What's it like having religious faith? If you have it, can you imagine what it's like not to?

In My Humble Opinion
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I was raised in a non-religious household (my father was raised Southern Baptist, my mother was raised as a secular Jew, but by adulthood both had pretty much no religious beliefs). Because at times we lived in the Bible Belt, I did have very Christian friends, and one summer went with them to a Christian youth camp, where I came as close as I ever have to having faith (which was not particularly close, actually).

I can’t imagine how people believe in the supernatural parts of the Bible (or other texts). I know that some people do, but I really can’t imagine how or why. It really seems like children’s stories and Santa Claus to me. The best I can do is to guess that most people with strong religious faith have had experiences that I have not had (religious experiences) and that I cannot even imagine that have led them to this faith.

So if you do have religious faith, can you describe what it’s like to me (probably a very tough task)?

Also, can you imagine what it’s like to not have any religious faith? And can you imagine how someone like me might see faith in anything supernatural (like miracles, the Resurrection, etc.) as absurd?

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I will probably regret posting in this thread, but I think you’re asking with good intentions, so I’ll take a crack at answering before the threadshitters show up and kill the thread:

The only way I can explain it, for me in my experience as a Christian, is this: I am not God. I am intelligent, but I’m not a genius … and even if I were a genius, I’m still not God, who is omnipotent/omnipresent/omniscient/etc. It is not hard for me to accept that an all-powerful God can go outside the natural laws that He created when it suits His purposes. If you had all the powers in the universe at your disposal, wouldn’t you, especially if it drove the point across to someone that you 1. do exist and 2. love them?

To me the supernatural isn’t the “only” way God can do something. He’s God, He doesn’t have to blink an eye to get anything accomplished. The supernatural is for our benefit, to get our attention, I think.

This is true for me. Yes, I grew up in a Christian household – it was never a question in my religious education that there’s only one way to God, through Jesus. I was, however, allowed to read anything I wanted and I did read quite a bit about other religions so I wasn’t sheltered in that regard.

That said – I think any Christian that has any kind of personal relationship with God will come to the point, particularly if they were raised in the faith, where they say to themselves “do I REALLY truly believe all this? Or is this just what Mom and Dad told me?”

And yes, I have had what you’d call religious experiences with God. I am not one of these people that goes around saying “God told me this” or “God told me that” … but there have been a few times in my life God has indeed spoken to me and I cannot be talked out of it.

If I can come up with a way to explain it I’ll come back to this thread and do so.

Yes. If someone has absolutely no exposure to any kind of faith, I can see how it wouldn’t come naturally to them. Some of the brightest people I know have no faith whatsoever. I think there can be a point where one is so impressed with their own intelligence that they become damn near incapable of even entertaining the possibility that there’s any kind of higher power out there. (I’m not saying YOU are like this but I have seen it in others.)

Sure. I believe some guy that lived 2,000 years ago lived a perfect life and died for my sins so I could go to a place called Heaven (a place I’ve never seen, only heard about) when I die, and then came back from the dead. I can definitely see how you’d think that was whack! It IS whack! Just because something is whack doesn’t mean it’s impossible for it to be true, though.
Hope this is what you were looking for!

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Yes it was. Thanks very much for the thoughtful response.