Poll: Would the world be a better place without religion?

[yourkie1921]

Sorry if this has been mentioned, but has anyone considered how religious people would feel, or react, should their cherished religion be taken away from them?

This is more a question of if religion was never there.

And would be better sandwiched alongside, What happens if atheists gained religion?

What the hell does that mean.

no religion=mass suicide,cutting,rape,etc

And except for rape all of those have been blamed on Christianity. I don't know if someone ever validated rape via religion. And I'd rather take the red pill (wait, the red pill is the one that made things real right?) and be sorta depressed then take the blue and be somewhat happy.

At the time before society as we knew it, people wouldn't listen to reason or logic; you needed to scare them into submission.

Do that with brute force or by threatening to take their food.

 

[AmericanWarMachine]

On the positives, religion is responsible for many people finding a purpose in life, probably responsible for a lot of people's moralities, it is the basis for a fair portion of law in this country and helps some people cope with death by thinking there is something beyond this world.
On the down side though religion is responsible for millions of deaths in wars and inquisitions and the like, Christianity in particular was adopted by the Romans as a means to oppress the people and keep them in line by literally putting the fear of God into them and statistically, whatever religion you believe in it is fairly likely to be wrong anyway.

so essentially, fixing your neighbor's shed while he's on vacation and going to a soup kitchen to help the homeless is worth the lives of millions, if not BILLIONS of deaths as a direct cause of religion?

 

[Saevus]

Not going to bother slogging through this entire thread, but I'll say one thing.

Religion is the result of human nature - if you do any sort of actual academic study of religion, that's one of the first things you learn.

Therefore, it's patently fucking ridiculous to pose this question. You may as well ask if the world would be a better place without language. After all, while language may help people understand, exist in society, and all that, it is the secondary vehicle (behind physical action) for violence, hatred, etc.

Honestly. For all that is said to associate ignorance with religion, it's astonishing how completely ignorant most people are about religion itself.

Post-script: to paraphrase a text on comparative religion, all religions are a collection of symbols which followers of a tradition interpret and use as a vehicle to carry out life in a manner that allows them to become closer to an 'ultimate reality'. Now, those symbols can be interpreted in dozens of ways, but they are always interpreted in such a way that certain practices arise. These may be rituals, theological studies, personal actions, whatever - religious phenomena are practically unlimited in form.

In studying religion, the key is that no practice is inherently good or bad - one can only judge how human beings carry out these practices.

Therefore anything good or bad about religion is simply the result of people's actions. So let's all debate whether or not the world would be a better place without people, hm?

tl;dr religion is a result of human nature and is good/bad in the same way everything else about humans is

 

[Nokterne]

I personally think we would be better off without religion.

Unlike religious people however, I keep this opinion to myself most of the time.

 

[bad rider]

Depends how you mean, if religion hadn't been around our sense of morals etc would be different and i would hate my alter self, however i believe giving up religion now may be a way to progress forwards, as our ethics are now well established.

Note: ethics are now well established. No i don't want to hear about the morally grey.

 

[thebobmaster_v1legacy]

I don't know if someone ever validated rape via religion. And I'd rather take the red pill (wait, the red pill is the one that made things real right?) and be sorta depressed then take the blue and be somewhat happy.

Actually, it's the other way around. See the line "Why, oh why, didn't I take the blue pill?"

 

[Limasol]

I don't think that removing religion would lead to a better world just like that, but i would certainly help, i see it as the first step to getting there.

 

[Phoenix Arrow]

If there was no religion, someone would make one. It's in our nature to seek to find out why we're here and all that. The simplest solution is that we were put here by some greater being. It's a theory to satisfy the simpletons.

 

[DamienHell]

Removing religion would make things better, nearly EVERY war has been cause by religion or some kind of dogma. WWI, WWII, Vietnam (communism falls under dogma (state worship)), Desert Storm, current war in Iraq, the cold war (communism), The US civil war, the one where the indians were nearly genocided, the inquisitions, etc, etc, etc. The war of 1812 is the only war I can think of (off the top of my head) that wasn't cause by religion or dogma. So would the world be a better place without religion...^^^^ Yes

 

[Ares Tyr]

Removing religion would make things better, nearly EVERY war has been cause by religion or some kind of dogma. WWI, WWII, Vietnam (communism falls under dogma (state worship)), Desert Storm, current war in Iraq, the cold war (communism), The US civil war, the one where the indians were nearly genocided, the inquisitions, etc, etc, etc. The war of 1812 is the only war I can think of (off the top of my head) that wasn't cause by religion or dogma. So would the world be a better place without religion...^^^^ Yes

I dare you to make less sense....

 

[Souplex]

200 years ago, religion kept order. Are you gonna rob that store if it causes an eternity of damnation? Then people started to question it and that effect was lost.

 

[DamienHell]

I dare you to make less sense....

I dare you to actually back up your statements with reasons and not toss around idle insults like a two year old

 

[Ares Tyr]

I dare you to make less sense....

I dare you to actually back up your statements with reasons and not toss around idle insults like a two year old

You just said that every major war in human history was caused by religious differences more than less, which is a load of horse shit, I'm sorry to say. What did The Revolutionary War, The Spanish-American War, The French-Indian War, The American Civil War, WWI, WWII, The Korean War, or Vietnam War have to do with religion? Communism isn't a religion, its a governmental doctrine, and fighting against the spread of a government isn't a religious crusade. Its a war between two political doctrines trying to stop the spread of another.

