why do people have to follow a religion? are they just sheep?

Question

why can't they just be nice to each other and not have to go to a church or some place of worship why not just do it at home? why do they feel the need to follow the rantings of some bloke in a church? they have no better knowledge or experience of these things than anyone else...

do you really like to have people think of you as sheep? a dumb animal that stands around in a field for a few weeks and then gets eaten?

wow! shake the tree and watch all those trainee sky pilots fall out of it

Answer 1

Why do people follow religion?
Because they would rather have someone tell them the rules, how to live life, and not use their own brain and free will. Also some feel the need to 'belong' and be accepted

Are they just sheep?
Yes..... and scared of the sheep dog who'll bite em in the *** if they step outta line.

Why not just worship at home?
Because they want to say "Im a real christian, i go to church" and they want to show off their 'Sunday best' clothes and hats..

Why the need to follow the rantings of some bloke?
As I said before. Some people prefer not to use their own judgement. How much easier is it to be told how to live, not much decisive thinking involoved. All they do is refer to a page of a book. Thinking for yourself can be an internal battle. But the decision will always be your own and right for you.

Answer 2

Actually people don't have to follow a religion, they are free to believe anything they want. You obviously don't follow a religion and that is your choice. People that do follow a religion believe that there is a God but many people have decided that there is no God. You cant have it both ways. There really is a God or there isn't and people choose to live their life according to which side of that belief they fall on. As for going to church as far as Christianity goes God wants his people to have fellowship with each other. Is that so wrong? Karl Marx once said that religion was the opiate of the masses. His form of government denied the existence of God and look what that did for the Russian people. The United States has freedom of religion and is the most prosperous nation in the history of mankind. The most generous too. As you go through life keep asking these kind of questions and look around you for answers. The majesty of a mountain, the beauty of a flower, the unimaginable variety of life. Is this all the result of some big bang? A galactic crap shoot?

Answer 3

I didnt know people had to follow a religion? I thought it was a free choice? Perhaps I am wrong. Do I feel the need to follow the rantings of some bloke in a church?


No, but it seems that on Yahoo answers I must do.

Questioning the faith of others does not constitute being 'nice to each other'.

Answer 4

Well church is about fellowship with other believers. Listening to the pastor or preacher, can teach some of us some things God desires us to know. But people do have home churches also, so they are getting just as good as at church I'd imagine. Just home churches or churches are a good place to get together and fellowship and support and encourage each other and stuff. Nah I don't think we are all sheep. And we don't have to follow a religion, it's a choice, that's all. We should all thank God for that choice, free will is a great thing you know. That means we choose to know God or choose not to. Aren't you glad it's YOUR choice?....

Answer 5

Why do footballers not play just on their own? Why do campers flock together around a nice place aside a river, instead of camping alone? Why do women love to meet each other for chats? Why do men generally love football and bere?

Well, some questions cannot be replied to that simple. But certain groups who have something in common love to gather. And religion is something even stronger than football and bere. It deals with the root questions of our life. Some can shun ponderung about the meaning of life or the what will be after question. But not all are like that. The problem is that there are so many religions and that some intolerantly try to press their ideas on others or just want them to suffer for their pain. I mean, bombs in trains or plains just because of a minory elsewhere. What interest should a true Got, the obvious creator of all men, have in the cruel killing of inocent person just because of the frustration of someone else? Why should he show a kind of gratitude for that murder in offering that person a blissful life with a certain amount of vergines? There are too many that play god themselves and judge others, even inocent ones. It is like me hammering on a finger by mistake and throwing the hammer into the face of someone because of my very pain. What good is in such a behaviour? That should be the question, not religion in itself. You here just argue "there is no god!" And in reality call all stupid that do believe in a god. And as to church. You judge them all by the experiences that you made, maybe, in the church of your parents. Did you ever try to find out what is wrong with religions today and if there is one true religion? Throwing them all away is the easiest way, but not practicable by everybody.

But there are persons with a good heart even without being religious. In that you are right. But we are all different. You cannot expect all to be like clones. That would be very, very boring indeed.

Hans, Germany.

