Reply #19: Explaining my "Other" vote

[hvn_nbr_2]

The options in the poll seem a bit odd to me. There are a couple "change" options but no option that says "keep what we have." Also, the option to mention this group elsewhere seems like it would go along with any and all other options.

I'm very eclectic in my beliefs and practices and I frequent several of the spiritual groups, looking for and finding something different in each:

SOUP - I think of this group as a place largely for two groups: the New Thought / "positive-thinking" types such as Church of Religious Science and Unity; and Unitarian-Universalists and any other similar groups. Having attended both CRS and UU regularly in the past, it seems like a slightly odd pairing but it works for me.

Christian Liberals/Progressive People of Faith - This seems to be primarily a Christian-oriented group, although I feel welcome there even though I'm not a practicing Christian. My eclectic approach is largely informed by my Christian upbringing and the Bible is the only scripture I can quote from, other than a few small passages from the Tao or Patanjoli (spelling?). If I wanted to start a thread about a Bible topic, I'd most likely start it there instead of here; most other kinds of spiritual subjects I'd bring up here.

Ancient Wisdom and Pagan Spirituality - I'm more neo-pagan than anything else in my eclecticism, so I go there. There doesn't seem to be any issue about that group being separate from these other ones, so I won't say anything more about it.

Astrology, Spirituality & Alternative Healing - I used to go there a lot and go less and less now. Partly because SOUP and CL/PPF now exist. I think AS&AH existed before either of those and seemed to have a broader scope then. The "Spirituality" in that group's title also seems to be a misnomer now, needing some qualifying adjective but I don't know what that would be. There's very little discussion of alternative healing there, the spirituality runs toward the more "out there" and/or New Age subjects (That's not a put-down), and it's becoming more and more a primarily astrology group. Since I don't really care one way or the other about astrology, I spend less and less time there. There was a time when I would have posted subjects like dreamwork, shamanism (if I wanted a larger audience than the pagan group), remote viewing or other psychic phenomena there, but I'd probably come here with those sorts of subjects now. Some of those subjects would seem to fit better over there, but I've also experienced some hostility there because of them. (Seems strange and sad, but true.)

Religion & Theology - I read it, but I probably wouldn't ever start a thread there. Can't think offhand of a subject I'm interested in that wouldn't fit better and get better discussion in one of these other groups.

Hope I didn't bore you too much with all these words. I guess if it was too boring, you didn't get this far. I'm somewhat curious if other people see these different groups' purposes as I do or something else.