Finding Your Religion: When the Faith You Grew Up with Has Lost Its Meaning

by Scotty McLennan

Book Overview

An Indispensable Guidebook for Those Seeking a New Spiritual Path, or Wishing to Reconnect to the Religion of Their Youth This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0060653469
• ISBN13: 9780060653460
• Release Date: December 2000
• Publisher: HarperOne
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 0.50 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.4" x 8.1"

Customer Reviews

We're All Travelers on the Spiritual Mountain

WOW - I found this to be a very thought-provoking, insightful, interesting read! The author writes in a wonderful, non-judgmental way, and because of this I was drawn into it from the start. I actually purchased this book to help out a friend who is looking for "the right religion for her" - since she doesn't care for reading right now, I thought I'd share snippets from the book with her to see if it would help to point her in the right direction. Yet I found myself getting more "food for thought" than I had ever imagined - and for that I am grateful! "Finding Your Religion" is about just that - finding the religion that resonates with your soul - the one that stimulates you, and helps you to grow. Mr. McLennan helps one to see that they don't have to stay in the same religion for their entire life, and that as you grow and your perceptions change, your religious needs may need to change as well. This thought reminded me of the Gnostic Christian perspective that as we grow, and our perceptions change, our spiritual/religious beliefs will change as well. I feel that this idea also helps to remind us not to judge - we are all where we need to be based on our current thoughts/beliefs/perceptions... I liked how the author uses the metaphor of a spiritual mountain. We are all climbing up that mountain, learning and growing along the way. At times during your climb you'll find a cross-road, and it's at these times where you need to decide if you want to try a different route (religious tradition), or if you'd like to stay on the route you're currently on - it's always your choice. Just as there are many different levels while climbing up a mountain, the author shares several developmental levels of faith, and the types of thoughts one may experience at each of them. He emphatically reminds us that this these levels are not meant for pigeon holing ourselves or others, or judging higher levels as better than lower levels - but instead it's meant to free us from being stuck religously - afraid to change - as this could lead to a turning away from all religion, frustration, isolation, etc... I really liked how his examples came from a variety of religious traditions/beliefs - I got to learn quite a few things I didn't know about various religions. Some important things to ask yourself & /or think about when deciding on a religion are included, as well as discussions on such things as celebration & suffering - all of which I found to be quite enlightening. One of the thoughts that the author shares several times throughout this book is that we all need a religion. He postulates that having a religion will help us to: find our way (when going it alone can get us lost real fast), be a part of a community, share in celebrations, experience our faith, and find a comfortable way to engage in some form of personal contemplation discipline (such as prayer & /or meditation). Another analogy that he used - which I use often in my reviews, so I c

Start your climb!

Rev. McLennan wrote a masterpiece! This book is a must for those who are lost in the areas of finding a religion, or even those who feel firm where they are. He introduces other religions from his own experiences and shows that "all paths lead to the top" but they are all radically special in their own right. I found my path by following Rev. McLennan's suggestions, and reread the book every year. I can't recommend this book enough, it deserves 10 stars, he even gives books to read and web pages to visit for more information on different religions. Truly a gem and a must have for EVERY person!

A Breath of Fresh Air Amid a "GSI - IBI - TSI" Religious Era

"GSI - IBI - TSI": God Says It, I Believe It, That Settles It! The message is crystal clear: when it comes to God and religion, it's my way or the highway. But here's my favorite bumper sticker; it's even more over the top: GOD LOVES YOU WHETHER YOU LIKE IT OR NOT. Nice, huh? 'My way is the ONLY way: deal with it!'It's no wonder that so many people are disenfranchised from religion in any and all forms. Enter Scotty McLennan, whose book of encouragement for the reader to "find your religion" is even more relevant now than when it was written. He basically pulls out of the ground the "KEEP OUT" sign the GSI-IBI-TSI crowd has put in front of the "spiritual mountain" that McLennan encourages the reader to climb. McLennan treats each of the major world religions equally, and as other reviews note he gives each their due. It is precisely this tone of respect -- no, not a wishy-washy "I'm OK, You're OK" perspective, but rather (gasp!) with an open mind -- which draws in the reader. He also makes it clear that learning about other faiths can strengthen one's existing faith - a blasphemous statement in the minds of the GSI-IBI-TSI crowd, but surely a welcome one for those who have either found the religion they were brought up with to have lost its meaning, as well as those turned off by such closed-mindedness, who have never set foot in a place of worship before.It is important to note that McLennan does not coddle non-believers, but rather acknowledges those who at their point or "stage" in their religious walk consider themselves agnostic or atheistic. His perspective that such people are at a fluid "stage" in their religious life helps open the minds of such people to consider investigating other spiritual paths. The story of the "spiritual experience" of a lifelong Russian atheist may well open some minds. Where the GSI-IBI-TSI crowd would haughtily berate those at such a stage, it is these people who most need a genuine, positive, open minded message that McLennan offers. It is precisely this kind of message that is in increasingly short supply in our society which is increasingly becoming more and more polarized into "us" and "them".The book is not "deep" by any means, yet McLennan's tone is earnest and engaging, sharing McLennan's own experiences as well as those who found their way "up the path."For anyone who had long written off religion, this breath of fresh air book is for you. Those in the GSI-IBI-TSI group, the preaching to the choir Lee Strobel books are down the hall ;-)

Put me back on the path

I was one of the millions who fell out of my religion, prefering to tread water in the shallow pond of spiritual insight I had developed (I of course thought it was an ocean). As time went by, I could feel my spirit becoming more atrophied. By the time I came across this book, I had realized that doing it my own way wasn't good enough; I needed to be a part of a spiritual community. Finding Your Religion confirmed me in that belief and helped me to see the importance of having a path.If you feel the need to get back on your old path or maybe find a new one, this book is for you.

An excellent starting point, but would be useful anytime

I very much enjoyed this book. I am just beginning my religious exploration (after procrastinating about it for several years), and I found that it gave me a very good perspective on ways to approach it. I was very interested in the author's metaphor of mountain-climbing for a person's religious experiences over their lifetime - I found both that and the reference to various stages of spirituality to be very helpful. They gave me a good idea of where I am and what spiritual pursuits I will find the most fulfilling and helpful to me right now.