Religion of Origin?

[DayDreamer]

Which religion were you raised with.... by your parents/guardians?

[AradiaSupernova]

Christianity/Athiesm/Satanism

The last one was secret on the part of my sister.

[DianaStormDancer]

I was baptised and raised an Episcopalian, but I got over it! Seriously though even tho I was raised as a Christain my Mother always made sure I had the choice of any and all paths open to me and she brought me to the Goddess even as she was a layminister in our church.

[DayDreamer]

Episcopalian. Darn it, I knew I forgot one.

Would a mod please add that choice to the poll?? as well as a choice for multiple, one for Mormon and a choice for none :)

A friend of mine is currently an Episcopalian, and is a lay eucharistic minister, sings in the choir, is an altar server, etc. I tease him that it is "catholic light" - all the ceremony, none of the guilt.

[Mithrea]

I can't answer because there is no option for multiple. My Dad was an atheist and my mom was Baptist but my sisters and I grew up going to a Presbyterian church until I was baptized at the the Baptist church.

Your definition of "agnostic" isn't quite right, btw. ;)

[Rhaven]

Roman Catholic!

[Ravens_Tears]

There is no option for "None". My parents decided they would allow us to explore our own paths.

[Altheia]

Raised Southern Baptist all the way...hell fire and brimstone was preached every single sunday!!! You can imagine the good time I had listening to the "yes, amen"'s and watching the pastor get wound up while I was in the choir loft...hee hee...good entertainment

[SylverStar]

Well according to my father I was raised Catholic. However the last time I went to church with him was when I was 5. We never talked about religion in my house, so I don't think I was raised anything. I did attend a lot of Mormon fuctions though because all my friends were Mormon.

[mol]

Pentecostal!

[BellaWild]

I was raised Mormon and enjoyed it until I was about 17...please don't mock me! *blushes* I guess there aren't very many mormons turned pagan, huh?

[Nissala]

I was raised Baptist.... but even as a child I wen to churches of various religions trying to find one where I felt I fit in.....i never found one....

[Valnorran]

Episcopal aka Catholic Lite.

[Flar's Freyja]

Which religion were you raised with.... by your parents/guardians?

Catholic - but the words "raised with" don't quite fit. My father was atheist and my mother Catholic - and although we were put into Catholic school and forced to attend church every Sunday, neither attended with us. I only saw my mother in church at First Holy Communion and Confirmation, I do believe. I am so in disagreement with this type of parenting in regard to religion that I even went to the Baptist church with my son when he decided to become Baptized after I'd found my path. I strongly felt that it was very important to support him in his spiritual path even if it wasn't my own. At least he had one, and after all, I started off in church, going from Catholicism to Judaism to Methodist to Assembly of God to Pentecostal to back to Catholicism........We both stopped going due to some problems within that congregation.

Looking at the results of your poll confirms my long-standing suspicion ~ Catholicism is a breeding ground for pagans with its focus on ritual, candles, incense and my first goddess, Mary............

[Athena-Nadine]

I voted "None." I was never baptised, though both of my parents were raised Christian, and I was raised in a completely secular household, as my parents wanted us all to make our own decisions.

Edited because I'm blind some days...

[DayDreamer]

Catholic - but the words "raised with" don't quite fit. My father was atheist and my mother Catholic - and although we were put into Catholic school and forced to attend church every Sunday, neither attended with us. I only saw my mother in church at First Holy Communion and Confirmation, I do believe. I am so in disagreement with this type of parenting in regard to religion that I even went to the Baptist church with my son when he decided to become Baptized after I'd found my path. I strongly felt that it was very important to support him in his spiritual path even if it wasn't my own. At least he had one, and after all, I started off in church, going from Catholicism to Judaism to Methodist to Assembly of God to Pentecostal to back to Catholicism........We both stopped going due to some problems within that congregation.

Looking at the results of your poll confirms my long-standing suspicion ~ Catholicism is a breeding ground for pagans with its focus on ritual, candles, incense and my first goddess, Mary............

Could be. I know I voted Catholic right after I posted the poll!! I was raised cradle catholic, did the catholic school thing (I'm still allergic to plaid skirts), and used to tell people I'm a recovering catholic.

Now I'm pagan, which probably has my mother turning over in her grave. She was VERY catholic.

[Flar's Freyja]

Could be. I know I voted Catholic right after I posted the poll!! I was raised cradle catholic, did the catholic school thing (I'm still allergic to plaid skirts), and used to tell people I'm a recovering catholic.

Now I'm pagan, which probably has my mother turning over in her grave. She was VERY catholic.

My mother's sister was that way and one of my most admired people. She supported many charities in this area. One Christmas, she gave me a rosary in my birthstone with my kids' names in the beads and it is still one of the most awesome gifts I've ever received.

She and several others didn't like it much when I used to say "At least we're blatantly hypocritical!"

[WitchJezebel]

Raised Catholic, went to elementary and high school. I was always opening my mouth in high school and asking questions that the nuns didn't really want to answer, I was always in trouble. I didn't like being forced to attend first friday of the month mass and I absolutely despised confession. Once I graduated I said bye bye!!

[Azure]

Mom's family was Methodist, Dad's was Baptist, I got generic Air Force Protestant generally speaking.

[Amethyst Rose]

I was baptised and confirmed Anglican, but my mom stopped taking me to church when I was 12...I started going voluntarily when I was 16, until I moved out of the house and found paganism. My dad, however, is athiest and would have prefered that I had nothing to do with any religion. :)

[Amethyst Rose]

I was raised Mormon and enjoyed it until I was about 17...please don't mock me! *blushes* I guess there aren't very many mormons turned pagan, huh?

I just had to say that 2 of the pagans I met in University (out of 5), were raised Mormon, so you're not so weird. :)

[ckynes1968]

Catholic - my mom was a nun! Talk about a strict upbringing! YUK!

[WitchJezebel]

Your mom was a nun? Do they make it hard for nuns to leave? Just curious.

[Ceallach]

I grew up with my mom saying she was both Baptist and Agnostic, Dad never really clear on what he believed, me unable to make a choice. Every time I showed interest in anything spiritual, my parents would accuse me of joining a wild cult and would end up killing myself or others.

Fun, huh?!

If they only knew ............... hehehehehe

[moonchild]

i was baptized methodist but it was kinda against my will...i didn't know that you had to be baptized to be confirmed...and like a good 13 yr old i went along with it (since i had gotten into some trouble that in a way landed me in the confirmation class, and didn't want more trouble). that tainted my view on "organized" religion for quite a while, til i found this path.

my parents were never real church goers...dad believed that he didn't have to go to church to be in the house of God...he just went outside by the river...mom only went if it was a holiday....and right after i got confirmed and we went a lot. funny i don't remember going to x-mas mass tho.

[Lyntwyn]

ROMAN Catholic.

[FaerySong]

:wave: born a catholic, lost the faith, found new one, end of story 8O

[Fire_Crotch132074]

I was born Baptist but around the age of 8 and 9 I stoped believeing. Might be because our head church guy would talk about how we are all gods children and then when he was alone with my family he'd tell us how slavery was the best thing to ever happen to a black man... Or maybe because the music I was listening to with my cousin wasn't exactly pro god or religion. But either way I feel just happy being an Atheist.

[Autumn]

I said agnostic but my much older sisters dragged me off to Methodist sunday school, if I was baptised it was on account of them...

My parents should have gone and done the UU thing but it would have meant driving a half hour each way and such like and to them that seemed odd, though I now do it for my kids. My parents bless them have not a clue that I am Pagan but that is kinda from my don't ask don't tell habits and their own tendency to stay out of it...

I have also confused them, when we were down in Fla. we took the kids to a childrens Purim at a synagog in a nearby town. Dh is Jewish and the local synagog is not his cuppa...neither is reform though...he likes UU. but now he knows and my mother is confused (hee hee)

My Dad took the whole thing with a great deal of abomb, we tried to bring him with us since he explained tons of the story to the 5 year old, knowing the story and being the natural teller of tales he is. he wasn't interested in actually going, just in telling great stories! :)

[Morrighana]

I'm one of the many ex-catholics. I was more of a 'surface catholic', though. I attended church regularily, until shortly after my confirmation (which, ironically, sparked my realization that I really didn't want to be a catholic), but I was never really taught the dogma, never visited a confessional, never really knew why I was there. I always believed in things like magick and questioned what others (my sister, for example) simply accepted as truth.

