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For History we are learning about how religion has formed the world and what damage it has done to the world. I keep thinking that if religion is so important to everyone why don't we embrace everyone else religion? Why does just one persons religion have to be right? I mean i see arguments about it everyday. But I am asking you, the people of the web, what is your stand point on religion?
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There is only one way to Heaven and it isn't religion. Praise the Lord.
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It is disruptive, archaic and unnecessary. It divides instead of unifies, and gives justification for hatred.
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Religion is easy, God is looking for faith.
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Religion is the great divider of mankind.
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Joy and peace to the common person, power to the kings.
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You can't and shouldn't embraced them because they're ridiculous stories, they contradict themselves and each other - and more importantly, they cause horrible, horrible things.
The Crusades.
The Inquisition.
Witch trials in Europe and America.
The Divine right of Kings (valid until killed by another Divinely-appointed King).
Missionaries destroying/converting smaller, "heathen" religions and cultures.
Missionaries such as Mother Teresa.
The demonization of other religions, e.g. Christianity demonizing Pagans ("They're devil-worshippers!"), the Romans demonizing Christians ("They're atheists and cannibals!").
Persecution of Heretics - e.g. Galileo for daring to suggest that the Earth orbits the Sun.
Children dying because their parents refused them medical treatment on religious grounds; relying instead on faith-healers and prayer.
Slavery, supposedly supported by scripture ("Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, just as you would obey Christ.", St.Paul, Ephesians 6:5)
Holy wars - followers of different faiths (or even the same faith) killing each other in the name of their (benevolent, loving and merciful) gods.
The destruction of great works of art considered to be pornographic/blasphemous, and the persecution of the artists.
Censorship (often destructive) of speech, art, books, music, films, poetry, songs and, if possible, thought.
Persecution/punishment of blasphemers (Salman Rushdie still has a death sentence on him), and blasphemy laws in general.
The requirement of theism in order to stand for public office or to testify in court.
Serial killers believing they are doing the work of Satan (or sometimes Jesus).
Often-fatal exorcisms by priests believing they are destroying the work of Satan.
People suffering dreadful injury or death in the belief that their faith has made them invulnerable (e.g. people climbing into lion enclosures at zoos, with a Bible as protection).
Whole societies divided by minor differences in belief or doctrine, often resulting in violence.
Mass suicides of cult-members following a charismatic leader who believes the world is about to End
The attempted genocide of followers of a particular faith (e.g. the Jewish Holocaust, "ethnic cleansing" in former Yugoslavia).
Blood sacrifices to appease the Gods, or to ensure a good harvest. (The Aztecs made daily human sacrifices to ensure that the Sun would rise. Or did they? )
The practice of "female circumcision" (more accurately termed genital mutilation).
The discouragement of rational, critical thought (resulting in young-earth creationists, for example).
Uncontrolled population growth caused (or at least helped) by churches prohibiting birth-control and abortion. (You can also add : unwanted pregnancies, ill-fated forced marriages, and pregnant teenagers condemned to a life in mental institutions to avoid embarrassing their families.)
The spread of sexually transmitted diseases (e.g. AIDS) due to churches prohibiting the use of condoms.
Believers whipping, impaling, poisoning or crucifying themselves during religious festivals as a demonstration of their faith and piety.
Suicide bombers taught to believe that martyrs go straight to Paradise.
The indoctrination of children into the religion of their parents, giving them an arbitrary, life-long belief that is almost entirely dependent on their place of birth.
Women treated as second-class citizens or even slaves
Pentecostal snake-handlers
Persecution of homosexuals
Abuse of power, authority and trust by religious leaders (for financial gain or sexual abuse of followers and even children).
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I'm Jewish and I'd like to set this straight: We don't recruit people, we don't believe ours is the only way, and you don't even have to believe in God. We have these seven Noahide laws that everyone must follow, but I assure you that it's based on common sense, like don't kill duh.
Sure we're involved in a bitter territorial war w/ Muslims, but many of us do live quite peacefully alongside our Muslim friends.
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That sounds like a nice unbiased history class!
Logically at *maximum* only one religion can be right, because they contain incompatible assertions.
(Those attempting to produce a harmony of religions have to put these aside: that's a possible viewpoint but it itself hangs on a dogmatic assertion that's not always openly declared.)
If you want to embrace all religions how do you embrace those that insist they alone are true? If you embrace one of such, don't you then have to un-embrace(?) all the others?
And would you like to come round on Saturday? I'm having a barbecue and sacrificing my first-born to Moloch.
Or does your embrace for all religions not quite stretch that far?
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religions that claim only one "true" way tend to lead to bloodshed - and have, over and over and over again.
but religion can be a personal thing, a path of development, as long as we remember to respect that others are naturally going to find different paths and have different truths.
we should no more have (or expect to have) the same favorite foods or colors or activities than we should have the same religion; that would rob the world of too many unique sets of perspectives and values. We only need to get along peacefully, and respect, even when we disagree.
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I like your primary question. It begs for a definition, doesn't it?
What you're really asking about is Christianity -- most of the rest of the world's "religions" do not exhibit the interrelational bickering and fighting that is prevalent among many Christian (not all) sects.
The answer is that most Christians _do_ get along with each other, but the hatred is largely driving by the hierarchy of religious leaders who do not want to lose their livelihood (read: income) when their followers choose another path.
Some of the internal strife amid some of the world's religions is due to doctrinal differences, certainly, but I don't think this is an overriding issue. It seems to be centered more on common "human" problems of ego, greed, and power.
As to religion "forming" the world, I'm not sure that I'd make that assessment. Certainly, religious thinking has brought about civilization in the concept of orderly laws.
The final thought is that religion tends to be highly personal and subjective. What is true and important for one person is not necessarily true and important for the next. We are all individuals and have individual needs.
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Anyone who has a religion really should study the other religions around them other than their own. There are a lot that tend to have very strange similarities. For Christians, I would suggest reading into about Egyptian mythos, roman mythos (especially since Rome was converted into a Christian nation by combining the two. Christmas is purely a pagan roman holiday changed and modernized, as well as Easter). It would be just generally a good idea to read up on the other religions. If you stand strong in one, what harm can it do to read up on the 'foolishness' of the other ones?
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As a Christian, I hate religion and so did Jesus Christ. He preached against religion most of all. Religion is man made. God is not man made. There is no correct religion but there is truth in God's Word. God did not nor has He sanctioned any organized religion or denomination. Those things are all man made and mostly tradition. God has only asked us to read His Word, love and obey Him, and believe in His only Son.
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