Seeker's Diary: Beliefnet.com

Buy a book, get driving directions, refill a prescription, check the latest headlines, find a recipe for barbecued chicken -- I've done them all on the Internet in the past week.

It's also an amazing research tool.

Checking out your family tree? Genealogy information that once took years to glean is now just a mouse click or two away.

For "Seeker's diary, I've used the Internet sparingly. I've checked out church and denominational Web sites and tracked historical information about religious movements.

I even was "ordained" online, but a computer crash ate the information about my "denomination."

The problem with surfing the Net for spiritual insight and religious meaning is obvious: There is too much out there.

Using the Google search engine, I entered "spirituality" and got 2.8 million hits. "Religion" racked up 13.2 million.

Its "religion" menu offers information about Buddhism, Earth-based religions, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, Unitarian/Universalism, Falun Gong, the Shiites and a score more. Click on "Catholic" and an eclectic menu of options appears, including a link to the Vatican's "Catechism of the Catholic Church" and another link to the Vatican Library's "Secret Archives." (There's a caveat that misuse could result in revocation of library privileges.)

Need daily inspiration? Online newsletters range from Buddhist Wisdom and readings from the Torah, to Angel Wisdom and religious jokes. (How many Methodists does it take to change a light bulb? Check out the category "Light Bulb Jokes" to find out.)

Beliefnet.com offers access to hundreds of interactive discussion groups covering issues from animal rights to workplace spirituality.

Articles by dozens of regular columnists include words from former presidential candidate Gary Bauer to the cutting-edge work of Marcus Borg and John Shelby Spong.

Beliefnet.com is an advertiser-supported site. That works to its advantage. No one group takes credit or blame for its content, and I could detect no particular bias in the presentation. The welcoming statement describes the purpose and the scope of the service:

"We are independent. We are not affiliated with a particular religion or spiritual movement. We are not out to convert you to a particular approach, but rather to help you find your own. Fundamental to our mission is a deep respect for a wide variety of faiths and traditions.

"We try to achieve our mission by providing information and inspiration. Our site has an extraordinary collection of experts and scholars. We give you spiritual tools such as prayer circles, kits to help you celebrate births, weddings, and other life milestones, as well as commemorate deaths. You can help your church, house of worship or spiritual group online. Even our products and services are selected to aid you with your spiritual search. Most important, we help you to learn from each other through a breathtaking array of discussions and dialogue groups."

I haven't fully explored this remarkable resource, but I'm impressed by what I have seen.

I don't know the size of the site's staff, but it's clear that a great deal of effort is involved in keeping it up to date.

Whether you're simply curious about what others believe or are in the midst of your own search for religious and spiritual meaning, Beliefnet.com is an interesting place to start.