My father calls himself Agnostic(he uses the term to mean essentially what the poll here states) now, which is his Catholic guilt showing through---he neglects to attend church weekly and confess his sins, so he is unworthy of calling himself Catholic, despite a fervent belief(which is the original reason I was 'raised Catholic'). My mother believes an odd mix of Christianity, Bhuddism, and Hinduism. She says that she knew I was a Witch before I did, and although I don't know if I believe that, I do think it's probably her openness to my path that allowed me to make my transition as smoothly as I have. :)

[Danustouch]

Hmmmm..i couldn't vote. Up until 2nd grade, I was non denominational/non practicing christian. After I came home crying from school one day because I didn't get ashes on my head like the catholic kids, and they told me I was going to hell because of it, I told my mother that I wanted to become catholic. She laughed, and it made me cry harder. The next day, I found a childrens bible on my bed when I got home, and I read it every day for about a year. Even memorized alot of verses and prayers on my own..that was second grade! lol..i was a fanatic. So my mom and dad started taking my brother and I to church at my insistance. Not Catholic though...Congregationalist Christian. Then, I converted to Non Denom/evangelical from the age of 12 to about 15. From 15 to roughly 20, I was a Nazarene Evangelical..and then... Pagan ;)

So..you can see why no option seemed to fit me right. I've been alllllll ova da place ;)

[April]

My parents didn't bring religion of any kind into the house. My mother was Roman Catholic before she married my dad, but dropped it after the wedding. My dad never said anything about church. My sister went off and joined an obscure religion that I'd never heard of until she was a 'member'.

[Tarbh Nathroch]

I come from a hard core Roman Catholic family. My cousin was the first ever in the family to get her ears pierced. My grand parents just about died, I guess the Bible says something about self mutilation. They were still getting over the mass not being in Latin any more.

[Wyrdsister]

I didn't vote as none of the options really fit. I was raised Christian in the United Church of Canada denomination. The United Church is pretty much as liberal as you can get and still be Christian (though a lot of fundie churches don't consider it Christian - a good sign in my books! :D ). My Dad was raised in the United Church, my Mom in the Roman Catholic church. She was determined NOT to raise her children Catholic.

Anyway, I didn't vote as none of the Christian denominations really match up to the United Church well.

Wyrdsister

[ckynes1968]

Your mom was a nun? Do they make it hard for nuns to leave? Just curious.

I'm not sure. She left the day before she took her final vows. I imagine that she had to get permission to leave but her mom was sick (not really but the woman layed a guilt trip on my mom). I think my mom would have stayed in otherwise. She became a Eucharistic Minister and gives Communion to the people in a nursing home.

On her 70th birthday, we had a surprise party and my sisters dug up all sorts of pictures and blew them up lifesize. Seeing a lifesize pix of mom dressed as a nun was a real hoot.

[EarthWhispers]

I attended parochial school... which is what became the catalyst for me to question my hereditary religion and begin to explore other religions in search of something that fit what I have always believed inside.:reading:

[Scarlettvixen]

Well i cant really vote either as the choices u have put up there are predominately american/christian sects.
i was brought up a mix of methodist/presbyterian/salvation army / baptist/ church of england/ uniting church / church of christ - we went to what ever was closest and most convenient

i was confirmed at the age of 16 into the church of england (now known as the anglican church of australia) at my mothers insistance - i did it as it kept the peace and her off my back
left home at 17 and basically only step foot into churches for hatchings matchings and dispatchings lol

[DayDreamer]

only step foot into churches for hatchings matchings and dispatchings lol

Me too! :lol: I just LOVE that description!

[Autumn Sidhe]

My parents are Christian, however they only attended church with us kids until we were about 8 years old. After that they were "Christmas-Easter" Christians. LOL We weren't really raised with religious values, and were taught to make our own choices in our beliefs.

[MzNeko]

Well, I was baptized Lutheran and went to Sunday school and church services at the Lutheran church my grandfather was custodian at for a while. At some point, we switched to a Methodist church for a while. Then I decided I didn't want to do the church/Sunday school thing any more and my parents said okay.

I was sort of vaguely generic Christian for a while, then Agnostic, then in Jr. High a friend took me with her to a Covenant church (some flavor of evangelical) and I went there for a while. Then I decided it just wasn't for me and went back to Agnosticism again.

To me, one of the best definitions of Agnostic I've ever heard came from a History teacher I had in High School -- "I don't know The Answer, but I don't think you do, either!"

[Scarlettvixen]

To me, one of the best definitions of Agnostic I've ever heard came from a History teacher I had in High School -- "I don't know The Answer, but I don't think you do, either!"


:lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol:
love that definition MzNeko i so agree with it

[AmbivalentMirage]

I was raised in a cultic Pentecostal church...

woo hoo for being raised in a cult!! ;)

Anyway, I eventually decided to go to Judaism (my ancestoral roots) and then slowly made my way into paganism. What is funny is that, as a child, I used to pretend I was a magickal witch. Being that we still attended a church at that time, my mother was horrified and insisted that I stop.... Who knew that one day I'd end up being a real witch? ;)... or am I? *checks to make sure he's not Amish*

[Skye]

Wow, this is a really interesting thread. I didn't realize how many people were raised in so many different religions.

Myself, I was not raised in any sort of religion, I voted pagan because I do not concider that to be a religious path, to me it has always been a way of life. As far back as I can find, my family has always been pagan, granted there seems to be some occasions where some of my ancesters proclaimed some type of religion, as for thier reason, we are not sure. I can trace my Clan many years back, and we all share the same traditons as past down for many generations, I would not really call this a religion, just life.

[Twig]

FIRE BELCHING SOUTHERN BAPTIST!!!

My g-mother was an elder (as far as women can get in that male dominated religion) and s-school teacher at the church we went to. :geez: Nice thing about it...no matter WHAT you did, you were going to burn in hell soooooo, WHY TRY!!? Hehehehe

Peace,
Twig
:elf:

ps-the poor lady would be rolling in her grave had she known what started when I was a teen!

[13thChylde]

I was raised Pentecostal Holiness. Very scary! I can not remember a single time that I ever felt comfortable in that church. My parents went off the deep end with it, taking me to album/book burnings, revival in the hottest week of summer OUTSIDE in a tent, andthe ever popular "end of the world/armageddon" movies.

[Toad]

Well I voted Methodist...but this was only from my grandma. My parents didnt go to church and didnt force me to go either. Only church I got growing up was from gran and it was Methodist.

[moonunit]

My mother was Anglican...My father was United...and that's how i was baptised.

[Jeleia]

I was raised Baptist.

[LightDancer]

hmmmm...what are the people who speak in tounges, are "slain in the spirit"(possesed by the Holy Spirit which causes uncontrolable crying fits, the shakes, fainting and convulsions), who dance around like their possesed, who teach Satan causes all of the worlds problems, and any sort of mental (even some physical) ailments are caused by demon possesion, and that the Word of God is the absolute truth....If there's a name for them I was raised that :wtf:

B*B
Jamie

[MzNeko]

hmmmm...what are the people who speak in tounges, are "slain in the spirit"(possesed by the Holy Spirit which causes uncontrolable crying fits, the shakes, fainting and convulsions), who dance around like their possesed, who teach Satan causes all of the worlds problems, and any sort of mental (even some physical) ailments are caused by demon possesion, and that the Word of God is the absolute truth....If there's a name for them I was raised that :wtf:

B*B
Jamie

Sounds to me like Pentecostal, but I could be wrong.

[Myrddyn Emrys]

Catholic.

Went every sunday with my father to Saint Agnes parish in Phoenix.

But, my parents were firm believers in letting their children grow up and form their own beliefs, so I was never pressured as I grew older to continue that path.

Myrddyn Emrys

[Starfly]

I'm in utter shock!
:jawdrop:
I just can't believe that I'm the only person on here so far who was raised Mormon. In my experience, I usually find quite a few pagans who were raised as Mormons, or maybe it's just a southwest thing.

[Myrddyn Emrys]

Oh, I know quite a few!

I do think its a "southwest" thing because there are so many Mormons out here, especially up here in Heber-Overgaard, just a stones throw from the original "Mormon Trail".

Myrddyn Emrys

[Ryhla]

My grandmother went to a pennicostal church, so naturally I went with her a lot of times. When my mom remarried, we went to a local church that by affiliation was a babtist church, but in reality had no denomination so they more or less considered their church a community church. My dad's side of the family really had no affiliation with any kind of church. In fact, Dad is aethist, or the last I knew he was.

