One Of The Reasons Why I Am Skeptical Of Christianity.

I was brought up a devout Catholic. But all my life, especially by HS, I was getting more and more skeptical. About supernatural religious claims, in any event. (I still tend to believe in God, or at least a higher order to things. I know in some eastern religions they call that the Tao.)

But one of the things that soured my opinion on religion, or perhaps I should say more specifically the people in religions, is how they don't even live up to their own moral standards. The standards I eventually learned, that for Christians is found in the Sermon on the Mount Matthew 5, 6, and 7. In it Jesus said to love everyone. Even bad people, even people who have hurt you. If someone hits you on the cheek, don't complain. Offer him the other cheek, Jesus says. Now what Christian even comes close to that ideal? Most Christians in the US support things like the death penalty and hurting prisoners. A true Christian would be less to support those things. Even less likely to support the death penalty really.

That's why I may probably always believe in God and a higher power. But I am very skeptical of the three monotheistic religions, Judaism, Christianity and Islam.

 

I can understand your disillusionment. All world religions present the same paradox: high ideals, adherents whose practice falls way short of those, and a clutter of irrational doctrines that keep 'em separated. Humans are just ornery, which is why they need relgion, but cam mess it up. I think, by and large, religions are good, in the sense that without them people would be worse. I have friends who turned their lives around by embracing Jesus, and others for whom the promise of an afterlife gives meaning to their lives. For others, it's an incentive for altruism, organized or individual. But some forms of Christianity are toxic. I consider myself pretty religious, but also consider religious fundamentalism--Jewish, Christian, Muslim, Hindu, etc.) as one of the most serious threats to U.S. democracy and world peace. I think Jesus, as depicted in the gospels, offers a simple message of love for God and neighbor which, if practiced, would produce paradise on earth. (Possibly the Sermon on the Mount is a tad idealistic for countries in a rough neighborhood. See Reinhold Niebuhr, Moral Man, Immoral Society.) Many of the folks who wear the Christian label on their sleeves impress me as Latter Day Pharisees of the kind Jesus was frequently disputing. I also have atheist friends who could put some of the Christians to shame in terms of their adherence to family values and basic decency. It sounds like you're on the right track. For "what does the Lord require of you: To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." (Micah:6: 8)