I feel a growing spiritual void in my life. I have tried meditating,

>>9129972
>Does converting to Christianity because you enjoy the idea and the process strike you as morally wrong? Especially if my belief isn't even close to being developed.

Nope. Just read the gospels and then read the rest of the bible

>>9129972
You needy fuck, embrace nihilist materialism

>>9129972
Find a good friend/community/girlfriend/wife.

Find a creative hobby, photography, hiking, painting.

Do you want to convert to christianity because you seek a community, to be around people, a certain kind of people? are you hoping to meet a girl through it, seek an extended family? Seek structure in your life, motivation to be better/stop sinning?

Why not just convert to Islam instead?

>>9129972
Dogmas are not oppressive if they have a reason to be.

>>9129976
What is the generally /lit/ accepted version of the bible I should read?

>>9129978
That's what got me into this hole in the first place.

>>9129979
I'll try all of those things.

And yes to all of your questions. I've had trouble overcoming negative habits in my past and have found repeated habits have tempered my soul to be one that's angry at the world, bitter, disenfranchised, with a low tolerance for anything outside of his comfort zone.

I support christian values and the entire fellow feeling that surrounds it for the most part.

It seems like a worthy thing to use as a crutch to help me re-establish a love for life the say the least. But my actual belief in its rhetoric could be my first stumbling block.

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>>9129972
>Zen Buddhism

Tibetan Buddhism is the GOAT, anon. Try it. Also read this book.

>>9129972
Devout Catholic here, converting because you feel a void in your life is completely acceptable. All Christians struggle with their faith to differing degrees. The faith is centered on turning to Christ when we are in need and feel helpless. Even the apostles were quoted as being doubters.
I hope you turn to the faith anon, I will keep you in my prayers

>>9129972
>dogmatic
why does this matter
also, your religious beliefs are only as dogmatic as you make them

have you tried eating psilocybin mushrooms?

it'll probably solve your problems.

I read a book about sufi mysticism and the author suggested that it might become the next 'trend' in the west as buddhism has sort of been exhausted, at least in the popularized sense. Then he pretty much attacked the idea of looking for mysticism elsewhere, that it's very essential it includes your immediate surroundings (socially, geographically, historically etc). Sort of makes sense to me. Well I'm lutheran and that's a very dry tradition. Paganism seems very distant as well. Guess I'm just trying to work on certain virtues that seem most natural to me then. If spirituality follows, great. If not, just have to deal with it. Intentional convertion just seems dishonest (and as such against a virtue).

/blog

Man was made for Joy & Woe
And when this we rightly know
Thro the World we safely go
Joy & Woe are woven fine
A Clothing for the soul divine

Religion needs a good balance between spirituality and dogma. Buddhism is shit.

>>9130142
Convert to Catholicism, heretic.

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>>9130184

but I have orthodox churches closer to me.

>>9130199
Orthodox sacraments are recognized by the Church, so that's fine.

>>9130014
>But my actual belief in its rhetoric could be my first stumbling block
Hmmm, maybe you should start a secular church? Or seek other communities, cultures, cults, fraternities, clubs, volunteering, maybe you will meet someone you click with volunteering animal shelter or something soup kitchen?

There are also different types of churches, but yeah you should start a secular religion, or is there just a codefied, fraternity friend fellow club, the Religion of Atheism?

>>9129972
If you want community, you can create this outside of religion and if you're a thoughtful person who hates dogma the kind of community there will likely be unsatisfying.

If you want to tackle the big shit, go see an existential therapist. No joke.

Bump for similar problem.

>>9130014
>What is the generally /lit/ accepted version of the bible I should read?

King james but if you don't like the language you can always read the ESV

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>>9132057
>reading
>protestant
>bible

>not being a gnostic in current year

>>9132077
ok then read a catholic one whatever

>>9129972
I converted to Christianity last year (Catholic, got baptized and confirmed at Easter) after a lot of reading and taking RCIA (Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults) classes at my parish. I was willing to accept a lot of shit (not specifically just Catholic beliefs, but some general Christian ones) because I felt like the end justified the means. The end, as I saw it at the time, was a meaningful spiritual connection that could be deepened as my faith grew. I didn't stick with it long enough for that to happen, though. I fell into a depression, stopped going to mass, didn't feel like going to confession in order to be rectified so I could take communion, and so on.

I don't think any one religion can offer you more than a glimpse or interpretation of an absolute truth. If the rituals or atmosphere of one compels you then go for it and hopefully you can stick with it as your faith grows.

>>9132303
Stage five seems to be schizophrenia

>>9132303
Eschatology is important and shouldn't be put with that meme shit nigga

>>9129972
>>9132318
I would like to add something. Make it a point when the weather permits to take a solo camping and/or hiking trip. Being in nature seems to ease some of the angst that comes with living in a non-spiritual world. Also, if you're up for some hardcore meditating I'd suggest finding a Vipassana retreat. It is very valuable for the seekers and wanderers. It might not satisfy your spiritual needs, but it's likely to point you toward a satisfying conclusion in that regard.

https://www.dhamma.org/en-US/locations/directory

Also, if you're interested in that meditation check out this documentary
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QR7CbbcIzLc

Read scriptures from all the religions (my favorite so far is the Baghavad Gita) and look for the common themes of all of them. You can find meaning in religion without converting to a specific one.

>>9132331
studying the end times will drive you mad. if it exists then you cannot know when it will take place as it's stated in the bible. you can study it, search for signs, and you'll never know. fuck that

Read the KJV, for God's sake. He inspired the translators, despite King James changing some doctrinal parts of it, and disregarding the councils that put it together.

