Society Religious Discussion and Q&A Thread

[weixiaobao]

we can go back far enough, and make a list of the pros and cons of religion, who persecuted who, etc.
throughout history, it's fair to say, you'll find at least two likely events:

+ religious people "persecuting" non-religious people

+ non-religious people "persecuting" religious people.


True, we can ascribe so many wars, torture, etc., due to religion (ie. the Crusades, the Inquisition, or "Jihad").

Yes it is true but the former is more often, especially with the ancient Jewish persecution (one God versus multiple God) or Christianity persecution (b/c the Roman didn't have the same religion) .. The whole concept of Hell and Demons too... In the west, we have Taoist king killing Confucius scholars.

For the later one, the only example i found is that in more recent history, communism look down on religion. That is all.

...

In a nutshell, the way I would describe religion, and how it functions for humans, as most people in this forum have attempted to summarize, is as follows:

it is a way to express, and to validate one's existence....it provides meaning to life. It is a source of authority for which we intend to follow (like someone above suggested, it's sort of like a code, or guide for everyday life).

A lot of religion may be practiced differently, but I bet a lot of it, have these things in common. Even those who don't practice a religion, share these common values.

I always think religion is a good thing, because most people seem really happy with their unlike myself. But because of my personality I don't really want to commit to anything.

Its true that there isnt much variety.for example I never saw a buddhist who is a Turkish citizen,of course there may be but I'm not aware of it.I have 4-5 max. jewish friends and 1-2 max. christian friends in Turkey and thats all.(there are some atheists though)

I guess the Buddhists are too passive to be in your country, jk jk jk

Customs arent about variety ,those are a whole bunch of crap which nearly half of the society follow ^3^ People understand religion in a false way and without reading or discussing ,they say okey to some kinds of rules ...luckily in Istanbul there arent much people following the customs and my family is über-modern

false way? how did they come to that conclusion and what is uber modern?

[quote'I'm a bit young to actually see how my destiny will be but I wanna be a great business woman wondering around the world one day XD I love success and also seeing different places in the world(luckily I have chance ) so I want a combination but I gotta study a lot to be accepted to a good university well,I started to creat my own destiny an so far it is going okey Destiny is a bit messed up subject in my opinion You may plan your destiny but things may go wrong and than you might consider yourself as a failure but thats not always true.that can for example help you to discover a better way to live or to be more passionate.I dont know ,my own destiny can be to always be more passionate.well,I'm confused[never considered her own destiny even though she knows what she wants,she still is not aware of her real mission in life .... ]

what about yours?

Well if there is destiny, a person cannot know their destiny or plan it out because it doesn't work that way. I thought when you were born, a shaman or something come up and said this is your destiny, but i was wrong. Then how can, we believe in destiny if we don't know it?

I don't know my destiny and i don't really know what i want either.

 

[geassman]

okay ... we are at the end of the times in the world???? 5 years? 1000 years? a thousand light years?

as for many religions are fake? why so? why do your God created these people so that they follow the fake teaching? It is almost like your God led these people down the wrong path first and then become a hero to rescue them later.. quite funny i would said...

anyway i do want to hear more about the end of the world..

Sorry for replying very lately.^^;(Busy w/school!)
Anyways, we believe that God will sned Jesus to Earth very soon, tho we don't know exactly when.

And when he does come, he will destroy those who hate God, and thus this world, you know, the world we live in today, will end. So, it's more of a figurtive thing, because we believe that the bad things of life-our world-will end, not the literal world.
Hope that explained.

We believe the Devil made the false religions, not God, and God will destroy him later, after this world is gone.God will give everyone a chance to learn about Him, and each individual will have a chance to learn about Him and whether or not they wish to serve Him.
Hope that explained 2!


(Also, when I talk about the world from now, I will almost always be meaning the thing that make up the world instead of the literal, actual world itself.)

 

[blai]

President Obama has accepted an invitation from Notre Dame to give this year's commencement address. He'll also receive an honorary degree.

In the Fertilizer Hits the Ventilator Department, Dan Gilgoff reports for US News & World Report that a number of Catholics are "outraged" over the invitation.

Any Catholics here? Wuzz your opinion on this matter?

 

[xi0]

I was raised and confirmed Catholic, but I don't practice anymore. So I really think it's sort of ridiculous, but like I said, I'm not a big religion guy so my opinion probably doesn't factor.

