Is there Theistic Buddhism?

In Buddhism, we sometimes practice looking at things in certain ways just for the effect it has on mind, but that is not the same as "believing" them. The question of the existence of a god is only a religious question to god. And the Buddhist method would be for god to look at it as "no, I don't exist".

I myself suspect that the idea of a god is somewhat of a misinterpretation of actual observed phenomena. You could as easily say "there IS a god, but s/he is not what you think" or "there is no god". But the former invites accepting a lot of preconceptions about the nature of such a being, while the latter does not (as much). People who say "there is a god" so often follow it up with "...and he wants me to stamp out the evil-doers!". You've seen a lot of that on R&S.

There are Buddhist-Christians, Buddhist-Muslims, Buddhist-Pagans, Buddhist-Shintoists, etc. Being a Buddhist-Deist won't stretch the fabric of reality to the tearing point. There are no creator gods in geology either, but that doesn't stop you being a geologist- why should it stop you from benefiting from the Dharma?

Yes, this can be confusing. Basically, Buddhism does not pose a God who created the universe or controls the universe. However, there is mention of gods, as a translation of the Sanskrit 'Deva'. In Buddhism, there are roughly said 6 realms that sentient beings can be born into, in hell-like existences, in existences that are marked by great craving - such as hunger and thirst that cannot be quenched, then there is the animal realm, next the human realm, then come the so-called demi-gods, and the most fortunate ones are called gods. These gods live in much comfort and happiness, and rarely experience suffering or problems; until they die that is, because then they can be reborn in any of the 6 realms (depending on their karma). Another confusing concept may be the many Buddhas that can be found in Mahayana Buddhism, especially in tantric Buddhism. However, these beings or deities actually represent very highly developed masters or actual Buddhas. Some people may almost worship them as a God, but no Buddha has full control over what happens in the universe like the God of Christianity or Islam. So everything depends on how one defines 'theistic' and 'god'

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RE:

Is there Theistic Buddhism?

After a very long, and perhaps still ongoing, battle with matters of faith, I feel that the teachings and practices are the most in line with how I feel I should be. I was raised a fundamentalist Pentecostal and then became Catholic in college. Now, at 27, while I believe Jesus was a person, I can...

It should be clear that the Buddha taught there are myriad beings, and among them are gods, not GOD.

Whatever you want to pick and choose to believe, though it may come from different religious traditions, it's not a problem.

good luck in your religious path ;)

* i combined my Chinese ancestral religion and Buddhism

You probably could, I think in early Buddhism because it divided off from Hinduism, Buddha taught that if the gods did exist as in Hinduism, that they'd be of no use and stuck on the same cycle of life, hence they were redundant to believe in.

Quite simply, you can do whatever you want. Im a deist myself and see some allure to Buddhism as well.