Posted: Wed 03 Mar, 2004 14.31
Ah the religion debate again...
Well, I personally think religious types become so offended about their beliefs being questioned because they can't qualify them. For instance, I have yet to see a single Christian truly able to qualify their beliefs. When probed, whatever words they use and however convoluted and lengthy their explanation is, everything they say comes down to 'I believe in God because...well because I do. So there'. And then they get very annoyed if you press them further.
I firmly believe religion was created for two reasons: as an instrument of fear and control (note how in the past, that religious leaders were always the rich and powerful and his followers were always the poverty stricken little people), with a fundamental flaw in that God is constantly described as being a perfect, unflawed individual with limitless feelings of love and forgiveness, except that he'll pack you off to hell if you aren't a good Christian. And secondly, as an attempt to explain the world away; throughout civilisation, there has always been a number of huge unanswered question, who are we? Why are we here? What makes us and our environment up? Before modern science existed, the easiest comprehensible way to explain it was to see that in fact it was beyond our comprehension; in other words 'we don't have to understand it because God did it'.
How otherwise intelligent people can continue to hold deranged religious beliefs in the light of hard scientific evidence (I'm by no means saying that science has answered everything, but what it has answered it's answered conclusively enough for me to belief, and looking at the trend of scientific breakthroughs and answers, it is logical to believe that in time we will have a scientific understanding and a scientific explanation for everything) is beyond me.
And when Christians (although all religions are not too far removed from this) live their lives by a book, even the newest parts of which were written 2000 years ago, was penned by people barely civilised enough to write and who applied their culture to it, was then translated in and out of different languages, and subsequently modified when some of what it said clashed with contemporary culture, yet never question it but refuse to believe much newer scientific evidence, to which the original documentation still exists, and which provides a much stronger explanation than their book, it does make me wonder why they think themselves so superior for holding religious beliefs: they're just deranged.
I've asked this question to many a Christian: they believe that their religion is unquestionably right. The problem, is that (and I think most of them know this deep down, even if they won't admit it) it's based entirely on ancient materials, passed down by word of mouth. Indeed the last time God dropped by to say 'Hi' was 2000 years ago when he sent his son down. Wars are fought over religions, religion is probably the single biggest thing which divides human society.
Yet good is supposed to be this eternally loving chap, a kind of caring Grandfather (complete with a beard, pipe and slippers if you believe all the assume interpretations of his image). He knows what we have evolved to know. He knows that if he were to send a sign that he exists, if he were to come down himself, show himself too us, and prove his existance to the people of the day, that our technology would enable this to be recorded beyond question and pass that on to future generations. It would once and for all prove that Christianty is right, destroy other religions that are wrong, and silence atheists. It would probably stop the constant murder of countless millions through religious beliefs, it would stop scientists wasting time researching things that they won't find a scientific answer for when they could be researching cures to diseases that are killing people the world over. If God came down today, he could do so much to make the world a better place. So why doesn't he? My answer to that is that he doesn't come down because he doesn't exist. The Christian's answer to that is always a roundabout way of saying 'just shut up and believe it'.
For what it's worth, whilst I'm not totally convinced of the alien theory, I do believe it could be true, and it's an infinately more plausible concept than religion.
Well, I personally think religious types become so offended about their beliefs being questioned because they can't qualify them. For instance, I have yet to see a single Christian truly able to qualify their beliefs. When probed, whatever words they use and however convoluted and lengthy their explanation is, everything they say comes down to 'I believe in God because...well because I do. So there'. And then they get very annoyed if you press them further.
I firmly believe religion was created for two reasons: as an instrument of fear and control (note how in the past, that religious leaders were always the rich and powerful and his followers were always the poverty stricken little people), with a fundamental flaw in that God is constantly described as being a perfect, unflawed individual with limitless feelings of love and forgiveness, except that he'll pack you off to hell if you aren't a good Christian. And secondly, as an attempt to explain the world away; throughout civilisation, there has always been a number of huge unanswered question, who are we? Why are we here? What makes us and our environment up? Before modern science existed, the easiest comprehensible way to explain it was to see that in fact it was beyond our comprehension; in other words 'we don't have to understand it because God did it'.
How otherwise intelligent people can continue to hold deranged religious beliefs in the light of hard scientific evidence (I'm by no means saying that science has answered everything, but what it has answered it's answered conclusively enough for me to belief, and looking at the trend of scientific breakthroughs and answers, it is logical to believe that in time we will have a scientific understanding and a scientific explanation for everything) is beyond me.
And when Christians (although all religions are not too far removed from this) live their lives by a book, even the newest parts of which were written 2000 years ago, was penned by people barely civilised enough to write and who applied their culture to it, was then translated in and out of different languages, and subsequently modified when some of what it said clashed with contemporary culture, yet never question it but refuse to believe much newer scientific evidence, to which the original documentation still exists, and which provides a much stronger explanation than their book, it does make me wonder why they think themselves so superior for holding religious beliefs: they're just deranged.
I've asked this question to many a Christian: they believe that their religion is unquestionably right. The problem, is that (and I think most of them know this deep down, even if they won't admit it) it's based entirely on ancient materials, passed down by word of mouth. Indeed the last time God dropped by to say 'Hi' was 2000 years ago when he sent his son down. Wars are fought over religions, religion is probably the single biggest thing which divides human society.
Yet good is supposed to be this eternally loving chap, a kind of caring Grandfather (complete with a beard, pipe and slippers if you believe all the assume interpretations of his image). He knows what we have evolved to know. He knows that if he were to send a sign that he exists, if he were to come down himself, show himself too us, and prove his existance to the people of the day, that our technology would enable this to be recorded beyond question and pass that on to future generations. It would once and for all prove that Christianty is right, destroy other religions that are wrong, and silence atheists. It would probably stop the constant murder of countless millions through religious beliefs, it would stop scientists wasting time researching things that they won't find a scientific answer for when they could be researching cures to diseases that are killing people the world over. If God came down today, he could do so much to make the world a better place. So why doesn't he? My answer to that is that he doesn't come down because he doesn't exist. The Christian's answer to that is always a roundabout way of saying 'just shut up and believe it'.
For what it's worth, whilst I'm not totally convinced of the alien theory, I do believe it could be true, and it's an infinately more plausible concept than religion.