Non-Denomination Churches

I planned to go to church this morning. I woke up at 7, got dressed in my "Sunday best" and walked out the door. I was going to try out this non-denominational church that is located literally next door to my townhouse called: One God Ministry. Their website said mass was from 8-8:45, but when I walked up to the doors, I noticed nobody was walking in and it seemed very dark inside. After I found out the doors were locked I read the sign that said mass was from 11-12:30! Ugh! I was so bummed because not only did I genuinely want to experience this church, but I was all dressed up! If it were for all the finals I have to study for today and this week, I would have waited around and gone to mass at 11, but I planned on studying by 9:45. However, this little miscommunication has not deterred me from trying this church again next week. It appeals to me for many reasons.

This non-denominational church believes in responding to God's call to unite all people, all churches and all communities together to proclaim the word of the Lord. They believe in spiritual enrichment for all people. They believe in one Lord, one Bible, one Faith and one baptism for all people. Followers of this religion will be saved by the Lord if they believe in him. You must believe in the Ten Commandments and what the Bible says to receive salvation.

Their church leaders, priests, or any form of hierarchy are anointed to preach the Gospel. This church believes in marriage between men and women. They believe man was created by God. You are welcomed to this church regardless of your nationality, gender, age, color, language, and other forms of diversity. They believe they are one human race created to serve one God.

It's somewhat crazy that in only one week, after a lot of research on other religions, I think I may have found one (a non-denominational church) that actually really appeals to what I am looking for: a solid, true belief in God and Jesus Christ as a higher power, but a church that is also based around be excepting and loving of all individuals regardless of where you come from.

Baptist

I thought I'd pay tribute to my freshman Religion 101 professor for inspiring me to explore religion in the first place. He is a Baptist, in fact he was a Baptist minister as well.

First and foremost, Baptist is a Christian denomination, which does not believe in infant baptism. Rather, they believe in believer's baptism because a baby cannot hear and understand the word of the gospel. A parent cannot pass down immersion of a religion to their child, but instead every individual must find salvation through practicing the faith.

Baptist churches specifically fall under Protestantism, but some individuals further identify with evangelicalism. Unlike Protestants, Baptists believe in two human hierarchy: pastors and deacons, but they do not believe in bishops.

Their origin traces back to English Separatists who left the Church of England during the Reformation. They play a major role in promoting religious freedom and separation of church and state.

Being that Baptist is a Christian denomination they believe in one God, the virgin birth, miracles performed by Jesus Christ, the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ, the Trinity, the need for salvation, and the Kingdom of God. Baptists also firmly believe that the second coming of Christ will be the end of the world.

Baptists believe in 4 Freedoms:

1.) Soul Freedom: the soul is competent before God, meaning humans can make decisions without coercion by any larger religious body.

2.) Church Freedom: the local church is free from governmental or civilian interference.

3.) Bible Freedom: the individual can interpret the Bible for himself/herself.

4.) Religious Freedom: the individual can choose whether they want to leave their religion and practice another since they have not yet been Baptized.

So is Baptist a religion that I could follow? Perhaps? I do like that there really is no pressure to bind yourself to this religion. In fact the religion is vastly based on decided for yourself once you have experienced what it has to offer. They believe in the freedom of religion and the freedom of the soul and I like that. I'm still very open-minded and subconsciously narrowing down what I think is for me, but until then I will continue this journey to finding my religion.

Jainism, Not to Be Confused with Hinduism

The word Jainism literally means conqueror. The religion dates back to the pre-historic period in regions of what is today India. Most followers of Jainism are Indian. The religion teaches believers to resist greed, lust, anger, ego, and violence.

Followers of Jainism believe in 24 role models called "Tirthankara." They are Reformers. They do not embody God however, their souls were in a pure developed state. What these 24 role models taught is what could get a soul to cross to salvation. They were humans with superhuman qualities.

Jains are often misinterpreted as Hindus. The religions are similar, but not all the same. Jains believe the purpose of life is to free oneself from one's existing karma. To do this, you must have pure thought, ideas, soul, and body. You must reject the material world.

Screeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeech!!!! Reject the material world?!?! What about my clothes, shoes, shopping at Urban Outfitters. My LV handbag and Kate Spade tote?! Hmph. I'll need to think about this one more...

Basic Principles of Jainism

1.) Non-violence to humans, animals and even plants
2.) Don't steal
3.) Monogamous relationships between male & female
4.) Don't kill
5.) Live simply by limiting personal needs

Basis Beliefs of Jainism

1.) The Universe was never created & will never be destroyed

..That one is interesting to be because it eases my fear of Doomsday that is supposedly going to occur in December 2012!

2.) After death, every soul have the ability of becoming God.
3.) The most important god is Ambika. She is the mother goddess of Jainism who symbolizes well-being, childbirth, and protection of women.

