hrmmm, I tend to update in clusters....

[jayene]

Oh well.  I've got the lining for Stacy’s cloak together, except I for got the gosh darned pockets. Must fix that. One key issue is that I like my religion to be about philosophy not pageantry.  With few exceptions, I've found the religious ceremonies (and this includes some pagan ones) seem to be theatrical productions.  I enjoy watching theater...but I enjoy much more participating in it. 
I enjoy being pagan because I get to participate more frequently, esp when doing solitary rituals. ;)  I enjoy it for the freedom of thought, the creativeness and the ability to allow the religion to become my own path unique to me, the subtleties of tailor fitting.  I also enjoy the freedom of guilt.  No longer do I have to spend my days worrying that I am going to a hell, I don’t believe in that.  I don’t need to fear that every bad deed is the “devil” out to get me. 

I was listening to the radio in my car this morning and the station that last night had been playing Christmas carols was now preaching some rather extreme Christian views,  things about the antichrist and six six six and paranoid signs of the end of the world.  I am grateful today that I never fell into that trap.  I never realized that there are a lot of people out there that are trapped in those extreme views.  The station talked a lot about going to church and reading the bible to become a useful “tool of god”.  The didn’t mention that just because you do those thing doesn’t mean you are a good person, it’s deeds that tell more then anything else. 

And onward on this ramble I came to an odd theory, and in my sleepy ramblings I’m going to mention it for no other reason then I’m afraid I’ll forget it come morning. 

I don’t accept that Jesus died for my sins, I believe in a higher power and the whole bit, but that some one else made a martyr of themselves for me, I will not accept.  I pride myself (to much so) on personal responsibility.  I also believe in reincarnation of a sort. Therefore in my wandering brain struck up a theory, plot for a bad novel, or delusion, take your pick.

What if when Jesus was going to die for people’s sins some people said “hey, no way, I can take care of them myself, thank you very much, and keep on experiencing life.”  What if that is a reason why some people come back and others don’t?  I guess in this hypothesis then their would have to be some ultimate sin/bad deed that we all committed, and I’m not sure if that is correct or not.  Oh well I guess it doesn’t matter…

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After all these are just sleepy religious ramblings.

Assorted sleepy religious ramblings

Comments

[dglenn.livejournal.com]

On salvation vs. personal responsibility: do you even have the same concept of "sin" that Christians do? I ask this because most Pagans I've spoken to (mostly Witches and Druids, and a few Native American or African based faiths) do not, and thus the notion of salvation is essentially irrelevant to them. Right and wrong, yes. Good and evil, yes. "Sin" ... not exactly. In fact, I've highlighted this -- the need for / relevance of Salvation, which in turn depends on the concept of sin -- as the essential difference between Paganism and Christianity. The difference in mythology is a much smaller deal, I think.

If you do believe in a definition of sin (and its ramifications) that maps closely to the Christian one, I'd be interested in hearing about it and learning more about your particular path.

Given that bit of context, are you interested in hearing a Christian perspective on the personal responsibility issue you raised? (From a comparative-religions viewpoint, that is. I hope it's obvious that my goal is not conversion.)

On the watch-vs-participate thing regarding the theatre aspects of ceremony, I think you've hit on something I've been gnawing on in the back of my mind for several years. (I wonder whether that's the reason circle feels more "like church" to me than services for my own faith?) But when I notice the aspect of theatre isn't when I'm sitting as a member of the congregation; it's when I'm the officiant. (There's more that ties into what I want to say there, including having familiar rituals to fall back on vs. situations that call for improvisation, but what you said feels like an important piece of it.)

[jayene.livejournal.com]

I have not problem discussing religion, esp. when the conversation is not going into a "you're wrong mode." as that makes the best of us defensive. ;)

As for sin, I don't know. I have a concept of what is wrong, but it doesn't always follow the ten comandments. The two comandments (Greatest from the new testament) is more towards what I believe. I don't think I beleive in original sin...I have an issue with beleiveing that just because someone isn't baptised they are automatically going to hell. It doesn't mesh with my picture of a loving and infinate creator. I do have a heavy Karmic belief. I think that the things I do do affect my life, the world at large and that when they are bad there are consequense to these actions, physical or otherwise. That to me would equate to a sin, but how I tend to cope with things like that is direct ammends when possible, and improvong my actions and not repeating the mistake and asking forgiveness from the parties involve (including my higher power) and then forgiving myself. (I tend to be one of those people that beats herself up about thigs that i did wrong years ago, so the last is often the last to happen).
So you know I have a heavy catholic upbringing, about 10 years of catholic school and then did a 5 year search on my path before settling to my happy eclectic paganish blend of all the good traits of faiths that I find. :)
{in a heavy New York accent] Discuss! ;)