Do you think punishment in religion comes from fear of being adult?

Question

Do people feel that they need to be punished? Like if they are old enough not to be punished by their parents, they feel someone else has to do it, so they invent punishment within religion?

God woudl be the next logical step up without the parents in the way any longer. Maybe people just can't feel comfortable making their own choices and not being punished if they go wrong?

Answer 1

No.

I do not know about all religions but Christianity does not teach punishment.

Christianity teaches total forgiveness.

Hell is the state of complete and final self-exclusion from communion with God and the blessed, reserved for those who refuse by their own free choice to believe and be converted from sin, even to the end of their lives

I like to think of it this way. The only way a person will go to hell is if they want to.

God in His (or Her) unlimited love has given us free will to choose. Our most important choice is to freely decide to accept or reject God's constant offer of spending eternity with Him in heaven. God will respect the choice to reject Him.

With love in Christ.

Answer 2

God gave us a set of rules as to what pleases Him. When we go off the path of what is good and are doing things out of selfishness then we have failed at our motive even though we may of had success. The God as the father in heaven that looks down and sees all that we do and the reasons we do them for will remember it for our day of accountability.

Famous people can do great things for man kind but for self promotion of their next endeavor to grow favor in the eyes of the public.
Now take Mother Theresa was a great women that just served out of the kindness of her heart to please God whether success came or not, it was pleasing to God. Now if failure comes many people only see God as a promoter if I follow Him right, This makes God out to be a promise of worldly wealth and is not what God fully meant. Wealth comes from knowledge, contentment and many other areas besides what is financial.
I think it helps people to have a higher form of ethics and hold back ones desire for worldly wealth (asap), for a positive Godly path to get there in due time with His blessings.

Answer 3

Yes, I certainly do. Why do you think most Fundies picture their god as a father? They are perhaps transferring their feelings about their father to their concept of god. Everyone to some extent longs to have part of their childhood back, I just think some people take it a little too far.