ANTI-RELIGION: Discuss the perils of religion

Religions have caused wars, death and destruction for as long as we have written history, possibly longer. It is the cause of the people to seperation into cultures, that end up hating eachother for lack of communication and understanding. We are no longer a primitive species, and there is no longer a need for religion as most questions can be answered with science. We need a more evolved way of thinking, that if fighting people could realize that theirs is not truely hatred, it is confusion, and then vouche to become more natural and stop believing in religions in an effort to become one poeple, we'd all find true happiness with the realization that we are not really all that different from eachother, and can enjoy eachother's company along with our differences, all over this planet....

 

No! We can't ever do that! That would be heaven on Earth!

You blasphemer!! Haha ...

But seriously, all it takes is a little bit of intelligence from 95% of the world ... we've been slowly moving in that direction, but I still doubt we'll reach it in our lifetime ... still, it's something to look forward to, and it's especially something for our generation to plan for. =)

 

There is no greater obstacle along a man's quest to find God than religion.

I have little doubt that if any of the world's holy books truly are divinely inspired, they are inspired by a malevolent deity. They all call for violence, isolation, better than youness. Basically, they all say the same thing: You're either with us, or you're against us, and if you're against us, our God is gonna fuck you up and we're gonna help him..

But there is another thing that all holy books say, it's probably the only true wisdom to be found in any of them. They say that you can find God in yourself and in the world around you.

You don't need religion to find God. You don't need some holy book to tell you what fairy tales to believe in, and you don't need a priest to tell you how to pray.

Just take a look around you. See that doodad on your desk? That's God. See that leaf alling off a tree in your backyard? That's God too. See that spark of true conciousness deep down in your soul? Yep, it's God too.

And if you want to talk to the fella, all you have to do is pray. Don't waste your thoughts and energy repeating some mantra or doing some goofy physical thing. All you need to do is sit down, close your eyes, and tell God what is on your mind. You don't need all that other bullshit.

 

Good post!

 

I agree that religion has caused a lot of suffering, and I agree it still does.

But it has also caused much happiness. Without it the wisdom of many great teachers would not have spread so far around the globe.

Many have used religion as a starting point in their search for God. You can't expect people to set off and leave the comfort zone straight away. I maintain that it is better to be misguided and searching that be sensible and not.

Blessings

Sebbi

 

But i think that the point is, we can learn so much now using science that we don't really need to use guesswork and gods so much to explain the unexplainable. Religion may have served it's purpose in the past, but that doesn't mean that it is so necessary now. It may be holding us back.

 

lmao.

i think the problem...nay the fault lies with humans. i mean think of it this way...even those who don't have religion cause suffering. what makes you think that if we got rid of it we simply wouldn't find something else to latch on to and use as an excuse like politics for instance.


i'd agree people have killed countless others in the name of religion and it was wrong. it was ALWAYS wrong but i don;'t think using religion as an excuse is the right way to go about it....though its either the wrong.


i blame people ultimately...people who use religion to cause hateful segregation are the problem and i honestly think if religion wasn't there it'd be something else.


though it would be interesting to see what the world would have been like without it.

 

Relgions seek to control mankind.... Of course as Genesis said, mankind is ultimately at fault, being the creators...

 

Holding us back from what exactly?

 

And why is it still not serving it's purpose now?

Religion isn't about explaining how the universe works. It's about finding our place in it. It doesn't have to hold anyone back, it will only hold you back it you choose for it to, and many people choose that, and in the end many are better off for it.

If you practice any belief sincerely it is bound to hold you back in some ways and bound to drive you forward in others, and even if people are held back then they will still achieve their goal even if it takes a while longer.

Who are we to judge which path is right and which path is wrong.

Blessings

Sebbi

 

I don't agree or believe in religeon ...but as long as we have


Pride is excessive belief in one's own abilities, that interferes with the individual's recognition of the grace of God. It has been called the sin from which all others arise. Pride is also known as Vanity.

Envy is the desire for others' traits, status, abilities, or situation.

Gluttony is an inordinate desire to consume more than that which one requires.

Lust is an inordinate craving for the pleasures of the body.

Anger is manifested in the individual who spurns love and opts instead for fury. It is also known as Wrath.

Greed is the desire for material wealth or gain, ignoring the realm of the spiritual. It is also called Avarice or Covetousness.

Sloth is the avoidance of physical or spiritual work.

http://deadlysins.com/sins/

in us we will always be at each others throats.

