tell the truth has religion not done more harm than good?

Question

by this i mean man's use of religion. i am a religious man but not of any faith. i hate organised religion

Answer 1

I believe that man-made religion has done more harm than good. I do not believe in a religion, I believe in a real God and have a real relationship with Him. Our problems stem when we try to seek God through a certain organization or a certain man. This will only end with more problems and confusion. But if you seek God through His word you will definitely find Him.

Answer 2

Religion has done more harm than you can imagine. Thats why we should never confuse religion with Christianity. Many, many churches and religious groups claim to be Christian-but they are not. Being organised does not make it wrong. Even the early church in the first century was somewhat organised. The difference is that they believed in the scriptures and were devoted to Jesus. Today most religious groups are only concerned about themselves, and self indulgence. All are religious, but few are real.

Answer 3

Definitely! Religion has done a ton of harm in the hands of mankind!!
But there is a ray of light at the end of the tunnel --- in the book of revalations in the Bible, there is a Great Harlot who is spoken of and she represents the World Empire of False Religion ( and this covers not only non-christian religions but also all of those 'christian' religions who are so hypocritical and false to the true teachings of Christ!) and the Bible shows in Revalations how she will be brought down and destroyed and bother mankind no more and then after the war of armeggedon, the ONLY TRUE worship of GOD will be allowed here on Earth and it will be anew world , cleaned and peaceful and a paradise with no more death or illness or crime. People will live forever upon it in harmony with the beasts of the fields and life in perfection.

I know , it sounds totally far fetched, doesn't it? yeah, because WE humans nowadays have NO CLUEwhat anything perfect is like. Its out of our realm of imagining, isn't it? but the Bible , God's word, promises it and I , for one, believe it. I believe in it because all of the other prophecies in the Bible have come to pass and have been true, so why not these last two? ALL have come true, only two more to go. I'm waiting for them and there are signs already of them soon to pass. You just wait and see when the world political systems turn on religion. Its already starting to happen. Pay attention to the UN and its attitudes towards religion.... and note my words when religion 'falls'. Then look for them to proclaim 'true peace and security' and that is when the Bible says that the end will instantly be upon us, 'in the blink of an eye'. THEN all when know that God is JEHOVAH and the end will come.

Remember this when you see these things happening.

If you want to ask me questions, just email me. I don't mind.

Answer 4

Because of organized religion, as badly as we want to talk about it, it made the principles God wanted his followers to know readily available and it was allowed to be spread to nearly each corner of the globe. The good and bad of religion has sent out a message, and I pray that we are learning from both side of it. Besides, our belief in God transcends religion, but it is our best guide when we are new in our faith. We have to have a foundation (the principles in the Bible) before we can build a house.

Answer 5

Over the thousands of years of their existence religions have caused literally millions of unnecessary deaths and untold suffering and destruction among humankind. Because the number one effect of a religion is to DIVIDE people from each other according to their different beliefs, it is not surprising that religion serves as the catalyst for continuous philosophical conflict and attendant unending warfare.

Answer 6

Wow that is deep... Organized religion like it was set up by man.. let me guess, " you are on a quest for spirituality"??? Yet you have no guide... the Bible says " they be blind leaders of the Blind" what do you think that meant? It was a reference to the pharisee and the lack of ability to see what was right in front of their face... good luck with your search maybe it will lead you to Christianity...

Answer 7

Don't you love when people call you a "pharisee" when you know half of them don't even know what a Pharisee is?

My answer is, I don't know. There's no real way to say. I know it's a crappy answer but it's better then me sitting here acting like I know what I'm talking about when I really don't.

Answer 8

Buddhism has done more good than harm...

Answer 9

You must be new here... YAWN

Answer 10

Most religious organizations have produced bad fruitage. It is not the fact that groups are organized that is bad. But many have promoted forms of worship that are based on false teachings and are largely ritualistic instead of providing genuine spiritual guidance; they have been misused to control the lives of people for selfish objectives; they have been overly concerned with money collections and ornate houses of worship instead of spiritual values; their members are often hypocritical. Obviously no one who loves righteousness would want to belong to such an organization. But true religion is a refreshing contrast to all of that. Nevertheless, to fulfill the Bible’s requirements, it must be organized.

Heb. 10:24, 25: “Let us consider one another to incite to love and fine works, not forsaking the gathering of ourselves together, as some have the custom, but encouraging one another, and all the more so as you behold the day drawing near.” (To carry out this Scriptural command, there must be Christian meetings that we can attend on a consistent basis. Such an arrangement encourages us to express love toward others, not only concern about self.)