[amathera]

I was asked to leave the Lutheran Sunday School when I was nine for getting angry when they wouldn't admit there were dinosaurs. They said they were put there to test our faith.

:smoke:

[Scarlettvixen]

my first elements of doubt came when i was about 10 and they told me that my dog who had just died didnt have a soul and wouldnt be going to heaven
i got a spanking for saying i didnt think much of any church who was so narrow minded and that the dog was more human than half the congregation lol

[Starfly]

I do think its a "southwest" thing because there are so many Mormons out here, especially up here in Heber-Overgaard, just a stones throw from the original "Mormon Trail".


Ah, okay, that makes some sense I guess. I know one pagan workshop I went to awhile back on the Babylonian pantheon had about half of its participants being raised Mormon, and since then I continue to come across even more.

[Psyche Ague]

Roman Catholic here.

[dragonmagic64]

Hello everyone. WEll it's been a while since I had a chance to check out the sight.
thought I would post a message here. I'm a RECOVERING CATHOLIC hahahah. Although I must say all that forced education serves me well in my life now as a reflective point of Reference. I find even though it has been years since I read the bible, when conversations with "christians" turns to bible stories, I remember alot more of them then the people I am speaking with. In my spiritual life I find that many of the storys are extreamly symbolic in nature and actually have GREAT spiritual secrets hidden within there facades. (did I spell that right?)

[shiloki]

I'm in utter shock! I just can't believe that I'm the only person on here so far who was raised Mormon. In my experience, I usually find quite a few pagans who were raised as Mormons, or maybe it's just a southwest thing.

no....you're not the only one, starfly....i was, too...and it might be a southwest thing....anyway, yeah, i was baptized, went to primary, made it all the way to a mia maid even went to seminary as a freshman in highschool and - of course - alllllll the functions...what was it called that weekly thing where the boys and girls would get together and do some sort of activity???....eh, i can't remember....

i stopped gong when i was about 14...initially, i was just tired of all the hypocrites that i went to school and church with...i know that's not what mormonism (or most religions) is all about, i just couldn't understand why you have a set of instructions that yer supposed to live yer life by, but everyone seems to twist the words all around into whatever they want with total disregard of the actual meaning sometimes...don't get me wrong, there were many many people i went to church with that were the genuine article...truely stellar people all around...but, they would have been great people regardless of their religion....there were bits of mormon doctrine that i did begin to have problems w/ tho...not just the people...and that was another factor in my leaving...

as for my parents influence....my dad was once of those that was kinda hot and cold...for while he'd be totally gun-ho about the whole thing, throw the whole family into it head long....then he'd be totally indifferent...like he could take it or leave it....kinda confusing if ya ask me...

mom....well, mom's great and always will be....i think she'd still be going to church except she has this problem where she doesn't feel worthy any more...'cause she's human and has faults like smoking and stuff...which, despite what people think is not a sin for a mormon...it is strongly suggested that you don't smoke and certain restrictions may be applied if you do....but the religion itself does not speak ill of someone who does....only jerks who want to make other people feel bad....which is why my mom stopped going....someone was a jerk and made her feel guilty and now she won't go....

anyway....'nuff of that....i kinda felt i had to speak up for us post-mormons seein' has how there's only.....uh.....two of us???

[BellaWild]

make that three, shiloki ;)

[shiloki]

make that three, shiloki ;)

heh...hey...i wonder if we could, like, sue for emotional trauma or something....we could call it Post-Mormon Syndrome....heh....PMS!!! :rotfl:

[Starfly]

:lol: That's hilarious! I don't know why I never thought of that!

Yup, I know what you mean about your mom not going to church because of all that. My mom's really sick and has severe asthma attacks from people's perfumes and other scents and things which people always wear to church, so she can't go. For some reason this has made her "a bad Mormon" in the eyes of most of the others who go to that particular church. :geez:

Nice to meet you, BellaWild! Lets see if any more people suffering from of Post-Mormon Syndrome pop out of the woodwork! :lol:

[Gwynna Starr]

Roman Catholic.

I attended Catholic School from 1st to 9th grade. Needless to say I had a rough time. Most of the kids were from wealthy backgrounds and enjoyed making my life miserable because they knew my family was middle class. It was like I didn't belong there...

By 9th grade it got worse, and I talked my Mom into letting me attend public school. She fought me, but finally gave up realizing how miserable I was... Those last 3 years of public school were my best! :smile:

I didn't like all the Dogma that comes with being Catholic... And it's even worse being a female and Catholic. More pressure is put on us, than on the males.

Now I only attend church for Christmas and Easter, but that's about it. I just don't feel comfortable there... However I do enjoy some of the ritualness of the Catholic church, so that might be why I'm interested in Wicca and witchcraft.

[VroomBroom]

Catholic, till I was about 7 and I got tired of doing/hearing the same thing every service we went to, and I told my mom I wasn't going any more!:geez:

[Mistiblue]

I was raised Methodist.

[Aine of the Fae]

I was raised sort of Methodist. I notice there is a large proportion of former Catholics though.... Hmmm...

[Brenners]

Roman Catholic, went every Sunday, did the sacraments, catechism, and all that jazz. With a little bit of folk magick thrown in.

[Arylon]

Jehovah's Witness. It was bad enough that I didn't have Christmas, birthdays, or my FAVORITE holiday Halloween! When I was twelve, I had to have some major surgery, and my mom didn't want me to have any blood transfusions. We had a big blowout fight, and I finally told her that any religion that encourages letting people die is utter crap! :bastard:

BUT...Thanks to my involvement in that church, I never had to salute the flag either! :)

[CelestiaSynth]

I voted 'none'. Luckily for me, my parents never really me forced to follow a certain religion while I was growing up. My mother did relate some of her religious beliefs to me, but it was never a 'my way or the highway' deal with my parents. Their both Baptist, but they function rather loosely when it comes to dogma. I was never forced to go to church regularly (we only went on Easter, and moreso to appease the more fundemental members of my family than my mom or dad) and they left the door open to me to explore other possiblities, which eventually lead me to Wicca. They didn't push me out into the world, saying "Explore new idea!", they just never complained when I did.

[Crystal_Raye]

My famliy believes in a Higher Being but doesn't really have a specific religion or sect.

[Earth_kissed]

as a baby I was babtized Presbyterian but never went to church till I was about 12 and then I went to baptist camp where I was "saved" then for about I week I gave that up and tried to be wiccan although I had no Idea what I was doing, I just bought some candels and watched Charmed! then I kinda gave up hope on anything. I really believed in God, but everything in the bible made me angry, the whole Eve and apple, and how nothing could be scientificly possible (firm believer in Evolution) so I just went down the path of no religion (and oh my Clark just pooped down the back of my neck!!!) untill I read The Da Vinci Code!

[Rain Gnosis]

I was raised without religion - we celebrated the same holidays everyone else did but only because everyone else did, and without any religions connotations. I chose my own religion - my parents are still not religious at all, though my mom's mom was a tea leaf reader and her family is Native American, and my dad wants to go to Valhalla when his time comes.

[Grey]

I was raised episcopalian, but both my parents are pretty new agey so while that was our church, I was raised with meditation and the occaisonal dali lama quote. My mother found out I was doing research online a few years back ( I wasnt trying to hide it but I dont go out of my way either) and she said she admired wiccans, though she didnt quite agree with alot of the fluff on it shed seen resently. Magic was not a word used in the house really, metaphysics is what just about anything from actuall metaphysics to the occult is called. After all wouldnt want to insult the church right?

and yes we are "catholic light" with all TWICE the ceremony and HALF the guilt ;).

[Sparrow]

Both my parents were very lax Christians who didn't believe in the bible, so I always viewed them more as agnostic. They never went to church, but they took us if we wanted to go.

I'm still agnostic really. I believe in a creator to the point that I respect the masculine, feminine, and neutral energies that spurned creation, but not in a sentient or cogniscent(sp?) way, if that makes sense. And I practice withcraft.

[jelly.belly]

Well, I didn't vote coz none of the choices applied... I was raised as a Greek Orthodox, but I never was really drawn to that faith, my mom's been trying to get me to church since I've been 8! :lol: But even tho I was raised as an orthodox, I did everything kinda like a Christian, coz my mom didn't want me to feel left out when all my friends went for their first communion and stuff... When I asked her what religion she was she kept telling me that whatever religion that it didn't matter as long as she believed in her God... Still weird that she's had for the last 8 years a hard time with me being pagan!

