religion... Why?

[hashasheen217 19]

I want to hear opinion, thoughts, and reason for having a religion, why do humans need a religion, and would so ity be better if religion encompassed all levels of society (from personal to family to community to state and government(crime and punishment)?

[Steadfast Madcap 3,216]

Well, I definitely don't think humans need a religion. I'm still breathing afterall! 

 

Throughout human history, we've seen, and continue to see, tons of examples of theocracies -- I can't think of a single one that has lived up to our modern standards of what fair and just governance is like.

[Chak 217]

Personally i believe that we are created for a purpose, we are in a daily test to see what we gonna do with the life we been given, and one day we gonna be judged for our actions to ever last either in heaven or in hell.

for more understanding you can check this lecture abt whats the purpose of life :

 

 

[Jegsy Scarr 3,521]

I want to hear opinion, thoughts, and reason for having a religion, why do humans need a religion, and would so ity be better if religion encompassed all levels of society (from personal to family to community to state and government(crime and punishment)?

 

Well, "religion" in its broadest sense is just having a relationship with God. If you believe in God, you're religious. So the reason for having a relationship with God is because all of us were made for Him and are only truly happy when we're in a relationship with Him. We all long for happiness that this world can't fulfil. And frankly, we owe God a relationship with Him, since He created us. It's a matter of justice. And He wants us to have a relationship with Him because that's the only way we'll be truly happy in the end.

 

xxx

[Steadfast Madcap 3,216]

We all long for happiness that this world can't fulfil.

 

I disagree. 

[Queen 2,331]

I think people lean toward religion because people can be like sheep.  Lost and confused until they have a list of rules to follow, then the world makes sense to them.

I still think there is good in religion.  But I think there are two ends to the spectrum on the topic.  Unfortunately, people get caught up in legalism, and religions that were supposed to be based on love end up oppressing people.

[hashasheen217 19]

I think people lean toward religion because people can be like sheep.  Lost and confused until they have a list of rules to follow, then the world makes sense to them.

I still think there is good in religion.  But I think there are two ends to the spectrum on the topic.  Unfortunately, people get caught up in legalism, and religions that were supposed to be based on love end up oppressing people.

I really like your answer.

With God being our creator, he is telling us the best way to live on earth, so that we may reach heaven in the after life, but also the best way to live on earth so that we won't suffer the consequences of corruption on earth, which includes disease, famine, drought, plagues, and of the likes, which we see today.

I will provide a clear example.

I create a product that is I tended to better your life. That product comes with an instruction manual. The only way to use the product correctly is with the instruction manual. If you try to use the product without the instruction manual, the end result turns out wrong, distorted, and possibly harmful to the user.

Now this links to an example we can all relate to on here.

God said not to have marriage before sex. To my understanding this was to prevent immorality, and also disease. The average female in the United states loses her virginity by 16. United states population is some where around 350000000. Of that population 110000000 reportedly have an sexually transmitted infection.

And that's just in terms of sex. What about his other laws, what happens when we break his other laws o a massive scale?!

[GodsPhysicist 476]

I have an interesting thought, but it doesn't really answer the question at hand.  This is because I think the question is a little limited.  My perspective is as a follower of the Christ, so that is a fair disclaimer.

 

The truth is: I think that it is incredibly unfortunate that people don't know the difference between faith and religion anymore.  I think that causes people to freak out whenever I make a bold statement like: "Jesus came to abolish religion."  In fact, I don't know how much clearer the gospels can be on what the attitude of Jesus was on religion.  It didn't look very favorable by any stretch of the imagination.  However, talk of just a little faith "as important as a mustard seed," and many other examples were used by Jesus to show how much power can be used with which to glorify God.  An example was even made that such faith could even move mountains.  Have you seen anyone do that?  It depends on how you look at it.  We start out small, and we make a few discoveries, and after a very long time, we get the first Nobel Prize for dynamite.  Dynamite, in fact, moves mountains.  A mustard seed is rather unimportant, but it grows to a very large tree.  Once you have the tree, the supply is inexhaustible from any agricultural standpoint.

 

Here's the real difference between faith and religion that no one seems to talk about.  Religion is humanity telling God who we want Him to be, and faith is believing in how God Answers for Himself.  Dynamite moves mountains on a regular basis, and with the ideas and discoveries that led to dynamite, they are all about studying the invisible, and the invisible is quite real after all.  When someone moves a mountain with the results of invisible ideas, we are talking about perserverance that leads to correct answers.  Seriously, who is going to miss the huge tunnel through the Alps in Switzerland (although there was a huge drill involved, not just dynamite, but seriously, that's just another kind of seed from another tree)???

