Religion's role

[John Smith]

I've never been big on religion. I've been told over my life hundreds of time that religion teaches love.

I must be missing something, as I only seem to see it teaching hate. Hate trans, hate gays, hate immigrants, hate blacks, etc.....

[David G]

Re: Religion's role

I've never been big on religion. I've been told over my life hundreds of time that religion teaches love.

I must be missing something, as I only seem to see it teaching hate. Hate trans, hate gays, hate immigrants, hate blacks, etc.....

There have always been people who misinterpret the teachings of great spiritual leaders. 'Tis the way of the world. But don't make the mistake of dismissing all the good that followers of Buddha have done in the world because of the egregious idiocy of a few of them. Or any other denomination, for that matter.

[Nicholas Scheuer]

Re: Religion's role

Might you be looking at the wrong religions? I don't hear anything like that at my church. I'll bet Tom F (noteworthy because he posts religious stuff) doesn't hear anything like that in his church either.

[John Smith]

Re: Religion's role

Might you be looking the wrong religins? I don't hear anything like that at my church. I'll bet Tom F (noteworthy because he posts religious stuff) doesn't hear anything like that in his church either.

I'm guessing all those I refer to call themselves Christians. I can't be sure.

[skuthorp]

Re: Religion's role

Religions are constructs of man. Not much to do with 'god' if such exists.

[Peerie Maa]

Re: Religion's role

If the research is correct, some need religion. For those it gives a form to their lives, may be some comfort.

For those that don't need a religion, but practice one, it may be because they were brainwashed as a child, or they realize that it is a path to power.
For that last group, it matters not what religion, those of the three books or Hindu or whatever, those are the ones that do harm, either political or social harm, or by ripping off the gullible.

[Too Little Time]

Re: Religion's role

I've never been big on religion. I've been told over my life hundreds of time that religion teaches love.

I must be missing something, as I only seem to see it teaching hate. Hate trans, hate gays, hate immigrants, hate blacks, etc.....

There were holy wars. Perhaps those who told you what religion teaches were less than truthful.

[CWSmith]

Re: Religion's role

The great religions teach a powerful message that can be warped and distorted by others for their own gain.

As with many things, the true message demands a great deal of us that few will embrace. It is much easier to take the lessons, turn them around, and throw them at someone else when they are meant to be considered by us for us.

You are listening to the wrong people who are betraying the teachings of their faith.

[RFNK]

Re: Religion's role

My own view is that religion is delusion. Religion answers questions for some when science runs out of answers, I suspect it's always been so. Like a hammer, it's a useful tool for harm or good. Buddhism has been just as responsible for leading and justifying oppression and horror as any other religion. I think blind faith in anything is generally going to be a problem. People need to be circumspect.

[Keith Wilson]

Re: Religion's role

Again 'religion' is not one thing. It's about as broad a term as 'humanity' or 'society', probably broader than 'government'. It includes wildly diverse and utterly contradictory things, even within Christianity, from some of the best our species can produce to some of the absolute worst. It encompasses Desmond Tutu and Tomas de Torquemada, Francis of Assisi and Innocent III, John Murray and John Calvin. Trying to characterize it as if it were even a little homogeneous will just get everybody confused.

[Peerie Maa]

Re: Religion's role

Again 'religion' is not one thing. It's about as broad a term as 'humanity' or 'society', probably broader than 'government'. It includes wildly diverse and utterly contradictory things, even within Christianity, from some of the best our species can produce to some of the absolute worst. It encompasses Desmond Tutu and Tomas de Torquemada, Francis of Assisi and Innocent III, John Murray and John Calvin. Trying to characterize it as if it were even a little homogeneous will just get everybody confused.

Pity that. How can one man's teaching be so many different things?

Sad, he was trying to bring Judaism back to the true path, and created a monster.

[ron ll]

Re: Religion's role

We have evolved to use our brains to reason. Ditching that for faith seems a waste.

[RFNK]

Re: Religion's role

Yep. Works for ideology too.

[David G]

Re: Religion's role

Pity that. How can one man's teaching be so many different things?

Sad, he was trying to bring Judaism back to the true path, and created a monster.

Hmmm... a Religious Text created the way the Bible was - written by a wide variety of authors, with a wide range of insights/idiocies, some of which are contradictory and some all or none of which might be spot on the OG's message... over a wide span of time... and consolidated much much later by a self-appointed panel of experts - and you're wondering how a wide range of interpretations can arise?

[David G]

Re: Religion's role

We have evolved to use our brains to reason. Ditching that for faith seems a waste.

And our brains are a marvel. But if you are under the impression that everthing in the Universe is amenable to reason... or that everything about humans is currently understood by our current level of curious exploration... you are not using that marvelous brain of yours very well, at all.

Organized Religion, and other paths to spiritual understanding, can help fill in some of the gaps, for some folks.