Religion isn't growing, it is becoming vigorous in its demise, says philosopher AC Grayling

I sort of agree that religion is in its last throes. Wasn't it Jesus who said a house divided against itself cannot stand? Jew, Christian, Islam, they all have different factions and divided. Perhaps that is what is behind ISIS, the last attempt at cohesion and domination. A lot of people will die before we finally emerge, globally, from the middle ages.

originally posted by: Xeven
I cannot tell you there is no God. I can tell you there is no religion that describes it if there is. It is all made up by man.

Not one of you can provide any objective evidence that your religion is real and describes the creator of the universe. Not a one.

This here is part of the reason a great many of us have left or are in the process of leaving behind our religions, but not our faith in God. For myself, I just can't reconcile an all loving God that would eternally burn someone for not believing in Him or for being in love with someone of the same sex or even "bad people" who steal or kill or whatever.

There are just too many "religious" teachings about our Creator that go completely against a loving nature. I couldn't eternally punish someone in flames... I'm even anti-death penalty! Does that make me more caring than God? I hardly think so. What it is, is power hungry men over time changed the nature of God in order to gain control over people. That is what religion is - a control tool invented by men to control people and also to remove women from their equal place with men.

There is no way an all loving God would condone such teachings. No way. To believe God is as petty in thought and deed as a human is truly for the small minded.

originally posted by: tallcool1

originally posted by: Xeven
I cannot tell you there is no God. I can tell you there is no religion that describes it if there is. It is all made up by man.

Not one of you can provide any objective evidence that your religion is real and describes the creator of the universe. Not a one.

This here is part of the reason a great many of us have left or are in the process of leaving behind our religions, but not our faith in God. For myself, I just can't reconcile an all loving God that would eternally burn someone for not believing in Him or for being in love with someone of the same sex or even "bad people" who steal or kill or whatever.

There are just too many "religious" teachings about our Creator that go completely against a loving nature. I couldn't eternally punish someone in flames... I'm even anti-death penalty! Does that make me more caring than God? I hardly think so. What it is, is power hungry men over time changed the nature of God in order to gain control over people. That is what religion is - a control tool invented by men to control people and also to remove women from their equal place with men.

There is no way an all loving God would condone such teachings. No way. To believe God is as petty in thought and deed as a human is truly for the small minded.

That's because the "all loving god" is a modern creation. As tech and civilization has improved, a wrathfully god was no longer "sellable" to the masses. So the fire and brimstone became all loving....

a reply to: Stormdancer777

Of course Holy books are going to say that...."If you stop believing the world will end/Demons will take over blah blah blah they don't want people to leave because then the game is up the money making schemes gone.
It worked for years when the only things allowed to read had to be sanctioned by them but not now people are getting educated and realising it is all BS.
I wonder what the % of young folk under the age of 25 think about religion? my bet is more and more are turned away from it and when they raise kids it will be less and less religious.
I give religion 5 generations to be more or less gone....2 more to see the educated world have more who say that they are not religious than so.
Educate people and they have more chance to escape the trap and lie of religion.

a reply to: Entreri06

Really? You don't hear about religion preaching fire and brimstone and eternal punishment in hell any more? Perhaps you should open your eyes a little wider because the jealous, angry god who will judge you to hell is still being widely preached in the vast majority of so called Christian churches. Confess, conform or burn in hell is the message still.

My point is quite the opposite of yours. My point being that this angry, jealous, petty god is a creation of man - created to control others through fear. While it may be true that there are a few churches who do not believe in the everlasting suffering in hell myth, most still preach hellfire and punishment - so I'm not sure why you think it's gone.

I don't think the Creator gives a crap about what we do in this mortal form we take while we are on this Earth. I think our Earthly incarnation is more about the mortal experience than anything else. We call it good and evil, but I think in the big picture of eternity we are merely spiritual beings having a brief mortal experience (or maybe we have a few mortal experiences on Earth and other planets - no one can truly know).

a reply to: ParasuvO

The Tao that can be told is NOT the eternal Tao...