1 Cor. 1:10: “Now I exhort you, brothers, through the name of our Lord Jesus Christ that you should all speak in agreement, and that there should not be divisions among you, but that you may be fitly united in the same mind and in the same line of thought.” (Such unity would never be achieved if the individuals did not meet together, benefit from the same spiritual feeding program, and respect the agency through which such instruction was provided. See also John 17:20, 21.)

1 Pet. 2:17: “Have love for the whole association of brothers.” (Does that include only those who may meet together for worship in a particular private home? Not at all; it is an international brotherhood, as shown by Galatians 2:8, 9 and 1 Corinthians 16:19.)

Matt. 24:14: “This good news of the kingdom will be preached in all the inhabited earth for a witness to all the nations; and then the end will come.” (For all nations to be given the opportunity to hear that good news, the preaching must be carried out in an orderly way, with suitable oversight. Love for God and for one’s fellowman has caused people around the earth to unite their efforts to do this work.)

AS ORGANIZED RELIGION loses its grip on the masses, it is hardly surprising that so many people would formulate their own personal religion. The questions are, though, Can doing so really satisfy one’s spiritual needs? Is “private religion” the answer?

To address these questions, we might first consider whether private religion can truly stand up under the scrutiny of our “power of reason,” one of the greatest gifts that humans possess.—Romans 12:1.

The reasoning mind tends to reject what is self-contradictory. However, in a survey of private religion in Sweden, it was concluded that people often “rather spontaneously combine different (and possibly logically incompatible) life philosophy elements into their own philosophy.”

For example, only 2 percent of those who claimed to be “Christian in their own way” mentioned Jesus, even as a historical person. Yet, belief in reincarnation was mentioned frequently. Now, is it not inconsistent to label oneself a follower of Jesus Christ while ignoring his life and teachings—and even embracing doctrines diametrically opposed to those of Christ?

Our power of reason also tends to shy away from things that seem hopelessly vague and undefinable. However, when asked whether they believed in “God or a divine power,” most people interviewed answered that “Something” of that sort might exist. One said: “I believe in something supernatural but not necessarily a God figure.” Those who did believe in God felt that he “played a rather insignificant role in their life.” The report thus described private religion as a “diffuse conceptual world,” and it concluded by quoting one of the most common answers: “I believe in something, but I am not sure what.”

A study of private religion in Canada showed similar results. The magazine Alberta Report observes: “We now see a high level of belief in almost anything imaginable, but there’s no rhyme or reason to it. And when we then try to measure the sort of guidance these private beliefs play in people’s lives, there’s really nothing there. There’s no ultimate moral authority. So it really doesn’t add up to anything.” The magazine spoke of “the fragmented god” because those espousing such beliefs are “grasping bits and pieces of the traditional creed.” Does it strike you as sound reasoning to base religious beliefs—even a hope for the future—on such vague, tenuous, and fragmentary ideas?

Fellowship, brotherhood, and solidarity have long been cherished by religious believers. (Acts 2:42, 46) But since private religion is just that—private—how can it fill these needs?

Doesn’t private religion, with “every man his own church,” only multiply and deepen the religious divisions among people? “Religion is now a matter of private judgment . . . , and thus we have become a country of not a few hundred different creeds but a few million,” Alberta Report noted. Not surprisingly, then, private religion has even been described as a form of spiritual anarchy.

Swedish Bishop Martin Lönnebo points out in an interview with the newspaper Svenska Dagbladet that “private religion cannot enrich our age, and it has trouble transferring its values to a new epoch.” This opinion finds a measure of confirmation in a common attitude among Swedish parents toward raising children. Svenska Dagbladet summarizes the attitude this way: “Believe what you want! And don’t force your children to decide. But let them choose when they are old enough.”

The newspaper acknowledged that providing children with religious values may be considered indoctrination. Yet, the paper concluded: “This handing over to children can be something good and may be the only way for them . . . to decide for themselves.” Indeed, the current plight of young people suggests that private religion has done little to unite families on the basis of solid values that can be passed on from one generation to the next.

It seems, then, that private religion cannot offer reliable, consistent answers to life’s questions, nor can it unite people or fill mankind’s need for moral guidance. The previously quoted article in Svenska Dagbladet expressed this view of private religion: “When ‘faith’ contains everything, it contains nothing. And when freedom never needs to be defined, it is weakened.”

Clearly, in many respects private religion falls short of satisfying the spiritual needs of people. Really, how could a person reasonably expect to fill such needs by simply selecting beliefs from various traditions, as if picking the most enticing dishes at a buffet table or smorgasbord? It also seems clear that organized religion has failed to fill such needs.

Many religious people sincerely believe that their form of worship gives glory to God. (Romans 10:2, 3) However, religion as a whole constitutes another element of human society that has actually prevented millions from glorifying God. How so? Let us consider two ways.