 

Religion is nothing more than people who want to speak on behalf of a God that can certainly speak for Himself.  Really, I don't see God arguing back because He Doesn't reduce Himself to that level.  If you really want to know Who God Is, and What He Wants, NEVER ask a human being, always ask Jesus directly!!!  Really, If Jesus Cannot answer back, then He isn't worth it anyway.

 

Religion = elevate humanity by impersonating God (but really at the price of falling hard).  Faith = humble oneself and glorify God instead (and become elevated by the blessings of the God who has plenty to share with us).

 

Always, its not about US, its about Jesus Christ.  Glorify Jesus, and become what He Wants us to be.  Frankly, its not about what WE get out of it at all.  We are simply lucky to have a GOOD GOD with plenty to share.  How can we compete with the Creator of the freakin' universe anyway ???

[CrystalFaerie 1,316]

Ever since humans learned to self-reflect, we've been searching for some sort of meaning in life. Where do we come from? Why should we act morally? What happens when we die? As beings capable of thought, we are aware of our existence, and we want to know why. Our questions remained unanswered for millennia. Many still do to some extent today.

 

This is where religion comes in. Since we couldn't find a tangible, physical reason for the phenomena we didn't and don't understand, we turned to the supernatural. And there it was, waiting for us. Waiting to give us just what we needed.

 

My stance on this issue will be different from most other members', but as a polytheist, I believe that the Gods - be they Hellenic, Judaic, Islamic, Celtic or from any other culture - don't need us. They could exist just as well without us. Think of the myth of Deucalion and Pyrrha - Zeus was this close to wiping out humanity because we had disappointed him. Likewise, what was the Abrahamic God doing before he created Adam and Eve? He was just as godlike without human beings to acknowledge him. To the Gods, we're frivolous and fleeting as flowers.

 

They don't need us. But sometimes, we need them. So we turn to them and ask for help, and in return, we offer them our devotion. Some religions, like mine, do this through kharis or reciprocity, others through prayer and dedicating our lives to the God or Gods we honour. By doing this, we build a relationship from which both sides - mortal and immortal - benefit. We get the support and spiritual reassurance we need, and in return, depending on the God or Gods in question, they are appeased, their deeds (for example, our creation) are acknowledged, or they receive pleasant libations and sacrifices.

 

And since each person - and each God - is different, we each go about this in different ways. One person might find a certain religious philosophy to be aligned with their own, and so they will choose to follow that particular religion. Another person might decide that a different philosophy makes sense to them, and so they will follow a different religion. Yet another person might not feel the need for spiritual guidance at all, and so they will choose to turn inwards, and find confidence in their own moral compass and the scientific discoveries that we are making day to day. Everyone has different needs; that's why there are so many religions. That's also why I believe that one single religion, encompassing all aspects of life, from personal to social to judicial to governmental, would never be able to fulfill our needs without stepping on those of others.

[ArtsyGal 539]

This is a great topic hashasheen217.

 

I can not say that I have THE answer, but I can tell you what I think of this by my own experience.

 

In the Bible Jesus came to make clear that by no works that we could ever do will make us righteous. Only by belief in what Jesus has done, that He died for OUR sins taking our judgment, and rose from the grave, only then we are righteous through Him.

With religions, there can be elements that take away and distract us from what is important and the purpose of God's overwhelming grace!

Yes, as followers of Jesus, we do need to congregate and rejoice, praise, celebrate, discuss, so we can grow, learn, and share fellowship in the Lord. Does it always have to be in a church? No. Is it good to go to church? Yes it can be, if you go to a good church, meaning that the pastor/priest is lead by the Holy spirit and not on his demerit and knowledge. 

 

As for religion? Ultimately, if you follow a religion or not, it is your choice.

In my opinion, as a Christian, the reason people seek the religion is that something is missing, that longing emptiness that we feel deep down and try to fill. The only thing that quenches this void is the God all Mighty who is our creator and saviour! In search of filling this emptiness religions of all kinds have been made or are similar to the truth but missing the most important part, Jesus!

We really do not NEED religion, we NEED our most wonderful, selfless, loving Lord Jesus

 

Religion encompassing all levels of society?

Hummmmm, people have been trying this for generations. As the saying goes "you can lead a horse to water, but can not make him drink." the same goes for life. We have the freewill to choose what we want to believe, most Countries the freedom to practice our beliefs. I do not believe that everyone will ever believe in the truth, it even says in the Bible that when Jesus comes again and everyone will know He is Lord, that there are people still shaking there fist at Him! So yeah.

