Religion is a psychological defense mechanism to protect us from the unknown: 1. How did the universe come to exist? 2. How did life begin? 3. Are we alone? 4. Is there an afterlife? Science has yet to absolutely answer these questions either and until then religion will still exist.
Religion is a coping mechanism and probably has roots in evolutionary advantage. But as we grow and develop we need it less and less, as evidenced by its erosion in developed countries. As society evolves religion will fade away.
Religion for the most part is the practice of your beliefs....whatever flavor of quality they may be....of course its been pretty clear atheists have no beliefs, therefore no world view, no morals, nothing what so ever that can be associated with religion I lack disbelief, Im a theist!
Atheism is a psychological defense mechanism against the universe which they have neither the logic, nor logic, not symbols to explain.
It’s like the ancient Greek myths. They couldn’t explain why the sun would move so they had some God drag it by a cart. They had some great stories and that is what religion is....made up answers for the unknown
Truth #1: crutches have a real purpose and value. They can help some of us stay more mobile and less dependent when we are injured. Its better than the rest of us having to half carry our crippled everywhere. Truth #2: Evidence that the creation of the concept of 'God' serves an evolutionary advantage to our societies, should not be confused with evidence that there is not God otherwise .
Religion is a man made product intended to keep civility among the population for which some men rake in a lot of money.
Religion can be the believing of human witnessing from eyewitnesses accounts, similar to history. Believing in human accounts of testimonies mostly remains the only way we can access ancient history. It remains the same exclusive way of accessing a truth if the God advocated has a reason to hide behind. Long before science even existed, supernatural activities have already been defined as "encounters of something not lying inside our realm". Science is futile about "something not lying inside our realm" as science is experiment based while humans lack the ability to go to another space another time to establish an experiment. It thus remains a human arrogance or baseless belief that science can deliver an absolute answer. It is also a coping mechanism so that you don't need to consider a further future. Whether life will continue after our death is beyond the reach of human science. We can't possibly confirm whether afterlife exists or not. It thus remains an attitude to look into its possibility to get prepared, or using science as coping mechanism to completely deny its possibility. "Keep seeking" on the other hand is a more responsible attitude to one's own life, such that whatever turning out to be, "I already did what I can responsibly to my own life".
What is your favorite ethnocentric religious fairy tale that provides you the answers to your questions? http://www.gly.uga.edu/railsback/CS/CSOdin&Ymir.html
James 1:27 "Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world." When I was in need because I was in affliction, and when someone came to visit me to offer me goodness, that was 'religion'. When I was in need because I was in affliction, and when someone came to visit me to offer me strife, that was not 'religion'.
Religion was created by the superior intelligence of homo sapiens. Chimps and other apes are not capable of wondering and questioning their reality. So religion came with intelligence over no intelligence. If religion were not useful, for a population in general, it would never have existed. Necessity is the mother of invention. I would think religion helped to create and insure societal order, whether coming from the primitive shamans or the priests of organized religion. If is didn't work, it would have died out thousands of years ago. Of course anything that helps to achieve societal order can be used by con men, to enrich themselves. But I doubt con men seeking wealth invented religion, they were perhaps just opportunists. I doubt there would have ever been a sense of a moral compass or code without religion. Or purpose for existence. The reason atheism did not rule the day is because it has little positive to offer as man evolved into civilization. And little to offer after the rise of civilization. Atheism would not have worked and so there was never many of them. Theism arose from intelligence, not ignorance.
Atheism doesn’t work because too many people need to believe in an invisible man in the sky who will let them live after they die. Do you really believe that if we didn’t have religion , there would be no laws? You think because I don’t need the supernatural I lack moral compass?
You're not a universal mind reader nor do you have all the knowledge of all that there is, so from what authority do you make such an indefensible declaration?
Atheism doesn't work because it's idiotic. What moral compass is there in a universe where we explode randomly out of nothing, assembled from a random soup of colliding atoms just because? That kind of reasoning is why people think it's OK to pork children, burn their enemies, steal things, and so forth.
Well, the frightened and weak always need something to cling to … even if it's just a bunch of childish superstitions...
Religion is absolutely a coping mechanism and emotional response. For a lot of people, it's a pretty effective one too. I don't actually mind that aspect of religion either. Good for those people who can use it to make their lives better even. My only problem is when folks try to apply their coping mechanism to the lives of others.
Do I have to point out the fact religion is simple and atheism is scholarly and many people are simple ... in the case of Islam you follow the book and what the Imam preaches most likely the latter and in Christianity you follow the Bible or more likely what the minister or priest says not reading the book. So that is why its important its black and white and simple anyone can obey and well tends to keep people from doing back things. Atheism makes you THINK that is a luxury for many people and frankly for many beyond their ability to do over the simple belief in ones religion.