Why do religious people think that you need religion or faith to have reason and purpose?

Question

Is that really one of the main "reasons" and "purposes" that people embrace religion and/or faith?To have a reason and purpose?I have always figured as much.But, when I call them on it they deny that it the "reason" and "purpose" and insist that it is about love and so on.But when they are asked or are asking a pointed question about Atheism, they make it a point to suggest that Atheists don't have a reason or purpose if Atheists are right about God being pretend and make-believe.So, obviously, reason and purpose weighs heavy on their minds.



So, why do religious people think they need religion and/or faith to have reason and purpose?

Sorry, one of my sentences came out wrong.The sentence should have been:

But, when I call them on it they deny that is the "reason" and "purpose" and insist that it is about love and so on

Isn't living a reason and purpose?Isn't pursuit of happiness a reason and purpose?

Answer 1

Okay, I do not embrace my religion to give me reason and a purpose. I embrace my religion to gain a sense of peace and joy.

I already have a reason and a purpose. For right now its raising my 12 year old son, and taking care of my ill husband.
Later that will change, who knows what tomorrow holds. (I could consult the runes on it, but I sometimes prefer surprises)

My religion gives me a sense of peace, of fulfilment and of great joy in life and living.

I hope this answers your question, but I can only speak for myself.

Blessings, light and love,

Aviana

Answer 2

Humans have a natural need to find meaning and purpose in some ultimate concern and for most people that is found in the organizing mythology of the culture in which they were raised. Many of us in the West and elsewhere find ourselves too well-versed in other ways of life to believe any long that ours is the only way. But for people who do not have this problem, the mythology by which they live gives them answers to the questions and allows them to live within that context.

The assumption is that if you leave taht context and view religions as one views items at a supermarket, that you can examine and then select one, do it yourself as you please, or just forget religion altogether that you are completely without context.

For many atheists I have known that has been the case - the risk for atheists that replaces fundamentalism is nihilism, this idea that nothing matters and so why care at all. For many other atheists, purpose is what it is - loving my family, doing good work, helping people when I can, whatever.

The question that I would ask as a religious person who does find purpose and meaning in religion, is how ultimate is that existential purpose? can I just choose anything to invest wit the meaning of life (like eating Cheerios a lot) and then call that purpose? Is it really? And can we also not determine that some such purposes are more "ultimate" than others?

For me this is the case. I like what Barack Obama says about religion - that it gives our lives a narrative arc. That's independent of the question of Truth, these mythologies do impart a meaning that underlies all other things and then my family and my job and my actions are relatd to it but are not themselves the meaning of life. I am enacting a story here. To the extent you are as well, you can find ultimate meaning without supposing anything supernatural.

Answer 3

Religious people have been indoctrinated to believe that 'reason' and 'purpose' must come from outside themselves. It's as if part of their brain has been lobotomized and turned over to the religious authority, so that authority can tell them what to think, what to feel, what to love. Unless and until a religious person reclaims their ability to determine their own course (read: break the shackles of faith in a ruler of any kind) they will be forever slave to an external source for everything--reason, purpose, thoughts, love and emotional sustenance.

That's what the Founders put in the Declaration of Independence, by the way. I understood this quite easily while on a field trip to Independence Hall in Philadelphia when I was in fourth grade when the guide explained it. I am still confused as to why it is so hard for most of our citizenry to understand. I'm beginning to think that all fourth graders must be forcibly marched to Philadelphia to get it from the horse's mouth, in front of the very document itself!

Answer 4

The psychologist Lawerence Kahlberg proposed six stages of moral development, starting with the lowest stage (expecting rewards / avoiding punishment), working through the "mutual benefit" stage, the "good boy" stage, the "law and order" phase, and ultimately to general principles that surpass legalism. (You do something because it is right or important, not because someone's watching.) One can model a higher level to another but one cannot teach it. It has to be figured out by the subject. And not all people progress beyond the first few phases. Some people figure there's no point in making an effort if there's no one out there to hand out prizes or punishments at the end.

Answer 5

One God . One spirit of God and a soul in each of us and many religions about 300.what matters is accepting the spirit of God into you;re life and asking of it and getting direction from the spirit and then trying to do Gods will,if you are not connected to the spirit of God with faith which allows the spirit to work thru you then it cant lead you to heaven.one fine day.you must be connected to the spirit.to learn and grow spiritually.of course you can go thru life without the guidance of the holy spirit if you wish to.and you can find a purpose and have some reason for you're life.dogs and cats have a reason and a purpose.I love my new puppy. and she has reason. and has a purpose to live her life..whatever you do in life.a person doesn't actually need religion. but to be spiritual a person must be in the spirit. I wish for you the very best.

Answer 6

You forgot to mention that religious people also think Atheists have no morals or conscience. Another common misconception.
BTW I am an Atheist and I do have reason and purpose. It just isn't the same reasons and purpose that religious people have.

Answer 7

Atheists tell me the all the time that there is no purpose or meaning for life. Here is what the famous atheist Bertrand Russell said about purpose:

“Unless you assume a God, the question of life’s purpose is meaningless.” –Bertrand Russell

Now you can always invent something to do in life that will keep you busy and your mind off of a meaningless existence, but you won't be inventing purpose. By doing little good deeds, we can inflate our egos and that will give us a feeling of worth but it is just a meaningless feeling with no reality behind it.

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ADDITIONAL DETAILS ADDRESSED;

You said, "Isn't pursuit of happiness a reason and purpose?" The answer is no. How do you know that making yourself happy is the reason why you exist? The purpose of your existence is to make yourself happy? See, you're answering a different question, i.e. how do I make myself happy, and then calling it purpose.

Answer 8

If you have reason you will ask questions such as what is the purpose of (me, life, love, you , the world ?, fill in the blanks.....) - through coming to understanding God you will find faith and then know the purpose. There is no reason to become religious about it in the negative sense. You must define religion which is this:

James 1
26If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man's religion is vain.

27Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.

Answer 9

My reason or purpose in living a life here on earth is to live like Christ. Jesus loved everyone and wanted to share His father's love with them. It didn't matter if they were rich, poor, a habitual liar or what ever else. He showed love to whomever He came in contact with. We do have a reason and purpose to live and that's to live according to the Bible and to share the word with Non-believers. One day we will be held accountable for what we did with our lives and I surely don't want to have nothing to show for how ever many years I may live here. It is not my will or purpose, but the will of my Father's.

Answer 10

Haha... thats funny! They invented a purpose - God... and then they say I'm not allowed to invent a purpose... wow

In my experience... Christians tend to make their families and friends their "purpose" rather than God.