Are many people only focusing on the "negative" in religions?

[Spirit of Light]

Are many people only focusing on the "negative" in religions?

Not me, I usually focus on the "positive" in religions.

I know you are but many who do not follow a spiritual teaching do see negativity about religion

 

[A Vestigial Mote]

This answer is such a cop-out. It also resembles an emotional abuse tactic...

Says a person who very obviously understands that their religion cannot stand up to scrutiny. (Psst... it's you I'm talking about... just wanted to be sure you caught that)

 

[ppp]

The reason for spiritual teaching is so we humans can end the reincarnation within the physical world, and go back to the original realm of consciousness. The realm is called heaven, Paradise, Nirvana and so on. And no they are not same "place" for everyone.

But since no human tool can measure those realms I guess you will never believe it, no matter how one explain it.

The point is that you made this claim, among others. Why should one accept that the above statements are true? Why should one act as though the above statements are true?

I cannot think of a reason to do so. Can you provide one?

 

[firedragon]

In discussion we often find people only focusing on what they feel or think is "negative" of any religion or spiritual teaching.
Why is it so? Why do this people see all the good spiritual teaching add to someones life?

Mostly all spiritual/religioues people focus on the good of the teaching they follow, and if there is something negative, they try to understand why the teaching say so. Instead of getting mad or angry at a God or Buddha like those who do not understand spiritual teaching can do.

Why the negativity?

Most of the world are people belonging to some religion. Even Atheists are "religious" in the sense of the word religious which is a binding. They also identify themselves with their group whoever they are. Thats how it goes.

Anyway, what we see mostly is one religion having only bad things to say about the other religion because most of us are just bias and have grown up with hatred around us. Thats what you are seeing. But since most of the world are belonging to some religion, with at least 50% of the world adhering to the Quran or the Bible, its statistically only possible that most will not speak against "religion" as a one stop shop. Only atheists and non-religious others will speak negatively about religion as a whole and their population is definitely less than those who identify themselves with a religion.

Hope you understand.

 

[Spirit of Light]

The point is that you made this claim, among others. Why should one accept that the above statements are true? Why should one act as though the above statements are true?

I cannot think of a reason to do so. Can you provide one?

If you do not see it as true that is ok, my personal belief is that it is true, but i have no need to "prove" it to Someone who do not believe.
You must discover it you self. What my personal belief is does not matter

 

[ppp]

The point is that you made this claim, among others. Why should one accept that the above statements are true? Why should one act as though the above statements are true?

I cannot think of a reason to do so. Can you provide one?

If you do not see it as true that is ok, my personal belief is that it is true, but i have no need to "prove" it to Someone who do not believe.
You must discover it you self. What my personal belief is does not matter

So, your answer is, No. Which means that treating your claims regarding anything spiritual as being unjustified is entirely reasonable.

 

[Spirit of Light]

So, your answer is, No. Which means that treating your claims regarding anything spiritual as being unjustified is entirely reasonable.

I have my personal understanding of the teaching I cultivate, others will understand it differently. That does not make it false, wrong or other way of seeing it in a negative way.

How you see my words and OP in RF is totally up to you, you have your own understanding, and judging my words from your own personal understanding.

 

[ppp]

I have my personal understanding of the teaching I cultivate, others will understand it differently. That does not make it false, wrong or other way of seeing it in a negative way.

How you see my words and OP in RF is totally up to you, you have your own understanding, and judging my words from your own personal understanding.

You would make an excellent speechwriter for a senator.

 

[Spirit of Light]

You would make an excellent speechwriter for a senator.

I have no interest for that.

 

[ppp]

I have no interest for that.

Ok. Wasn't asking.

 

[TagliatelliMonster]

In discussion we often find people only focusing on what they feel or think is "negative" of any religion or spiritual teaching.
Why is it so? Why do this people see all the good spiritual teaching add to someones life?

I have yet to encounter a "positive" coming from religion that couldn't be accomplished without said religion and without having to makes all those supernatural assumptions.

