Relegion stunts the intellectual growth of human beings?

Question

what are your comments?

xmuslim / free thinker

Answer 1

Can you think of a single discipline that does not have either it's roots or finest work based in religion? Music, art, science, on and on. To understand the Bible itself takes intellect and dedication to study. Too many answers at this forum are based on somebody's read-through of the Bible, eyes-wide-shut.

Answer 2

I'm not sure what the word "Relegion," means, Free Thinker, unless you are also a "free speller" and you really refer to "Religion."

Assuming that to be the case, I'll make the requested comment. And I thank you -really- for having asked for a "comment," rather than an "answer," or an agreement or disagreement.

Your question is one which is impossible to answer because there is no group of humans who don't have religion. If there were some way to create a species of humans who had no religion, perhaps we could then compare that group to humanity as we know, and then see which had greater intellectual growth.

And this, of course, begs the NEXT question: Just what is meant by "intellectual growth?" Scientific discovery? Advances in the arts? Greater literacy? Higher IQ? What, exactly?

If we assume that you refer to all those -and maybe more-then:

1. given advances along all those fronts since humans came to be, and,

2. given that humans as a species have developed religion as a tool of culture, then

3. it seems reasonable to conclude that intellectual growth has not been stunted by religion.

Setting aside that logic for the moment, what about the evidence one way or the other? Historically, the emergence of organized religion has typically been associated with advances in agricultral techniques, architecture, science, art, commerce, warfare, medicine and archiving of data, among others. The most recent example that comes to mind is the church in Rome, which preserved recorded knowledge during the Dark Ages and was a substantial force behind the Renaissance. The Huns, Goths and Vandals, on the other hand, who plunged western society INTO the dark ages, were possessed of religious ideas, but had no organized system of expression or thought. It was, in fact, the church of the 9th through 12th centuries which eventually moved the leaders of these tribes and cultures to a greater application of the intellect to the world around them.

And so, it would appear that both logic and the history suggest that religion has had a positive if not complementary impact on intellectual growth.

Some might argue (well, they DO argue) that on a personal, individual level, religion has stunted intellectual growth. That MUST be true for the simple reason that any system of thought, belief or values will be stimulating to some, repressive of others. The same could be said of economic thought, or political ideologies. One might argue, for example, that silly ideas about creationism have caused some people simply to accept the story without exercising their minds to investigate more deeply. And that argument would have a kernel of truth to it. Problem is, at least some of those "stunted" folks are intellectual giants in other areas. And in any case, the debate over the issue has tended to energize those who support evolution as a scientific and therefore intellectual matter. So, it all depends where you plant the yard stick: humanity in general -or a few selected individual examples, one way or the other?

If the entire mass of humanity is the yard stick, then it appears that religion has not stunted growth, at least no more nor any less than any other system of thought.

Answer 3

I think if you take a textbook on science and never become scientific minded you will be closed also. Just learning facts doesn't even make you a real person if you don't gain wisdom. Most have taken science in school, only, and have a bunch of facts and no knowledge of science. That's the condition of religion. To worship a book is idolatry. To understand it is genius.
Oh, we're all geniuses, BTW, when we apply the shift in consciousness that psychology, neurobiology and such which is coming out all over the web these days. It's scientific analysis meets religion.

Answer 4

Your self-proclaimed "free thinker" status has been stunted quite a bit. Do you blame that on Islam?

By intellectual growth do you mean like building an atomic bomb? Or just knowing how to grow vegetables?

All people are ignorant, only in different areas. No one knows everything.

Probably Einstein was just a moron, right?

Answer 5

Often... yes.

It is particularly prevalent in those who take it too seriously.

Generally there is less stunting the less seriously one takes it.

For what it is worth though.... all people will stunt their intellectual growth at some level or other... as if left unchecked, the mind will expand like a cancer and eventually kill the host...
THAT is why religion exists.


You could say I'm a smartarse.
Some day it will kill me.
I'm alright with that, even if my instinct isn't.

Answer 6

I think religion fills people's heads with doctrines and prayers and answers to questions by rote so that they lose their curiosity and imagination. It prohibits them from feeling the need to question what is told to them, in fact, religion forbids questions and punishes doubt while it rewards strict adherence to whatever "holy" book they subscribe to. Believers seldom challenge anything they are taught about their religion and they only believe because others have told them to do it. They accept the status quo and any fantastical, impossible, hair-brained fable they're told and throw all reason, logic and common sense away when it comes to their faith.

Actually, it isn't really even "faith" they possess, because it's not based on concrete evidence that they have actually personally witnessed and become convinced is the truth. They simply believe because other ordinary human beings told them to. And they never ask, "Why?"

.

Answer 7

it does both. it can act as a catalyst for understanding, when applied well, and it can be a hindrance when applied badly.

or even more confounding, the exact SAME application and beliefs, can act as a catalyst for one, and a hindrance for another, both depending on the individual's application/interpretation of it, and where they are in their understanding.

the same goes for serialized anti-religion. in fact structured non-belief is MORE prone to being a hindrance, as structured dis-belief is not based on anything that is at least imagined to exist. if one has a hallucination, a malfunction of brain chemistry or an injury or not, it can inspire investigation and healthy intellectual curiosity.
structured disbelief in anything not objectively provable, is just foolish and arrogant.

there is much more to existence that is beyond the reach and scope of science (science that even remotely resembles science as we know it) than that which is WITHIN the reach and scope of science.

Science has its place. but it also has MASSIVE limitations on its scope, and in some cases, these limitations are not appropriately appreciated, this results in fanatics that are even worse than the religion-based fanatics!

Answer 8

No, that is a generalization. You can be religious/spiritual and still want to pursue intellectual things. But there are some certain sects in religion that kinda don't want you to be intellectual rather than religious, but no one says that you can't, you can do whatever you want really.

Answer 9

Religion caused the real intellectual growth of human being. Europe was ignorant before interaction with islamic cultures.

Answer 10

I consider the countless different solutions. it particularly is love that nurtures non secular strengthen, the unconditional love in between us human beings, in accordance to the guideline: "love your neighbor as your self". using this sort of courting in between us, we can build a sparkling form of humanity, behaving like a unmarried loving kin, raising ourselves to a sparkling point of existence, and achieving a greater robust, safer, sustainable destiny for all persons. i wish it facilitates, each and every of the main suitable.