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Dave W.
Info Junkie
USA
26022 Posts |
 Posted - 08/01/2011 : 14:42:51 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by alienist
Emotionally, people need religion (I am not saying it is right). Death is scary and life can be fuckin' difficult. Believing in a god or heaven can alleviate fears of death, fears of being insignificant, of being alone, etc. It takes a lot of emotional strength to not believe in god or an afterlife. Parents, of course, influence their children's beliefs and view of the world.
So to say all religion is bad or is child abuse is ignoring the reality of humans' weaknesses and needs. Compartmentalizing is probably the best strategy to deal with the scientific world and dealing with an indifferent universe. |
No, if religion is being used as a crutch by people who can't handle reality, then they need therapy, not enabling. Would you say similar things about alcoholics, and suggest that they need coddling instead of treatment?| Religion can bring a lot of problems, but that is because it reflects human behavior (aggression, us vs them beliefs, and often male dominance). Fortunately, we have also evolved to be charitable, rational and accepting. |
Of course, faith is not required for us to be charitable, rational or accepting.| Fortunately, I do think the world is gradually moving away from religion being in control of all aspects of life. Religion is becoming less influential in a lot of ways, which of course scares the fundamentalists to death |
This seems to be contradictory to "Emotionally, people need religion..." |
- Dave W. (Private Msg, EMail)
Evidently, I rock!
Why not question something for a change?
Visit Dave's Psoriasis Info, too. |
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Hal
Skeptic Friend
USA
302 Posts |
Posted - 08/02/2011 : 05:53:10 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by Dave W.
[quote]Originally posted by alienist
Of course, faith is not required for us to be charitable, rational or accepting.
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True, that.
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Nothing in all the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity.
Martin Luther King Jr.
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alienist
Skeptic Friend
USA
210 Posts |
Posted - 08/02/2011 : 14:39:50 [Permalink]
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I agree with you, Dave, on a lot of your points. What I object to is making the issue so black and white. I think a lot of religious thought is harmful. But then there are people who believe god exists, but go on with their daily lives without thinking of god or needing to think of god. It makes them irrational in that area but harmless overall. So at what point does religious belief become harmful. And what would you define as harmful. Humans are definitely not rational all the time.
In terms of people needing religion less: it is probably due to life being somewhat easier esp in the developed world. People aren't dying from infection or contaminated water, etc. So people need religion less than in the past. This is of course speculation on my part. |
The only normal people are the ones you don't know very well! - Joe Ancis |
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Dave W.
Info Junkie
USA
26022 Posts |
Posted - 08/02/2011 : 15:09:04 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by alienist
I agree with you, Dave, on a lot of your points. What I object to is making the issue so black and white. I think a lot of religious thought is harmful. But then there are people who believe god exists, but go on with their daily lives without thinking of god or needing to think of god. It makes them irrational in that area but harmless overall. So at what point does religious belief become harmful. And what would you define as harmful. |
Someone who believes that God exists but never does anything based on that belief or spends time thinking about it may as well not believe that God exists. A belief from which nothing is produced is as good as not having that belief, for all practical purposes (did I mention I'm also a utilitarian?).
On the other hand, even beliefs which are moot take up neural "space" and resources. Some amount of the world's food and water get used up, each year, by seemingly innocuous beliefs. Okay, that's stretching it.| Humans are definitely not rational all the time. |
No, they're not. I don't have a problem with temporary irrationality. I have a problem with people who think that irrationality is a good thing. I have a much more serious problem with institutions (like most major religions) which have, as a high-priority goal, the purposeful spread of irrationality.| In terms of people needing religion less: it is probably due to life being somewhat easier esp in the developed world. People aren't dying from infection or contaminated water, etc. So people need religion less than in the past. This is of course speculation on my part. |
A recent study demonstrated that religiousity is caused by social inequity. The smaller the gap between the rich and poor in a country, the fewer people will cling to religion (counter-intuitively, both rich and poor people get more religious when the gap between them is wider).
I'll re-find the details of that study later. Remind me if I don't post 'em sometime soon. |
- Dave W. (Private Msg, EMail)
Evidently, I rock!
Why not question something for a change?
Visit Dave's Psoriasis Info, too. |
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Dave W.
Info Junkie
USA
26022 Posts |
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Religious indoctrination of children child abuse?