Communism isn't a religion, it may have propaganda to bring glory to the state to encourage people to get behind it, but that doesn't mean that its a religion. Democracy and the American Ideal isn't a religion, its a doctrine. Just because somehting has fervant followers doesn't make it a religion automatically. Just because I'm a fervant believer in the Democratic rights doesn't mean I pray to George Washington and offer sacrament to Abraham Lincoln. Chairman Mao isn't the pope to China. Karl Marx isn't God. And the statement you made prior to your little comeback, is definetly a bunch of bullshit.

 

[yourkie1921]

If you're only reason not to rob a store is eternal damnation and you would rob it without that threat you deserve to burn. Assuming you're robbing the store because you're a prick and not some poor guy who's getting vengence on that ass store owner who fucked you over.

Religion is the result of human nature - if you do any sort of actual academic study of religion, that's one of the first things you learn.

Therefore, it's patently fucking ridiculous to pose this question. You may as well ask if the world would be a better place without language. After all, while language may help people understand, exist in society, and all that, it is the secondary vehicle (behind physical action) for violence, hatred, etc.

Bull. Language is the way people communicate. Religion has no such purpose.

. The war of 1812 is the only war I can think of (off the top of my head) that wasn't cause by religion or dogma. So would the world be a better place without religion...^^^^ Yes

The American revolution wasn't caused PRIMARILY by religion.

 

[DamienHell]

Bull. Language is the way people communicate. Religion has no such purpose.

Religion HAD a purpose, it was to maintain order untill governments could be established, thats why you'll never find tribes that don't believe in god, or a god like power. Cause they don't work out. However we have governments, we have laws, we have order. Religion is no longer needed, and thats why its dieing out.

 

[DamienHell]

You just said that every major war in human history was caused by religious differences more than less, which is a load of horse shit, I'm sorry to say. What did The Revolutionary War, The Spanish-American War, The French-Indian War, The American Civil War, WWI, WWII, The Korean War, or Vietname have to do with religion? Communism isn't a religion, its a governmental doctrine, and fighting against the spread of a government isn't a religious crusade. Its a war between two political doctrines trying to stop the spread of another.

Communism isn't a religion, it may have propaganda to bring glory to the state to encourage people to get behind it. Democracy and the American Ideal isn't a religion, its a doctrine. Just because somehting has fervant followers doesn't make it a religion automatically. Just because I'm a fervant believer in the Democratic rights doesn't mean I pray to George Washington and offer sacrament to Abraham Lincoln. Chairman Mao isn't the pope to China. Karl Marx isn't God. And the statement you made prior to your little comeback, is definetly a bunch of bullshit.

LOL you clearly know nothing of communism. They are taught that their leader IS god, when the US was sending food into North Korea the citizens were told that the US was paying tribute to the leader (not even gonna try and spell his name). US civil war was because of slavery, slavery which was defended by the bible. No christianity and the South would have had no position. WWI was caused by a religious terrorist group assassinating Archduke Ferdinand (or however you spell it) it escalated from there, Hitler was a devout catholic who believed he was doing gods work (if you say he's not it proves you know nothing about history he talked about his beliefs all the time)

 

[Phoenix Arrow]

Removing religion would make things better, nearly EVERY war has been cause by religion or some kind of dogma. WWI, WWII, Vietnam (communism falls under dogma (state worship)), Desert Storm, current war in Iraq, the cold war (communism), The US civil war

First of all, dogma doesn't mean state worship. Dogma is just a word for the beliefs and ideology of a certain group of people.

Second of all, I can't claim to know about most of the American wars but I know WWI, WWII, the American Civil War, Vietnam and the Cold War weren't to do with religion in the slightest. Care to justify your points?

LOL you clearly know nothing of communism.

Clearly, you know nothing of communism.

 

[The Iron Ninja]

I'm sorry DamienHell but he's right, Communism isn't a religion. The cult that develops is a result of the tyrants in power, not the government itself.
And it's Kim Jung Il. Pretty simple really.

"You cleary know nothing about communism. Nothing except fear of it."

 

[DamienHell]

Dogma is just a word for the beliefs and ideology of a certain group of people.

Sounds like communism to me.

Second of all, I can't claim to know about most of the American wars but I know WWI, WWII, the American Civil War, Vietnam and the Cold War weren't to do with religion in the slightest. Care to justify your points?

Already did

I'm sorry DamienHell but he's right, Communism isn't a religion. The cult that develops is a result of the tyrants in power, not the government itself.
And it's Kim Jung Il. Pretty simple really.

I never said it was a religion, just a dogma and I would have spelled that wrong

 

[Phoenix Arrow]

Dogma is just a word for the beliefs and ideology of a certain group of people.

Sounds like communism to me.

Second of all, I can't claim to know about most of the American wars but I know WWI, WWII, the American Civil War, Vietnam and the Cold War weren't to do with religion in the slightest. Care to justify your points?

Already did

No you didn't. All you said was that these wars were caused by religion. That's all. I'm asking how you think they were caused by religion because I don't see where you're coming from.

And you said that dogma was equal to state worship, which is what I took issue to in my first comment.

And for the record, communism isn't a belief system at all, it's not even a political standpoint. All it is is a economic theory. One which opposed the American theory and was therefore wrong.