I've never been a person of One Faith. I
am a member of the Lutheran Church of Sweden, I'm christened, confirmed and married in the secular way most Swedes are. Because it's what you do kinda thing. I've never had any problems or issues about being a somewhat fake Christian... I don't necessarily disagree with the Christian faith, I just like too much of other faiths to feel that it's right for me to claim to be a
Christian. I've
never truly felt a part of
any religion, because my own personal mismatch faith. I belong nowhere and everywhere...
Husband was raised with Methodist parents and he was quite involved in the churchy stuff growing up but I guess he 'grew out of it' when he had some independence after leaving his mothers home. He went down the Pagan path, where I think he still sort of is...he's just got too much other issues to deal with right now and has therefor, unfortunately in my opinion, let his spirituality 'rest'...
We did however agree when we became parents to let our children freely choose which Path to follow and we decided not to do the 'because it's what you do'-christening that is so often done. We celebrated their arrival with a party but left them free to choose when and into what, if any, faith they're to be baptized into. :)
I'm straying away from my 'post point'...! ;) Back to me and my beliefs... I've
always believed in
kindness/compassion (
lets be friend, lets not fight, kindness begets kindness, how does 'the other' feel/perceive this situation) and
equality/solidarity (
people are people are people, I'm no better than anyone else and neither are they, we're the same and if we all could see that we'd all be better off.)
My 'religion' has seemed more like some kind of political statement than a faith but...to me it's been
both. Because, I feel that there is something
more, guiding me/us... You know that gut feeling, our conscience...(?) That feeling of right and wrong that we're all born with which certainly can be destroyed by our upbringing and/or other horrible circumstances, but even a small child knows when s/he's done 'wrong'...or is being done wrong by. We
all have a bit of the Divine in us and it
can't be lost...no matter how lost you feel.
Recently, thanks to
Cora, and her (re)searching I was 'introduced' to the
Religious Society of Friends also known as
Quakers. I knew
nothing about them before...I would have just put them together with 'other' Plain Faith Christians of the New World. :) ;) :) But, after just a reasonably quick research of my own, online and 'live' at the library, I was/am somewhat perplexed...these folks
made sense to me.
Could it be that there are others who, like me, belong nowhere and everywhere? :)
The more I've read and researched the more convinced I've become... The
testimonies, the fact that they include rather than exclude, the inner Light
('my' gut feeling/conscience-thingy ;) which I too have referred to as light) as etc and so on.
(yeees, I know is not as simple or clean cut as I perhaps make it sound but...!) :) Its just, almost eerily,
right. They're
not a big group here in lil' ol' Sweden
(compared to over the pond at Cora's ;)) and I don't know whether to
go or brace myself a little... I'm trying to follow my gut but it's hard when I feel excited and apprehensive at the same time. :)
In Sweden there's a 'saying' which I tend to follow, it's
"Skynda långsamt" which means hurry slowly :) but the question remains... How slowly should I hurry or have I hurried slowly enough...?
Love&Light,
