The world would be a much better place with out it. Religion makes it perfectly okay for people to have completely irrational ideas based on ancient texts. Seriously, look at the bible. People believe it unconditionally. Why? They do because the bible says so. According to this logic I could write a story saying I am the ultimate ruler of the universe and then end it saying "this is true because it is true" and it would be perfectly legit. Also religions teach "faith", which is the biggest load of shit I've ever heard. The dictionary defintion of faith is "belief that is not based on proof". And they take pride in this? The topic of religion is never discussed critically because no one wants to offend anyone, but people need to open their eyes. Religion is fucking ridiculous. I went to a private christian school for 11 years of my life so I actually have a very good understanding of the bible. I could go on forever with everything thats wrong with religion.
Okay. Go on. What is wrong with religion. I think we are all perfectly aware of what is wrong with christianity and their own beliefs. Christianity does kind of give a bad name to religion, but that doesn't mean anytime you get pissed off you can blame religion and then simply point out the christian faults. Anyone can do that, and they can do it all day. Christianity is awesome, and it helps tons of people. Unfortunately, I think that the only reason it does, is because its followers are convinced everyone goes to hell, and its apparently their job to save everyone, so they work their butts off all through life to do exactly that. Surely if other religions taught everybody is going to suffer if they don't "convert" then more people would be trying to help, but instead, most religions aren't really trying to scare the shit out of you to get you to follow them, they are simply proposing a new/maybe better way to reach The Creator, and they feel no need to bring someone "into the light" if that person already believes they are in "the light". My problem with Christian thought: They believe THEIR way is the ONLY way, and you have to determine that, that is true before you die, and if not, you burn. But we aren't equipped with a competent mind that can decipher between what is really right and what is really wrong. So basically, its like picking one door out of one hundred to walk through after death, and only one is the right one. At this point in my life, I think that simply choosing to walk through ANY door, with good intentions would be enough for the True, Just God, because he knows we don't have the capability to KNOW which is right. Faith is a huge joke, and whenever I'm discussing religion with a christian, and I finaly have them in a hole, they simply rely on the old "It's all about Faith" line, and they refuse to listen to me when I tell them how absurd it is that you are required to literally gamble with your eternal soul. I'm a rambler.
agreed. also don't forget about the wars it starts. the crusades, and even nowdays, islamic extremists are willing to suicide bomb people because they believe that when they die they will get 72 virgins or some bullshit like that.
Lack of info causes the people outside of the circles to blame the others. The seventy-two virgins shit is from the Hadiths, which are (basically) the "apocryphal books" of the Bible. Meaning they aren't really necessary to read, but some "extreme" muslims decide to read and follow them as well, thinking that its true, when in reality, very few of the hadiths were truly written by muhammed, and the others were pretty much flat out lies, written by a number of random guys. And also, it says that if you are a MARTYR, you will receive 72 virgins, not if you kill lots of people or whatever people these days are claiming it says, simply because they never bothered to look into it. You can't blame RELIGION for starting wars. Straight up, its simply a few guys, who really want to fight, so they put a reason from their own religion behind it. I clearly understand where you're coming from: yes, many wars have been declared in the name of one religion or another, but that is simply because the leaders knew it would cause a moral boost in their countries. If there were no religions, then the leaders would simply think of a different reason to tell everyone why their fighting.
If it worls for some people, why bitch about it. I think a lot of beliefs are foolish, but we all have the right to believe as we wish. Live and let live I say.
"A man's ethical behavior should be based effectually on sympathy, education, and social ties; no religious basis is necessary. Man would indeed be in a poor way if he had to be restrained by fear of punishment and hope of reward after death." [Albert Einstein]
what about the crusades? christians wanted to have control over the holy land, where jews were living, and where muslims wanted to have control. sucks that three holy lands are in the same place, too easy to fight over. my holy land is everywhere, so im lucky if people wanted to know about other beliefs they would ask, but they don't. most people can't be bothered to plumb the deeper mysteries. the deeper mysteries are all thoughts. i understand that my own beliefs could be wrong, but they make me feel better now, and thats whats important. the ocean smashed some particles together, and life ensued. an asteroid caused fire and possibly extreme hurricanes, and took out the cold blooded opposition. soon we will wipe ourselves out, and then something else will happen. the point is that i don't know, and you don't know, and that is how it is supposed to be.
