Is religion the reason we value life so little???

I am wondering if religion is the reason we have so little value for human life ??

Since many religions believe in life after death, do those followers devalue human life because they believe that those who have died, simply move on?

My thought is that if we remove the idea of life after death and really think about it, our one time shot at a good life seems much more valuable.

Would you value your life and others more or less, if you knew with 100% certainty that this was you one and only shot at life and there was no life after death or re-incarnation???

It seems to me that many have a recycling mentality about life. For example, I can martyre myself in this life because I get 72 virgins when I die.

I'm curious as to how others feel about this.

Well how else could you control people to wage wars and just as a general control so you can profit from it? The crusades, Vikings, muslims and so on will tell you that you will live forever in some kind of an afterlife if you die honorably or die defending your "god".

Religion is pounded into your head pretty much from the moment you are born and a prospect of this glorious "afterlife" seems very appealing especially if you live in some hell hole of a place.

Originally posted by Lecter
Well how else could you control people to wage wars and just as a general control so you can profit from it? The crusades, Vikings, muslims and so on will tell you that you will live forever in some kind of an afterlife if you die honorably or die defending your "god".

Religion is pounded into your head pretty much from the moment you are born and a prospect of this glorious "afterlife" seems very appealing especially if you live in some hell hole of a place.

Very good points. Thanks for your response !

reply to post by jfj123


Actually I think that if one believes that all we have is this life, and that there are no consequences in the afterlife, there's much higher potential for poor behavior and/or devaluing of others. I can't speak for all religions, but I know that in Christianity, there's a strong belief in the sanctity of life, which is why violations of that require serious/severe consequences(i.e. capital punishment, etc...), and such strong opposition to abortion. There's also a belief that we'll be held accountable for how we've lived, which provides some measure of incentive to live better.

Originally posted by Lecter
Well how else could you control people to wage wars and just as a general control so you can profit from it? The crusades, Vikings, muslims and so on will tell you that you will live forever in some kind of an afterlife if you die honorably or die defending your "god".

I think you're right there - its a very good (and conveniently non provable ) way of controling and manipulating people.
I think this is an apt quote:

Nature wants us to enjoy life to the full and die without giving it a second thought; religion wants the opposite.
Sainte-Beuve,Les Cahiers.