this:

"how would you suggest the question could be stated while targeting folks personal feelings on the matter and avoiding dogmatic responses?"

is impossible. you'd have to find someone who THINKS for themselves and not been affected by religious dogma. for those in the "big 3" it's impossible only because everything they'd say to explain themselves would be rehashed from something they've learned and been socialized from the get go to believe...and thus not THEIR thoughts.

the whole "spirituality" thing is also a creation. more modern though... think about this: when you ask peolpe of their spirituality and they all give the SAME answer, would you not think that they've been tainted by the Oprah-esque new age rhetoric that's been happening lately? it's more "open" but it also has people trying to connect with ideas that they don't understand themselves. Boodah and i were talking of this in general (damn i wish i'd posted it over here) where peopl eget into this "spirituality" new age, "non-defined" ideology and just straddle the fence on EVERYTHING so as to avoid being contested on tier belief...also called "PC Religion".

i don't know HOW you'd phrase it.

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...cos that's exactly what the old white men at the top don't want... they can only rule over a working class if the working class doesn't know how powerful it is. this is at the core of all capitalist ideals, and the pyramid structure of society; just make sure that the base of the pyramid doesn't know how powerful it is, and the peak is safe." -tohunga