You would!
2007-09-11 03:33:44 · 26 answers · asked by GOLGOTHA 2 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
LOL. You don't get it. Religion IS a human failing... the biggest, most persistent and most destructive one in all of human history.
There has been a bit of speculation in scientific literature lately, and in the press, about whether humans might have a 'god gene'... i.e., whether we are 'hard-wired' for religion.
The answer to this, I think, is a resounding NO. Instead, I think that we are hard-wired for 'self-delusion'.
Contemplating the dawn of human consciousness and abstract thought, it is intuitively obvious that 'cognitive dissonance' posed an existential threat. For example, if Moog was wandering about on the savanna, gazing up in the air and thinking "Gee... I wonder what holds the sky up?"... there would have existed a non-trivial probability that he would NOT have been afforded an opportunity to pass his genes along to the next generation.
The ideal (and 'natural') cure for cognitive dissonance is 'knowledge'... but an ALTERNATIVE cure for cognitive dissonance is 'belief'... the ILLUSION of knowledge... i.e., self-delusion. It just so happens that the ALTERNATIVE cure is much easier to come by... and a lot less work and trouble... than the ACTUAL cure. There would have been an awful lot in the world that needed 'explaining' to a bunch of newly self-aware, abstractly-thinking minds... and no technological means to access 'knowledge', no 'knowledge-base' upon which to build, no means to interpret the 'facts' that were presented by the senses. In other words, 'cognitive dissonance' would have been an overwhelming impediment to their continued existence.
Religion takes advantage of this... pre-packaged delusion. Swallow the "God did it" pill, and cognitive dissonance disappears... poof. Moog is not gazing up in the sky, and wondering about things. Instead of being distracted (he 'knows' the answer... "god did it."), he is paying attention to his surroundings, watching out for cave bears and saber-toothed tigers... and increases the probability that he will have an opportunity to pass his genes along to the next generation.
The concept of 'god'... a 'meme'... a 'viral idea' which is easily passed on from person-to-person, and is easily assimilated... is incredibly efficient; it short-circuits the necessity for each person to have to fabricate his OWN delusions... and short-circuits the need for 'knowledge'.
What was true at the dawn of human awareness and abstract thought is still true today... the ILLUSION of knowledge (belief) is much easier to come by... and much less trouble and work to acquire... than ACTUAL knowledge.
Today, we don't have to worry about being eaten by a cave bear or a saber-toothed tiger if we are distracted. But this trait that once afforded humans a 'survival advantage' has been opportunistically co-opted by 'religion', which subverts this human 'advantage-turned-into-weakness' for motives of profit and power.
This is all just my opinion, of course... I might be so bold as to call it a 'hypothesis', if I had any idea how it might be tested... which I don't. However, imagining for a moment that this might be 'true' (it certainly has a lot of 'explanatory power'), it then leads to the next question... do atheists LACK the 'self-delusion' gene?
Culture... of which 'religion' is undeniably a part... overcame a lot of the 'natural selection' pressures that exist in nature. One might say that the selection pressures that have arisen since the dawn of 'civilization' are not 'natural' at all... instead, they are artificial... contrived, even. Looking back in history, and the rise of christianity, 'thinking differently' was a 'feature' that was deliberately weeded out of society... heretics... apostates... atheists... the list goes on. Any threat to the prevailing set of delusions was systematically and ruthlessly eliminated. The only way that a 'thinker' was able to survive was by pretending to be a 'believer'. With regard to the 'explanatory power' of my idea, this accounts for why 'critical thinking' is so scarce in our society... why there are so many 'believers' in comparison the atheists and agnostics. Critical thinking ability was 'weeded out' of the gene pool by the societal 'norms' (self-delusion was and is 'normal')... the 'artificial' selection processes which had replaced 'natural' selection. It is useful to look up Giordanno Bruno for a typical example of this. For about 1,200 years, Christians dealt with the best minds that humanity produced by torturing them and chucking them into a vat of boiling oil, or burning them at the stake... or (like Galileo) locking them away.
