i grew up catholic, was an altar boy, etc. I believe there is a higher power and we're just here for experience, to return to the heavens and do it again and again.
i hate it when any man declares he KNOWS the truth about how it works, about what is right/wrong, etc. Because historically, every 100 years, there is a NEW truth. Every few centuries, what we know is completely revamped. The same cats who KNOW what happens today, also KNEW the earth was flat and yelled for copernicus to be hanged.
That's true to some extent, but many of the beliefs of the rationalist ancient philosophers still hold today. They solved many issues that are still "debated" today. Economists have also already solved numerous issues politicians still "debate". Some things get revamped, not necessarily everything.
I was already through the deist stage. I went from being religious to being agnostic (age 16) to being deist (age 22, very briefly), to not religious at all (rationalist, or atheist as some on here would label me) since age 23.
There is an expression that goes "If you are not a liberal when you are 20, you lack a heart. If you are not a conservative when you are 30, you lack a brain". This was attributed to Winston Churchill but is unlikely to be him since his wife was a liberal.
On that concept of changing ideologies as you age, I feel that with enough research and education, everyone would eventually be non-religious and feel the same way the founding fathers did about issues. I find now that as I get older, I become more and more libertarian, and more and more non-religious. My views are changing, but I am getting more confirmation that my perspectives are the most correct ones - not necessarily the CORRECT ones (because there may be no correct ones), simply the most correct, least flawed ones according to all available science and reason we currently have. None of us can speak on issues which are beyond our ontology.
