Don't know if this is allowed. (What Religion do you follow?)

[BrioCyrain]

In the realm of animation I know it doesn't really matter, since animators like any other worker in the entertainment medium can have multiple backgrounds. Don't know if this topic allowed either so I am just gonna talk about my background and if this topic gets deletted 5 seconds afterwards you might not even noticed(Not saying anyone WOULD delete it).

A far as I go, I am LDS(to some people incorrectly stated as Mormons) and anyone who is properly informed(no offense) that is a christian church.

I don't drink caffeinenated beverages(don't know if I spelled that right), smoke, drink, cuss/curse/bad language, and all that good stuff.

Though I am not perfect(as far as LDS standards go), I hope to get better along the way.

(Waits)

[Quill]

I’ll bite.

To be honest, I don’t know -what-, exactly, I follow. I’m not thick into Christianity, though I admire the teachings of Christ greatly, and have a very high respect for him. I do believe he was once alive and existed and performed the said miracles, however, it is a twinge difficult for me to believe in a God...I do not ridicule those who do, however. I find it admirable for people to choose a path to follow, and I admire those who are strong in their faiths, even if they do go against my own “personal” beliefs.

Which made me believe, at one point, I’m an atheist. Though at times, I’ve played around with paganism, and soon realized that wasn’t for me either. I think I’m moreso agnostic. There may or may not be a God or Goddess or all of the above out there, but I am still not aware of them. However, I am not closed minded enough to say that there absolutely is nothing out there.

[fanimation]

I'm a Catholic Christian. I don't go to church every Sunday but I read my bible often and I read a lot of books about theology and the history of the Christian Church, and I pray to God everyday. I know some of my Baptist friends don't think Catholic's are even Christian at all and that can be hurtful sometimes. I believe there are true Christians in all the denominations of Christianity and that just because someone goes to a particular church every Sunday does not necessarily make them a Christian. Christs teachings should be present in their lives and actions. I also believe that no one Christian denomination has it all 100% correct when it comes to understanding God.

John J.

[jeremyhopkins]

BrioCyrain, I don't think you have to worry about the topic being deleted as long as everyone is respectful of others beliefs. Threads on this subject in other forums have not always done well. Though I think this is relevant to animation since so many people have a religious background.

At one studio I worked beside a guy who was an amazing designer and a dedicated Christian. I remember cursing a few times when the computer crashed and lost all of my work that day. I've never seen anyone's head swivel so fast and he wasn't impressed. It was a good reminder that it's best to find other ways to vent frustration in a studio environment.

As for me, well, I don't know.. guess I'm a bit of a maverick and can't be pinned down to one belief. All of the religion and philosophy I've studied so far have some interesting ideas.

[johncbeggs]

I believe that god may exist
Ill find out when my time comes I guess, all I can do on this earth is treat people with the respect I would like to be treated with!:D

thats how my family has always lived and I chose to be with family:)

[Regan]

A far as I go, I am LDS(to some people incorrectly stated as Mormons) and anyone who is properly informed(no offense) that is a christian church.


Why is "Mormon" incorrect? Mormon.org points to an official looking LDS site.

[Penumbra]

I'll let you know when I figure out what I think... :)

[BrioCyrain]

Why is "Mormon" incorrect? Mormon.org points to an official looking LDS site.

That's because some of us accepted the incorrect term. Though that site is an official LDS site, if I remember correctly individuals who have converted to the LDS church. Though our actual organization's website is www.lds.org which quickly says our official name "The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints". Thus most of our in-church name is LDS, or "Latter-Day Saints".

[Regan]

That's because some of us accepted the incorrect term. Though that site is an official LDS site, if I remember correctly individuals who have converted to the LDS church. Though our actual organization's website is www.lds.org which quickly says our official name "The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints". Thus most of our in-church name is LDS, or "Latter-Day Saints".

Interesting...now I know. I knew that the RLDS doesn't like the term "Mormon", but I always thought the LDS was okay with it.

I'm pretty curious about the history of the LDS...I've read quite a bit about it and I think it's fascinating.

[BrioCyrain]

Interesting...now I know. I knew that the RLDS doesn't like the term "Mormon", but I always thought the LDS was okay with it.

I'm pretty curious about the history of the LDS...I've read quite a bit about it and I think it's fascinating.

Well probably the most interesting part of our history would be the Joseph Smith Aspect. Don't want to offend anybody but if you ever read about him you have to believe in God and Jesus Christ in the first place just to believe what happened to Joseph Smith. Thus that is why some other churchs find us a little crazy that we believe some of the sacred powers like the priesthood have been restored in our church.

