What's The Greatest Flaw In Religion?

All religions are flawed in that they teach & propagate willful ignorance & all the ills that accompany said ignorance.

Religion represses the natural psychological, societal & technological advancement of a sentient species.

Imagine how much more advanced your society would be without the centuries long retardation of the Dark Ages, the Crusades & destructive wars of nobility.

Unless the human race can put behind its childish beliefs of royalty & religion it will be doomed to an early extinction.

Talking apes with clever thumbs & thermonuclear weapons, pfft who could of imagined.

reply to post by aethertek


So would you say that "faith" and "religion" can be mutually exclusive? As humans we have this basic need of "faith".

Religion is Earths ongoing and never ending viral pandemic!

Time we found a cure for this disease that has plagued humanity and its progress for far too long!!

Humanity needs a antibiotic to rid itself of the most idiotic and preposterous concept known to mankind!!

One of the biggest flaws of religion is the abdication of individual sovereignty. We put a "deity" on the throne of our lives, and become the loyal subject of an ideology we have made ruler over us. In doing so, personal responsibility, choice, and even identity become oppressed and repressed until we have no idea who we are, and what we are capable of, as individuals, or as a species collectively.

We are each sovereign entities. We don't belong to anyone or anything other than what and who we choose to be indentured by.

reply to post by intrepid

Informal usage of faith can be quite broad, including trust or belief without proof,

So we have a basic need to ignore proof?

Originally posted by AfterInfinity
reply to post by intrepid

 

Informal usage of faith can be quite broad, including trust or belief without proof,

That is ONE definition of faith.

So we have a basic need to ignore proof?

No, we need a belief system that goes beyond our ability to define by logic.

I have a question for any or all.

How much better would humanity and life in general be if we had never had religion or if we finally kicked away the crutches?

The answers Im sure will reflect the flaws of religion!

reply to post by RP2SticksOfDynamite


I coined a phrase, it's original and apt imo: "Faith is a beautiful thing. Religion is dangerous."

reply to post by intrepid

No, we need a belief system that goes beyond our ability to define by logic.

With all due respect: if it goes beyond our ability to define logic, then it goes beyond our ability to understand logic. Which is to say, it goes beyond logic in any sense we're familiar with.

Layman's terms, logic doesn't touch it. Now, if faith had proof to back it up, it's not faith, is it? So faith is the practice of believing in something without having ANY RATIONAL REASON to believe in it. Why the hell would a human being put its soul into such an investment?

I might as well douse myself in gasoline and walk through a wleding factory. I have absolutely no reason to believe that I'll make it out unscathed, but I have faith in "God". And that should be enough, right?

That's the greatest flaw - if there's faith, that means there's no reason. No rational reason, nothing a lawyer would put their money on. I say lawyer because lawyers make it their business to know how many ways any man or situation can screw you over at any given time, and all the ways you can avoid getting screwed over and/or hopefully screw that person or situation back. Seems pretty fitting these days, hence the example.

And if there's no rational reason, you're saying, "I don't care what the math tells me, I believe I can do this and that's all that matters." There's guts, and there's stupidity. The question is, do you know how to draw that line? Do you trust yourself to draw that line?

And when it comes down to it, if I don't like it, I say to you, "I think you're an idiot. But you know what, you have the guts and I don't, so I can't really tell you you're wrong. More power to you. " And that's that.

reply to post by intrepid


I'll drink to that one. But please, enlighten us: what's the difference between religion and faith?

Originally posted by AfterInfinity
reply to post by intrepid

 

I'll drink to that one. But please, enlighten us: what's the difference between religion and faith?

Religion is loaded with dogma. Dogma has nothing to do with faith. It has EVERYTHING to do with religion. Ie: control. And you're right. Logic and faith are mutually exclusive. Not everything in the world is aligned with logic though.

reply to post by intrepid

Not everything in the world is aligned with logic though.

Because it lies beyond our ability to define by logic. That doesn't make it faith, that makes us uneducated. That's what we're doing, is educating ourselves, and so the only way we have to measure our progress is the number of questions that have gone unanswered.

And it seems we're tired of being so young and inexperienced, so we invent answers and invent a source that relies on our strongest assets: our imagination and our grip on tradition. It may seem like a bizarre mix, but remember...order is born from chaos, and order will inevitably dissolve into chaos.

The law of conservation. It means so much, and yet so little to us.

Originally posted by intrepid
reply to post by aethertek

 

So would you say that "faith" and "religion" can be mutually exclusive? As humans we have this basic need of "faith".