..I really like that women are so respected in this religion...it's comforting to know we are appreciated :-)

4.) Everyone is equal regardless of size, shape, or type.
5.) Nobody has the right to: injure, abuse, oppress, enslave, insult, torment, torture, or kill. Even having corrupt thoughts is wrong and is believed to lead to wrong actions.
6.) Reincarnation, or the recycle of life and death. Jains believe that you can keep being reborn until you become the best you can be, then you will be liberated from the cycle and become part of the universe called "Siddhashila," and that is the ultimate goal.

I could absolutely live my life following some of the beliefs that Jains believe, but I couldn't fully devote myself to resisting the material world. I'm too much of a girl who likes to shop and wear fun jewelry, buy shoes, etc. I only believe in one God and I know I couldn't believe that everyone has the ability to become so pure that they become a god, too. I do however, think it's good to resist greed, lust, anger, ego and violence. There is no time in life to waste hurting yourself or others.

Goats at Mason

Watch this video:

Goats at Mason

This video has nothing to do with my blog about finding my higher power, but it is a story I reported on campus yesterday about supporting women and their families in Uganda by purchasing a goat. One goat can supply a woman and her family with nearly a year of milk. The Mason community sponsored this event yesterday in case anyone was wondering why their was a pen full of goats on campus near the North Plaza. Anyway, check out the video to learn more!

Protestantism Could Be For Me

Protestantism is one of the four major divisions of Christianity. The Protestants separated from the Roman Catholic church in the 16th century--The Protestant Reformation. Protestants do not believe in Apolistic Succession, which is a doctrine that asserts the chosen successors of the Twelve Apostles. They also do not believe in the clergy. Protestants public worship is much simpler and less elaborate than Catholics.

The main beliefs of Protestants are that they believe the Bible is the only source of faith. They critically read the Bible and believe it is infallible. They believe in giving all glory to Christ, and ensure that all believers not only read the Bible, but also take part in the government of the Church--they are opposed to any sort of hierarchy in the religion such as priesthood.

Protestants have a set of slogans called, "The Five Solas," which emerged during the Protestant Reformation:

1.) The Sola Scriptura: states that teachings of the Bible are necessary for salvation.

2.) Sola fide: means that faith in Christ alone is sufficient for external salvation. This slogan's purpose is to promote believers getting as close as possible to Christ.

The next 3 slogans emerged later:

3.) Solus Christus: means believing in Christ as the only mediator between God and man. Thus, a priest cannot mediate.

4.) Sola Gratia: means that if you sin you can only be forgiven if God chooses to forgive you. You are not forgiven the way you are in Catholicism by confessing to the priest, doing a few Hail Mary's and then viola, you're forgiven.

5.) Soli Deo Gloria: meaning all glory is due to God alone. The popes, Catholic church, or hierarchy are not worthy of glory.

I am very intrigued by Protestantism. What I learned that I especially like is that you cannot sin and be forgiven so easily like you are in Catholicism. I think knowing that only God forgives you if he chooses to would make man think longer before they choose to sin because they know forgiveness is not as easy to receive. I respect this religion for that and I look forward to delving further into Protestantism.

Judaism vs. Christianity

I often tell my parents that I believe we might actually be Jewish, and the reason I believe this is because my father's father was from Lithuania. The Republic of Lithuania is located along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea. When the Jews were run out of Russia, they fled to Lithuania. Many of my father's cousins, aunts and uncles have Jewish names such as: Bernard, Monica and Edie. The problem is that when Jews fled to Lithuania they often changed their last names to Christian names so that they were not killed for their religious beliefs. Well, my father's family changed their name several generations in a row. Even my father changed our last name to Gray, and I'm sure if my father had had a son he'd change his last name too...although I'm not sure you could make Gray any shorter! I'd love to admit the name he changed it from, but he yells at us anytime we tell our friends. It's always, "Why did I even bother changing it if you girls are just going to tell the whole world what it used to be?!" At any rate, if at anytime in the future I decide to trace my family history it's going to be difficult because of the long line of name changes.

I find it interesting however, that Christianity and Judaism in the Old Testament are actually very similar. Jesus and his family followed Judaism all their lives. Jesus' followers believed he was the messiah, which was predicted in the Bible. It was the people who were not his followers as well as Jewish followers of today who believe Jesus Christ was not the messiah, but that the real messiah is yet to come. Both religions do believe in one God though, and that is comforting to me because I've come this far believing in God that I think it would be hard to stop believing now. In addition, having grown up believing in Jesus as the Son of God and the savior of the world, it would be hard if I decided to follow Judaism to believe that Jesus was actually a false prophet.

What I do find particularly interesting is that Judaism believes in "right action," meaning that what you do on Earth now while you are alive is what will be factored into where you go after death. Judaism is about making the right choices in life while you are physically alive, and that it's too late to ask for forgiveness when you are near death or already dead. Christianity on the other hand believes in "correct belief," meaning that it is never too late and you have never sinned too much to ask for forgiveness. Even if you are on your death bed in prison, you can ask for forgiveness from the Lord and you will be reconciled. Judaism is also fundamentally characterized as the religion of love, in that their Great Commandment is to "Love thy neighbor as thyself." Therefore, If you love yourself, then by default you have to love your neighbor if you do not want to sin.

