A serious poll - your belief system.

[GenSec]

Hello,

This is my first ever poll here!

I wish to know the belief system makeup of the members here.

Although loads of people have debated faith vs. unbelief, i wish to know - in as academic a poll setup as possible - what the makeup of the membership is on anxietyzone.

I have taken my inspiration for this poll from the categorisations to be found in the British government census. I've sought to make this as academic and inclusive as humanly possible.

Please try and make your vote as true to your beliefs as possible - if you are unsure what option your beliefs belong to, please just post a response here and i will get back to you and tell you where you fit in. However i don't forsee any major problems as most of the folks who frequent this website are Western anyway.

In the interests of voting fairness, you will only see the results of this poll after you have cast your vote.

Perhaps this poll will come up with some patterns in relation to GAD, depression, etc. which we can investigate further. Or just be a very interesting little study of the population that make up anxietyzone. After all, countries like Britain do these kinds of polls - why not us?!

The more of you who participate, the more accurate the end results shall be - so, please, get voting! Help participate!

Kind thanks,
Gen.

[GenSec]

Thats fascinating, as i wasn't aware we had any Christians in the 'other' category here!

ps. by the way, if you class yourself as 'evangelical' or 'fundamentalist', you are still a Protestant. The Christianity 'other' category only applies to essentially the non-Western Christian denominations: ie Coptic Christianity (African) or Russian/Greek Orthodox Christianity, etc.

However, to make this more confusing, Quakers and Mormons etc. come under the 'Christianity, other' category too.

Again, if in doubt, ask and i shall enlighten.

Best,
Gen.

[peepo23]

Uh oh, religion again! I'm joking, Gen. For the recent British census, I'm officially a 'Dudeist', a follower of the Latter Day Dude.

[crazygirl1]

uhhh ok where does Baptist go??? I'm clueless because "titles" never really mattered to me LOL

[GenSec]

uhhh ok where does Baptist go??? I'm clueless because "titles" never really mattered to me LOL

Baptist would be classified as  'Christian (Protestant)', crazygirl.

[dantescritic]

 I'd classify myself an Agnostic.  I see no evidence to support any particular deity, but find it just too depressing to dismiss the idea altogether.  Maybe something like George Carlins "Big Electron"


 *Woooow....Woooow.*

[GenSec]

I'd classify myself an Agnostic.  I see no evidence to support any particular deity, but find it just too depressing to dismiss the idea altogether.  Maybe something like George Carlins "Big Electron"


 *Woooow....Woooow.*

I'm an athiest, dantescritic. I see absolutely no evidence nor need for any deity/deities.

What i find amusing are Christians who claim they are not a "category", rather they are the "Truth". The problem is that every religion around the globe claims to be the "Truth" with a capital "T", so if everyone from Muslims to Christians (of all sects and deminations) to Hindu's to Taoists took that attitude then we wouldn't be able to get anywhere. Loads of folks claim to communicate with a diety directly on a personal level, be they Jewish, Muslim, Christian, Sikh, etc. So rather than being awkward just to prove a personal point that they have a monopoly on the "Truth", it is easier if folks just participate in the category they know their personal beliefs belong.

[crazygirl1]

I call myself a Christian simply because it means I believe in Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior. For me, no need to classify. Sorry

[GenSec]

I call myself a Christian simply because it means I believe in Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior. For me, no need to classify. Sorry

You did end up voting in the end... kind thanks crazygirl. It is appreciated.

Gen.

[GenSec]

Another point... if you wish to come onto this poll just to prove a point about being in possession of the "Truth" and so unable to vote, please don't waste mine nor your own time by participating in any way on this thread. There is no need for you to post here if you have no intention of constructively contributing to the poll.

Kind thanks.

[sixpack]

bet everyone knows who the catholic is... lol


crazy--- the baptist church is considered protestant---like methodists, epispocal, lutheran, presbeteryian (sp sorry).

I believe there are some faiths that call themselves, Non-demoninational.  these, gen, may not be considered protestant.  I'm not sure on that but thought I'd point that out.


**also let's try and keep this all friendly and on topic** all of us mods would surely LOOOOOVE that 

[GenSec]

I believe there are some faiths that call themselves, Non-demoninational.  these, gen, may not be considered protestant.  I'm not sure on that but thought I'd point that out.


**also let's try and keep this all friendly and on topic** all of us mods would surely LOOOOOVE that 

Now i understand the hell the government has to go through every 10 years when it goes through a national census, lol. Plus in Britain we have less Christian factions than the USA. So in America it must be even harder.

I don't want any debates here - this is a poll study, not a debate.

[sixpack]

I don't want any debates here - this is a poll study, not a debate.   

many thumbs up to that.  here's hoping 

[tinam7]

At last I am full-fledged atheist.

[GenSec]

At last I am full-fledged atheist.

Dang! And here was me hoping for at least one Jewish vote when i saw your name on the thread!

[tinam7]

Notice I said "At last." That's rather recent. Does time count? Does ethnicity? Oh, I know the answer. The vote is cast.

[GenSec]

Notice I said "At last." That's rather recent. Does time count? Does ethnicity? Oh, I know the answer. The vote is cast.

Yeah, i suppose Jews are rather unique... a Jew is commonly considered as such via both faith and ethnicity. Judaism is an interesting one.