 

Hahahaha! Wow, I rambled on!   

-Artsy out!! 

[CarolineWaits 63]

In my humble opinion, GodsPhysicist absolutely hit the nail on the head when he chose to acknowledge the semantic changes of the word 'faith', which has lead to it often being considered synonymous with the word 'religion'.

 

To me, to have faith is to have an unshakable courage in one's convictions.  This could surely be demonstrable courage in oneself, a single deity or multiple deities, natural forces, etc.  Whatever it may be, there is no need for anyone to share that faith, per se, as it is completely dependent on the individual's interpretation.

 

Religion, then, I would describe as being a 'sociocultural movement'.  There seems to be a collective consciousness in which human beings seek solace: if something is considered 'the norm' by a large, constantly-expanding group of fairly successful individuals, such ideas and ideals become a given.  Over time, order comes from chaos.

 

To me, that's what religion is: order.

 

That all being said, I don't typically consider myself 'religious'.  Spiritual, yes; but not religious.  Although I can appreciate total uniformity in some things, there is no single defined religion - at least that I have found - that manages to encompass enough fundamental aspects of my own beliefs enough for me to adhere entirely to its practises.

 

By having faith in myself and other things, I can adapt to the constant changes I go through, along with the world around me.  I have faith in the possibility that God exists.  I have faith in the possibility that multiple gods exist.  I have faith in the possibility that no gods exist.  Anything is possible.

 

Personally, then, I don't need religion.  I do, however, need faith.

[cookiemonster 500]

I think that it has to do with the idea of why we live and the reasons for living. Religion is a belief. People want answers to their why and how questions. People want to believe there's life after death. I think it comes down to hope. Hope for a better day. It helps ease the fears of death. It gives people courage and strength and resolve when they simply have no where to go.

Off topic but I sometimes wonder why don't we all follow the same thing. Especially when some people say their beliefs are the only beliefs that are right. However if I was born in Saudi Arabia, I would be Muslim. If I was born in Thailand, I would be Buddhist. If I was born in Ireland, I would be Catholic. I'm truly interested in going deeper how all these religions came about.

[Matthew 2,546]

I personally don't think people need religion, and I absolutely would not want any religion to "encompass" all of society. I was raised as a Baptist Christian, and now as an outsider looking in, it seems like a really depressing and limiting way to see the world and our universe. While I still feel holes in my life, I am much more at peace with myself and reality and more awed by nature and science than I've ever been in my life. While I can appreciate the value some religions have in some peoples' lives, religious belief just doesn't appeal to me at all anymore. What inspire me are real, tangible things: music, nature, science, the works of human imagination and ingenuity (be it art, movies, video games, books, technology, etc.)

[Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ 597]

To me, there is only 2 paths

 

either the universe was intelligently designed and we have had our purpose given to us by the designer and will eternally live on after we die with said designer 

 

 

or life is meaningless, and we are just a spec of dust on the timeline that eventually leads to the death of everything

.everyone regardless of anything they do will die

the solar system dies,the last star dies , the universe is engulfed in black holes, after all of them evaporate we reach heat death where nothing changes, the universe itself dies

in the end of this path there is nothing, and everything every human ever did at every moment in time will become meaningless

our pointless struggle to maintain existence in a universe that will die,that no one will ever remember, because no one will exist

 

 

 

we spend our whole lives trying to find meaning in the fact that

we come from nothing and we end in nothing

 

to me, not believing in God seems like a really depressing and limiting way to see the world and our universe

 

to me, there is only God, or Nihilism

 

and to me all religions , including the one i believe in, are probably tainted by people in some way, shape or form with there own personal values and that i will never really be able to uphold the Designers rules as i will never truly know 100% if the rules i am following are actually from him or from people claiming its from him ,(heck i do not even know if he has rules for us or if we are just some science experiment that he likes to watch) but i hope he forgives me for believing that when i find out. because i certainly believe we were designed, but i like the thought of a God who at least cares about me enough to die for me, and who understands that we are imperfect, and who created a universe out of organized chaos, just chaotic enough to work 

 

 

 

 

 

but not chaotic enough that things appear and vanish from existence at random,

 

 

v   what is NOT random video link, highly recomended watch 

 

who created the second law of thermodynamics so that we could have free will to even question his existence in the first place

 

so i will stick to that one

 

we try to fit our Designer within our laws, yet in every world i have ever created on a computer i have never had to follow the laws I put inside of it

 

 

I wonder if there will be a time when AI becomes so advanced that if I play a sandbox game the NPC AI programs will start to question if I exist,then maybe one day the AI will create something that will question if it exists

[Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ 597]