Aren’t you glad you were born into the right religion?

my parents were not into religion at all.
i take it a step further and despise it.

im not big on censorship in my house but i will not even let my daughter watch veggie tales

Religion is like circumcision.

If you wait until someone is 21 to tell them about it, they probably won't be interested.

a reply to: Realtruth

Beautifully done.

privately we all believe what we want to believe
I'm old enough to have heard about several different religions
is it better than never hearing about religion, yes I think so
no one is forcing me with deadly force to believe anything else

originally posted by: Firewater
Religion is like circumcision.

If you wait until someone is 21 to tell them about it, they probably won't be interested.

I hadn't heard that one! LOL!

Here are a couple more I've heard (not the penis one...)

Religion is like a pair of shoes... find one that fits for you, but don’t make me wear yours.
Religion is like a knife... you can either use it to cut bread, or stick in someone’s back.

To look out of the darkness of ignorance and see a light. To sense something reaching back till fingers touch, eyes meet and intelligence acknowledges you; and for once you see there is something greater then life, greater then yourself and you are not alone; you are not just a flame struck on the end of a match waiting for your fuel to expire. Your find as the light fills your heart, you are part of that light, not just now, but from before, and into forever.
That even though you might not comprehend the here and now, there is a reason for you beyond, just living and enduring.
Good religion, helps us follow the path, a moral path, a path of human love for one another. So it is not bad, but so many would like to judge religion by the mid evil suppression of science, the inquisition and the like, while those who have accused, are not seeing even religion or many religions have matured, and many have flowered out from the suppression of the past. .
Yes a single truth does exist, a path, but as the bee has to find the flower, it is not just given, it must be found by at least some effort.
Other will say aliens, and yes I feel there are those beings, but the owner of this world does not live here, and yes he has been involved with us from the beginning, he gave us the best of all principles to live by, and yes he's coming back soon.

The new computer generation.

My 7 year old said: "Gramma, when I was born, was I scripted".

No religion here. He is being raised that there is an energy consciousness.

Universal.

a reply to: Benevolent Heretic

If the religion (OR country) you're born into is "right" and all others are "wrong"… we can logically follow that thought to its inane and illogical conclusion.

You mean "American Exceptionalism"? Thats why I hold organized religion is the first lessons the state allows to be imparted. Sunday school, where kids are taught to just believe what they are told, very useful lesson later when the TV news tells them more tall tales.

Combination of flag and religion is stronger than either alone…

Do it for God and Country.

Praise the lord and pass the ammunition.

I always love threads like this because there is always the implicit assumption that no one who has chosen to walk down a religious path or have faith does so for any reason other than because their parents started them on it.

Absolutely no one is capable of growing up and undergoing the very crises of faith that many of you underwent and arriving at the opposite conclusion: namely, that faith is a valid choice to have. Nope. Instead, we all chose to remain weak-minded, brain-washed fools. Just exactly whom are you hoping to convince here?

originally posted by: intrptr
You mean "American Exceptionalism"? Thats why I hold organized religion is the first lessons the state allows to be imparted. Sunday school, where kids are taught to just believe what they are told, very useful lesson later when the TV news tells them more tall tales.

Combination of flag and religion is stronger than either alone…

Do it for God and Country.

Praise the lord and pass the ammunition.

Yes. Very well-said! And a very interesting take I hadn't considered... Prime them out of the womb to be good automatons ... uh...American citizens...

originally posted by: ketsuko
I always love threads like this because there is always the implicit assumption that no one who has chosen to walk down a religious path or have faith does so for any reason other than because their parents started them on it.

No one said or implied that, but you.

However, most children do follow their parents belief -- at least while young.

originally posted by: Benevolent Heretic

originally posted by: intrptr
You mean "American Exceptionalism"? Thats why I hold organized religion is the first lessons the state allows to be imparted. Sunday school, where kids are taught to just believe what they are told, very useful lesson later when the TV news tells them more tall tales.

Combination of flag and religion is stronger than either alone…

Do it for God and Country.

Praise the lord and pass the ammunition.