 

[blai]

Yeah I'm born catholic as well but this sort of thing is just a bit ridiculous. I don't think it's the best thing they could do, by inviting him but I'm not pissed off in any way. I thought that could be a chance of decrease the tension between Catholicism and Protestantism politically wise since I've heard that Obama is a protestant?

Of course they can't be closer religious-wise and matters like that since they differs a lot in their way of practising and believing but I hope you know what I'm trying to say.. lol

 

[Elyon A. Luna]

Wheee....

I actually did read pages 1-24 of this topic, not all of its details, of course, but it came a long way.

I liked at the beginning-almost middle, when it was knowing details about the diferente faiths. The discussions that came later, if a little hard to follow sometimes, were interesting also, but I missed the good information that was being given, also those good boys ran away xD

 

[shae marks]

I think the teaching of religion to children under the age of consent should be banned.
They can be told that it is okay to be religious, and many wonderful people are religious, but no young mind should be led down any particular path of doctrine without having the chance to see other faiths and alternatives objectively. It's kind of like advertising junk food directly at children who don't have the critical reasoning skills to separate persuasion from information - religious indoctrination of children is evil.

Religion itself I'm afraid is probably here to stay. While it is certainly one of the best means of population control and mass influence, I don't think anyone should be forced not to choose whatever personal religion/philosophy they like, so banning it is never going to happen.

 

[digitaldude]

I think the teaching of religion to children under the age of consent should be banned.
They can be told that it is okay to be religious, and many wonderful people are religious, but no young mind should be led down any particular path of doctrine without having the chance to see other faiths and alternatives objectively. It's kind of like advertising junk food directly at children who don't have the critical reasoning skills to separate persuasion from information - religious indoctrination of children is evil.

Religion itself I'm afraid is probably here to stay. While it is certainly one of the best means of population control and mass influence, I don't think anyone should be forced not to choose whatever personal religion/philosophy they like, so banning it is never going to happen.

That`s impossible, Christian parents have Christian children, Muslim parents have Muslim children, even atheist parents have atheist children, it`s impossible to enforce a law like that, when kids are adults, they will choose for themselves.

 

[blai]

Everyone has something they believe in. If you're an atheist you believe that there are no such thing as a god, an afterlife etc, if you are catholic you do believe in that so to enforce a law just because we don't know of such thing as a heaven etc is, well not discrimination but it's very dimwitted no offence...

Religion let people believe in something after death, it can be both misleading but at the same time calming for people who are on the brink of death, to believe that there are something after, because IMHO deaths' fucking scary!

About the religion teaching thing idk really, parents should imo tell the children their views and stuff, when the kids then grow older to analyse, understand and use critic thinking they can decide what path they want to follow.
But it's the same thing as a dad that've been a hockey player, of course he tells his son that hockey is the best sport and try to tell the kid that he should also be a hockey player, when the kid grows older he realises that this isn't anything for him and he try something else, same with religion.

Cultural multitude is a must and very healthy in a society characterized by the globalization, they all should be respected, regardless anyone's view on 'em.

 

[Indicible]

Christian parents have Christian children, Muslim parents have Muslim children, even atheist parents have atheist children

Maybe that's just the problem: Children should not be labelled according to a religion, because it is, in fact, their parent's.

when kids are adults, they will choose for themselves.

Normally, yes. But is it that easy to make a conscious choice, when all your childhood has been marked by a religion?
I do know I had a hard time finally coming to terms with my atheism and finally proclaiming it.

Religion let people believe in something after death, it can be both misleading but at the same time calming for people who are on the brink of death, to believe that there are something after, because IMHO deaths' fucking scary!

Or, on the contrary, it can be rather intimidating, because somebody has been telling you if you've been naughty, you will end up in Hell.

Cultural multitude is a must and very healthy in a society characterized by the globalization, they all should be respected, regardless anyone's view on 'em.

Yes and no.
Yes, opinions should be respected and protected by law.
No, some extreme opinions and their consequences simply should not be tolerated. Not to say they should be forbidden by law: it simply won't work. But simply debunk them at the first possible opportunity. Find the flaw in them and expose them for the anti-social attitude they are.

 

[killbill]

Alaikum salaam...

I just want to say good job, Amar. I hope this thread can change a lot of misperceptions lot of non-muslims have..great job!!

 

[Fififi]

Alaikum salaam...

I just want to say good job, Amar. I hope this thread can change a lot of misperceptions lot of non-muslims have..great job!!

