Pick 'n' Mix "Spirituality"

[Irrev-Black]

Guess what grows in the bullshit of a post-fact world?

Survey shows spirituality is on the rise

The 2018 Australian Survey of Social Attitudes shows most people class themselves as spiritual rather than religious.

I follow a religion and consider myself to be a spiritual person interested in the sacred or the supernatural. - 18%
I follow a religion, but don’t consider myself to be a spiritual person interested in the sacred or the supernatural. - 14%
I don’t follow a religion, but consider myself to be a spiritual person interested in the sacred or the supernatural. -
23 %
I don’t follow a religion and don’t consider myself to be a spiritual person interested in the sacred or the supernatural. - 35%
Can't choose - 8%

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-12-30/ ... /102698964

[stylofone]

This type of shit annoys me. It IS religion. For example this bit is like a US televangelist saying hurricanes are god's punishment for human sinfulness:

She chose not to be vaccinated or take COVID tests, viewing the pandemic as a natural cleansing process that was required on a global level.

"The way I see it – and this can be hard to explain — it was an activation, a purging within our being of density and energy that needed to be released," she says.

"It's part of a transformation period that we're all going through.

It's more transformational for some than others, especially people who die of Covid.

[Irrev-Black]

This type of shit annoys me. It IS religion. For example this bit is like a US televangelist saying hurricanes are god's punishment for human sinfulness:

She chose not to be vaccinated or take COVID tests, viewing the pandemic as a natural cleansing process that was required on a global level.

"The way I see it – and this can be hard to explain — it was an activation, a purging within our being of density and energy that needed to be released," she says.

"It's part of a transformation period that we're all going through.

It's more transformational for some than others, especially people who die of Covid.

So many qualitative words, so few quantitative measurements.

[Theisticproatheist]

This type of shit annoys me. It IS religion. For example this bit is like a US televangelist saying hurricanes are god's punishment for human sinfulness:

She chose not to be vaccinated or take COVID tests, viewing the pandemic as a natural cleansing process that was required on a global level.

"The way I see it – and this can be hard to explain — it was an activation, a purging within our being of density and energy that needed to be released," she says.

"It's part of a transformation period that we're all going through.

It's more transformational for some than others, especially people who die of Covid.

I sort of agree dependent on what you mean when you say religion.

It is a set of beliefs in my view, but less pre-packaged according to my understanding than traditional religions such as Judaism, Christianity and Islam where you have to tick a whole bunch of belief boxes to fit into a church, mosque or synagogue.

So I get when people say they are spiritual but not religious, because I think they are mainly differentiating themselves form less flexible more organised forms of religion.

I see it as a semantic issue, what they mean when they say they are not religious is probably different to what you mean when you say they are religious.

But I agree that supernatural beliefs are as irrational as more mainstream supernatural beliefs if that's what your trying to convey.

[stylofone]

This type of shit annoys me. It IS religion. For example this bit is like a US televangelist saying hurricanes are god's punishment for human sinfulness:

She chose not to be vaccinated or take COVID tests, viewing the pandemic as a natural cleansing process that was required on a global level.

"The way I see it – and this can be hard to explain — it was an activation, a purging within our being of density and energy that needed to be released," she says.

"It's part of a transformation period that we're all going through.

It's more transformational for some than others, especially people who die of Covid.

I sort of agree dependent on what you mean when you say religion.

It is a set of beliefs in my view, but less pre-packaged according to my understanding than traditional religions such as Judaism, Christianity and Islam where you have to tick a whole bunch of belief boxes to fit into a church, mosque or synagogue.

So I get when people say they are spiritual but not religious, because I think they are mainly differentiating themselves form less flexible more organised forms of religion.

I see it as a semantic issue, what they mean when they say they are not religious is probably different to what you mean when you say they are religious.

But I agree that supernatural beliefs are as irrational as more mainstream supernatural beliefs if that's what your trying to convey.

I think there are several definitions of religion which fit this sort of nonsense. The idea that it is is "flexible" and not "organised" like the so-called traditional religions is also questionable. There seems to be a lot of organistion, a lot of common language used, there are courses and conventions and rituals and places of pseudo worship. There's one near me called "Soul Tribe". I don't really mind if other people call it religion or something else, I'm happy just to generalise and stick with colloquial terms like "a load of shit".