This has been a well-kept secret of religious leaders, for thousands of years... and explains why 'thinkers' were frequently tortured and executed. However, that well-known blabbermouth, Martin Luther, let the cat out of the bag:
"Reason must be deluded, blinded, and destroyed. Faith must trample underfoot all reason, sense, and understanding, and whatever it sees must be put out of sight and... know nothing but the word of God." ~ Martin Luther
"Reason is the greatest enemy that faith has; it never comes to the aid of spiritual things, but... more frequently than not... struggles against the divine Word, treating with contempt all that emanates from God." ~ Martin Luther
"Reason should be destroyed in all Christians." ~ Martin Luther
"To be a Christian, you must 'pluck out the eye of reason'." ~ Martin Luther
"There is on earth among all dangers no more dangerous thing than a richly endowed and adroit reason, especially if she enters into spiritual matters which concern the soul and God. For it is more possible to teach an a** (donkey) to read than to blind such a reason and lead it right; for reason must be deluded, blinded, and destroyed." ~ Martin Luther
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2007-09-11 03:45:16 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
Human failings are the failings of religion. Religion is made by humans. Spirituality - now THAT's a different thing entirely.
2007-09-11 05:08:55 · answer #2 · answered by Laid Back Larry 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Only God can condemn, people can try, but what good does it do in the end? Everyone has right to their opinions. Everything we do is by Grace and all do according to their needs and their free will. People who are aware of their spiritual needs are lucky. The unlucky ones live their life as they see fit. Everyone has this right no matter how long they live in their life. I would not condemn anyone.. at least I try not to..we are only human.
2007-09-11 03:50:20 · answer #3 · answered by Joanna S 1 · 1⤊ 1⤋
All the worlds religions are the creation of those that came after the founder. The inspiration for whatever the founder came up with is usually lost on the followers, and the further you go in time the more this separation grows. The failings of the religions are due to lack of wisdom of those who came after. That is why religion gets blamed, for it is the expression of the "human failings" you speak of.
2016-05-17 05:46:49 · answer #4 · answered by marilyn 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
People condemn religion because they are enlightened with the evils of organized religion!
2007-09-11 03:38:15 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
no, they are just jaded. the problems that religion has are because of the organization of religion. it fosters an environment where others stand in the place of God. this is not always intentional. whenever someone claims to speak for God, they are seen as somehow more righteous than the average person. As a preachers kid I can tell you that every religious leader from the pastor of the smallest church up to the pope is just a man. they make mistakes and say ignorant things about God. Don't confuse religion with God.
2007-09-11 03:48:43 · answer #6 · answered by Raul D 4 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Anyone that condemns religion is enlightened. Anyone that follows a religion has a lower intelligence than the rest of us and should be sterilised so they do not breed us out.
2007-09-11 03:38:41 · answer #7 · answered by ross x 6 · 2⤊ 1⤋
No. People condemn religion because most are too dogmatic.
Most religions were developed to control disparate populations.
2007-09-11 03:39:53 · answer #8 · answered by spirit dummy 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
No-I do not. I think human failing are just that-HUMAN failings. It doesn't reflect the religion. If you really think about it, most religions have a high moral code and promote love and patience. If humans actually lived according to their religious expectations, I think things would actually be ok.
2007-09-11 03:45:46 · answer #9 · answered by robin 3 · 1⤊ 2⤋
Do you consider people who wont condemn a religion for all the violence it inspires just plain stupid?
2007-09-11 03:38:25 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 0⤋
No....I did at one time, but this was a way of blocking myself off from the sunlight of the spirit of my higher power.
I have found that regardless of what spiritual tradition or religion it is, that they have served many many people well and have given them a sense of peace and serenity. Regardless , of human failings, there is still much to be learned when one is truely seeking out the spirit.
Blessings to all...
)o(
trinity
2007-09-11 03:45:32 · answer #11 · answered by trinity 5 · 1⤊ 2⤋