To religious people: How do you explain your ASD?

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I was wondering how religious people see their autism. Why do you think God/Allah or whatever god you believe in made you autistic?

Good question, but not one with a simple answer. I will, however, attempt to give you my best answer. First of all, I never did like the term "religious". What does that mean exactly? My personal belief system/philosophy may gravitate toward a pattern of ideals or outlook which may be closer to a certain category of labeling, whether that be Buddhist, Jewish or whatever. You can ascribe to a particular religion without being "religious". Do I believe in a literal interpretation of the bible? No, not really. Rather I believe that all religions and their associated writings (Koran, Torah, the Hindu Vedas, etc), are man's interpretation and expression of the sacred and divine. I do believe in a something, some transcendent power or motivator or whatever. Whatever "it" is is not divisive and exclusive, but rather unifying and inclusive. For instance, my signature is from Yogiraj Sri Swami Satchidananda, "Truth is one, paths are many." There are rare moments when we can catch a brief glimpse of the transcendent and divine. For some it is viewing a spectacular sunset, or expression through art, music or meditation. I don't believe in some god sitting up in the sky, designating who is going to be born healthy or sick and malformed. Defining "god" is beyond all human expression. So there is no contradiction with my beliefs and the way I am now. I'm the way I am due to genetics and the environment. That is how I explain my aspiness. Nothing more nothing less.

There are two angles one can take.

1. God made you that way.

2. This is the fallen nature of man.

Both can be technically correct. Nothing happens without God "allowing" it in one way or another. The dysfunction of man (mind, body and spirit) is the result of original sin.

However, God's Grace can be manifested in how God helps people overcome the failings of the flesh. That's not a perfect answer, but I consider it like this. In a church I used to go to, there was a guy who (IIRC) had Down's Syndrome. Significantly ret*d, small cranium, etc. He had two elderly parents still caring for him as if he was only 8 years old.

Nonetheless, that man had the capacity to care and love others like a little child. If you ever questioned how loving you were, you could look at him and get an idea of what was possible. Perhaps that was how God chose to use his condition as something of value in this world.

I'll second what Musashi just said so eloquently, though I'll add that I think pretty much anyone can ask 'why me?' with any baggage they have - almost no one is without it.

Yes, but why? Why does God give someone more baggage than others?

Godidit.

ruveyn

Its fair to say its not equal, though in reference to Aspergers, regardless of what we go through, we're still on the light side if its that on its own - as compared to many kinds of health ailments, environment issues, or other issues that hit NTs as or more often than us.

That said though, theodicy issues as such, really knowing or understanding the full why would actually take us seeing the exterior structure which, we can philosophically try to map out but our assumptions are based on where the logic leads and you can have completely different answers that can seem to make equal sense - even if they end up a bit stilted. One hypothetical answer I can give - we have a life chart, we map out our own lives before we come here, that this is a micro-life in a much longer eternal life, that we live many of these, and that when we come back we have specific things that we want to experience and learn, thus not only are ailments explained but the sort of iron-clad destiny where we really don't have much free will at all when we think about it. That of course, like the idea of multiverses or that our universe is fine tuned by chance because of billions or trillions of chances - these are all intuitive speculations, speculations made because they intuitively make sense and because we care about knowing what's going on beyond our grasp because, whether we like it or not, it has everything to do with how we conduct ourselves while we're here, how we view life, how we choose our paths. Even in the work world, one has to work with incomplete information and do their best because there's no such thing as having it all laid out and having an easy problem to solve unless its really minor like going to the store and buying more paper for the fax/printer.

I think the only thing that gets blown wide-open with observing the world around us is dogmatic literalism of any particular religion, mainly that they all seem to have stretches of truth but its never seeming to be full. We also have grand and exquite mental imagry, emotions, it shows in our art, music, etc. and we feel this irrational pull toward something far greater almost even in the Pagan theist sense sometimes as being the origin of everything so great, something however so leviathan in size that we can't even get a grip on it, its like living inside a solar system inside of a galaxy inside of a universe inside of a mitochondrial structure inside of a cell in the body of an absolute giant (I wouldn't push that literally but I think you get the idea). That sense of scope as well could be what leaves us feeling like we're on our own completely. Though, through the warm hum of quantum physics and the lattice of energy woven around and through us, matter being energy in and of itself, I have a really hard time not seeing the possibility and based on some of our capabilities as human beings (like healings or psychic phenomena which I used to be skeptical of, still am in most senses, but it just takes on legit case to make you wonder) and additionally our pulls to be 'human' when if we really are here for nothing and are really here for nothing more than procreation of the fittest if that's the best we can come up with - humanity, liberty, emotion, creativity, are all in the clinical sense complete and utter refuse and if anything highly counterproductive.

Its those complexities that keep me, without a steril enough pathway to explain evil without still wondering if there's a better explanation, I'm more than comfortable in saying that I'm something of an agnostic theist, maybe partially agnostic, but still leaning toward theism and tending largely to pivot off of my Catholic routes toward Buddhism, Gnosticism, and Judaism in my views and where I think those ideologies line up.

Very true. It makes as much sense to say...Why not me...with much the same results.

I think there are many "why" questions that are never answered. Why my eves or my hair are the color they are? Why was I born in Finland? Why am I male? Why am I on the autistic spectrum?

Things are how they are. I don't think it is so important what cards we were given, it is how we play with them (a metaphor).

It's just natural diversity. God doesn't want humanity to all be the same.

Plus it got me sent to the school I'm at. Really, messing around with a sink and a rubber glove, and spilling water on some books, is *not* a good reason to permanenetly exclude a pupil. Therefore, there has to be some divine intervention in there.

Any genetic trait can be both an advantage or a disadvantage based on the environment. Many people with AS do really great things because they inhabit a supportive micro-environment. Others find themselves in lesser environments.

I think that that creator likes diversity, Infinite Diversity in Infinite Combination. We see it everywhere in nature. So why not in humans?

Gee, I guess these babies have been dealt a bad hand. But it's all about how to play with the cards isn't it, free will and all?

Lao Tzu was autistic. The fact that the man (or woman, actually. Lao Tzu is not a name, interestingly enough) to pen the Tao Te Ching and whose oral teachings were the basis of the Hua Hu Ching was autistic seems to imply that there's nothing wrong with autism.

I firmly believe that many of the difficulties that people have with their autism (not all, mind you. I am proof of that, at least) is trying to fight it. My beliefs (and my experience) say that that's exactly what you shouldn't do. Yes, there are difficulties that cannot be solved by living along the lines of one's autism, but these are not nearly as numerous or as serious as the ones that can be solved.

And, aside from that, according to Taoist doctrines, and I'm paraphrasing here, it is not our lack of what we want that makes us unhappy, but wanting what we lack.

Again, that's a paraphrase, and not a very good one, I think. If you're interested, read the Tao Te Ching. It's rather concise and to the point. Tolbert McCarroll's version is the best translation I've found online, though probably not the best translation around.

That question seems far more emotionally healthy in its outcome as well.

Being Buddhist, it's easy to explain; my Autism is not anything to be ashamed of. It is part of me, but it is not entirely who I am.

John 15:19
King James Bible


If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.