This is going to be THE MOST DIFFICULT part for ppl to understand and overcome!
IMHO!

Waaaaay oversimplified generalization.

By what definition?

Bible says "Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, to keep himself unspotted from the world" James1:27

And you think Satan and the demons aren't "spiritual"?? They ARE supernatural beings inhabiting the spirit realm.

And about these times Paul warned:

:For such [are] false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ.
And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light" 2Cor11:13,14

Well hun you are within your rights to stay in that space. But I myself have been in God's presence twice in my life and I do not rely on the Bible that you know that humans created, I rely on my direct connection to God.
satan and the jesuits have changed some of the original Bible wording also changing the meaning.
Purposefully leaving out sentences that tell us how to connect directly with God by way of the soul and Earth suit He created here for us, and btw only quoting a fraction of it all.
I understand that there were actually over 700 books to what we should know as the Bible.

Not here to debate, I have been with God in my NDE, and have no need to justify anything to anyone.
You have your path and I have mine.

I know you've said all that before and that's fine but what does that have to do with my particular point? The description of pure religion from Paul is somehow bad? .. or flawed? .. *just* because it's in the Bible and came out of a human mouth?

You don't believe Satan and his demonic retinue are 'spiritual' beings?

The Bible actually teaches us to follow God, not man, when man tells us to do bad or foolish things.

In my experience Biblical Christians practicing 'pure religion' believe and follow that teaching.

Aside from the whole 'Bible's been changed'/'lost books' issues the Bible is still one of the greatest wisdom books that ever was surely?

My point is *religion* can be good or bad depending on how it's *practiced* ... or *defined*. Jesus criticized the Pharisees practice of 'religion'. I've seen "spiritual" people do some really hurtful, even evil things. Done plenty myself back when I used to be "spiritual" but not (certainly not) "religious".

:For such [are] false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ.
And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light" 2Cor11:13,14

My point is using passages like this to try to imply that ppl in current times that actually have contact with God in real time traps ppl into a religious box.
Do you believe that he said those exact words?
Do you believe this came from God or a man?
Was this man and his visions of God or from his condition at the time?
If you believe all of his visions they do you believe all the visions ppl still have today?
If you have been in the presence of God and also been in the presence of demons, you know the difference. satan & his demons are spiritual beings, but it is a darkness they carry that they can not hide in that form.
Imho anything in existence can be good or bad, that is afterall the experience experiment. I prefer a direct connection to God not one that I know to be flawd to some

That's not what I was trying to say at all though I have known many such people who have had experiences they believe were of God who would describe themselves as 'spiritual but not religious' who do such things. But don't take that personally please I don't know you only from what I gain from your words here.
I do believe people have visions in the present times perhaps even from God at times. But, personally, when they contradict and lead away from the Bible I suspect they are not.
We do seem to agree that everything can be 'good' or 'bad'.
That would include 'religion' imo and whether Paul said those exact words or not doesn't really matter to me or, imo, this discussion.
That is a beautiful description of "religion" and one worthy of practice and adherence. My point being that 'religion' is not a dirty word or concept in and of itself a I felt your original comment sweepingly asserted.

May God bless us both on our further search for Truth