Posted by Fergus on January 30, 2001 at 17:28:29:
In Reply to: Re: Religion and E-types posted by Bartholomew on January 30, 2001 at 12:40:40:
> People usually are members of the religion they grow up with, regardless of type.
I generally agree with that, but there are also many people who do change their religions as adults. I have, my parents have, and my brother and his wife have. And, as a UU, it is common for me to meet other people who have. So, even given that many people stay with the religion they grew up with, Enneagram type may have an influence on who stays with the religion they grew up with, on who gives up religion altogether, and on which religions various people are drawn to.
Here are some of my guesses on this matter. Taoism is very ninish and may attract nines more strongly. Buddhism, with its emphasis on ending suffering, might appeal to sevens. Fundamentalist religions may appeal more to sixes, who feel a need for certainty and belonging. However, some of the most successful religious memes have probably found ways to appeal to people of all types. Christianity can appeal to the moralism of ones (Jesus was a moral teacher), the compassion of twos (love your enemies as yourself), the narcissism of threes (we're better than you because we know Jesus), the romanticized suffering of fours (the passion of Jesus suffering on the cross), the theological speculations of fives (Aquinas, Augustine, etc.), the need for certainty of sixes (the Bible tells me so), the utopianism of sevens (New Jerusalem; Heaven), the drive for power of eights (ecclesiastical authority; Jesus' power over demons), and the peacefulness of nines (Jesus is called the Prince of Peace).
I'm a five, and my brief religious history is Wesleyan Methodist, nonreligious, American Baptist, eastern religion (an eclectic mix of Taoism, Buddhism, and Vedanta), antireligious after reading Nietzsche and then Ayn Rand, curious about paganism, nonreligious, and finally Unitarian Universalist, which provides religious community without creed or dogma. UUs include people of different religious beliefs, and I think I'm best described as a spiritual humanist.