Yes. Very well-said! And a very interesting take I hadn't considered... Prime them out of the womb to be good automatons … uh…American citizens…

Tickled, another sleeper awakened… the Matrix no longer has you.

originally posted by: ketsuko
... there is always the implicit assumption that no one who has chosen to walk down a religious path or have faith does so for any reason other than because their parents started them on it.

NO ONE??? There is no such assumption. The OP talked about his/her personal experience! SOME people are religious because they were born into it. SOME people stick with the religion they were born into, whether it be Christianity, Hindu or Islam. Others join, convert or slough it off later in life. That is clear throughout the thread.

Absolutely no one is capable of growing up and undergoing the very crises of faith that many of you underwent and arriving at the opposite conclusion: namely, that faith is a valid choice to have. Nope. Instead, we all chose to remain weak-minded, brain-washed fools.

Using such absolutes as "no one" and "all" is your own interpretation and leads to false victimization and offense.

Just to correct your misinterpretation of MY posts, should there be any, religion is a valid choice for many people. People find strength and guidance in their religions. There are MANY good stories in the Christian bible. And the first amendment guarantees your right to your religion, and I support that completely.

I'm pretty sure most who posted here would agree with the above. That's just not what the thread is about. There's no reason to get bent because people are talking about the brainwashing that DOES happen with religion.

originally posted by: ketsuko
I always love threads like this because there is always the implicit assumption that no one who has chosen to walk down a religious path or have faith does so for any reason other than because their parents started them on it.

Absolutely no one is capable of growing up and undergoing the very crises of faith that many of you underwent and arriving at the opposite conclusion: namely, that faith is a valid choice to have. Nope. Instead, we all chose to remain weak-minded, brain-washed fools. Just exactly whom are you hoping to convince here?

Did you read the OP carefully?

No convincing going on at all, this is the philosophy forum, people actually need to think for themselves, rather than someone preach to them, and except blindly.

Conclusions are based on one's personal experiences, and critical thinking.

Religions also represent organized groups and people tend to find strengths in group and associations, so I guess it comes down to what flavor you like, but in the end just about everyone is associated with other like minded people and feel a sense of synergy and strength in that association.

originally posted by: Realtruth

Conclusions are based on one's personal experiences, and critical thinking.

Does that guarantee your conclusions are correct then, or just what you assume is correct?

originally posted by: Xtrozero
Religions also represent organized groups and people tend to find strengths in group and associations, so I guess it comes down to what flavor you like, but in the end just about everyone is associated with other like minded people and feel a sense of synergy and strength in that association.

Kinda like gang mentality

originally posted by: SLAYER69

Kinda like gang mentality

It was pack mentality long before that... We are who we are.....

Actually gangs is a great example of people who have no associations at home etc and that strong drive compels people no matter how twisted it may get into an association. It been a part of us for the last 2 million years...

a reply to: Realtruth

People teach their kids their customs & beliefs. That's the whole point in parenting.

And to be more accurate, that's what elders in every society do, regardless of any religious beliefs. Elders teach the youth how to fit into their established society through indoctrination, "accepted" norms, taboos, rules, and laws. If the society is atheist, they'll do the same thing by steering the youth away from organized religions. That's literally the whole point of "culture".

originally posted by: Xtrozero
Religions also represent organized groups and people tend to find strengths in group and associations, so I guess it comes down to what flavor you like, but in the end just about everyone is associated with other like minded people and feel a sense of synergy and strength in that association.

Valid points.

I do know that some people need religion, because without it they wouldn't feel complete, or they would be lost, so in that sense religion can be a great tool to find oneself.

But on the flip side of the coin many times religion is fear based, and if fear doesn't work they will use fear and shame to manipulate. Love appears to be elusive with many religions unless you make healthy financial donations.

Religious dogmas are hypocritical, judgmental, and many times use one passage to try to prove another passage, in their religious text. In logic this is called circular argumentation.

And Love, and strength does exist without the confines of religion.

It would be a great world if people could find these two things without anyone else, just think how many leaders, religions, politicians, and bankers we would need.