Battle of Belief?

Question

We are taught to believe without question, in one God. We are told to believe that there is a heaven, and hell. Be faithful, and you shall be rewarded, but fall short of his grace, and be banished to the depths of hell as punishment.

Many non-believers argue that this is another form of government, created to control our ability to choose to do wrong.
My faith is being tested right now, as i was raised in church (baptist). But my common sense is envading my willpower, and breaking me down slowly, as i learn more, and think more.

My problem with "Religion" is that undeniable "What if" situation. What if, for example, religion is indeed a form of government created to control us. we spend our lives, sometimes denying things that would make us happy, because we are taught that its against God. All this control, simply to have nothing waiting on "the other side". All the things we would miss out on. less than 50 characters available so i will end it here.
Comments please.

Answer 1

you can't go wrong relying on your own good sense. suppose there is a god; certainly he/she/it gave you a brain to use it, not to rely on others for answers. if there isn't a god, well then your own good sense is the ONLY thing you in fact have.

if the only religion you are familiar with is Christianity (and baptist at that) i suggest you explore more non-monotheistic religions.

the point of life it to both live and die happy, undivided, and unattached. if you can't do this with the baptists, it might be time to move on....

Answer 2

I always look at religion as a form of control, but I do believe in God, just looking around in nature is all the proof I need. As far as the rules go, I noticed that they change slightly depending on the church. The other what if is, "what if there is something waiting on the other side. " I try to live the best I can because in the end if there is no after life, I will never know. and if there is, the life I am trying to live will be a good argument on why I belong in Heaven.

Answer 3

God is not a controlling government - but some churches seem to emulate that constraining form of government of which you speak.

Take a moment to yourself. God is not outside of you. God is within you working through the Holy Spirit. That's why it requires faith. It's something that is there - like air - but you can't see it.

In your quiet time - before going to bed or just upon waking up - close your eyes and ask God to show you (not prove to you) some of the things you are asking about. It's the Holy Spirit's job to answer your questions and guide you in a way you can best understand.

The Holy Spirit is as a creative Entity - be prepared and open for the answers. It can come from anywhere and in any form. 100% guaranteed. God can not fail.

Answer 4

Religion is the de facto political power in many places. The Christian right in the US is one example, the Muslim right in many places is another, the Jewish hawks in Israel another.

Religious rules, purportedly handed down by god, give political power to people who can use those rules for their own power-grabbing agenda. It is a lot easier to make god's will the basis for unworthy actions than to take personal credit.

Islam is really a combining of church and state, an idea alien to many western nations, who think that the state is merely to govern and keep the peace while religion is accountable for moral issues where humans beings are not hurt or society endangered.

In the US, politicized religion has given us the likes of the Bakers and other fallen politico-religious figures who swear on the bible while chasing mistreses, illicit sex, money and drugs. Power has always corrupted humans and political religion is no different.

I am not exactly filled with religious fervor (I am presently agnostic, having been Baptist and Catholic in my life), but I don't mind people believing in god if they don't force their religious beliefs on the public at large. Abortion for example does have moral overtones which I can't deny, even though I favor a woman's right to choose. To me, it is her moral decision, not mine. I don't favor government imposing any religious group's morality on the public at large on that issue.

There are times when religion and simple human values do connect. Drugs are evil not because they are enjoyable (and therefore sinful), but because they truly ruin lives. Public sex may or may not be sinful, but most people really don't want to have to view sexual hedonism in any form and both church and state have legitimate distaste for it, albeit perhaps for different reasons, one spiritual and one simply public order and good taste.

My common sense on religion wasn't driven so much by the political use of religion (although that is certainly a factor) but by my belief that an all powerful, all knowing and all merciful god would not set down ambiguous rules of life by "inspiring" people to jot down his "word". Even less can I believe that such a god would do it in the most arcane and archaic languages (Arabic and Hebrew for example) and not make that information generally available to all humans at the same time. Today's mass communication systems make today a more rational time for a god to communicate his or her will. Silence for millenia, particularly at a time when mass communication was growing, is not consistent with a god who really wants his/her will known.

Answer 5

If the things you want to do won't hurt anybody then go ahead and do them. Just try to be a decent person and try to keep from hurting people. Give other people a hand when they need it.

Don't worry about all the different crap that the bible and bible-thumpers will try to feed you. If there is a god and he is actually good, he would let you into heaven if you are a decent person. If you were a decent person and god decides to send you to hell anyway, then that god never deserved to be worshiped. Personally, I would rather be in hell than be in heaven with an evil, psychotic god.

Answer 6

And there are authorities in other religions who equally forcefully impose their doctrines on their followers.

And isn't it odd that all religions claim to have the only truth? (Excepting of course that there are strains of tolerance in Hindusim, Buddhism, Christianity and new faiths like Baha'i.)

Now, how can all of the competing, contradictory, exclusive truth claims be correct? They can't.

Many people look for religious answers beyond the one they grew up knowing. Others choose a path of not-knowing, or agnosticism. A small number prefer to believe that there is/are no God/gods.

I congratulate you on getting to a point from which you will be very unlikely to demonize anyone's belief system.

Answer 7

First thing i would recommend is that You get out of church. My experience with churches is that the congregation is expected to have faith in a person -- the preacher, and his interpretation of things. When You make these decisions for Yourself, Your faith will grow stronger. Then, later, You can go back to church (if You want to) with the understanding that You are not going to agree with everything You hear from the pulpit, but it doesn't mean You are wrong.

Answer 8

The evil one is working overtime on you my friend. You sound a little paranoid. Worshiping Jesus is a choice. Everything that we shouldn't be doing are bad for us anyway and lead to misery. Jesus teachings are all good. Don't get bogged down by religion as it is man made. Find a good nondenominational church and concentrate on Jesus teachings and commandments instead of religion and the government. Even if there is nothing waiting on the other side I would still give my life and soul to Jesus. It's not about what I can get from him it is about what I can give to him and others.

Answer 9

I have no problems with what you've said and agree with almost everything. I only wish you'd been a bit more open about how your faith is being tested. The sentence with "...common sense is envading [your] willpower..." really intrigues me. Maybe next time.....

Answer 10

God wants us to trust Him completely and totally—and when we doubt, we aren't trusting Him as we should. The Bible warns that the person who constantly doubts God and fails to trust Him "is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does" (James 1:8).

At the same time, God understands our doubts, and the most important thing I can tell you is that He wants to take them away and increase our faith. Do you remember Thomas, who was one of Jesus' closest disciples? When others told him that Jesus had been raised from the dead after His crucifixion, Thomas refused to believe it. He declared, "Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe it" (John 20:25).

How did Jesus respond? He didn't rebuke Thomas or tell him just to have more faith. Instead, Jesus came to him and showed him that He was alive. The response was immediate: "Thomas said to him, 'My Lord and my God!'" (John 20:28). Tradition says Thomas became an evangelist and preached the Gospel as far as India.

When doubts come, don't let them take root in your soul. Instead, turn them over to Christ. Most of all, saturate your heart and mind every day with the truths of God's Word, the Bible. Satan will try to turn you away, but in Christ "We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure" (Hebrews 6:19).