Answer 6

Christianity goes beyond a church. A christian is a follower of Christ. And Jesus has given us His Word in the Bible. So first of all, we must follow Jesus and what is said int the Bible, if we love Him, and seek for a church who does the same: follows Jesus and follows the Bible, just as it is, without any changing to it. After all, the church is the body of Christ. The Bible says so in Ephesians 1:22-23. Church was made as a community of believers. Humans are naturally social, and every person needs the support and love from others. The church is the place where we gather together to 1) prise the Lord with our brothers, 2) find support and help from each other. It's just a big a family; and 3) it is a family with a common mission: preach the Gospel of Jesus. You're right, we could praise God from our homes without ever going to church, but for how long? Most people who try to preach God from their homes and never go to church, eventually end up quiting. Church is like a big fire where you can keep lighted up. Of course, nothing can substitute our private relationships with God at our home, but we need the support of our brothers too; otherwise God had never made a church. But the Bible says He even died for her (Ephesians 5:25). Our faith can be strengthen as we hear the testimonies of others about how God has helped them, and find relief as we go to seek for God along with our brothers who share the same mission.

Check up this website for questions and answers relating the church (in fact, there's a question that fits perfectly with yours, "Can a Christian be saved without going to church?"): http://www.amazingfacts.org/media/radio/question_archive.asp?tName=Church

Take care and God bless you!

Answer 7

People feel better to have a set of rules set out for them and that there are other people who are there to support them in their lives. It's not a matter of being a "sheep" but the fact that people are pact animals, for the most part. We feel more comfortable with knowing that we have a purpose and path to follow and that it is qualified by others being on the same path.

The other thing is, historically, people felt more comfortable with having a religion as it aswered the age old questions for them - why are we here? where do we go when we die? what is our purpose?

And there are particular aspects of certain religions that serve to ease human needs psychologically. The prime example of this is confession in the Catholic faith. For many people, to verbalise the things that they have done wrong and then to hear someone grant them forgiveness, helps them tremendously to move on and be better people. Confession is required as a Catholic to take place between a person and a priest. But as a Catholic myself, I must admit that I don't follow this. I am comfortable in thinking about anything that I have done wrong (and we all do, we're human) and know that, as a loving and forgiving God, I have recieved forgiveness. It is up to me to be true to myself about it; for me, it is more important in this that I am true to myself and that will benefit how I behave in the world with others.

What we need to do is realise that we can believe in the same thing but not necessarily follow it in the exact steps. It is also important to remember most of religion is man-made, that we, in the end, are the ones who are responsible for our behaviour and how we interact with those in the world around us.

Sorry for the ramble, but hopefully this has been helpful.

Answer 8

because people have to have beliefs in order to get along with their lives but a lot of people are ignorant to those beliefs and believe that their beleif is the one true belief and refuse to listen to any other point of view. in my opinion this is very small minded. you your self have a belief, that belief is that religion is pointless. i dont know if thats because what you have decided or what you have been brought up to think. but none the less that is a belief. people tend to follow what their family believe as that is the way they are brought up from birth, and therefore don't know any different. a lot of people do have places of worship at their own home but also like worshipping with others in a group to share their religious beliefs with others who think the same as them. churches, mosques and synagogues are not just places of worship, they are places of education as well, children are taught readings from the bible, qu' ran etc and are taught the language of their ancestors at the places of worship. its a way to bring the community together, to make friends and to socialise. by the way, im athiest so do not believe in any religion. although, through exploring all the theories, i have decided that when i die, i believe that i will have the choice of being reincarnated or if i want to be a ghost. i dont know who gives me that choice, maybe theres a road with a fork, one road leads to reincarnation and the other to being a ghost then if i choose to be a ghost and i get fed up of that i can be reincarnated if i want. my dad thhinks you just become a ghost and my mum has never said what she believes (as far as i can remember).

Answer 9

Most are sheep, unfortunately.
It is much easier to follow set rules and listen to some priest's rantlings on Sunday (and be done with it for a week) then to think about it all the time and make your own rules.
It makes me sad.
But I'm glad to hear there are some reasonable people on this planet...:-)
Cheers!

Answer 10

I think your point is that religions result in conflicts between religions meaning war and violence! I think that religion shouldn't have been ever thought about because if it didn't then you wouldn't see millions of people disagreeing with another. If they did that stuff your right, they should keep it at home and not do that church BS and just keep it to themselves like how you have sex and you want nobody to know about it, why not do that with religion it wouldn't hurt ANYBODY!