anxiety meds have dampened my social anxiety issues to the point where I can actually go up to people and talk to them without my fight or flight instincts kicking in.

Talking to the missionaries, I realized that intellectual honesty is going to demand that I follow their advice and try praying for answers from God (Yahweh). Interestingly enough, I'm kind of afraid that I will get an answer. The reason this idea unnerves me is that I'm not sure I'll be able to tell the difference between actual divine communication and my mind fulfilling a social expectation. Like I mentioned above, I have no real experience in this area.

I guess I'm curious about other peoples' experiences with trying out other religions. What were (or could be) the positive and negative results? If you make a sincere effort to try several, can you expect any one to stand out? Advice and suggestions are encouraged. heart  

[Wrath of Ezekiel]

Welcome to the world of paradigm piracy, my friend. It will be tough, to distinguish that actual divine touch from the social implications, but it is gratifying in seeing how actual people worship in their different ways.

Note, as a paradigm pirate, I'm actually absorbing their beliefs willingly.

The one that will stand out is often the one who you thought the beliefs were pretty incompatible with yours. And I have a feeling it may be one of the Christian groups.  

[TatteredAngel]

Growing up, I made a point to go with my friends to church, usually after sleepovers. I went to several meetings during high school with a local youth group, and I've participated in odds and ends where I can. I've had some great experiences, and I haven't had any utterly horrible ones. I've learned a lot.

Even if you get little else from a particular experience, you'll know a bit about lingo and practice that you didn't know before. Participating in other religious groups has cut down on my WTF moments overall. (One of the little girls in my fifth grade class who told me very nicely and sweetly that I was destined to burn in hell had started our conversation by talking about earning stars for her crown. I figured it was a real crown at first and was very confused; hilarity ensued. Sort of.)

In the advice arena: For me, honesty is the biggest factor. I go into a situation as nicely as I can and if it looks like the expectation is that I convert, I talk honestly about the fact that I'm probably not going to. It depends too on the level of involvement. I can go to a Catholic church, but I feel it would be disingenuous of me to partake in communion.

I'd be interested to see how you continue to feel about communication with Yahweh. One of my biggest beefs with Christian friends over the years was their insistence that God would somehow talk to me, and my insistence that I'd tried opening the dialog and gotten dial tone.

If you make a sincere effort to try several, can you expect any one to stand out?
Unless you are trying only very slightly differing sects of one religion, quite possibly so. Even if you are, you may gel more with one than another. Religions and religious groups have a unique feel, in my experience, and chances are that you'll be more drawn to one or two than to others. You may even find something that can be taken away from a religious group even if you don't stay with that group.  

[Wrath of Ezekiel]

TatteredAngel

I'd be interested to see how you continue to feel about communication with Yahweh. One of my biggest beefs with Christian friends over the years was their insistence that God would somehow talk to me, and my insistence that I'd tried opening the dialog and gotten dial tone..

I'm curious on that as well. The closest I've gotten is to seraphim, but for some reason He doesn't let me progress further.  

[Autumnal Light]

Thanks for the replies you two.

I went to the local Mormon church last Sunday. I actually enjoyed myself more than I expected. The talks they gave were interesting, and I enjoyed singing the hymns, even though they weren't ones I knew. They had Bible study groups afterwards, and I stayed for that. It was all very open and laid-back. I'd go again for the pleasant atmosphere if nothing else.

@TatteredAngel: When you mentioned communion, it brought to mind sacrament which I partook of while at the LDS church. I was a little uncertain about it, but I wasn't sure if it would be more rude to refuse or not. Maybe I should ask the missionaries I've been hanging out with...

One of the tricky things I've run up against is the issue of getting peoples' hopes up for conversion. On the one hand, I am looking for a religion that I will feel moved to involve myself with, but on the other hand, I'm not yet certain which religion (if any) that's going to be.

I've realized that most of the religious groups on campus are some form of Christianity. I think this little project of mine is going to require some off-campus exploration.  

[Autumnal Light]

SpaceTerminal Destiny

TatteredAngel

I'd be interested to see how you continue to feel about communication with Yahweh. One of my biggest beefs with Christian friends over the years was their insistence that God would somehow talk to me, and my insistence that I'd tried opening the dialog and gotten dial tone..

I'm curious on that as well. The closest I've gotten is to seraphim, but for some reason He doesn't let me progress further.

I haven't got any responses yet, but it's still early in the game. I'm still a bit awkward when it comes to prayer, since it's not something I grew up with. I'll be curious to see how it goes, too.  

[TeaDidikai]

One of the neat things about the LDS is that they have a goddess. Makes it a lot easier for folks who are pagan inclined to transition.  

[Autumnal Light]

Really? I haven't come across that yet.  