Despite all of the similarities and differences between Judaism and Christianity, I am going to have to admit that I do not think I could ever believe in Judaism simply because this religion does not believe that Jesus was the savior. I am trying to find the religion that best suits me, not find one that I have to suit. So I am going to have to decidedly rule out Judaism.

Buddhism?

"To do no evil; To cultivate good; To purify one's mind: This is the teaching of the Buddhas," was the first quote I saw when I looked up Buddhism. Those words can be found in the Dhammapada, a book that consists of 423 quotes once spoken by the Buddha. The Buddha was born a prince named Siddhartha Gautama in 566 BC. He was the prince of a Sakya tribe in Nepal. Buddha is said to have been born with full ability to walk and talk and it is said that he told his mother he has come to free all mankind from suffering. Buddha's father was told that Buddha could become one of two things: a king, maybe even an emperor, or a savior of humanity. At the age of 29 Buddha freed himself of all material possessions and left his wife and newborn son to discover what it was like to suffer. He nearly starved himself to death for six years until he learned that his practices were not getting him anywhere. He wanted to find the middle ground between life with luxuries and life with nothing. So he decided to sit under a tree until he found the answer to no more suffering. What he discovered after days of reflecting on his life and seeing the whole universe in front of him was that suffering happens if you live life thinking about the past or live life thinking about the future. You can only live life with no suffering if you learn to constantly think in the present.

What I particularly like about Buddha is that he lived during a time when women ranked far below that of men, but he was the first to allow women into his circle and his wife and aunt became the first Buddhist nuns.

Buddhism is based on what are called: The Four Noble Truths:
1.) Life in Suffering: duhkkha
2.) Suffering is due to attachment (trishna)
3.) Attachment can be overcome: nirvana
4.) There is a path for accomplishing this: dharma

This path that Buddha speaks of has 8 steps, or ways of getting to dharma:

1.) You must have the *right* view of the world.
2.) The *right* aspiration
3.) Right Speech
4.) Right Action
5.) Right livelihood
6.) Right effort
7.) Right mindfulness
8.) Right concentration

If you are able to successfully do all of these steps, Buddha says you van overcome attachment.

The reason I am drawn to Buddhism is because I love the idea of living in the moment. Too many times I have gotten upset thinking about something that happened to me in the past and then ultimately it effects my future. A brief example is when I sit in class and think about what I got wrong on the test from by previous class, I am missing out of hearing valuable information given by the professor. Buddhism teaches you to live in the moment and enjoy the right now. It is a religion that I would like to come back to after I've done more research on other religions. No matter what religion I find most suitable with who I am, I can already promise myself now that I will always want to live life in the present and never take for granted what I am blessed with that I have right in front of me.

Where Do I Belong?

I don’t remember the day I was baptized. I do know my mother and father were there, along with my aunt and uncle who would become my godparents. It was however, the day I would first be immersed in Holy Water deeming me Catholic. I went to Norte Dame church and distinctly remember sitting in church, dangling my legs on the wooden pews, oblivious to the words the priest spoke. At times I was bored out of my mind, but other times I was entertained by my coloring books or my older sister Alexis who’d always make me laugh. Both of my sisters went to Catholic school (K-12), but I only attended for kindergarten. After my parents put me in public school, they sent me to CCD (Confraternity of Christian Doctrine) every Wednesday at our church. I received my First Holy Communion when I was eight, but never got confirmed— many Catholics see that as a sin.
If not getting confirmed is a sin, then I belong in confession for 8 years if I expect to be forgiven. When I moved to Florida at the age of 12 we stopped attending church on a regular basis. I suppose it was because we were out of our comfort zone at our own parish, but it also could have been that our move was only supposed to be temporary. I ended up staying in Florida to train at a tennis academy for the next 5 years and well…religion sort of checked out of my life.
It wasn’t until I came to college and took a world religion course that infatuated me with other religions that I found myself yearning for my own higher power again. I wanted religion on a consistent basis again, but I was confused because I had been without it for so long. I was especially intrigued by Buddhism and Hinduism. We studied Catholicism too, but the professor, as unbiased as he attempted to be, gave me a negative vibe about the religion.
I bought several books on Buddhism that summer and began dabbling in meditation and living life in the present. It was a new concept and routine that seemed to relax me and take me away from my hectic schedule. But because I only had myself to enforce the religion, I never got too far with it. Again, I abandoned a religion.
What I want to do with my life right now is find that higher power that I can ultimately believe in and follow. I know there is a God and divine spirits that guide me every day of my life. But who are they? How do they want me to live my life? I have to do my research and learn about what is out there and what religion best relates to me and my values. Maybe I am meant to be another form of Christian like Lutheran or Protestant. It could be that Buddhism or Hinduism are my calling, but I didn’t give it enough of a chance. Who knows…it may even be that Catholicism is the religion for me. I am however, anxious and ready to find out as well as share my journey on this blog.