Lost in the great sea of beliefs

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I'm oh so lost.
Religion doesn't make sense.
To be an atheist would go against my morals.

On the topic, being an atheist doesn't make you a bad person, just as being a Christian doesn't make you a good one. It's just that I'm not confident enough to invent my own ground rules and beliefs, and one has to think interdependantly, so for now I am looking at Buddhism. For me, science is the number one, religion just fills in the gaps, so if anything in the specific type of Buddhism that I choose contridicts science, I'll change my religion to suit science, not visa versa.

Also on the topic, how is being good to other people beneficial from an evolutionary point of view? And why do we have a "God spot" in our brains? I have heard a bit about this before but not in depth. Fill me in if you know.

And not all religion doesn't make sense, I'm just saying that parts of religion are mutually exclusive with science.

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Interesting spot you find yourself in aperson !!!

Good luck with your journey.

The only thing I'm wondering about is, why do you feel that you need answers to all your questions? (Thus needing the gaps filled)

No god spot has been proven to exist in the brain, and even if it did, it wouldn't prove a god put it there.

Hypothetically, let's imagine there are people with god spots in their brains that spend a lot of time thinking religious rubbish, and other people who don't (or have a smaller god bit, and a larger science bit). Let's say they both find themselves in Iran. How long do you think the non-religious guys are gonna last? Being religious in Iran is definitely a survival advantage, and the same may have been true throughout human history. Therefore the evolution of god spot, or even just a propensity toward guessing at possible theistic explanations may be a survival advantage, leaving, as usual, the existence of the gods themselves, out of the picture.

Being good to people is how we survive as a tribe, when it gets cold, or wolves attack us in packs, or when the aliens have us surrounded. Think about ants and how their co-operation ensures the survival of the whole nest. It's possible empathy is a product of our imaginations which allow us to experience the pain of falling off a cliff without actually having to do it ...thereby, we learn not to do it.

Being an atheist does not make you immoral. Quite the opposite.

http://www.positiveatheism.org/index.shtml

Gora says:

Quote:

True morality is based entirely in the real world. "Because morality is a social necessity, the moment faith in god is banished, man's gaze turns from god to man and he becomes socially conscious. Religious belief prevented the growth of a sense of realism. But atheism at once makes man realistic and alive to the needs of morality

Buddhism ain't gonna hurt you none. It's quite compatible with atheism.

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Eorl wrote:

Buddhism ain't gonna hurt you none. It's quite compatible with atheism.

But in my mind, a true, devout Buddhist can not be an atheist, cause those devotional Buddhists believe that there exists a god called Buddha who keep blessing them, and they live under the effulgence of him. Actually this is the essence of traddional Buddhism.
So, i am wondering if it is a paradox of saying Buddhism is compatible with atheism?(ps: when i say atheism, it doesn't mean superstition.)

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I have found this quiz to be very enlightening, and have reccommended it to other members on A2K:

http://www.beliefnet.com/story/76/story_7665_1.html

Determining your own personal world view is an ongoing process, often taking various turns during your exploration. It is a good thing to explore various options, trying each on to see if it "fits".

You may find this interesting too:

http://www.beliefnet.com/section/quiz/index.asp?sectionID=&surveyID=27

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To aperson
I think maybe you are a little bit confused with the concept of atheism and superstition or non-science. The differences between those two concepts lie in that atheism is a matter of belief, while superstition is a matter of knowledge, superstition is equal to non-science, but atheism isn't. A theist can be a good scientist, so there is no contradiction between atheism and science, and your concern is unreasonable and unnecessary.
And as the rank thing, there is no need to rank atheism and science. Cause those two are independent, so you can rank both of them as the most important thing in your mind.
And if you are still ambivalent with this question, maybe you have not accepted Buddhism in your deep heart, or you are not a Buddhist virtually. OF cause to get this deep needs a process.

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Phoenix32890 wrote:

I have found this quiz to be very enlightening, and have reccommended it to other members on A2K:

http://www.beliefnet.com/story/76/story_7665_1.html

Determining your own personal world view is an ongoing process, often taking various turns during your exploration. It is a good thing to explore various options, trying each on to see if it "fits".

You may find this interesting too:

http://www.beliefnet.com/section/quiz/index.asp?sectionID=&surveyID=27

This is my test results:

1. Unitarian Universalism (100%)
2. Secular Humanism (97%)
3. Liberal Quakers (90%)
4. Mainline to Liberal Christian Protestants (86%)
5. Theravada Buddhism (83%)
6. Nontheist (77%)
7. Neo-Pagan (67%)
8. Bah??Faith (58%)
9. Mahayana Buddhism (57%)
10. New Age (55%)
11. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormons) (54%)
12. Christian Science (Church of Christ, Scientist) (50%)
13. Mainline to Conservative Christian/Protestant (49%)
14. Orthodox Quaker (48%)
15. Reform Judaism (48%)
16. Taoism (47%)
17. Jainism (47%)
18. Jehovah's Witness (43%)
19. New Thought (40%)
20. Scientology (36%)
21. Islam (35%)
22. Orthodox Judaism (35%)
23. Seventh Day Adventist (31%)
24. Hinduism (28%)
25. Sikhism (26%)
26. Eastern Orthodox (20%)
27. Roman Catholic (20%)

ORZ......
can't beleive this stiff, simply questionaire can define one's belife accurately......