As far as churches go, Catholics are a good choice. Methodists are pretty good. Avoid Presbyterian and Calvinists. Baptists are hit-and-miss. For some fringe religions, Mormons are okay (generally the most accepted of fringe religions), Seventh-Day Adventists are 50-50, Jehovah's Witnesses are a no-go.

As far as other, non-Christian religions, Islam is okay if you are a male, but there is no cultural Islam, so its commit or not. Judaism is okay if you don't believe in God, and there are cultural Jews, as well, who don't follow all the Tulmud, or do the Phylacterie shit.

>>9132362
>studying the end times will drive you mad. if it exists then you cannot know when it will take place as it's stated in the bible. you can study it, search for signs, and you'll never know. fuck that

It's not important when it takes place or whether it takes place in my lifetime. I don't need to search for signs or anything like that and I'm not going mad. Should still be studied.

>>9130142
Mystical traditions are really similar from one faith to another, which I find encouraging. They all seem to share this elevated idea of a Supreme Being that transcends comprehension, that has to be experienced directly. I think it's wonderful because at that point it doesn't seem to matter what religion you discover it in.

>>9132331
>>9132362
>>9132374

The question of when isn't really important.

>>9132402
To each his own. Other than a cursory study I couldn't get involved in eschatology unless I felt like the end was coming soon or at least within my lifetime. It's too speculative

>>9132362
Eschatology is transformation, bro. In the womb, there is no way to see beyond our birth.

>>9132318
You tried the easy way out and caught on that you were being a dick. Thank god your body knew better enough to give you depression.

>>9132369
>Read the KJV
Stop forcing this retarded meme. KJV is only valuable for English lit studies. For religious purposes most major new translations are undoubtedly better, even completely autistic ones like NRSV. I'd suggest NASB or ESV with Apocrypha.

>>9133425
>For religious purposes most major new translations are undoubtedly better

For "scholarly" purposes, absolutely. However, beauty and sublimity are important experiences for religion and faith, meaning the KJV is still an essential text for those reading for purposes of worship/spirituality.

>>9133391
The easy way out is giving up. Christianity is a lot of work. Maybe that's easier than nihilism I guess.

>>9129972
Here's the direction I went:
>raised Christian
>diverted to Buddhism in uni like so many people
>moved on to Taoism
>gave up on everything
>existential crisis and spiritual void around 30
>Now I only will concede to label myself an Epistemological Deist if pressed. That's the best expression of my personal beliefs.

>>9133854
>Christianity is a lot of work
Maybe being nice to people is. But the belief system is for the most part the default position of children. Facing existential questions without an external locus of control... That is hard work.

>>9133449
>implying all other translations lack beauty
>falling for 'antiquated forms are majestic' meme
Just stop. KJV is immensely important historically, but recommending it for religious introduction in current year is just dumb.

>>9133923
*tips*

>>9129972
Suck it up buttercuck.

>>9133983
Try reading. You might want to check out Yalom. His type of work supersedes religion now.

>>9129972
The void doesn't go away just by ignoring it man.

>>9129972
You gotta delve into the void, there's no other option.

>>9134053
>person with fedora-tier understanding of religion is advising others to read anything

>>9133983
>>9134139
You're embarrassing yourself.

>>9134139
Not just anything, I recommended an author for you specifically. Why do you assume my understanding of religion is bad just because I think another approach is now better? Religion used to be the best we had to tackle our existential situation, now it's not.

>>9129972
God works in mysterious ways OP.

>>9133923
The central figure of christianity was tortured and killed for saying what he said. His early followers were too for believing in him. It's not a pleasant belief system.

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>>9132057
>KJV
I'm Protestant and even I find that disgusting
>ESV
REEEEEEEEEE

OP don't settle for any less than NET version.

>>9134538
>KJV
>disgusting
>I can't read above a fifth grade level

>>9134545
>I value muh archaic awesomeness more than I value translation accuracy

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>>9129972
Do you believe for a fact that a historical person that was born by a woman that had never had sex and was murdered by an imperial vassal state actually came back to life and that this person is somehow actually god incarnated and that unless you do believe this then your soul is going to burn in hell forever with no possibility of apology?

If you can't accept even one aspect of that, then don't try. You're going to do yourself more harm than good faking it.

You know there is literally no reason to accept it, even the earliest Christians didn't think all this shit.

>>9129972
Starting from Atheism and going straight to Christianity is a hard one. I recommend you start with general pagan thought, then work your way through Platonism and neoplatonism. From there, Christianity is much more comprehensible.

>>9129972
what is spiritual to you?.

>>9130093
>his holiness the dalai lama
they talk plain clear about her own absurdity and the people still take the bait.

>>9129979
I don't disagree but
>hiking
>creative activity
What

>>9129972
meditation works - you didn't try hard enough, or your practice was ineffective/not the right one for you at this time.

http://integrateddaniel.info/book/

read this and try again. meditation is hard work but the most reliable path: contemplative technologies in religions outside the dharma are not well developed, will yield limited results haphazardly.

and don't get hung up on buddhist denominations too much either (zen is a bit of a meme in the West)

>>9134527
You are not Christ, and neither are you a follower back when the movement was a marginalised cult. These points are irrelevant.

I already conceded that WWJD could be difficult, but believing in God the father is a childish default concept, it's not difficult. Difficult is coming to terms with nobody being in control.