But technically you did vote correctly when you voted athiest: because that is what you are now in your life, and i asked for folks to vote based on their belief system not ethnicity. If you don't believe in any god then you are indeed athiest Tinam.

Best wishes.

[San Andreas]

Depending on the day of the week, my mood, what kind of doody has hit the fan..... I can change on any giving day between Athiest and Agnostic. (so I just picked the one I am feeling right now.)

0213 Gen - I bet you can guess which one that is today

[joo joo]

I am of no denomination,  just a follower of Yeshuah.

[GenSec]

0213 Gen - I bet you can guess which one that is today

Welcome to the club, San Andreas!

Hope you are feeling your chirpy self again soon.

Best,
Gen.

[Tam0630]

Non-denominational Christian here - went with Protestant.

[GenSec]

Hi Tam,

I don't suppose its really that important, the Protestant and "other" Christian categories.... i divided Christianity up into three for my own curiousity really. Just wanted to get an idea of the Christian makeup of the website.

Its clear that Protestant/non-denominational is in a majority among the Christian denominations here. Thats not surprising, being a mostly American member website.

One thing thats caught my interest are the amount of Americans who do not identify with a denomination: they are "Christian", end of. This attitude does not really exist in Europe. Everyone in Europe knows their denomination and identifies with it. Americans when first asked about their faith will usually say "Christian" whereas a European will tend to say "Catholic", "Lutheran", "Presbyterian", etc.

Why this difference? I believe its the very different cultural history of our nations.

America was founded on there being no national church. Everyone was Christian, and all denominations of the time were supposed to be regarded equally. The creators of the USA clearly wished the avoid the demoninational conflicts prevailent in Europe at the time so they avoided creating a national church which possessed the "truth" on Christian theology. In Europe on the other hand, we had national churches: my own country for instance was (still it) Presbyterian. The national church was the only Christianity legally recognised, official, "truth". If you weren't Presbyterian you stood out and could face legal penalties. Many German states were either Catholic or Lutheran and fought with each other continually to enforce their "true" version of Christianity. Spain was Catholic and tried to invade and convert a number of Protestant countries to the "true faith" as they believed their national church to be, whilst publicly burning those Spaniards who were Christians (but not Catholics) as heretics. A simple belief in Christ as your Lord and Savior was not enough. England was (still is) Anglican, and they persecuted English Catholics with imprisonment and heavier taxes for centuries.
Meanwhile over the centuries different Christian denominations from within nation states themselves seized control of the national church of their states, civil wars essentially trying to force other citizrns within their nation to ditch their own denominations and join theirs, usually by force: Scotland for instance has been ruled by a Catholic national church which tolerated no dissent on Christian theology/interpretation, then Presbyertians (who behaved no better then their former persecutors), then Episcopals, then back to Presbyterians again (with plenty of internal wars as they fought for dominancy). Puritan evanagelicals/fundamentalists also sought to make their attempts at religious power. Usually not very pretty, because they were always tiny but fanatical minorities. However as a general rule, religious wars never are very pretty things.

What is the result of this European infighting among Christian demininations? Europeans still primarily identify themselves by denomination.

Americans on the other hand have primarily come to identify themselves as Christians, and as there have been no civil wars and bloodshed as rival denominations seek to create a national church in their own image ruling over all others, denominational identity has weaken in comparison to Europe. Simply put, American Christians tend to emphasise the similarities between them: Europeans continue to focus on the many theological differences and disputes that have led to a myriad of differing Christian denominations.

Thats what i think the reason is, anyway. It is really interesting.

[markofkane]

I put agnostic.

I used to believe, but events in my life, and viewing all the bad things that happen in this world gave me doubts. I don't accept the "free will" explanation.

I feel that if there is a supreme being (I should say, I believe it's possible), he, she, or it doesn't care about me and other living things.

Too many conflicting beliefs, books,  and explanations to convince me that only 1 possiblility can be true.

And how can I believe with 100% certainty stories and books told and written by man? Things can be translated, embellished, or simply made up.

However, I respect what others believe, and do not criticize them for it. Just as long as they respect my beliefs.

[GenSec]

I put agnostic.

I used to believe, but events in my life, and viewing all the bad things that happen in this world gave me doubts. I don't accept the "free will" explanation.

I feel that if there is a supreme being (I should say, I believe it's possible), he, she, or it doesn't care about me and other living things.

Too many conflicting beliefs, books,  and explanations to convince me that only 1 possiblility can be true.

And how can I believe with 100% certainty stories and books told and written by man? Things can be translated, embellished, or simply made up.

However, I respect what others believe, and do not criticize them for it. Just as long as they respect my beliefs.

Kind thanks for voting, and sharing your reasoning with us.

- Gen.

[stillfreakin]

I am an agnostic, but not a true materialist. IOW, I don't need to believe in a cosmic CEO in order to believe that the foundations of life are much deeper and complex than what our current science and senses tell us (yes, i do believe there are some elements of the paranormal and psi with evidence). As for the God thing, the first hint to me that there was no personal loving being, was the simple thought that such a god also made viruses to destroy us. Makes no sense, and for all the praying i did over many years, I could never judge any 'divine intervention' with any more statistical weight than when I never engaged in such spiritual exercise.

I think 'gods' are just our own anthropocentric projections of human desires and longings onto the face of the cosmos. I do struggle greatly though with trying to find meaning in it all  - now that I realize we have to create our own meaning (which is both liberating in one sense, and scary in another).