[MoonCrystal]

I was chirstened as Church of England and went to a CofE Primary school. My mum is a firm beliver and although my dad didn't believe in any thing he was very determind that we were going to. After I went to secondary school I pretty much stopped doing the whole church thing until my little brother died. I started going again as I found being in the church or its grounds very comforting for some reason although i didn't think of the bible as any more than a collection of nice stories. I have since discovered that the church was built on an anicient pagan site. I think this is why I feel so good when i'm there. I still go and sit in the grounds occasionally but I dont attend services any more, it wouldn't be right.

[Kimberlily]

My parents were raised Christian, but they didn't raise us Christian. We never went to church, and we only celebrated Christmas, so I voted Agnostic, since my Dad taught us to come to our own conclusions regarding God, and my Mom, even though she still believes in what she learned in Church, didn't teach us about Christianity.

[SilentStarWolf]

I was raised Episcopalian and still am.......just exploring other stuff right now :)

[Hawk Shadowsoul]

Southern Baptist. Many uncles and a host of cousins are S.B. Preachers. My stepfather insisted I become Catholic. 13 years a Mormon Elder. To date: Confirmed Pagan to the point of no return.

[WingedTigerChild]

I was raised in the Unitarian Universalist Church. That being said, I would consider my religious upbringing closest to liberal Christianity with some agnosticism thrown into the mix. ;)

[MoonRaven]

Roman Catholic - but the word is not "raised," but "given no other option." I was MADE to go to church EVERY Sunday, like it or not, and when I was younger I was made to say prayers WITH my mom every night before bed. Eventually she thought I was old enough to do it on my own but I didn't bother. Eventually when I was about 12, they told me to get ready for church one morning and I turned around and said NO. There was a HUGE argument over it, but eventually they got the idea that I HATED being Catholic, and now they've accepted the fact that I'm not Christian, but the discussion never goes beyond that.

[WingedTigerChild]

Looking over the poll again, Hinduism and Buddhism are Pagan religions. “Pagan,” on its own, should not be listed and there should be an “Other” option, as the creator of the poll neglected to list a number of religious denominations/sects.

[MoonRaven]

That depends on your definition of Pagan.
But yeah, there should be an "Other" option.

[Traz Heart]

I was raised Catholic (no I wasn't a alter boy!! lucky for me)

[Rain Gnosis]

Looking over the poll again, Hinduism and Buddhism are Pagan religions.

Uh, actually WingedTigerChild, as far as I know Hindus and Buddhists don't consider themself Pagan so most Pagans don't either.

[Rina]

Well... bringing up the middle of the table I was raised in the methodist church... which in some ways I'm still very much a part of. All the tea and loud singing is quite heartwarming!

[WingedTigerChild]

Uh, actually WingedTigerChild, as far as I know Hindus and Buddhists don't consider themself Pagan so most Pagans don't either.
Well, Hinduism and Buddhism are Pagan religions nonetheless... along with Satanism. I hate that people restrict Paganism to the NeoPagan religions. Anyway, back on topic.

[Sylvan]

I can't really vote- there's no choice of "born-again cult". :lol:

[nomadicdragon]

Independent Baptist by my missionary parents. oh yeah.. it was fun.

[nomadicdragon]

I can't really vote- there's no choice of "born-again cult". :lol:

Defeinitely feel your pain .

[Desert_Yaqui]

I too, like many of you it seems, was raised in a very strict Roman Catholic environment–and if you add to that, a very strict traditional Mexican upbringing –you have on pretty f*cked up person!

As a young girl, I remember thinking that being Catholic just didn't really feel quite right. For me there was always an eeriness about being Catholic that I still cannot quite put into words... Most of the time I would never even listen to the priest deliver his homily and I would constantly find myself daydreaming. I finally quit going to church when I left home at 19.

And I too, have toyed with lots of religious notions and dogmas over the years but still haven't reached any real conclusions or decisions about my Path. While I believe "something" I haven't decided what that something quite is...I just know that it's NOT being Catholic!!! :lol:

I want to thank mol, Semele, and the other moderators for bringing this website into existence–This is a great community and I feel proud to call myself a small part of it and with that I'd also like to say thanks to my brethren also!! (that's you folks, *wink* *wink*)

[Gala]

Not anything while I was growing up. My dad's mom was a church of christ, my mom was southern baptist, but neither went to church. I went to sunday school with friends sometimes or vacation bible school but just for fun.

When I was 26, I got "saved" and joined a missionary baptist church, which if anyone one knows is just about as hard core as you can get in a baptist. they call then foot washing baptist.

Then one year later I split cause they were hypocrites.

13 years later I found out about paganism. Been there ever since.

[zakzekezedd]

"chuckle"..it appears there are a few of us lapsed Lutherns hanging around here.....

[Darkstaff]

I was raised in a bunch of basically Protestant sects, but I answered Baptist, because a majority of my time was wasted there.

[ShadowCat13]

My parents were baptists, and we went to church sometimes, but the last time i remember going to church with my family i guess i was about 6. my parents still have that faith, but i never did. I was made to go to church, even though it never fit right with me. i always knew there was something more out there that i just hadnt found yet. when i found wicca i knew where i fit in. my family still doesnt know, as they would disown me, so i'm keeping that quiet, but i find that they really dont need to know.

[Pan]

Methodist. I think they have predestination which a lot of people don't seem to understand?

[Garnet]

Roman Catholic - but the word is not "raised," but "given no other option."
Me, too, except I lasted until high school.
I went to Catholic school a few years, & to catechism when I was in public school. I had to go to church every week, & drag my sister & brothers along, although my parents rarely went.
This was back in the days when we were taught that simply because we were Catholics, we were better than anyone else.
One evening in catechism, I got into an argument with a nun. She insisted that not only were we better, that all other religions knew we were better than they were & looked up to us. So I asked if they knew we were better, why weren't they all Catholics, too? Sister turned red, told me that I was fresh, & ordered me to pray for forgiveness because I had sinned against her.
I went home, told my parents what had happened, & flatly refused to go back. They made me try a different church, but I went there only because it had a cool 'teen hang-out center', not really religious. I had stopped considering myself Catholic before I stopped hanging out there.

[Lucius]

My mom was/is Non-Denominational Christian, and my dad was/is Baptist. They both tried to teach basic Christian principles and my mom was pretty open to other belief systems. I started studying Wicca and reading books and things on various magickal systems when I was like 10 and, then initiated in when I was about 11. Yes, I realize this is young, but I really love to read and I was really interested. My mom fully accepts my religion. As for my father...he doesn't know, and probably never will. However, he did find out that I was "dabbling in Witchcraft" as he called it when I was around 13/14.

[AuroraSilvermist]

Wheeee! Look at all the recovering Catholics. ;)

I used to love my church. I was even a church musician (piano and organ) for 17 years (I started when I was 15). I had many good experiences, but the bad ones outweighed them. And I started realizing that what I heard every Sunday wasn't necessarily what I believed. (Though I still believe Jesus had it straight. It's his followers that sometimes distort his message.) ANYhow, fortunately for me, I just...woke up.

[Purrcatnip]

I was raised with a total mix. Spent the first 8 years of my life going to baptist sunday school, because it was the closest church around and my parents wanted me to be raised with some morals.. or something like that. However, my dad is catholic and made me go to midnight mass with him, and then when we moved here to michigan my mom wanted me to go to her familiy's christian church. So basically im a religious mutt who ended up on the wiccan side. :colorful:

[Angelais]

I was raised Presbyterian untill I was about 17 when I stopped going to church. I always had a problem with believing things that they told me to believe in. I never felt right being told to believe this and believe that. I always wanted to believe what was in my heart, and now I can.

[badkitty]

I wasn't raised with any religion, but always wanted to be, went with my friends to their chruches for fun.

[Mòrag Elasaid Ní Dhòmhnaill]

Though we didn't attend Meeting House as there was none nearby (the closest was a two hour drive away) I was essentially raised in the Society of Friends (Quaker). However my dad is an agnostic (which like was pointed out before is mis-defined on this poll) and my mother did have us attend VBS at the local church, which was essentially a mission church. And actually I have no objection with how I was raised. I have a lot of respect for the Society of Friends. If you don't really know anything about them, which most people don't - there's a ton of misinformation and misuderstanding about who they are - you should really go to religioustolerance.org and read the essay there.

