relgiocentrism?

Question

In studying world religions, both contemporary and historical, one thing hits me over the head time and again... although the content of the religions is different, the certainty of belief held by the practictioners of each religion is about the same.
it seems that every practioner KNOWS WITH CERTAINTY that their beliefs are true and correct.
but if you step back and see how similar they are in this... how this is a common trait of all... doesn't it become increasingly obvious that none of them can be so sure, if all of them are?
someone can read about the ancient greeks and then say, "they believed in so many gods. that's so wrong. everyone knows there's just one god." but... there were/are tons of people who look at them and say, "they only believe in one god. that's so wrong. everyone knows there are 3."

so how do the religious reconcile this? how do they allow themselves to be so swayed by their own faith, and so unconvinced by all others. Please no WORD OF GOD answers

Answer 1

They just follow what they know. Just as I grew up in a society where no one really cared if a girl had sex out of wedlock, generations before me would have gasped and ridiculed her. It's just the environment they live in, so that's what they feel is right. It's difficult or impossible to even understand another religion, so it's impossible for that religion to be correct.

Answer 2

While this is often the case, I find it rarely the case with Buddhists. Often I find Wiccans very open too.

Buddhist will rarely say they consider their religion better. As strong as you usually get is that it's better for them, but wouldn't offer that it would be better for others.

Taoist, I suspect are very similar.

Centric reasoning seems to be most intense with religions, I guess because there is both a lot of pressure to believe wholeheartedly and no compelling evidence to support those beliefs, leading to uncertainty and insecurity (IMO).

Uncertainty and insecurity is often addressed by trying to make sure everyone else knows how strong your faith is.

My opinion, your mileage may vary.

Answer 3

well, I would argue that people don't reconcile this--rather, they adhere to a narrative about the nature of the world, universe, and the divine.

Some people balance the many influences on their pov with that of their religious narrative, but others so rely upon that narrative for their sense of self, etc., that any attempt to refute it is threatening...

and having a story that makes sense of the universe and your place in it is empowering, or at the very least, comforting...