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Quote:

can't beleive this stiff, simply questionaire can define one's belife accurately......

Roger Su- No. Life is much too complex, to be boiled down into a few answers to questions. But the quiz DOES give a person a jumping off point, from where he can do some more exploration.

For instance, not even knowing you, I could reasonably say, that if you answered the questions truthfully, that you would not be happy with Roman Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Sikhism or Hinduism.

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Re: Lost in the great sea of beliefs

aperson wrote:

It's just that I'm not confident enough to invent my own ground rules and beliefs

As someone who has never been religious I so don't get this. Can't you just do the right thing and not do the wrong thing? Is that so hard? Just about every religion has certain concepts in common -- where they vary is details about how to make a given diety happy. If you're not religious (it sounds like you'd be a better fit for agnosticism rather than the usual definition of atheism), you don't have to worry about that part. Just look to what the religions have in common.

And how on earth do you invent beliefs? What do you believe? That's your belief. It's there.

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Buddhism does not contradict science in the least. On the contrary, the more science progresses, the more it proves the validity of Buddhism.

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Roger Su wrote:

Phoenix32890 wrote:
I have found this quiz to be very enlightening, and have reccommended it to other members on A2K:

http://www.beliefnet.com/story/76/story_7665_1.html

Determining your own personal world view is an ongoing process, often taking various turns during your exploration. It is a good thing to explore various options, trying each on to see if it "fits".

You may find this interesting too:

http://www.beliefnet.com/section/quiz/index.asp?sectionID=&surveyID=27

This is my test results:

1. Unitarian Universalism (100%)
2. Secular Humanism (97%)
3. Liberal Quakers (90%)
4. Mainline to Liberal Christian Protestants (86%)
5. Theravada Buddhism (83%)
6. Nontheist (77%)
7. Neo-Pagan (67%)
8. Bah??Faith (58%)
9. Mahayana Buddhism (57%)
10. New Age (55%)
11. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormons) (54%)
12. Christian Science (Church of Christ, Scientist) (50%)
13. Mainline to Conservative Christian/Protestant (49%)
14. Orthodox Quaker (48%)
15. Reform Judaism (48%)
16. Taoism (47%)
17. Jainism (47%)
18. Jehovah's Witness (43%)
19. New Thought (40%)
20. Scientology (36%)
21. Islam (35%)
22. Orthodox Judaism (35%)
23. Seventh Day Adventist (31%)
24. Hinduism (28%)
25. Sikhism (26%)
26. Eastern Orthodox (20%)
27. Roman Catholic (20%)

ORZ......
can't beleive this stiff, simply questionaire can define one's belife accurately......

I don't see Sufism.

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Re: Lost in the great sea of beliefs

aperson wrote:

Also on the topic, how is being good to other people beneficial from an evolutionary point of view?

Homo Sapiens benefit from living in groups. In tough pre-technological times, any behavior which made other people comfortable around you could easily lead to increased reproduction and survival for the individual and offspring (natural selection).

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Re: Lost in the great sea of beliefs

aperson wrote:

It's just that I'm not confident enough to invent my own ground rules and beliefs

aperson wrote:

if anything in the specific type of Buddhism that I choose contridicts science, I'll change my religion to suit science, not visa versa.

It sounds like you are already inventing your own ground rules and beliefs (in a good way)--you are weighing the worldviews you encounter against certain standards that you feel are appropriate. That already takes a bit of confidence in itself.

I also agree with something implied by Eorl's comment: there's nothing wrong with not having (or not wanting) a precisely articulated system of beliefs. As Phoenix wrote, life is too complex for that.

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Roger Su wrote:

Eorl wrote:

Buddhism ain't gonna hurt you none. It's quite compatible with atheism.

But in my mind, a true, devout Buddhist can not be an atheist, cause those devotional Buddhists believe that there exists a god called Buddha who keep blessing them, and they live under the effulgence of him. Actually this is the essence of traddional Buddhism.
So, i am wondering if it is a paradox of saying Buddhism is compatible with atheism?(ps: when i say atheism, it doesn't mean superstition.)

Buddhists don't believe that Buddha was a god. He was a person, Siddhartha Gautama, that found the way to enlightenment thereby becoming buddha, or enlightened/awakened. Buddhists see Siddhartha Gautama as The Buddha, or The Enlightened One, The Awakened One.

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We also believe that each human being has the potential for achieveing enlightenment. We posses the Buddha nature that same was we posses other conditions of life. I have already sent aperson some contact information to aperson to find out more about Buddhism in his area. The philosophy is very deep and profound but the true essence of the philosophy is your own experience.

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Re: Lost in the great sea of beliefs

aperson wrote:

I'm oh so lost.
Religion doesn't make sense.
To be an atheist would go against my morals.

.

I've been thinking about this. Don't "be an atheist" because you've tied your baggage to the label.

Instead, just put yourself in a state of mind where you don't "believe" anything, and then introduce ideas to yourself one at a time, and determine what criteria you will use to make a decision.

Depending on who you are you may want to believe things that make you feel safe or things that you can verify with your own eyes, or things that other people you respect agree with. It's up to you. What's important (the hard part) is that you know and remember what the criterion was when you made the decision.

(eg, do I think there is a god because I want there to be one, or because the evidence suggests there is one, or because I've been brought up to feel guilty if I don't, etc.)

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Lost in the great sea of beliefs

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