However I can give you the basic core of their beliefs: Everyone has direct access to the Divine, there is no priestly class; every person is of equal worth, in fact a large number of abolishinists during the times of slavery in the US were Quakers; there is no need or room for elaborate ceremony, ritual, or creed, hence why I was never baptised; and finally spiritual development and individual perfection can be attained by following the Inner Light.

They tend worship in silence, speaking only when they feel moved by the Divine - although there are apparently some sects that are programmed or pastoral. Many, though not all certainly, are pacifists, just as many are social activists advocating reform of all sorts. They refuse to take any oaths, as to do so implies two different kinds of truthfulness, one for everyday life and one for special occassions. The Bible is not considered the end all and be all of belief and conduct. Science and philosphy, as well as the Inner Light are welcomed to resolve any perceived contradictions.

In all it's a very lovely religion, and I'm really considering attendance at their meetings. I find that many of their beliefs really gel with mine and speak to my heart. Of course it will probably send my in-laws in seizures. They are Roman Catholics, and the Society of Friends is about as far from Catholicism as you can get and still be Quaker.

Here's a very good link explaining the beliefs in an FAQ format, http://www.quakerfinder.org/faq.htm

~Saoirse Aiyana

[Raydreamer]

You know, i don't even know what the difference is btween all those presbytampon and 7th day advent calendarist religons is!!??!? :lol:

[Jenne]

I was raised Southern Baptist...very restrictive in social terms. Devil was in the air waves, so we weren't allowed to listen to "contemporary" music, just Christian. No low necklines or high hemlines, because you "might cause your brother to fall" in thinking with lust for you. And absolutely NO dancing. Same reason as for the potato sack dresses, lol. No women were to teach men, and you must be baptized after you accept Christ as your Savior in order to truly follow your path to Heaven.

There is more that separates Baptists from others, esp Southern Baptists, but this is what stands out to me. When we moved away from my childhood church when I was 12, we started to see it as rather cultish--they started doing things like burning Cabbage Patch dolls and such. My Little Pony was evil and so was Rainbow Brite--influencing our young into heathen practices. :lol:

So when I was 12, we joined a non-denominational Christian and Missionary Alliance church, which was more into supporting missionaries in the Congo and in S. America, than in social policies. It was a sort of cold place, very formal, and I actually liked it there til the pastor kept forgetting my name and called me the town slut to my face, lol. I think he had an early onset of alzheimer's or something...

Anyway, from there I attended another C&MA church in Santa Barbara, where I was going to undergrad, but that place gave me the creeps. It was instituionalized religion for sure. You were a number there, not a person, not even a worshipper. The music director had a hard on and decided to take over the church. The pastor, who was the best part of that place (he was educated and brought in works other than the Bible to make his point in the sermon every Sunday--something that I found refreshing, so that's the only reason why I really kept going) kept half the church, the music director the other half. I had skidaddled by then, lol. Just found myself unable to reconcile the cold delivery of the religion with the things that were gripping me about the doctrine. Not a happy time for me religion-wise.

That was the last church I attended, other than to go for Christmas pageants, etc. with my gma and gpa. But I don't think I've been to one for ages except to go to a wedding or something. I miss it somewhat, just the fellowship with others, the conviction through and through that I was right in what I was believing, and here were tons of others believing the same thing. There's a sort of comfort to that sort of brainwashing, there really is. I think I grieved for the loss of that for a few years.

But I digress, lol.

[argento_occhi]

I was raised christian. my parents were church of christ (i don't know what the equivalent in usa is)ministers and we were there til i was 12. then we moved suburbs and went to the local anglican church (my parents weren't priests then, but my dad is now, and has his own couple of parishes to look after). i went along, but didn't like it there. i got bored and by the time i was 15 i wasn't going to regular church every sunday. I went to an anglican school for my high school years, which was good, even though by the time i got to my secon-lasty year, i wasn't christian anymore. i think i've covered it all.
blessed be,
argento_occhi

[Eowyn]

I think I was Lutheran (cant spell today)... Is it that religion of christianism that are popular in Scandinavian?

[sunset_winds]

I was raised with a belief in God by my baptist mother. But her teachings were kept in check by my fathers extreem Atheism. But my mom was also very interested in astrology, and reading tarot and she had a high respect and esteem for nature. She would sing and talk to her plants to help them grow *smile* My father's lack of belief baffled me. I though "How could we be, and how could everything be, without something else out there?!" And then when I was about 9 I felt that pull of femininity. I felt that the one being out there could not be hands donw, absolutely male. I thought there must be female divinity. And from there I began to learn about native american beliefes in school, and then about Greek/Roman and Celtic gods, and eventually I got my hands on some occult books, and every idea that had ever crossed my mind about the after-life, about life, about earth, all just fell into place. It felt natural and right for me to begin learning about Wicca, and to eventually practice. I feel at home in the truest sense of the phrase.

[Kalika]

My parents are methodist... and they TRIED to raise me that way anyways. :lol:

[Bethra]

I was raised with an agnostic background though I was christened Church of England.

[Darklord_Kodiak]

Haha Catholic

[Bix]

Mom was Presbyterian, dad was Episcopalian. Mom first took me to her church but then my family went to my dad's church so we wouldn't get confused.

[bbnflpn]

i put agnostic, my family was werid when it came to religon, on my birth certificate it says that both my parents are protastant, come to find out only last year that my dad is actually catholic, and decided to renounce his religon. funny thing is that my family is irish for the most part and on my moms side of the family they are split between the 2, my grandma gave up and became episcolaiean (i know i didnt spell that right) my freinds would ask me to come to chuch with them, the first church service i remember going to was a catholic mass when i was in 2nd grade. my mom thought that she would try to put a bit of religon and decided to see if we liked bible study at grandmas new episcople church. i think i went 3 times before i thought that it was udder bs (i was 10) she said i didnt have to go if i didnt want to. so i didnt. then my friends would ask me to join them for bible study. i went the first one i went to was jahovas witness. i was promptly kicked out when i asked why premairtal sex was so bad since people had been haveing sex since before marriage was invented. (among other things, like the whole adam and eve thing they didnt like that much either) my mom was leary of me going in the first place, she wasnt too upset when i got kicked out it was like she expected it i was 11-12 i cant remember. the next one i did was for a morman bible study. i just sat in the back ground and picked my nose, i didnt say any thing and never came back. over the years it was you must come to church with me, i promise our church is differnt ect. same ol song and dance to try to get people to come in. and every time i went i felt like an outside observer watching a bunch of brain washed souls and sheep. i hated it.

my cousin convinced me to go with her to a special event at her church, from what i hear now the skater tony hawk is from around where i live, (i dont know this for sure, but i guess my cousin use to hang out with him) well he was giving a ramp demo at her church right when he was getting really popular, i asked if there would be preaching she said no so i went (why o why do i let my self get in to these things) any way... he and his friends did like 3 passes on the ramp and the next thing i know 3 hours of preaching (or it seemed like it any way) i wanted to leave and call mom to come and get us, but i couldnt find a phone, i think they took them all out so we couldnt escape.

i would go to church with my freinds after that to see them get baptised and then see them immideatly go and do the things that they promised they wouldnt do (sex, drugs, caffiene ect) it made me thing what was the point of the baptisim, did it give you free reign to do all the things that people said were wrong. i never understood this.

a boyfreind asked me to go with him to his church so i went again, under protest, he said it was not like other churches, i thought to my self yah right. there was a short bible study, and then they broke us off in to groups, boys and girls, i told him i would leave if i were seperated from him, so they let me go with the boys group. i was 17, i know alot about what they would talk about in these groups cause well i didnt hold my self to the same values when it came to sex, and other moral issues. they said they didnt feel comfortable talking with me there, i said why, here ill start what was the topic today pastor, and went off on all the things they were gonna talk about with my view, unaltered, lol yah pastor loved that one. i was never asked back.

i wasnt asked to go to church again for a while, another boyfreind asked me to go with his family to an easter mass, again under protest i went, i never actually got in to the church though, i had forgotten a shoe (i do not drive in heels ever) and i didnt want to embarrass them, so i stayed in my car.