[Irrev-Black]

I think there are several definitions of religion which fit this sort of nonsense. The idea that it is is "flexible" and not "organised" like the so-called traditional religions is also questionable. There seems to be a lot of organistion, a lot of common language used, there are courses and conventions and rituals and places of pseudo worship. There's one near me called "Soul Tribe". I don't really mind if other people call it religion or something else, I'm happy just to generalise and stick with colloquial terms like "a load of shit".

Hitchens had a razor for that kind of bumfluff.

Hitchens Razor 2.jpg (45 KiB) Viewed 357 times

[Theisticproatheist]

This type of shit annoys me. It IS religion. For example this bit is like a US televangelist saying hurricanes are god's punishment for human sinfulness:



It's more transformational for some than others, especially people who die of Covid.

I sort of agree dependent on what you mean when you say religion.

It is a set of beliefs in my view, but less pre-packaged according to my understanding than traditional religions such as Judaism, Christianity and Islam where you have to tick a whole bunch of belief boxes to fit into a church, mosque or synagogue.

So I get when people say they are spiritual but not religious, because I think they are mainly differentiating themselves form less flexible more organised forms of religion.

I see it as a semantic issue, what they mean when they say they are not religious is probably different to what you mean when you say they are religious.

But I agree that supernatural beliefs are as irrational as more mainstream supernatural beliefs if that's what your trying to convey.

I think there are several definitions of religion which fit this sort of nonsense. The idea that it is is "flexible" and not "organised" like the so-called traditional religions is also questionable. There seems to be a lot of organistion, a lot of common language used, there are courses and conventions and rituals and places of pseudo worship. There's one near me called "Soul Tribe". I don't really mind if other people call it religion or something else, I'm happy just to generalise and stick with colloquial terms like "a load of shit".

Well there are more organised religions in "new age spirituality", but then there are unaffiliated types such as myself who don't attend courses/conventions, don't practise rituals and do not worship who also fall within the umbrella term spiritual but not religious. But I'm proud of you for having a take no shit attitude honestly.

[Irrev-Black]

Well there are more organised religions in "new age spirituality", but then there are unaffiliated types such as myself who don't attend courses/conventions, don't practise rituals and do not worship who also fall within the umbrella term spiritual but not religious. But I'm proud of you for having a take no shit attitude honestly.

Not a question of the Spanish type, but do you have a systematised view of your beliefs?

IMO, to put thought into "spiritual things" constitutes a religion.

I'm too old and fucking lazy to ruin my shoulder by standing up and reaching 60cm behind myself to get down Herself's Shorter Oxford Dictionary, so Wiki will have to do.

Wiki says:

Religion is a range of social-cultural systems, including designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relate humanity to supernatural, transcendental, and spiritual elements[1]—although there is no scholarly consensus over what precisely constitutes a religion.[2][3] Different religions may or may not contain various elements ranging from the divine,[4] sacredness,[5] faith,[6] and a supernatural being or beings.[7]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religion

LATE EDIT: I am pointing out that spiritual and religious are both dipsticks in the same dry sump of nothingness.

The pentecostal insisting there's demons in the Pasifika cultural artifact on my wall is no different to the person who crafted it, apart from the names and flavours of the unknown forces they claim.

Anyway, I'm also too old to argue.

Have at it if you want.

[Theisticproatheist]

I'm not sure what you mean by systematised.
If you mean have I put some thought into my beliefs I would say a bit but not too much.

I'm not trying to refute the point that it is religion, more quibbling the point by saying that there is organised religion and disorganised religion (which is what I mean when I say I'm spiritual but not religious it's shorthand for not being organised religion).

They most probably are the dry sump of nothingness as you put it, and I'm not here to change your mind about that, so apologies if I came across as argumentative or contrarian.

[Irrev-Black]

2016-12-21-IMG_6002-Herriot-house-xanthorrhea.JPG (74.27 KiB) Viewed 335 times

@Theisticproatheist - it's just that it seems to me you don't really have a thing to discuss unless it has qualities.

I get a vague feeling of grandeur and nostalgia when I smell xanthorrheas in bloom, but that's that.