Maveric

I guess i consider myself Agnostic (?) (those who believe in a supreme being but adhere to no set religion...)

I was raised Southern Baptist for most of my early life but the hypocrisy I witnessed in that faith left me severly jaded. I've watched alot of history of religion type documentaries which have also left me somewhat biased against organized religion in general.

But enough about me, I had a question concerning the "catholic" religion and various "protestant" religions like baptist, methodist, jehova witness, moremons, etc...

Can anyone briefly explain, in layman terms, the difference between these religions?

Basically as a baptist I learned the new and old testament of the bible and (unofficially) you can do whatever the hell you want just as long as you make sure that you ask for forgiveness from Jesus... (i.e. jim baker, jerry fawell, etc...)

Brdd99boy

I have some good news for you ! You are not an agnostic !
Agnostics do not believe in a supreme being. An atheist says that there is no God and an agnostic says that God can not be proved or disproved (an agnostic just says "I don't know if there is a God)

alpha phi

Just different methodolgy of the same core beliefs.
A road map to life, if you will.
To an Agnostic none of it really matters.
There are many paths to the one truth!
feel free to make you're own path, if you feel the need to.

read my sig, it sums up my personal over all belief

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lurkette

In layman's terms, here's a brief stab at things:

Catholicism: holy authority descends from St. Peter through the line of popes, then down through the church hierarchy. In order to be saved, intercession by this hierarchy is necessary, as is following various precepts like baptism, confession, etc.

Where Protestantism broke off from this is the intercession part - Martin Luther objected to the idea that you needed an intercessor between you and Jesus/God in order to be saved.

I'm afraid I don't know much about the differences between most Protestant denominations, but I do know some about Mormonism. They believe that a further scripture (besides the Bible) was revealed by the angel Moroni to Joseph Smith. The story this angel told was that after his death and resurrection, Jesus Christ visited what would later become the United States, and Moroni told Joseph Smith to go find "Zion." Other things that were revealed in this new scripture were that those who are righteous (baptized in the Mormon faith and who behave themselves) will inherit their own planet after death, along with their wives (who can only cross over from outer darkness, see below, if their husband whispers their secret name across the veil) and that their spirit children will come back to inhabit bodies on Earth. Everyone who's not saved, I believe, goes to a place called "outer darkness" till the Angel Moroni blows his trumpet at the end of the world, and then I think they'll be judged.

Mormons, forgive me if I messed that up. It's all second-hand from Mormons I know.

Here's a page that might be helpful on the differences between protestant denominations:

<a href="http://www.religioustolerance.org/chr_divi1.htm">http://www.religioustolerance.org/chr_divi1.htm</a>

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"If ten million people believe a foolish thing, it is still a foolish thing."

- Anatole France

TIO

Careful there. Most athiests also assert that the non-existance of God cannot be conclusively proved, just as most Christians assert that the existance of God cannot be positively proved. The difference is that Christians and Atheists have weighed up the probabilities and come down on one side or the other, whereas the agnostics are comfortably sitting on the fence. Christians and atheists are both fine by me; it's the chronic agnostics that annoy me.

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Strewth

nietzsche

Like TIO says watch the wording of your definition of atheism.

There are positive atheists which, as you said, assert that there is no god. Positive atheists are definitely in the minority.

Most atheists are negative atheists, the do not believe in the existence of a god.

Wording is important.

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Man is condemned to be free

miked10270

OK... Here goes...

I use the analogy of a tree to view the various religions. At the core is the trunk. the common and incontrovertible religious beliefs.

Most humans seem hell bent on crawling out onto boughs, then branches, then twigs, all in search of and hoping to gain a pretty leaf all of their own.

Once out on the branches & twigs, then humans lose sight of the trunk. Arguments arise about which branch or twig is better so effort is expended pouring scorn & hatred onto the other branches & the people who're on them, even to the extent of trying to destroy other branches.

Effort which would be better spent learning to turn around and climb back to the trunk, only problem is that people are afraid of falling off the tree, so they carry on outwards.

Thus everyone focuses on what is different about other religions, and ignores what is the same.

Mike (NOT Catholic, Protestant, Buddhist, Hindu, Moslem, Jewish, Humanist.... Just, you know... Religious)

I suppose I am what's considered "well-travelled". I've seen A LOT of the world, and A LOT of people. One thing struck me above all others... WHEREVER you go in the world, people are people. With the same hopes, dreams and desires. Some people good, some bad, some optimist, some pessimist, some welcoming foreigners, some xenophobic... You get the idea.

chavos

This is getting printed out and pasted up on my wall... a very good explanation.

Rodney

I've never heard of positive and negative atheism before; I've always thought I was an agnostic. I don't believe that there is a god in the sense postulated by human religions; but I can't say for sure that one doesn't exist, because to do so I'd have to be omniscient and then there would be a God --- me.

I also believe in the value of the _concept_ of God, properly used, even if the old girl doesn't actually exist.

So where does that leave me, by these new terms? Am I a negative atheist?

nietzsche

You're still pretty much an agnostic, but don't get bogged down in labels. Most people use labels so that they can identify with other who have the same beliefs ( or lack of beliefs).

I think you just need to do some more thinking. Pick up a book on atheism and a book on theistic belief, see if you agree with one or the other. You're in the wonderful world of religion/philosophy; there are no easy answers

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Man is condemned to be free

alpha phi

I'd say you are a "Rodney"ist
You have your own personal beliefs, and morals.
An open mind to explore the possibilties
a thirst for the truth

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lurkette

Hey, check this out.

<a href="http://chaos1.hypermart.net/wrw/">http://chaos1.hypermart.net/wrw/</a>

It doesn't explain many of the features of each religion but it gives you a good idea of how the different denominations emerged and how they're related to each other. Looks like a bunch of the protestant denominations just kind of "sprang up" during the late 1700s - early 1800s in the US, the first and second "great awakenings" of spirituality in the U.S.

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"If ten million people believe a foolish thing, it is still a foolish thing."

- Anatole France

Moonduck

Try the term "Deist" as well. It refers, from what I recall, to someone who believes in "God", but follows no religion nor accepts any religion as being the true expression of "God".

Could be wrong on this, as it has been quite some time since knowing the definitions of such things meant anything to me (ie college), but it still may be the correct term.

Many of the Founding Fathers and their peers were Deists, as the Protestant Movement hadn't really hit the Americas yet, and the Catholic Church was not quite popular amongst many of those in the social strata of the Founders. (again, based on vague memories of college)

Jasmar

I didn't want to make a new forum for this but what would one who thinks that god exists but dosn't accept organized religion

nietzsche

Deist :The belief, based solely on reason, in a God who created the universe and then abandoned it, assuming no control over life, exerting no influence on natural phenomena, and giving no supernatural revelation.

Woo! Dictionary.com

__________________
Man is condemned to be free

lurkette

Um, guys, Maveric didn't ask you to define him as agnostic or atheist. He asked about the differences between various Christian denominations.

__________________
"If ten million people believe a foolish thing, it is still a foolish thing."

- Anatole France

TIO

We're aware. It was just a tangent we were following. It's philosophy; you have to define your terms very carfully.

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Strewth