"We need a faith community of friends to inspire, challenge, and call us
to be all we can be without embarrassing us for being where we are now."

R. Wicks

Another one I love and had to share. Thanks to all of you for being this accepting faith community for me. I pray I offer you the same.

AMEN!

Some of my Christian friends find it unusual that I'm accepting of other religions. My attitude is what does it hurt? I'm not getting to heaven on their religion; I'm getting to heaven on my relationship.

If people, all of us, did more praying instead of comdemning we'd all be a lot better off.

Amen sister!

I enjoy learning about other religions. I like to see what beliefs, prayers, and practices can also be embraced by Christians. There are often many similarities.

Amen! Being open and learning doesn't mean you have to do the practices, but it may add to your knowledge of your own way of connection to a Higher Power. I also find it fascinating how we have so many different types of religions and, like you said, Dotsie, what they have in common.

If we could embrace our commonalities instead of our differences, may be could get places.

I love what Thistle said about us not getting to heaven on their religion. So true.

That's one of the reasons I hang in here on this list. Many times, I find there are lives and beliefs which are very different from my own. So, I sit and ponder and try to find common ground as much as I can.

If I make that effort, the result is an amazing connection in spite of differences. We do get along if we reach out and open our minds. There's a great bumpersticker: A mind is like a parachute: It only works when it's open.

My husband and I have been conducting inspections of all of the houses in our condo section - 60 in all. It's been an amazing experience, meeting so many people from so many different cultures, backgrounds and religions. Since hubby does most of the work (installing new smoke detectors), I stand around waiting and talking with the house owners/tenants. We've met so many lovely people and I'm constantly amazed at how open, interested and respectful they are of my faith when we get talking about it. Many of our neighbours are Muslim, and they're genuinely interested and even delighted to share faith stories...and there IS more commonality than difference. I'm finding that the more open I am to respecting other people's faith choices, the more profoundly my own relationship with my God deepens.

Eagle, I am so happy that you are doing this project with hubby. The timing is perfect.

I am grateful for this topic. It alerts me to the fact that I need to speak my faith more often regardless of who I'm speaking with. LIke you say Egale, it opens doors for others to do the same. Then I need to keep my mind open and embrace other's. God asks that we simply love one another...without judgement.

[ May 15, 2006, 11:12 AM: Message edited by: Dotsie ]

I so agree with all of you. I live in a state with a variety of popular religions; I enjoy learning about the different faiths, and strangely it has a way of strengthening my own relationship with God.

You are all talking some great wisdom here ... without preaching from a soap box. Which really teaches and shows the way for many more.

Wisdom tells us their is a grain of truth in every religion, thought, action ... if one has an 'eye' to see.

Interesting, isn't it?

Often, the very thing I continually deny ... is the very thing I need to accept for a very particular point of spiritual reasoning. Not to accept point blank ... but to approach and look at it from a different point of view ... and find out what the unseen truths may be.

Catherine