Why do religions have different belief systems?

Since I've been researching the purpose of life and the afterlife the last couple years, I have been curious why religions are different across our planet. Let me share the consistent information I found that I think answers this question:

George Noory interviewed THEO which is a group of 12 archangels channeled by Sheila Gillette. Noory asked the archangels, "why do all the various religions have different belief systems?" The answer from the Archangels was, "The teachings of unconditional love and self love have been consistent by the teachers of these religions. However, since humans have led these religions they have influenced from their own human experience; laws and regulations that were not voiced by the one God but were of human content."

I'll quote Mike Dooley's book, Channeled Messages from Deep Space: "At the time of Jesus's appearance on Earth, there were many challenges in corrupt leadership, which was causing great suffering among the masses, and so the global cry for help was met with the physical incarnation of a high-vibrational spiritual master. It is important to point out, however, that the physical incarnation of these masters was not meant to create objects of worship, fear, or a sort of spiritual hierarchy that places the human (or any other physical being) at the bottom of the list. These spiritual masters incarnated into your world in such a way that they would be seen as regular humans, no different from any laborer or peasant, so those around them could understand the divinity that lives in their own souls. The teaching of all these masters centered upon helping others recognize the power, wisdom, and love that lies at the heart of each and every conscious being, and the intention was that in understanding and honoring one's own divinity, a greater balance could be achieved in the treatment and support of the masses.

As with any teaching, however, the lesson can only be integrated at the level of the individual's belief system and choice of truth. As such, those who understood that Jesus's teachings were meant to be about empowerment and self-love saw the threat to their own delusional power, and so they executed him. And when it was clear that this act only created a stronger force behind the lessons, they created religious dogma that skewed the teaching and made it seem to be advocating fear, judgement, and threats to the soul if one's behavior did not meet certain standards. Please know that the original words and teachings of all spiritual masters never included any such concepts; it is a manipulation of their words by those who seek to use them to control the masses, which has created religious dogma advocating fear.

At the heart of every religion, just as the heart of everything, from the smallest atomic speck of energy to the whole of the universe, lies the energy of love. And anything that induces fear is not centered in this love, so it is not the truth. This is at the heart of all the teachings of all the spiritual masters you have experienced in your world, and those we have knowledge of in ours. These masters come forth as the living embodiment of Source, as conduits of the love and power of Source, with the intention of helping those who choose to listen to become aware of the truth that EVERYONE is this living embodiment and conduit of the divine. They did not incarnate with the intention to be worshipped or praised or feared. They came with the intention to reveal the truth. As such, ALL who seek to reveal the truth of each individual's divinity are divine masters in their own right."

Amber Cavanagh is a near death experiencer. In her book, she explains why religions have differing belief systems."You know in school where you played the game telephone? You sit in a circle and one person would whisper something to someone, that person would pass it to the next, and by the time it got to the end of the circle, the original message had turned into something completely different? This is similar to what happened to a lot of religious teachings. Many of the stories are real and true. But these messages were passed down during a time when humanity needed reward and punishment in order to exist. These stories have been written down and adapted so many times. What humanity needs today and how people are interpreting these ancient texts has changed, and may continue to change throughout time."

David Suich researched the testimonies of over 700 near death experiencers and wrote the book called God Took My Clothes. In his book he says, "While in Heaven, some near-death experiencers have asked which religion is the correct one, expecting to hear a particular faith such as Catholicism, Judaism, or Buddhism. But Heaven's answer to that question is always the same. The best religion for you is the one that brings you closest to God. If you are in a religion that is focused on love, you are on the right track. It is love within religion, not the religion itself, that creates spiritual growth." He goes on to say,"Most of the world's major religions may have been inspired by God, and over time, were corrupted to some degree by man. This is why some religions tend to separate people, whereas love tends to unite people. Instead of trying to promote your particular religion, promote love to everyone you interact with."

In his book, The Physics of God, Joseph Selbie says the following, "Ironically, what is most obscured in the confusing fog of religious teachings and claims of exclusivism are the shared commonalities of the original teachings of the founders of the world's major religions, as well as of the thousands of Christian saints, Sufi masters, Zen roshis, Hindu savants, Taoist sages, Tibetan adepts, and independent mystics who have come after them. It is the testimony of these men and women that should interest us most, because it is they who have had the actual transcendent experiences from which all religion springs and by which it is perpetually refreshed.

On close examination, one soon sees that all these enlightened saints and sages achieved their transcendent states by using variations on two indispensable practices: stillness and inner absorption. Stillness and inner absorption are the core disciplines of the science of religion. When practiced to perfection, they will always bring the practitioner—regardless of the practitioner's beliefs (or nonbelief), culture, gender, era, or stage of life—to transcendent, beyond-sensory awareness."

In the book, Messages From The Masters, Dr. Brian Weiss says the following, "All of the great religions place a common emphasis on the importance of leading a spiritual life, of understanding the divine presence in and beyond all beings and things, of good deeds and service, of love and compassion and charity and hope and faith. All describe a life after death and the immortality of the soul. All stress kindness, forgiveness, and peace. When I talk about religions, I am referring to the wonderful spiritual wisdom and traditions, not to the man-made edicts and rules that were promulgated for political reasons and which serve to separate people rather than to unify them. We must be careful to differentiate spiritual truths from politically motivated rules. Such rules are fences, keeping us fearful and apart."

This is the same message I've found repeatedly across my research into near death experiences, those under hypnosis, out of body experiences, and mediumship. I think what happened was that the highly evolved souls of Jesus, Muhammad, and Buddha incarnated on Earth to bring people back to the core teachings of spirituality which are: to empower the human to use their own intuition and look within, focus on love and kindness, and the concept of oneness.

If we take Christianity as an example, I think there were political leaders like Constantine that took the teachings of Jesus and added on their own rules and dogma in order to control the masses. The other important thing to remember is that there were more than 100 gospels written and only four are in the bible. The gospels were written decades after Jesus's death and have been translated into multiple languages. My understanding is that Jesus never wrote anything down but he spoke Aramaic so mistranslations could have changed the meaning of the messages. Essentially, what I'm saying here is that the gospels are interpretations based on that author's own perspective and they have been translated multiple times which could actually cause the ancient text to lose its original message.

Based on my own research, I think during the "lost years" between the ages of 12 and 30, Jesus was traveling through Egypt and India and learning buddhist techniques. Specifically, I think he was learning meditation, how to transcend physicality and connect with spirit, and how to use a form of reiki to heal. I also think at some point he married Mary Magdalene and possibly had children. I think he treated women like his equal and that there were women apostles. I don't think Jesus ever spoke of Hell, told people they had to go to church, or only thought men should be religious leaders. I don't think he even thought there should be religious leaders since every soul is equally special in the eyes of God/Source. That's my belief but either way I won't find out the facts until I die, such is life right.

To summarize, I think that religion can help or hinder a person’s connection with the divine. I think that religious leaders, spiritual teachers, and yogi masters are still human and can be fallible. There are many interpretations and perspectives on ancient text and perhaps there's no wrong answer. If every soul is on their own journey and having their own creative experiences then there can't be a right or wrong answer, just experiences that help us evolve and grow. What's most important is for everyone to be curious, independent seekers, and follow their own intuition and heart to find what is true for you.