First, religions detract glory from God by means of false teachings. Take as an example the teaching of predestination. This doctrine is based on the supposition that since God has the power to know the future, he must foreknow the outcome of everything. Predestination thus suggests that God long ago foreordained the future—good or bad—of every individual. According to this notion, blame for all suffering and wickedness in today’s world must lie with God. It hardly glorifies God when he is assigned the blame that rightly belongs to his chief Adversary, Satan, the one whom the Bible calls “the ruler of the world”!—John 14:30; 1 John 5:19.

Predestination is an unscriptural teaching that slanders God. It confuses what he can do with what he actually does. The fact that God can foreknow events is clearly stated in the Bible. (Isaiah 46:9, 10) However, it is illogical to think that he cannot control his ability to know the future or that he is responsible for every outcome. To illustrate: Suppose you had great physical strength. Would that make you feel inclined to lift every heavy object in sight? Of course not! Likewise, having the ability to know the future does not compel God to foreknow or foreordain everything. His use of foreknowledge is selective and discretionary. Clearly, false teachings, including predestination, do not glorify God.

A second way that organized religion dishonors God is through the conduct of its adherents. Christians are expected to follow the teachings of Jesus. Among other things, Jesus taught his followers to “love one another” and to remain “no part of the world.” (John 15:12; 17:14-16) What about members of Christendom’s clergy? Have they really followed those teachings?

Consider the clergy’s record when it comes to war. They have supported, condoned, even taken the lead in many wars of the nations. They have blessed the troops and justified the killing. We cannot help wondering, ‘Has it never occurred to such clergymen that their counterparts on the opposing side are doing the same thing?’ The clergy do not glorify God when they claim to have his backing in bloody wars; neither do they glorify him when they pronounce Bible standards out-of-date and condone sexual immorality of any kind. How they remind us of the religious leaders whom Jesus called “workers of lawlessness” and “blind guides”! (Matthew 7:15-23; 15:14) The conduct of the clergy has caused millions to cool off in their love for God.—Matthew 24:12.

If the prominent and influential people of the world have by and large failed to glorify God, then who are truly doing so? To answer that question, we must look to the Bible. After all, God has the right to say how he is to be glorified, and he sets the standards in his Word, the Bible. (Isaiah 42:8) Let us consider three ways to glorify God, in each case addressing the question of who today are truly doing so.

First, we can glorify God by praising his name. That doing so is a vital aspect of God’s will is evident from what Jehovah said to Jesus. A few days before he died, Jesus prayed: “Father, glorify your name.” Then a voice answered: “I both glorified it and will glorify it again.” (John 12:28) The speaker undoubtedly was Jehovah himself. From his response, it is plain that the glorifying of his name is important to him.

Second, we can glorify God by teaching the truth about him. Jesus said that true worshipers would “worship [God] with . . . truth.” (John 4:24) How can we identify those who are worshiping God with “truth”? They must reject doctrines that are not based on the Bible and that misrepresent God and his will. Instead, they must teach the pure truths of God’s Word, including the following: Jehovah is the Most High God, and the glory of this position goes to him alone (Psalm 83:18); Jesus is God’s Son and the appointed Ruler of God’s Messianic Kingdom (1 Corinthians 15:27, 28); God’s Kingdom will sanctify Jehovah’s name and fulfill his purpose toward this earth and humans upon it (Matthew 6:9, 10); the good news about this Kingdom must be preached in all the earth. (Matthew 24:14)

Third, we can glorify God by living in harmony with his standards. The apostle Peter wrote: “Maintain your conduct fine among the nations, that, in the thing in which they are speaking against you as evildoers, they may as a result of your fine works of which they are eyewitnesses glorify God in the day for his inspection.” (1 Peter 2:12) A Christian’s conduct reflects on his faith. When observers make that connection—that is, when they see that the Christian’s fine conduct is a direct result of his faith—it brings glory to God.

Each one of us does well to ask, ‘Am I personally giving glory to Jehovah?’ According to Psalm 148, most of creation gives glory to God. The angels, the physical heavens, the earth and its animal creation—they all praise Jehovah. (Verses 1-10) How sad that most humans today do not! By living in a way that gives God glory, you put yourself in harmony with the rest of creation that is praising Jehovah. (Verses 11-13) There is no better way to use your life.

By giving glory to Jehovah, you are blessed in many ways. As you exercise faith in Christ’s ransom sacrifice, you become reconciled to God and enjoy a peaceful and fruitful relationship with your heavenly Father. (Romans 5:10) As you look for reasons to give glory to God, you become more positive, appreciative. (Jeremiah 31:12) Then, you are in a position to help others live a happy, fulfilling life, thereby finding greater happiness yourself. (Acts 20:35) May you be among those who make it their firm resolve to give God glory—now and forever!