after that only for weddings and funerals i went. but constantly it was like i had a sign on my head that said you must try to convert this person to what ever sect they were in, and they would jump at me from the wood works, start talking to me while i was driving my car from the street (convertable says for some reason hi talk to me, i guess since you are not all caged up you are more accessble) i had one guy come at me that was selling news papers, he came in to the middle of the street (3 lanes) and tapped on my window, i do not want a paper, roll down your window (this condinued for a bit) i opend it a crack barly so he could get a finger through, and said "smile jesus loves you, you must come to church with us," the light turned green and i hit the gas and got out of there.

i had teachers pray for me, as well as co-workers, and all of it turned me off on the religon. all of it, it was kind of like the goddess was giving this a bad taste in my mouth to the main stream.

when i finally realized that i was a witch, i felt at home, not many people liked it when i told them, but most of them said they thought i was pagan already, and when i looked back on things yah i was very much pagan since i can remember.

my parents never shoved religon down my through, just a sence of higher power (yah we were a recovery family) my dad always hated it when people would even start to talk about god in any form, my mom would just listen and smile (i wonder if secretly they were pagan lol i know they were not though)

when i told my mom i was a witch she was worried (you know the usual propaganda filled her head) i told her what it was about, and encoraged her to look things up on the puter, when she did this she said yah your a witch all right, there is no doubt in my mind that you could be any thing other than what you are, i always wanted you to find the path that was right for you, and i am glad that you have found it, now every so often she asks me to do a card reading for her lol, and asks me about the holidays, and when i took the class on garden witchery she was totaly impressed, (starting to see signs that mom might switch over to pagainism) lol

[XanderAmon]

Jewish/Catholic. Heavy on the Jewish, since we live much closer to that side of the family.

[bshore]

UCC all the way. I was coerced in to being confirmed and everything, and technically, I'm still part of the church since I never called them and told them "Oh, by the way, you can stop printing up donation envelopes for me. I'm Pagan now."

[Ninjakitten]

Agnostic, though my mom claims to have raised me Christian (protestant of some sort) and dares to take credit for me "coming to Christ" as an adult. Nevermind she lived so un-Christian that she's the type of person Anton LeVey used as an excuse to create the Church of Satan, which, yes, I looked into as an option in the past.

[WokeUpDead]

Isn't none the same as atheist? I wasn't raised with any real religious stuff. I've been to one church service in my life that I can remember and that wasn't by choice. It was more like "Oooh look, there's a big fancy church." My parents say I had to sit through one when I was about 2 or something and I was crying and screaming the whole time.

[donatello51]

I have no religion. I don't need no religion. I am a free thinker and am always revising my views of the world I live in. Nothing and I mean nothing leads me to believe in dieties or gods or monsters. There is more to the universe then we can possible ever know. There is no book or series of books that can explain it all or even a tiny part of it... other dimensions... parallel universes... overlapping and interwoven time lines... paradoxes... other things I can't begin to imagine. And a religion or several religions are going to explain all this? NOT a chance bucko! Not a chance. Better you keep an open mind and watch and listen and experience everything on the path of your life. Add to your knowledge that which seems to make sense and discard that which doesn't and your likely to be a hundredth of the way to perhaps getting part of it half right. :rolleyes:

[Bec_W]

Raise catholic :)

[Ishtara]

I voted "Multiple Religions" because I could not choose several options... otherwise my answers would have been:
(nominally) Catholic: the "by default" religion where I come from and also my mom's
(nominally) Lutheran: my dad's religion, which suited me better than Catholicism
Atheist: because I do not think my parents were actual believers at all :lol:

[Dave the Druid]

None of the Above works for me despite a late surge of Judism from my mother.

[Meadhbh]

Pagan, which in way has its own advantages and draw backs.

[shilasu]

Evangelical Congregational, made worse by the fact that more than half of the (rural) chuch my parents took me/want me to go to consists of my extended family....

[Malcolm]

Lutheran

[Luminessence]

Tibetan Buddhist.

Hey, I noticed I'm the only one who answered "Buddhist" on the poll. Cool, I'm unique :D

[LostSheep]

yay, Catholic (which isn't too dissimilar to Paganism, is it) in the lead!!

[LadyCelt]

atheist. Yet, I kinda believed in reincarnation when I was young and felt I had an old soul, though I didn tknow what it meant lol

[lonewhitewolf]

I was adopted from Bogota,Columbia in South America when I was a baby. I was raised as a Reform Jew [not strictly following the Jewish laws. We didn't keep kosher]. After having a Bat Mitzvah at about age 13 my parents gave me a choice of continuing Hebrew school or to stop going. I chose to stop. I had always been mercilessly picked on in school and felt like I didn't belong. I eventually got interested in Wicca and bought ever book I could find on the subject. But I decided it wasn't for me. My path now is a combination of Shamanism, animism, and polytheism. I believe in every God and Goddess but The Egyptian Pantheon is the one I feel a very strong connection to,especially the God,Set. And yes, I do still celebrate some of the Jewish holidays like Passover and Hanukkah. I'm kind of torn between being a pagan and being Jewish really. Sometimes I wonder if its even worth it to be Jewish.


-Jessica [aka Whitewolf]

[aluokaloo]

catholic and some sort of christian. I began straying away from them at 11.

[sidhe]

Gotta say "none". My mom let my sister and I find our own way. Now my sis is Jewish, and I'm Thelemic. And my mom is Buddhist, I think, but like Christian holidays. *shrugs* Makes for a fun December.

[Arion]

My mom is Presbyterian, my dad's an atheist, but we celebrate the Christian holidays and such. My parents gave up on church when I was quite young so I never had any solid religious upbringing, my family is pretty secular.

[Amber Wynd]

We went to the Mormon church, but my mom was really a Methodist and her mother was a witch. So was my dad's mother. It was very confusing. In keeping with that tradition of confusion, I married an atheist, converted to discordianism, and sent my daughter to school at the local Buddhist temple.

[TaysatWesir]

I was raised Catholic but was introduced to other religions by my parents.

[Meabh23]

I don't know what to call it.

There was some Christian influences like Pentecostal.

Some Catholicism.

But generally not anything strict or strong.

So I wouldn't be justified in saying I was raised into any religion.

[catgirl]

Until I was 15 and moved to my dad's, my mom forced me to go to her church, the Church of Christ. Later I went to a Baptist church for a couple of years.

My dad was and still is very open minded. He told me that he would help me find any church I wanted to go to, but that if I didn't want to go anywhere, that was just fine with him. I don't believe he defines himself as any religion, but I know he's like me in that he's always felt closer to God(s), spirit, etc., outside drinking up the beauty of nature, rather than in any church building somewhere. A couple of times a year we'd go to our favorite park and spend a whole Sunday walking the trails. Good days!

[Brandon Bee]

My parents raised me as a Baptist. They're not as bad as some, but they do have a strong conservative flavor.

[Hangatyr 13]

I was raised Baptist. Therefore, I was a satanist in highschool.

[cartweel]

My parents were nominally Christian, but my maternal grandparents have a wonderful, ecstatic faith and are Presbyterian. I've gone to church with them since I was very little, and I'm pretty fluent with the Bible from cover to cover. Still, I never considered myself Christian--I thought it was an interesting story, but not much more.

So yes, I was raised Presbyterian (in a Methodist church, though) but never considered myself a Christian. I was pretty damned agnostic--still am, really.

[maldito]

My mother is catholic, but my father don't follow any religion. I decided to follow a new path, and most of all, a new way of thinking. I left the catholisism because I didn't liked the religions any more. All just looked like stricts codes of behavior. Paganism was what I was looking for.

[wolf]

Recovering Cathoholic here, which seems to be leading the pack as far as the poll goes (although I haven't taken the time to add the aggregate scores for all the protestant sects).

[RubyRose]

I wasn't raised with any religion, but dad wouldn't allow it. My mum tried to tell me that I was Christian every now and again, but I told her I wasn't, and under no circumstances was my son being Christianed.

[Meryln2k]

I put down Episcopalian because that was what I was baptised. However, I've also been Lutheran Catholic, Orthodox, Old Cahtlic...these days I am (for lack of a clearer category, an OldCatholic/Wiccan/Pagan (think OrdoArcanorum Gradlis)

[Moonlite Faery]

You didnt have Evangelical Free, which is what I was for about 13 years and then the beginning years was Presbyterian. So I guess my parents decided to morph sects :)

[shuvanilu]

I was raised Mormon. My dad was my bishop!---shuvanilu

[Semjaza]

I was raised in the Baha'i Faith (think Islam, Sufism, etc) although my Dad is kind of an atheist/Christian. Dad's family is United Christian, Mom's is Baha'i, religion is kind of a non-issue. A main tenent of the Baha'i Faith is to question everything, and that people should be able to explore all paths that they want to. Both of my parents are interested in the supernatural, so, I guess you could say it worked out well for me...