[Autumnal Light]

Anther query: How can I get involved in the Pagan/Neo-Pagan scene in Seattle? Are there any stores or events within striking distance of the UW campus? I'm using the net to search for things, but I figured I'd ask here since people might have some first-hand experience they could share.  

[TeaDidikai]

Edge of the Circle Books is in Capitol Hill. Which is, quite frankly, amongst the best shops in Seattle.

That said- if you're willing to travel, there is a drum jam in Olympia this Friday hosted by the Primitive Festival Alliance. I can vouch for the quality of folks there and I'll even be showing up this Friday myself.  

[Tsuzuki]

mute_coyote

I guess I'm curious about other peoples' experiences with trying out other religions. What were (or could be) the positive and negative results? If you make a sincere effort to try several, can you expect any one to stand out? Advice and suggestions are encouraged. heart

I've been simultaneously Mormon and Catholic for over half a year, now (in addition to chaos magic and general occultism). It's a trip.

My own advice would be to take it slow and don't commit to anything until you understand the ins and outs of the beliefs, the culture, and the acceptable variance of both. Become aquainted with the paradoxes, and work with them, as they can be enlightening in themselves. A good book to read would be People of Paradox: A History of Mormon Culture, by Terryl Givens. (By the way, I found a PDF of it by doing a google search for "Pe0ple 0f P4r4d0x".)

Mormonism happens to be one of my favorite paradigms to work with, because it has a tremendous individualist streak for an organized religion, but it's often hidden under a culture of obedience.

If you're interested, I run a message board specifically for Mormons exploring other paradigms.
http://unfettered-mormon.org/

And here's a Yahoo! group along similar lines which I don't run.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/mormon-mystic/

These should give you an idea of the scope of Mormonism and how far you can take it.  

[Ainwyn]

That's basically what I've been doing this based year with Antiochan and Greek Orthodoxy, Vedanta Hinduism, and Seon Buddhism. I have to say that the best experience for me were the Orthodox Christian religions, partially because I was going with a friend who was part of the religion, but mostly because they were just a surprisingly accepting group of people. My friend, her friends that were always driving us and in the campus group, and the pastor of the mission all knew my religious background and that I didn't have any real interest in converting, but had been genuinely interested in their religion for some time. I ended up going to Divine Liturgy about 4 times, sat in on their student group and even went to Pascha, which was an amazing experience! I'd love to start going to their group again this term and experience a Vespers and Nativity service if I can get the chance. There are a lot of things about the religion that are immensely beautiful and touched me, but there are a lot of things in my life that make it very hard for almost any of the Abrahamic faiths to truly sit well with me. I'd love to get to a synagogue and a mosque at some point though!

One thing that was really helpful for me, especially with the Orthodox churches, was to read a bunch of introductory websites before going. There are so many different things that are expected of someone during the Great Liturgy, and I would have been totally lost if I hadn't done some research before hand.  

[Autumnal Light]

@Tea: Definitely putting Edge of the Circle Books on my "to visit" list. Sadly, traveling is not currently a possibility.

@Tzuzuki: Cool boards! I'll have to do some lurking.

@Rajani Kali: Good advice about the introductory websites. I've been thinking about visiting some Catholic and Orthodox churches, and some preparation would definitely be a good idea.


I went to a Mormon baptism on Saturday and then to church again on Sunday. It was cool to get to see people being initiated into their chosen faith. I was amused by the fact that there were kids EVERYWHERE. xd Apparently, the baptism was for people entering a family ward instead of the singles ward that I've been attending.

I've been thinking that I enjoy learning about the religion, but I don't quite feel that spark of connection that I've felt at other times and places. There are definitely a lot of things I like about it - the freedom to explore and think for oneself, the sense of community, etc. I've already made some friends there, so I'll probably keep going off and on. Still, I think I'm going to try looking at the Catholic and Orthodox groups on campus. It's definitely been worthwhile to look into Mormonism, and I'm curious what little sparks of truth I'll find elsewhere.

Also, I know I need to check out paradigms outside of Christianity. I'm just starting with what's on campus while I'm getting settled in before branching out.  

[TeaDidikai]

mute_coyote

@Tea: Definitely putting Edge of the Circle Books on my "to visit" list. Sadly, traveling is not currently a possibility.

Enjoy it.

Also- start saving your pennies for SummerStar. It's an inexpensive festival and it's a blast to attend.  

[Autumnal Light]

So, the Mormons made a deal with me: I pray and read the Book of Mormon, and if Yahweh confirms it (talks to me, etc...) by Oct. 25, I get baptized. If not, no baptism, no worries. Ultimatums make me a little edgy, but I can see the value in it. One way or another, I'll know something by the end of it.

I have a lot of random little "what if"s running through my mind, but the missionaries I talked to assured me that if I have any doubts come the 25th, there won't be any pressure. Sounds fair. This is the first time I'll really be "testing" a faith in any sense. Should be interesting.