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Does religion waste lives?

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Eorl
 
Reply Sun 10 Sep, 2006 09:33 pm
Imagine for a second that the atheists are right.

What a staggering amount of peoples lives is wasted on religion. Some lives are wholly devoted to an imaginary next life....that has to be the greatest waste of all.
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Type: Discussion • Score: 0 • Views: 1,774 • Replies: 23
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littlek
 
  1  
Reply Sun 10 Sep, 2006 09:39 pm
I'd say that there is a greater waste to it, namely all the lives literally lost to religion over the ages.
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echi
 
  1  
Reply Sun 10 Sep, 2006 10:38 pm
It all evens out in the end.
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neologist
 
  1  
Reply Sun 10 Sep, 2006 11:54 pm
Re: Does religion waste lives?
Eorl wrote:
Imagine for a second that the atheists are right.

What a staggering amount of peoples lives is wasted on religion. Some lives are wholly devoted to an imaginary next life....that has to be the greatest waste of all.
Bertrand Russell was of the opinion that the conflicting beliefs of the world's religions gave proof that only one of them could be right. He chose to believe that none of them were right.

I think he failed to thoroughly consider the possibility that, if a loving and all powerful God exists, he would not only give a message to the human race, but would have the power to protect it.
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Cyracuz
 
  1  
Reply Mon 11 Sep, 2006 02:28 am
neo wrote:
I think he failed to thoroughly consider the possibility that, if a loving and all powerful God exists, he would not only give a message to the human race, but would have the power to protect it.


Why do you think that? I think most people, especially religious people, would hate it if god suddenly made himself known. It's always more fun playing in the house when the master's not home.
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material girl
 
  1  
Reply Mon 11 Sep, 2006 03:00 am
Cyracuz wrote:
neo wrote:
I think he failed to thoroughly consider the possibility that, if a loving and all powerful God exists, he would not only give a message to the human race, but would have the power to protect it.


Why do you think that? I think most people, especially religious people, would hate it if god suddenly made himself known. It's always more fun playing in the house when the master's not home.


I think God is held responsible for alot of negative things in this world.
He is seen as this all powerful being.If he were to make himself visible then people would want solid answers to questions.
His 'invisibility' helps to justify his inability to protect us.
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tycoon
 
  1  
Reply Mon 11 Sep, 2006 05:06 am
Timely topic, as today we observe the 5th anniversary of 9/11, in which every victim's death was due to religion. What a monumental waste. What a needless tragedy. What a horrid thing religion is.
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Intrepid
 
  1  
Reply Mon 11 Sep, 2006 06:51 am
It is sad that responsibility is taken away from man and transferred to religion.
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edgarblythe
 
  1  
Reply Mon 11 Sep, 2006 06:55 am
Intrepid wrote:
It is sad that responsibility is taken away from man and transferred to religion.


While ordinarily I deride intrepid's posts, as they richly deserve, this statement bears a lot of merit.
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Setanta
 
  1  
Reply Mon 11 Sep, 2006 06:58 am
Re: Does religion waste lives?
neologist wrote:
I think he failed to thoroughly consider the possibility that, if a loving and all powerful God exists, he would not only give a message to the human race, but would have the power to protect it.


There is precious little evidence that this were ever the case.
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Treya
 
  1  
Reply Mon 11 Sep, 2006 09:55 am
Re: Does religion waste lives?
Eorl wrote:
Imagine for a second that the atheists are right.

What a staggering amount of peoples lives is wasted on religion. Some lives are wholly devoted to an imaginary next life....that has to be the greatest waste of all.


That is precisely the problem eorl. Everyone seems to be so concerned with the "next" life there is very little focus or even thought about this one at all it seems. Religion is a waste. Religion in my opinion is nothing more than a set of rules derived from a need to feel self-righteous, holier than thou, and important or significant in this great big world we live in. I cannot tell you how many times I have heard "christians" say something along the lines of, "I hope Jesus comes back soon to rescue me from this horrible world."

What a lovely attitude. Many of these people who read the exact same bible I do are more concerned with their own welfare than they are the welfare of others, which is the opposite of what the bible teaches. It has become "Meet me on my terms and follow my rules and you will be accepted. However if you choose not to, well no problem, you're the one who will burn in hell not ME and Jesus is going to come rescue me from the likes of YOU soon anyway." *sigh*

Religion sucks. God does not though. Not the God I believe in anyway. People make religion what it is, not God. People beat others over the head with the "rules" and condemn them to hell for not "following them", not God. People get self-righteous and judgemental of those who don't believe the same way they do, not God. People fly air planes into buildings killing others with no thought of anything but the agenda their religion is putting forth, not God. People twist things around and even make things up to fit their own agenda, not God.