Cheers,

Semjaza
FFFF

[wolfjan1]

I was raised Episcopalian after two events happened. When I was a sickly baby, and they thought I was going to die, The catholic priest refused to come and Baptise me. My Great aunta, ordaine Congregational minister came and I was named after her. Then, While I was still a baby, the nuns at My brother's catholic school told him the whole family was going to hell unless I was re-baptised and raised catholic. My Mom yanked the boys out of school and placed them in public school. We found a tiny Episcopalian church with a young minister who was a great influence on the young people's lives. Then, When I found an alternative religion, He told me that the basic religious rules were the same. He said that Many "religious " leaders intrepret the bible in any way that suits them. If I respect all religions and try to understand other's point of view, I will be OK. He was a good man and taught me well. Although he is gone now, He comes to mind every time I think of ethics, religion and politics.
Blessed be,
Wolfie

[Amythyst]

My grandmother raised me (long story) and had me secretly baptized Catholic against my Dad's wishes when I was eight years old. Religious training was sporadic for me, usually when my grandmother got a wild hair. Spent two years in Catholic Parochial School.

[Lady Aeris]

well, my birth mom was mormon, then she was non-denominational christian, my step mom is a baptist, my dad's agnostic, my grandparents are catholic, and i've always been a witch- lets just say, everything's been pushed on me, but i have a bug so it all ends up running away. fun stuff.

[SSanf]

Baptist...and that explains a lot.

[Cain]

None. I went to a Church of England school, who tried to force it on everyone who didn't already have strongly religious views (like the few Jehovah's Witnesses who attended), but I never believed it, plus my parents are agnostic anyway.

[Duwayitheru]

Agnostic, leaning tward Christianity of no specific sort.

[Marcasite]

There's no option for 'exceptionally lax Christians'
My mom is a Christian who is not all that sure that Jesus is actually the son of God.
My Dad's a little firmer on the above point, but him and my mom only make it to church every Christmas and Easter. (and sometimes my mom stays home)
And religion in our daily lives when I was growing up...nah. I think there's a dusty bible around on a shelf somewhere but that's about it.
My parents never really enforced it either, after about 13 my sister and I could decide to go to church or not and usually we decided against it.
I guess if you asked my parents, they'd say Anglican, but there's no option for that either.

[rainqueen]

I was raised Catholic. My mom's side of the family is very Catholic, though I don't think she herself really much of a practicing one these days. She stopped taking us to church when I was in high school, and I went on my own for a few years till I eventually fell away from it. I think the main reason I stuck with it as long as I did was because I had friends there and was involved in the youth group. When I was a kid my mom usually took us to church during the school year when we had Sunday school afterwards, but we rarely went in the summer, and skipped most of the special holiday stuff (midnight mass, Ash Wednesday, etc). My dad was never religious, though his mother was also Catholic. I suppose my two younger brothers probably still consider themselves Catholic, but pretty lax/ apathetic about it. I currently consider myself sort of pagan, sort of agnostic. I expect it shouldn't be too big a deal if/ when my immediate family finds out about my being into paganism, considering none of them are really too religious these days, and once years ago I remember my mom saying if I wanted to study other religions and some point that was okay. But I feel like I'll never ever be able to tell some of my extended family on my mom's side, especially my grandma.

[Mama J]

I was raised until I was nine as a Jehovah's Witness, then I was adopted and baptized and confirmed Presbyterian, and now I am trying to find my own way. My hubby was raised catholic and hated every minute of it. He to is trying to find his own way.

[Xirian]

My parents raised me as a Jehovah's Witness. I disassociated myself when I was 17.

[belgianmoonguy]

In Belgium most of the ppl are raised catholic. They are baptized, have communys (don't know how to translate this world)
I'm not baptized and didn't go to communy.

This is the result of a 'war' between my mother and her mother in law

I was born sick and my grandmother, who seemes a very catholic woman, said to my mother (2 days after i was born) that she should have me euthanazed.
This came from a woman who always was on the first row in church and was best friends with the priest in her small town; to make a long story short, she seemed more catholic then the Pope

So i was raised atheïst
I stiil am
I don't complain it
And i have respect for other religions, as long as they respect me. But people who try to persuade me to something else, have a reverse effect on me. Let me in my dignity, i let you in yours.

Grtz
BMG

[StormVixen]

er... church of england i guess... we only really went to church at easter and before christmas... my rents arent really that religious though... i guess they still call themselves christians even thought they dont go to church or anything...

[Silver Nightfire]

I wasn't raised in any religion. I went to a Church of England primary school but that wasn't for religious reasons. It just happened to be a good, close school *shrug*.

[gurlygurl2004]

I was raised in a strict Southern Baptist household and church. And since it left a bad taste in my mouth, it's about the only Christian denomination I can not incorporate into my beliefs.

[gurlygurl2004]

My parents raised me as a Jehovah's Witness. I disassociated myself when I was 17.

Jehovah's Witnesses are weird, don't you think? I think it's funny that whenever a Jehovah's Witness or a Mormon come to my house, my mom (last time she did) rudely tells them to go away, you're the wrong religion. They were nice and left. Whenever I answer the door and someone of those persuasions are there, I just let them have a small introduction and tell them kindly we're not interested. I find it funny that my mom acts this way to them because she's one of those strict, hostile, evangelical type of people and I do see plenty of similarities between Southern Baptists, Jehovah's Witnesses, and Mormons. However, it's odd, I found the Mormons and Jehovah Witness' less hostile in my experiences than the Baptists I know (but than again I haven't had that much experience with them).

It's also funny because my mom the good, Christian lady is rude to them and intolerant to their faces, but me the Christopagan, or the pagan child is more nice and tolerant esque when dealing with them. My family as a whole don't like it when the Jehovah's Witnesses come by.

[gurlygurl2004]

I was asked to leave the Lutheran Sunday School when I was nine for getting angry when they wouldn't admit there were dinosaurs. They said they were put there to test our faith.

:smoke:

LOL, I've heard that before. My dad, it's so funny he laughs at evolution but he does believe dinosaurs actually existed.8O

[StarPhoenix]

Was raised Baptist, kinda.

My parents are the sort that doesn't think you need to go church to be religious or believe in god, but they went for the social aspect. That is until one too many of our pastors turned out to like kids a bit too much. And they started pressuring her to take over the sunday school for kids.

I think they've moved more into the Agnostic train of thought though, they seem more open to things than they used to. And they don't do hardly anything, um religious (prayers at dinner and such), like they used to.

I never did like going to church, so as soon as I was allowed to I stopped going. Never was a problem with my parents and they are encouraging me on my current quest for understanding and spirituality :)

[BFD_Zayl]

i was raised Lutheran....I am so happy i broke free, when i did i felt as if i could do anything...of course pretty much everyone in my family was angry and i had to crash at a friends for a month or two, but heh, i dared them to take action, and they did, they let me move back in....wish i still crashed with my friend.

[Metta]

Born 'n raised in the good ol' Latter Day Saint Mormon Church. Started doing research about a year ago on the "real" history of how that religion came to be...biggest, most painful transition of my life. I was devastated by the things I found out. Many family members are very hurt by my decision to leave that religion, and I don't think they'll ever understand truly why I left because they're not interested in the truth. Their beliefs are their beliefs, and I don't think that will ever change.

To each his or her own, though. I have found a path that, for now, is helping me search my soul and find my own spirituality. I am free now. I will never join an organized religion again - not to jugde anyone who is a part of one. My family on one side is Mormon, and the other side is Christian - and it works for them, and I am glad. But I'm finding my truth. Feels like I am seeing and breathing for the first time.

Blessings :)

Edit:
I just wanted to send a little shout-out to all of my fellow ex-mormons on this board...glad to see I'm not the only one who found a different path :)

[Tambou]

Well according to my father I was raised Catholic. However the last time I went to church with him was when I was 5. We never talked about religion in my house, so I don't think I was raised anything. I did attend a lot of Mormon fuctions though because all my friends were Mormon.