Yes most certainly faith & religion ie: a specific religion can be separated however the belief that humans "need faith" is just a reaction to the fear of discontinuance.

"I fear death & dissolution so I have faith in an afterlife".

The flaws of religion being debated by people (majority) who do not subscribe to a religion. Seems a bit like a bunch of men discussing the flaws of the female reproductive system.

On topic, religion is a system. One of many systems that exist(democracy, socialism, capitalism, etc.) Doesn't it follow that every system is flawed? Why focus on religion? Don't all of these systems manipulate and brainwash their adherents? I think all systems stink on a corporate level but you can find individual diamonds in the rough if you look hard enough

All religion is fundamentally wrong. Religion asserts that we are separate from God. So much so that if we cough the wrong way we end up in eternal flames. I assert we are all part of God and woven together and never separable. Physics teaches us that all things are co-joined. That would mean everything from heaven and hell, all paralell universes, the multi universe, etc. and so on are intrically one.

We are not separate from God. Some of us might be misguided, but we are still part of the ying and yang of all creation. Good and evil exists mutually together. Without one or the other we would not know the highs and lows of existence.

We are all part of one another. Every single one of us. God created both good and evil. There is purpose.

reply to post by Sinny


I can't think of a general flaw in religion that everyone might agree on.

I would guess that miracles count high—at least among people who do not subscribe to religion.

For those who do subscribe to a religion I will guess that hermeneutics plays a part in perceived flaws within their religion or competing religions; however, such flaws maybe focus more on theology & the history of a religion, to include prominent figures within a religion.

I dunno. Miracles, theology/schisms, and the history of a religion (or history of religions) maybe rank high as candidates for religion's greatest flaw. They seem like reasonable candidates to me anyway.

The biggest problem with religions is that they are just theories with no proof.
These theories ( religions ) can and are reinterpreted and misinterpreted by people to suit their own personal agendas.
It seems foolish to base your entire life and belief system around a theory that you yourself have reinterpreted/misinterpreted to fit your own agenda.

It seems that religions have formed a conclusion first and then went looking for evidence to support their conclusion rather than to continue seeking and weighing the evidence and only then forming a conclusion.

If religion really did represent the truth then there would be no need to have so many different religions and so many different sects within each religion.

Originally posted by micmerci
The flaws of religion being debated by people (majority) who do not subscribe to a religion.

I think that's because most of us used to subscribe to a religion and then, after feeling empty and duped. found personal peace within. At least, that's the way it was for me.

Seems a bit like a bunch of men discussing the flaws of the female reproductive system.

Interesting analogy, but if I may tweak that observation a little. Seems a bit like a bunch of men discussing how women are too flawed to understand the female reproductive system, and to make their own choices.

On topic, religion is a system. One of many systems that exist(democracy, socialism, capitalism, etc.) Doesn't it follow that every system is flawed? Why focus on religion? Don't all of these systems manipulate and brainwash their adherents? I think all systems stink on a corporate level but you can find individual diamonds in the rough if you look hard enough

Why focus on religion? Because religion inserts itself into all facets of government. Religion isn't content to be separate from government, it wants governments to legislate around (certain) religious doctrine and dogma. believing that what is perceived as God's will is being dispensed.

reply to post by windword


Very well thought out response. I am being honest in saying that. I enjoyed the political twist on the reproductive thing. Very nice. My only counter, if you will, is, doesn't the other systems insert themselves as well? Doesn't government or law or even capitalism for that matter try to invade every facet of our personal lives?

reply to post by micmerci


I think the inclination to invade the personal lives of others is a human flaw that creeps into both religion and politics. However the purpose of government is to organize a productive society. Religion's purpose is to soothe and inspire the weary soul, and to examine things that are not physical but spiritual. What we have today is corruption from both directions.

When leaders of societies came to the forefront through brutality, they used force and threats to keep their position. The offspring of these leaders coerced the masses into believing that their positions were ordained from some supreme hierarchy, in order to keep their inherited positions. They may have even believed it themselves. Certainly we have many figures today who will tell you that God ordained them to their positions, and therefore have authority to dictate through doctrine.

Western society has weened itself from the ordained imperial rule of royalty and emperors to adopt a more social construct of cooperation, adopting individual freedom through education and the ability to participate in government. individually and as a community. Supposedly, this is done to elevate civilization, not to create new empires of dictatorial, selfish fat cats.