[Mithmeoi]

I'm a Christian, though I'm not uber strict about it and I don't attend church very much at all these days. It's the belief that counts though, in my opinion, and I have a strong belief in God and Jesus.

[Snapai]

I was brought up Unitarian Universalist (http://www.uua.org/principles).

I like Douglas Adams's view on religion. (http://www.biota.org/people/douglasadams/index.html)

[jeffnevins]

Christian (no denomination, like in the Bible).

It can play a big part in life.

Glad the topic here is mellow- there can be some crazy-intense debates on some forums/sites. :(

[Mithmeoi]

Christian (no denomination, like in the Bible).

It can play a big part in life.

Glad the topic here is mellow- there can be some crazy-intense debates on some forums/sites. :(

Yea I never understood why it seems to end up like that. Everyone should be respectful but often they turn nasty. :confused: Doesn't reflect well on their religion when they do though...I wonder if they ever bother to stop and think about that. :laughing:

[Snapai]

I think the nastiness tends to come when people:
(a) Try to insist that others justify their belief based on measurement and not psychology
(b) Try to insist that others believe what they do regardless of psychological or measured reason.

It's quite possible to absolutely need a belief that can't be proven, without which the entire moral system or identity will come toppling down like a Jenga tower. And to be a fully sane, functional, and caring human being at the same time. In fact, I'm pretty sure that everyone builds their understanding of the world that way. Joseph Campbell's Myths To Live By (http://www.amazon.com/Myths-Live-Joseph-Campbell/dp/0140194614) is a pretty good book on the subject. People need a moral setup long before they could possibly understand everything about how the world works.

At the same time, challenging your own belief system and understanding what role it plays to you can be useful for growth. But that gets into pretty heavy psychology, pretty quickly - that's actually what psychologists (not 'iatrists) do.

[johncbeggs]

It's quite possible to absolutely need a belief that can't be proven, without which the entire moral system or identity will come toppling down like a Jenga tower. And to be a fully sane, functional, and caring human being at the same time. In fact, I'm pretty sure that everyone builds their understanding of the world that way.


I have to dissagree on this -unless Im misunderstanding you, I dont think a belief is something that is needed to maintain a moral system!

[Moneyguns]

Everyone's born good. It just depends on how they grow up that makes them who they are.

[SmithyGCN]

I'm a Christian of no particular denomination though I once identified myself as a Baptist. I don't hold one denomination over the other and believe it's one's love and devotion to Jesus and God that really matters.
I consider myself a bit of a church nomad due to not being an actual member of any particular one. :p

[Snapai]

I have to dissagree on this -unless Im misunderstanding you, I dont think a belief is something that is needed to maintain a moral system!

Nah, yer either misreading me, or I'm misexplaining.

When people pick up their initial morals, they're still fairly young and they can't possibly have had enough life experience to base a complete moral system on. So, we use stories and beliefs to create a simpler, easier to learn basis for it. That's one of the primary functions of our mythologies and religions. You can always re-justify it based on experienced reality later. If you feel like it. But that's not always necessary.

Fundamentally, if a person tries to rip apart someone's religion for not being "real" or "true", you're not destroying their understanding of reality (which they have their own memory to still rely on) so much as you are dismantling most of their original moral and cultural system. Joseph Campbell gives the example in "Myths to Live By" how several buffalo-worshiping tribes of native americans, after the herds were slaughtered, fell into violent moral chaos, despite the buffalo having no "real" magical powers.

Interestingly, this kinda' ties into animation and film-making - how there are stories that need to be continually told and retold, and updated, and made relevant again. Even if everyone's heard the central theme, sometimes they need to be done again, because they're important to our culture. Actually, I think that's one of Campbell's theses in one of his books.

[arif]

i am Muslim..truly believer of all Mighty ALLAH.....Respect all the Messenger Of God...Muses(pbuh),Jesus(pbuh)..and Prophet Mohammed(pbuh)....and really pray for all....
May ALLAH bless you all....
Arif

[marji4x]

I'm a passionate Christian. I believe Jesus's claims about himself are true. I believe what he did on the cross was necessary and powerful and real. I believe in God as all-powerful, all-wise, and extremely loving. I believe in a constant relationship with a triune God, praying, praising, learning, and growing in community with him and others.

As a Christian, I believe Christ's claims are exclusive, as opposed to the inclusive "it's belief that matters" philosophy.

But I also believe in living the Christian life in love, patience, and great humility. I don't always succeed but I believe God asks this of me and helps me with it.

Thanks for introducing this topic, it's really interesting to read all the posts so far and I am glad everyone is keeping things decent :)