I'm kind of in the same boat I was Baptised Catholic Made my firsrt communion but that is as far as I got. My Parents never went to church. Religion was hardly spoken about. If we did we always referd to Christians/Catholics as outsiders. Like we were not one of them.

[AmyDarling]

Religion was actually never even acknowledged in my house. It was the weirdest upbringing. I know both of my parents were raised Catholic and yet I wasn't allowed to go to church with anyone else and yet we never went. I went to a private school that was primarily Jewish and tranfer students from Japan. Also at that school I was taught about not one religion but all of them, and in great detail. I think it was in this multi-cultural and religiously open environment that my own true calling was allowed time to manifest itself. I sometimes wonder though, am I lucky or unlucky that I had absolutely no set faith structure whatsoever when I was growing up. I spoke to God in my prayers but I didn't know to which God or in what form or religion. Tougher to grow up with no faith than one might think. Anyone else grow up without anything or anyone to truly guide them such as this?

[Tanya]

Catholic with heavy panthesist/Wiccan overlay if that's possible. My mother is a heredity nature worshiper... she just followed my father to church to be a good wife...

I think i started questioning the whole thing when she told me she was commiting a mortal sin in the eyes of the church by controlling how many children she had... funny.. even though dad also agreed 2 kids were enough, he was allowed to take communition.. that didn't seem right.....


nor "God is to man as man is to woman...." hmmmmm... so Dad's allowed to beat mom...ohhhh that makes it all OK then...

that an being told animals disn't have souls got me heading outa there emotionally.

I quit as soon as my mother had 'fulfilled her duty to see I was given a catholic education' since then she and i have been running with wolves. hehehe

[Enlightenment1]

None practising Christians so they were not bothered when I turned round and said I was Pagan, apart from constantly cracking jokes about "I'll put a spell on you" so lame and so bloody old right now - argh, parents!

[Glory]

I went to a Catholic school but I certainly wasn't raised a Catholic.

My household contained no religion. Not even a lack of religion, like atheism - just... nothing. Ask my mother whether she believes in god and she'll sort of shrug and say she doesn't think about it. When I used to ask her if there was a god, she'd tell me to come to that conclusion myself. So it's not even agnosticism! My childhood home was like a black hole in terms of spirituality.

But it was actually pretty good, I could actually construct my own religious understanding without any bias. Nothing to draw from and nothing to escape from. It's kind of freeing. Even going to a very Catholic school had no impact on my spiritual understanding, I came out of it as blank as ever.

The not so fun part is that now I'm very agnostic, even though I'm still pagan. I'm verging onto a pantheistic belief, but still. It's confusing.

[Rachel]

I was raised within Conservative Judaism. Now I consider myself very, very Reform.

[Isilriel]

I was raised by a devout Catholic mother and a restless spiritual seeker father who was into everything from Castañeda to Rosicrucianism while I was growing up.

[Nox_Mortus]

Unitarian Universalism, my mother became a Wiccan when I was fairly young but didn't raise me as one. I still attend a UU church.

[lonewhitewolf]

I was raised [Reform] Jewish.

[ApollaJade]

Catholic and Pagan :]

[Bluewillow]

I was raised Baptist Christian. Both of my grandparents were missionaries, Christian counselors, and my grandfather was a reverend. They ran a ministry which she has continued to run since his death about 7 years ago. My mother is a Christian, as are my siblings. Needless to say, that religion was a huge part of my upbringing.

I'm the only pagan in the family. :hahugh:

[SpiritMan]

I was raised as a Mormon kid in the LDS church by parents who would be considered "Jack Mormons" (non-practicing) at best. They raised me and my sisters in the area's predominant religion principally in hopes we'd acquire some decent morals before setting out into the world. As each of us began asking questions about why we had to go to "church" - and why they didn't go themselves when we had to - they would allow us to choose whether or not we kept going every Sunday... That was about the time I checked out - never to return. LOL

[PurpleDuck]

You don't give Anglican as an option, but that's what I was raised. ^^ My dad was raised Methodist (is now Agnostic). Since my mom was more religious, both my sister and I were baptised and raised Anglican. But we were always raised to follow our own Paths where they took us.

[Doodlebug]

I was raised as a Baptist.

[Meagan]

Both of my parents were raised Roman Catholic. They mellowed to Episcopalian when they had me--though I was baptised catholic. Christianity never clicked with me. I went through seven attempts to make it click--all failed. I told my parents I was an atheist and they near kicked me out of their house. They did say that if I had told them that two years later, when I would be eighteen, I would be disowned and I would be dead in their eyes.

Chances of me ever becoming Christian? Slim to none.
Chances of me converting to Pagan? More than ninety.

[Halstrom]

My grandparents were Catholic, I guess. However, I was never ever taken to church, not even on any of the holidays. I was raised to believe in God and all that, but they never took me to church. Thank the Gods!

[Dark Phoenix]

At my grandmother's request I was raised Catholic but stopped practicing after I turned thirteen when I had my confirmation and no longer had to go to Sunday school.

For the next four years I didn't practice anything till I discovered the craft at seventeen and never looked back.

[MoonChild78]

i was raised roman catholic, i actually go to a jesuit catholic colllege but i had a lot of issues with being catholic (beliefs, role of woman, sex scandel, ect.). At the time when I was beginning to really question the catholic faith was when the craft came to me so i always feel that this is where I was meant to be. Talk about everything happening for a reason!!

[Astara Seague]

I was born and raised Very strict Morman I left after my first divorce I was about 25

[patch]

I was a whimsical little agnostic in an atheist family. :)

[Buick]

I was raised by a charismatic evangelical Christian.

My dad had most of the say in raising me. He seldom went to church himself but he did read the bible daily and spent countless hours watching the televangelists on the various different Christian networks such as TCT & TBN.

The most important thing to him was that I was some sort of Christian. Whenever company would come over he’d make me sit in my room and read the bible as apposed to socializing with people lol which is probably why I grew up to be such a shut in.

After the third grade he made me go to a Christian school. Lol which I actually did enjoy because of the lack of drama (everyone was so focused on the fact that they hated going to a Christian school that there was seldom drama between students).

& ironically the Christian school was where I first came into contact with paganism. One of the older students was a wiccan. And it just randomly came up in conversation one day during our lunch break. She loaned me a few books she had and from there it just really caught my interest.

In between then and now I had a stint with the Baptist faith and I even got baptized. One of my close family and personal friends is a Baptist and he’s actually a really good person and lives a Christ like lifestyle. However after actually going to the Baptist church for a little over a year and a half I found it harder and harder to see eye to eye with what the pastor was preaching. And so I dropped out of that church.

I quickly found my way back to the pagan path. It just makes more sence to me.

[Solya]

I was raised Catholic... haven't got all that many issues with that belief, but it is just not totally for me. :) I still like to go to Church every once in a while. It reminds me of my ancestors.

[Louisvillian]

Which religion were you raised with.... by your parents/guardians?
Atheism, or Secular Humanism. Neither of my parents mind my religious choice much, though. They think I'm old enough to think for myself and decide my own beliefs.

PS) the definition you gave for Agnostic in your poll is incorrect. What you described is Deism. Agnosticism is the philosophy that one cannot know whether deity exists or not, and is neither theist nor atheist in theological view.

[Cloaked Raven]

I was raised in an Anglican household, but since it wasn't on the poll, I voted Episcopalian. It's the closest denomination of Christianity up there to Anglican.

[brymble]

There should be a choice for "other", even among Christian denominations, there's more than can be listed, and many faiths left out altogether. For example, Unitarian-Universalism, Christian Orthodox, Ekankar, Scientology, Shinto, Taoism, and Rastafari are not represented.

My dad raised us in a variety of charismatic, fundamentalist, evangelical, Protestant christian churches, most notably the Salvation Army. Mom was Presbyterrian.

[lonewhitewolf]

I was raised [Reform] Jewish. After my Bat Mitzvah I decided that I didn't want to be Jewish anymore or go to Temple. I was picked on and bullied anyway. So at that time I had enough of that. I eventually got into Paganism and here I am. :hahugh:

[Rannoch]

I was raised a Seventh-day Adventist by my grandparents. I left the Church a few years ago and have been happily exploring my spirituality ever since. I appreciate the morals Adventism ingrained in me as a child, but I had to get out sooner or later. It was too easy to adopt a fundamentalist attitude.