I am interested in doing a poll about what percentages of people belong to different religious sects. I will have a choice of "other" but before I start the poll I would like to try and get as many religions that our people here belong too.

I will start the list, and you add the ones that I have missed. Please only add ones that I have missed ONLY if you are practicing something that has not been included. I don't want options that get 0%.

I will make the official poll tomorrow or the next day when I get enough responses.

Here are some of the options I will list:

Roman Catholic
Baptist
Budist
Christian (feel free to make this more specific)
Jehova Witness
Athiest
Pagan

etc. (help me finish this list)


edit - I see that some people didn't read carefully what I wrote. If it makes it easier, start your post with - "My religion is ...."

[ October 23, 2005, 03:25: Message edited by: Dragonfly ]

Mormon, Anglo Catholic, Quakers...how long do you want to make the list? Christian is a very broad term.

Also, considering the number of Atheists, Agnostics and non-believers on this board will you include this?

Taoist, Hindu, Islamic...

No matter how long you make the list someone's religion is going to be left out.

edit: :doh: how could i forget Jewish

I'm a jew.religious,orthodox.

So there's Roman Catholic and christian on your list? That might piss some people off...

Catholics are Christians.

Anyway, I was raised Dutch Protestant (Christian), but am seeking ways to convert to Catholocism. My Wife is Catholic, and I have decided that it will be less confusing for our children (when we have them) if I can participate in Catholic rituals when we go to church together.

Isn't pagan just someone that is not Christian? Its a very broad term indeed.

What about Hindu, Zoroastrian, Baalim.

I guess Wicca could be added, but its just a religion that steals from others, and its creator Gardner, based everyting on Alistair Crowley (who in turn, created a religion which was just a mish-mash of others).

Here are two more ...

Zoroastrianism- The religion of the followers of the prophet known in the West as Zoroaster (Zarathustra to his followers). Zarathushtra was the first prophet to teach monotheism, the belief in one God. He preached a new doctrine of goodness and retribution. And gave the world the triple motto of Good Thoughts, Good Words, Good Deeds.

Zurvanism- A 'heretical' sect of Zoroastrianism. The basic heresy was the creation of the god Zurvan (Eternal Time) who begets his sons Ohrmazd and Ahriman. As Boyce (1979: 69) notes, "by declaring that Ohrmazd and Ahriman are brothers, the Zurvanites betrayed Zoroaster's fundamental doctrine that good and evil are utterly separate and distinct by origin and nature."

The name Zurvan means Time and the heresy developed from the argument that if there were primal twins, then there must also have been a creator father and the only possible father was Zurvan.

... stop misintrrtepeting Wicca. *sigh* damn those fluffies....

Satanism, Shinto and neo-paganism would definitely belong to the list as well.

I believe you should make Christian more specific or give a "Christian (other)" option. Everyone who's Catholic is Christian first, so it's a bit redundant, too. ;)

I suggest Catholic, Orthodox, Protestant (evangelical, i.e. Lutheran or related), Protestant (reformed, i.e. calvinist, presbyterian), other. Note that there are denominations which consider themselves Christian but aren't considered Christian by other denominations, so we're pretty much going to go by individual sentiment. Either this or one big Christian option.

You may have some problems with Islam, as shi'ites and sunnites differ quite a bit. There are denominations within judaism, too, but I don't think there is such a sharp divide as in Christianity or Islam.

Folks, note the first post:

Please only add ones that I have missed ONLY if you are practicing something that has not been included. I don't want options that get 0%.
Unless you practice a religion, don't add it. It appears that the purpose of the poll is to determing members' religions, not the world's religions.

Agnosticism. It seems (from other posts) that there are quite a few agnostics.

EDIT: Crap, sorry, I didn't see that Ara had already said that. I thought she had just mentioned Atheism. Sorry 'bout that.

Thanks dmc. I will be using ONLY RELIGIONS THAT BELONG TO SPECIFIC PEOPLE... Remember

IF IT IS NOT YOUR RELIGION DON"T WRITE IT DOWN PLEASE!! :nono:

Sorry about that Dragonfly. Though I am neither a Zoroastrian nor Zurvanite, I was raised with a somewhat liberal Buddhist/Bon background. The latter faith has perceptible influences of Persian beliefs, especially it would seem ,those of Zurvaniasm.

The creation myth I am most familliar with reflects this influence. Yang-dag rgyal-po, a deus otiosus, who exisited when there was neither sun nor moon, but only pure potentiality cooresponding to Zurvan and 'Od-zer ldan - 'The Radiant' mirroring Ohrmazd. Likewise his dark twin Myal-ba nag-po - 'Black Grief', resembles Ahriman. As many of the religions of Tibet are eclectic in their outlook, various (but simmilar) versions of myth exist in both the Bon and Buddhist tradition. To confound matters further there also exist very different and contradictory creation accounts... :)

I would ask that you list Bon in your poll but I am probably too confused and too irreligious to vote for it.

Yes, as Nakia pointed out, Mormon should be included even though, like Catholics, baptist and Jehovah's witnesses, we class as Christians. I believe that the definition of Christianity is that the Life, Teachings, Death, Resurrection and Atonement of Jesus Christ are core teachings of the faith.

@Gnarff - I've never heard of Mormons being classed as Christians, I thought they were a completely different religion?

I'm thinking that I won't make a poll after all. My information gathering technique appears to have some holes. :shake: Oh Well.

i think mormons are under christianity...


and what about hethens(spl?)? following scandinavian(northern) mythology

Mormons are not christians.

To prove it: http://www.leaderu.com/offices/michaeldavis/docs/mormonism/mormonism.html

It is obvious that this thread has outlived its usefulness, given that Dragonfly has dropped the idea and the subsquent posts were off-topic.

Thread closed.