So blame religion all you want. I'll support you all the way on that. However, God is not religion, nor is He found in religion.
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neologist
 
  1  
Reply Mon 11 Sep, 2006 10:25 am
What would you call an organized search for the truth about such things as the existence of God?
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Treya
 
  1  
Reply Mon 11 Sep, 2006 10:59 am
It depends neo. For the most part "religious institutions" are searching for their version of the truth. Whatever it is that fits their agenda. Once they think they've found it they usually parade themselves around proclaiming that THEY have found THE truth. Everyone else is wrong. I've never honestly thought of a "name" for an organized search for the truth, or a group of people who aren't looking to mold religious beliefs to fit their agenda. Honestly, I don't think there needs to be a name or a classification of any sort because that just seems to breed more self-righteousness and holier than thou attitudes.

People are just people. Trying to make it through this life. What's the point of a title really? To show you have more authority than someone else? That you know more than someone else? To show you deserve respect? Or to be acknowledged by others? What "group" you were affiliated with while you were alive isn't going to make one bit of difference when you die. Whatever is going to happen is going to happen. There's no changing that, predicting that, or really knowing for 100% sure what it will be. Don't you think?
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Eorl
 
  1  
Reply Mon 11 Sep, 2006 05:39 pm
Intrepid wrote:
It is sad that responsibility is taken away from man and transferred to religion.


I judge a man by his actions with men, much more than by his declarations Godwards -- When I find him to be envious, carping, spiteful, hating the successes of others, and complaining that the world has never done enough for him, I am apt to doubt whether his humility before God will atone for his want of manliness.

Anthony Trollope
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Intrepid
 
  1  
Reply Mon 11 Sep, 2006 05:44 pm
Eorl wrote:
Intrepid wrote:
It is sad that responsibility is taken away from man and transferred to religion.


I judge a man by his actions with men, much more than by his declarations Godwards -- When I find him to be envious, carping, spiteful, hating the successes of others, and complaining that the world has never done enough for him, I am apt to doubt whether his humility before God will atone for his want of manliness.

Anthony Trollope


I don't know what this has to do with what I said, but I basically agree with Anthony. The two. however, should not be mutually exclusive.
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Eorl
 
  1  
Reply Mon 11 Sep, 2006 08:34 pm
When I say people waste their lives on religion, I blame the people...not the religion. I'd kill off all religion if I could...by convincing people to change their behavior.
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Intrepid
 
  1  
Reply Mon 11 Sep, 2006 08:38 pm
Jesus was sent to do that very thing. Convince people to change their behaviour and love one another as they love themselves.
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Eorl
 
  1  
Reply Mon 11 Sep, 2006 08:48 pm
Exactly so Intrepid.

I'm quite a fan of the philosophy of Jesus ...lot's of it anyway.
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Cyracuz
 
  1  
Reply Tue 12 Sep, 2006 12:47 pm
hephzibah wrote:
Honestly, I don't think there needs to be a name or a classification of any sort because that just seems to breed more self-righteousness and holier than thou attitudes.


Personally I am more concerned with the fact that as soon as something is labeled it becomes easier to brush aside. Many questions that are predominantly religious in nature drown in the bog of misconceptions and dogma.
Mention the word 'god', and immediately everyone has got so many reservations towards your ideas that you can hardly get them past your lips. Everyone knows what god is, and it is either miraculous or ridiculous, depending on who you ask. But what both the believers and the non-believers have in common is that they've defined the word 'god' as something physically and existentially impossible. This is the root of their disagreement.
I've never heard of someone sitting down and finding out what they actually can agree on concerning this term.

How can we define 'god' so that it is in accordance with how it's been defined through history, and yet not in violation of scientific prediction?

Seems to me this should be an important question...
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provoko
 
  1  
Reply Tue 12 Sep, 2006 01:45 pm
Cyracuz wrote:
How can we define 'god' so that it is in accordance with how it's been defined through history...


How can we talk about god without killing each other? Haha. Most forums on the internet ban the discussions of politics and religion because people can't discuss them without getting out of control; it mirrors real life where people end up killing each other. The Christians did it, now the Muslims are doing it, infact every organized system of belief has done it. Society has to grow up.

I would say atheists and independent spiritual believers have to unite, but then we would just end up getting attacked and then we'd have to defend ourselves by killing other people. Haha.
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