What do you believe now?

I believe that if there is a God, they are letting things happen as they are. Not helping in any way, but also not causing problems.

I also feel partial to reincarnation. I feel that with certain people in my life, when I have met them, I knew them right away. Maybe it's possible, maybe it's not.

scubasteven1013

Love and empathy.

I don't have to fully understand everything about a person's decisions, belief, or lifestyle to love an accept them.

My expression of godly love, deeper love, etc. shouldn't be conditional on someone sharing the exact same perspective as me.

curtishartley

I believe firmly in individualism. Be yourself, not who others want you to be. And one of the most important aspects of my life is informed consent. Whenever you do anything with anyone at any time, GET. THEIR. CONSENT. I believe in the importance of making choices for yourself and not believing what other people tell you and/or want you to believe. I am firmly agnostic and won't deny that God exists, but I do believe that the Mormon interpretation of God doesn't exist. I am also very sex-positive and believe in sexual liberation and freedom, and I know from experience and witness that sexual repression gets nowhere. As such, I fully endorse living your sex life the way YOU desire. Not someone else. Your body, your choice.

bakiraka01

I am currently Agnostic, and dabbling in Paganism! I have an altar to my namesake, Loki. I use tarot cards, I believe in ghosts and aliens, and lots of other wacky things. But most importantly, I believe religion should only exist as a tool to ground me. Paganism is there when I need it. It serves me, I do not serve it. And that's how it should be.

Anonymous

I don't know, and I actually feel content with that. I believe that I was created for a purpose and that I was meant to be on this earth, and I feel content with that.

autumn-phelps

I see God in the mystery of life.  The fact that humans, animals, plants, anything exists is a miracle.  I live in joy that I have consciousness, and get to experience the world.  Some resources that have helped me find purpose and meaning include Stoicism and Secular Buddhism.  

jeremy-valentiner

I don’t subscribe to any belief system and consider myself to be an agnostic atheist. I believe in human kindness and treating others with love and respect. Leading with compassion and empathy are the values I use to guide my interactions with others. 

bethlundgreen

This is a tough one to answer. In all honesty, I am still figuring things out, and I think that's okay. Do I believe in a higher power - yes, I do. Whether I label the higher power as being Jesus or God, I do not know. I don't even know what "God" is supposed to look like. Is God a physical being or something that is more fluid and everywhere all at once, or something in between? I like to think that there is a bit of "God" inside all of us that connects all beings and nature together. The thing that I love about "believing" is that it does not equate itself to "certainty" or a "perfect knowledge". I'm still learning to be comfortable amidst uncertainty.

I choose to believe in Jesus from the New Testament because while there is so much that confuses me, I still find myself in prayer when I'm really stressed out or trying to overcome a problem. Whether or not that is the result of conditioning or not, it works for me. It brings me peace, so I'm going with it.

I'm not currently associated with any church/denomination, and organized religion scares me right now. There's nothing wrong with being religious, but I do find organized religion to be scary because that's when it can bring harm to others.

I believe in equity, love, authenticity. I believe that there is a life beyond this one, and that somehow, we are all connected.

leonora

I'm an agnostic-atheist now. I don't know whether or not there is some "intelligence" that's responsible for the creation of the universe, but I'm not convinced by any of the creation theories put out by any religions. Whatever this intelligence may be, I don't think it made the human race in its image, nor do I think it cares about whether I drink tea.

bwilliams8492

I believe in love. Kindness. Empathy. Compassion. Respect.

I believe in today and this very moment. I believe in life before death.

There is awe, wonder and mystery in the Universe. I embrace open-mindedness over dogmatism.

You can learn more about my work at cesletter.org

You can find FAQs at cesletter.org/…

jeremyrunnells

I don’t know if God exists, but I do know that I am powerful and worth honoring. And that’s an amazing thing to know.

sarahletitgo

Coming from a space where I once felt I had all of the answers, it was difficult for me at first to get comfortable saying "I dont know." However, I began to realize that no one has the answers and the most important thing I can do is focus on living in the here and now. Little by little, I began creating my own meaning in this life.

While I currently consider myself agnostic, I am open to the belief in a god--though I no longer profess to know what that god looks like or where he/she/it comes from. I still believe life has a purpose. That we are to learn how to love one another despite our various differences in race, religion, sexual orientation, gender, etc. Valuing diversity and learning to love everyone is the ultimate goal I strive for in life.

To achieve this understanding, I no longer put limits on my learning. I draw meaning from Buddhism, Stoicism, Philosophy, History, Christianity, Islam, Judaism, and many other belief systems.