But I doubt people in Nigeria, and earlier in the west also, would be burning "witches" if they didn't have a book perceived as an authority that told them they should burn "witches". Or that witches are even a thing to begin with.

Mostly all spiritual/religioues people focus on the good of the teaching they follow

While ignoring the bad.
Or worse still: confusing the bad with the good.

This is a big issue for me when it comes to negatives of religion. It has the power to make people defend the most brutal of things, or even be so confused as to think that those brutal things are actually good.

, and if there is something negative, they try to understand why the teaching say so

And that's when the psychological defences and the apologetics kick in.
I can't even count the amount of times I've seen christians try and defend god-condoned slavery and god ordered genocide or even infantacide.
Or homophobia.

Why the negativity?

In a nutshell: because the negative is a direct result, while the positive doesn't even require religion to begin with.

 

[TagliatelliMonster]

There is nothing negative, whatsoever, about Islam

Keep telling yourself that.

But everything about the atheistic worldview is negative

There is no such thing as "the atheistic worldview".

Every worldview, including mutually exclusive ones, that doesn't include gods is essentially "atheistic".
It only tells you about what is not included. It doesn't tell you about what is included.

If atheism is a religion,

...then barefoot is a type of shoe.
...then "off" is a TV-channel.
...then silence is a type of noise.
...then not playing soccer is a sport.
...then not collecting stamps is a hobby.


In other words: no, it's not a religion. It's the absense of a religion.

I focus on the negative because I can't stand watching people destroy themselves for nothing.

Yeah. Better destroy them for Allah.

 

[TagliatelliMonster]

For spiritual beings, choosing a belief system is largely a matter of what resonates with the heart.

Actually, it's more of a matter of what the religion of their parents is / where in the world they are born are raised.

It boils down to what is true for the individual.

For 99% of people out there, it actually boils down to what they are taught during childhood.

 

[TagliatelliMonster]

This answer is such a cop-out. It also resembles an emotional abuse tactic...

lol!

How is it an "emotional abuse" or a "cop out" to say that ideas that don't withstand scrutiny are poor ideas?
Scrutinizing ideas is how we distinguish false ideas from accurate ones.

It's not emotional. It is in fact the opposite.

 

[TagliatelliMonster]

Because true religious and spiritual practice is positive

Here comes the no-true-scotsman...

 

[Spirit of Light]

Here comes the no-true-scotsman...

I was waiting on that comment from a none believer

 

[TagliatelliMonster]

Yeah, you have understood religion and it's teaching perfect example of why the OP was started.

The guy gives a perfectly reasonable explanation.

All those things we find horrible today, like idd slavery, were things that we common day practice back in the more primitive and barbaric ages, when these things were written down.

These books reflect the morals and values standards from those days very good.
They do so, because those people produced these books and stories.

That god doesn't find any issues with slavery, because the people that produced those stories didn't see any issues with slavery.

These are not the ideals of a celestial benevolent dictator. These are the ideals of goat herders in the iron age, reflective of the society they lived in. They didn't require to "defend" or come up with apologetics or theological excuses as to why infantacide, burning "witches" and slavery were ok, because they didn't actually recognise it as evil. Which is why they had their benevolent god engage in it.

Today we know better. If we would produce a bible today, it would infinitly more sophisticated and moral then anything they produced. I could rewrite the 10 commandments right now and do a better job.

For example, remove the first 4 and replace them all with "you shall not treat other human beings as being your property", and allready you have improved upon it.

 

[TagliatelliMonster]

I think though you claim you dont believe in an imaginary God you do. Thats why you speak like this. You think you are God.

You are your own imaginary God. This is called ego in some theologies. You worship your own ego.

Ciao.

That's really meaningless. And it adds nothing to the conversation.

 

[TagliatelliMonster]

I was waiting on that comment from a none believer

So you actually knew you were engaging in the fallacy?

 

[firedragon]

That's really meaningless. And it adds nothing to the conversation.

Nice. Thanks.