 

Yes, religion may cause wars.
No, religion is not the problem.

People are the problem. If you want to change the world so badly, don't go about trying to get people to denounce their religion and destroy it, try something that just might be effective! Teach them tolerance!
It's that simple. If everyone would just learn to respect or at least tolerate others beliefs there wouldn't be a problem. We need to be able to appreciate diversity but know that we are still united as beings.

And like Sebbie said, who are we to judge which path is right and which is wrong?

 

But isn't that just what each and every religion teaches? That we must learn to judge the true path from the false?

 

Maybe so, depending on the religion and the person. I meant more along the lines of trying to decide that for everyone. Just because you may believe something is right, does that mean that everyone should follow your example and take that path as well? We shouldn't judge what path another may choose, simply based on the idea that what we believe is 'right' and what they believe is 'wrong.' It all comes back to the basic concept of tolerance and giving everyone the freedom to choose for themselves, even if you don't necessarily agree with what it is they may believe.

 

I like how you put that. I feel better, being misguided and searching as I am.

Religions all seem to share the same intent, which is to share wisdom with others in order that they may act in a 'good' manner. They teach us to be good.
The people who twist that message, and use it to further their own evil desires are the problem, in my view.

 

I know what you're getting at - and in principle I agree. But what if you saw that someone was pursuing a path which was obviously not right? For example, taking Heroin and claiming a mystical vision as a result? Or the sectarian who is lost in a narrow-minded hypocrisy, yet still wants to impose that on everyone? Can't we judge them wrong? I think we must.
But of course, thats not to say that me you or anyone can dictate to another what they believe or how they act. In the end, everyone is on a unique path, and at the same time, we're all on the same path.

 

Of course not, for two reasons:

a) They are choosing to act like that out of their own free will
b) everybody, no matter how long it takes, learns from their mistakes and will be better off for it.

I think it is important to protect yourself and others against the violations of other peoples free will. For example if someone is trying to force yourself or anyone else to convert then we have responsibility to do our best to stop this from happening, however we must never judge the one who's doing the converting.

Paulo Coelho once said "We are here to help our fellow man against oppression, not judge the oppressor."

Blessings

Sebbi

 

this is a small point, but meaningful to me.
I will judge the action but not the person, privately. And praise the person if they do something positive, publicly.

Judging others is generally not of any use unless you are at the same time able to offer them an alternative that is given without any expectation of them heeding it. If the act is exceptionally evil, say a crime against another, then it is more important to stop it and call for help. Judging at that point is useless in my view.

Mother Teresa once said that she does not agree with protesting, but feels that instead it is better to do something positive.

 

Yea, I agree. I think in terms of judging, we should judge the action, but not necessarily the person. Trying to understand why they are doing what they are doing and seeing the situation through their perspective helps much more than judging them for their actions.


BlackBillBlake, I can also see where you are coming from, but like I said I still don't feel that it's my responsibility to judge someone else, no matter how obviously wrong they are. And as for the example you mentioned about some narrow-minded hypocrite trying to convert you, I have actually been in several situations like that and know exactly what you mean. Although I completely disagree with their beliefs and think that they are wrong, I can still understand that they are trying to convert me because they honestly believe they are right and are just trying to help (most of them anyway).

I know every situation is different, and I'm sure there might be some cases in which a fundamental sense of right/wrong may come into play and judgement of some sort is justified, but generally speaking I think people should hold off judgement until they can understand the complexity and know all the details about the person/situation they are judging.

 

I think this is a tricky issue. I agree that its the 'sin not the sinner' that is at fault. But what I'm trying to say is that we have to be careful and use discrimination to decide what we believe and who we should follow (if anyone).
Also, it can happen that the influence of some fanatical and narrow sect can actually be very damaging to those they seek to convert. I have seen this in the case of Mormons, who tried to break up a family I know, and would have installed the female half in a house owned and furnished by their church - in effect, they would 'own' that person. To leave the cult would be to become homeless.
In an instance like that, I have no hesitation in saying what I think - that this is obviously wrong. But in the instance I mentioned, the woman concerned managed to see through it all.
But of course, we can't dictate to others what they should believe. People need to make their own mistakes - come to some kind of understanding for themselves.
The only thing that can justify 'intervention', to put it that way, is where a persons actions may threaten some definite harm to others - society has to be protected.

Love & Peace.