Atheists, what is your view on religion (see details)?

Question

These are some of the main views being offered in religious discourse. Which do you think is most likely to be true? If more than one, explain them together. Note some are not compatible with others, such as (1) and (3). Thanks for your input:


1) Class Struggle View by Karl Marx: Religion was invented to control the masses by elite Class Struggle view, Karl Marx

2) Wish Fulfillment View by Ludwig Feuerbach, Sigmund Freud: Religion is the projection of felt needs upon the universe

3) Evolutionary Development View by Scot Attran, Pascal Boyer: Religion is the product of cognitive predispositions created through natural selection.

4) Irrational Tradition View by Sam Harris and Richard Dawkins: Religion is social-cultural indoctrination maintained through willful ignorance and lack of education in science.

5) Other: please explain.

Answer 1

Not atheist but not religious either. I think it is a combination of those plus the need to explain the otherwise inexplainable.

For example, when Christian missionaries came to northwest Africa, they found villages situated far from water sources. The women in these villages had to walk miles every day to get fresh water.

When they asked why the villages were so far away, the elders would say that the gods would not permit them to live any closer to water.

After the missions were 'sucessful' entire villages were moved closer to water sources for the purpose of convenience. Very quickly, river blindness became an epidemic in the region.

Eventually, the cause of river blindness was traced to a bacteria that was caried by a particular black fly. When anthropologists when in and found the old villages, they discovered that the distance from the villages to the nearest water source very closely matched the maximal flight distance of the black fly.

(Note: I may have some of these details a bit wrong. It may not have been a black fly, for instance. But the 'shape' of what I have said here is correct. I am going from memory so if somebody has more accurate details, please email me.)

Answer 2

I haven't read all of the texts that you listed so I am giving my thoughts on the topic listed for each one.

1. I think this is true.
2. I think this is true, people needed answers and were given answers in the context of religion.
3. I believe that science has some valuable insights into how the human brain developed and how it functions.
4. I don't believe the ignorance is willful per say, but I think that people choose what they want to believe.
5. I think religion provides people with a sense of hope and purpose.

Answer 3

technology hasn't executed something to threaten faith. different than perhaps open peoples minds to renounce accepting the bibles teachings so actually. the difficulty maximum individuals do no longer understand is that the bible grew to become into printed to guy 2000+ years in the past. the earliest revelations have been lots better than 2000 years previous. the human innovations grew to become into lots decrease than-stepped forward than that's now. so evidently issues that we nonetheless won't be able to understand at the instant might ought to be dumbed down so primitive guy ought to a minimum of understand the basics. technology only nicely-knownshows issues to us that have been defined otherwise lower back then via fact they did no longer have the technology we've. there remains quite some issues that technology hasn't defined. issues that have been defined in the bible, yet they have been defined metaphorically or by using legend/parable. quickly adequate we could have logical motives for each thing. yet we can by no skill prepare nor disprove gods existence. it only isn't passable.

Answer 4

I believe there was a time when religion was not only useful, but tremendously beneficial. However, this is the 21st century, and the need for religion diminishes with each passing moment. It's high time we moved on.

Answer 5

2 & 4 yes, 1, not so much, at least not nowadays.

Answer 6

Well, aren't those special.

Can't it be all of them?