I understand that life is a journey and that things can change. I no longer hold black and white beliefs. Instead, I have learned to think like a scientist--assessing what I can learn from facts and understanding that new evidence could easily change my beliefs in the future. I no longer claim to have all of the answers, and that is liberating.

blee34

I believe that Joseph Smith was deeply unethical, but I also believe he stumbled upon a profound truth that we are here on this earth to experience joy. I’m grateful I always had the answer to the question of why I was here on earth. I also believe he stumbled onto an ancient truth: a Heavenly Mother. Anciently, Asherah was worshipped as a Goddess, and as God’s wife. Some of the most amazing spiritual powerhouses in my life were women, and I believe my spiritual experiences have led up to this moment where I worship & pray to a God & Goddess, and still value Jesus Christ.

malia7

I believe in humanity. I believe there is mystery in the universe but I don't feel adequate naming it. I make space for people to believe differently and hope they give me the same with complete respect. I love people's stories and hope you recognize your story has value. Don't let anyone tell your story inaccurately. You have a right to your story being told. So with that I wish you the best on your journey.

bill-reel

Now I find inspired people are all around me and not just in an office building in Salt Lake City. I have begun to study philosophy and draw wisdom from a host of spiritual people from Richard Rohr to the Buddha. Podcasters from Krista Tippet to Science Mike. I am discovering a wealth of wisdom and spirituality which I never imagined possible. I try to develop a practice of "Effective Altruism" as I meet new communities of people working together to make the world a better place.

Brandon Shumway

I'm not sure. I still believe that there is some higher power. I am comfortable in "not knowing" how it all works on the other side. For me, it has been easier to handle what I don't know, than it was for the things I "did know," but had legitimate issues with while in the church. If I don't know, then I don't find myself getting hung up on answers that I find problematic or troubling, like I did with many of the "known" answers we supposedly had in the church. I have no interest in trying to find another religion. This experience has left me severely disillusioned with religion in general.

Valerie Stephens

My wife and I celebrate different cultures for our wedding anniversaries, and this year is our 20th wedding anniversary, and our 20th cultural celebration. As a result, we have had an opportunity to learn about so many different cultures, traditions, and religions. Further, I have actively participated in the rituals of some religions. I fasted for the entire month of Ramadan, and have read the Quran three times. I attended a Jewish synagogue and participated in the service. I have attended many different Christian faiths, participated in the services, and volunteered at their service projects. I currently volunteer as a coffee team member at an evangelical Christian church. I attended a Hindu temple, stood at the base of a human pyramid, and have attended their services. All of this to say that my beliefs now are very fluid. For the most part, as mentioned in a previous question, I primarily follow a secular form of Buddhism, and make meditation and mindfulness part of my daily practice. But I find that no single religion claims ownership of spirituality, and my beliefs very much reflect that. They are far more encompassing than exclusionary.

atoponce

Honestly, belief is really hard for me. I guess I have come to the realization that we all have confirmation bias, and ultimately most of our beliefs are just that--ideas that we come up with to make ourselves feel better or to motivate ourselves. So now my new journey is examining my beliefs and deciding which ones serve me and which don't. Many of the ideas I grew up learning in Mormonism still serve me, many do not. But I now definitely believe that there are many ways to live a good life, not just one pre-prescribed set of beliefs.

lindsyae

I live for today. Life is too precious to waste time serving an unseen god. I believe in having fun and being nice. 

Jeff Krammer

I believe in the principles of the gospel as I learned them. I also believe in some other principles I have learned from other sources - religious as well as secular. I have explored a few cultures of the world and found them to be very similar in they they teach us to be good and to belong and participate. I see Mormonism as a single "tribe" in a world of valid tribes. I am fascinated each of these tribes that I have connected with. I work to see these tribes as different facets of the same "us". They are all human societies and cultures and religions. I prefer to see us as all human rather than seeing the classic "us vs them" scenario. I believe in people and their ability to construct these tribes to understand the world and their place in it. To inform each of us of our own culture and history and to give a communal sense of belonging. I believe in people to do right as defined by their tribe and understood by the individual. I also hope or want to believe in a spiritual facet of being human. I believe there is great mystery in the universe but I don't feel adequate naming it or codifying it. Yet, I still strive to better understand it and mindfully experience it. I do my best to live life with mindful purpose and meaning. I'm very drawn to principles from the great wisdom traditions of the world too. I enjoy studying Buddhism and other "native" cultures. Integrating these "original" principles with my own beliefs and worldview has brought me peace, comfort and understanding.

evan-mullins