What misconception/misperception are we actually talking about here?

 

[◆ T.D.A ◆]

Intimidation is part of life, and can be used in effective ways. The cause of intimidation is as important as anything really, intimidation for the cause of preventing bad actions is good, intimidation to make someone do something sinly is not really good is it.

 

[Reminiscence]

I think the teaching of religion to children under the age of consent should be banned.
They can be told that it is okay to be religious, and many wonderful people are religious, but no young mind should be led down any particular path of doctrine without having the chance to see other faiths and alternatives objectively. It's kind of like advertising junk food directly at children who don't have the critical reasoning skills to separate persuasion from information - religious indoctrination of children is evil.

Religion itself I'm afraid is probably here to stay. While it is certainly one of the best means of population control and mass influence, I don't think anyone should be forced not to choose whatever personal religion/philosophy they like, so banning it is never going to happen.

I think the idea behind the post is good, and I agree with the concept. However, faith does not exist as an antithesis to logic and science. (Which, ofc, it only does for more conservative brands of most religions) It also provides strong communal bonding, psychological support, and a rigorous moral standard. As religion exists inextricably from the culture within which it often exists, and as the faith often complements said culture in any number of benificient ways, I think that the cessasion of religious teaching would be a terrible loss for all humanity as it exists today.

An alternative, IMO, would be to push for more tolerant brands of religions, which not only accept other religions but even secular ideas. It's close-mindedness that's the enemy - among the religious, among the secular, among everybody.

Or, on the contrary, it can be rather intimidating, because somebody has been telling you if you've been naughty, you will end up in Hell.

Eh, I dunno, as I am right now I'd prefer the possibility of hell rather than the certainty of dissolution.

 

[nigelle]

Is it true

Hi to everyone,I would like to ask one question in this religious and culture thread. I heard that in Quaran and Bible it is mentioned as the earth will get destroyed in one day. Based on this recently a hollywood movie is also released. Is it true.

 

[Belisar]

of course. nothing is permanent.

 

[kiddo7]

Re: Is it true

Hi to everyone,I would like to ask one question in this religious and culture thread. I heard that in Quaran and Bible it is mentioned as the earth will get destroyed in one day. Based on this recently a hollywood movie is also released. Is it true.

Are you asking if it is true that both the Quaran and the Bible speak of a day in the future when the earth is no more or are you asking if both of them explicitly mention that the earth will be destroyed on one single day?

Because as far as my understanding of the Bible goes, it says clearly and repeatedly that the world/earth will be destroyed (by the way; it also says again and again that it will be rebuilt. How this is to be understood is a topic of discussion for scholars, clearly beyond my scope) However it does not necessarily limit this destruction to any one given day.
I am sorry to say but I do not have any knowledge of what the Quaran has to say about the end of the world. However, I am sure one of my esteemed Muslim friends should be able to answer that to your satisfaction.

Hope this helped.

 

[blai]

Also, what's worth mentioned is that it only says it will be destroyed and rebuilt. Destroyed is subjective and the definition of destroyed is something noone can answer, but speculate.

 

[Gecko Moria]

Gecko's opinion on religion:

To be honest, I am not a supporter of religion. Science simply makes more sense. In all respects, science is providing logical explanations to the so-called miracles of religion. In addition, more often than not religious people turn out to be hypocrites. The holy men (and women) that claim to have saved the souls of numerous people, have also at some point in time instigated wars that have resulted in the deaths of countless people. The atrocities that certain religions have caused, in my opinion, far outweigh the good things it has achieved.

 

[kiddo7]

I have been raised a christian since my father is a pastor, and i have grown up "indoctrinated" with the christian faith and After much consideration, Including but not limited to the possibility that it all might not be true and that there might never come a time when science and logical reasoning can be reconciled with faith and the things I have been tought, I still chose to live my life as a christian, keep me eyes, ears and mind open And take the consequences of my decision.
Now I am slowly coming to the point where I am convinced that (christian) religion as an institution is, at best, an unintended side effect caused my the inability uf us humans to comprehend what Jesus was trying to teach us.
If you read the Bible and pay very close attention to what is actually written there (and yes, I know there are people who believe the bible has been entirely corrupted and rewritten by the kings of the past each adding parts according to their fancy. But that is an entirely separate debate altogether.), I ought to be apparent that Jesus never intended to start a religion but much rather he came to introduce us the the way of life that God the father has envisioned for us; the Kingdom of heaven.