Spiritual or Religious

I grew up in a traditional household, Lutheran church on Sunday with the whole family; Vacation Bible School in the summer for 2 weeks; confirmation classes. Our minister was a mean old man who didn't seem to like kids and certainly not teenagers. Maybe scared me off...?

I started questioning the Christian faith in high school. Probably after I tried the Young Life movement and found it NOT to my liking. The people seemed too phony. Then I took a world religion class in high school and my eyes opened up.

All I could think is how could so many people in the world be wrong and people who believe in Christianity be the only ones who are right?

When I joined the Navy you had the option to list your religion on your dog tags. I chose to put "No Religious Preference" on mine. That about summed it up for 15 years, till I was about 35.

I tried going to church at various times in those years but it just seemed to me that the people were unfriendly and hypocritical.

When I hit my mid-thirties I started reading, everything and anything about re-incarnation, past lives. So much information. It transformed me. I started to see the world in a different light. So many things happened to me to re-affirm my beliefs.

I see myself now as a spiritual person. I don't go to church regularly. And I don't understand people who say that you have to believe in an organized religion in order to be spiritual.