Does religion or lack of religion make a person better or worse than another

[We Never Know]

We("I" to avoid offending some) see people talk about who is better and worse.
Does having a religion or not having a religion make anyone better or worse?

What makes either one better or worse and why does it? Or are some people just bad regardless?

Is it simply personal opinion and personal judgement or is there more to it?

I myself, If John is religious and Joe isnt, I see them as the same. The only thing that will make me see them different is in how they treat me, regardless if they are religious or not.

Your thoughts?

 

[SomeRandom]

Depends more on the beliefs, I think.

If your religion teaches, for example, to denounce others for not being on the same path or as “enemies of the Lord” I don’t think that would foster much tolerance. Not to say those who follow such beliefs are bad people necessarily. Merely taught to be combative. They can still be kind and charitable.


Now this is out of my wheelhouse and merely an observation. So take it with a grain of salt. The evangelical movement allowed for a lot of conspiracy theories to infiltrate the movement (particularly in the US.)
That could have something to do with the fundamental aspects of the sect. I’m not saying that all evangelicals believe in conspiracy theories. Just that there is ground work laid to accept things on faith moreso than say a more laid back approach to religious belief.
But that’s pure speculation on my part.
I think largely shaped by our news media reporting on the more extreme elements of the movement and their shenanigans. (Satanic Panic, burning Harry Potter books, denouncing video games etc.) I grew up on our even our news more or less mocking these folks for believing in really out there things. Albeit with a veneer of professionalism. And it was usually the Evangelicals in particular. More often than not involved a host from Fox News. Make of that what you will.
I’m not making any judgment evaluations or claims. Just reporting on what I personally witnessed. So take it with a large grain of salt.

 

[Augustus]

Does having a religion or not having a religion make anyone better or worse?

The question is largely meaningless imo.

There is no consist and meaningful way to differentiate religious belief systems from non-religious belief systems.

 

[Spirit of Light]

We("I" to avoid offending some) see people talk about who is better and worse.
Does having a religion or not having a religion make anyone better or worse?

What makes either one better or worse and why does it? Or are some people just bad regardless?

Is it simply personal opinion and personal judgement or is there more to it?

I myself, If John is religious and Joe isnt, I see them as the same. The only thing that will make me see them different is in how they treat me, regardless if they are religious or not.

Your thoughts?

I believe it comes down to how each persons Action, speech and thoughts are. Not what religion we chosen to believe in.

Spiritual teaching is a tool, if the tool is used wrong it becomes evil.

 

[Gargovic Malkav]

The only thing that will make me see them different is in how they treat me, regardless if they are religious or not.

I also pay attention to how people treat others, not just me.

There were some people in the past that treated me like I was some kind angel while they treated some others like crap.
Sometimes they judged and scolded those people for mistakes I and they themselves made too.

Can't say I trust or like such people much.

 

[Erebus]

Does having a religion or not having a religion make anyone better or worse?

What makes either one better or worse and why does it? Or are some people just bad regardless?

Simply having or not having a religion isn't nearly enough for me to judge whether one person is better/worse than another. If I'm going to make that kind of assessment of somebody, I'm going to need a lot more to go on. I also give significantly more weight to actions than beliefs.

Is it simply personal opinion and personal judgement or is there more to it?

Choosing whether something is better or worse in this context can only be a matter of personal opinion and judgement. It isn't something quantifiable like saying, "A Ferrari is better at going 100mph than a tortoise." You're assessing them based on your own values.

 

[ChristineM]

The only times i have been hurt in my life has been at the hands of Christians. Do i think that makes religious people better or worse??? Although it must colour my feelings i try to judge individual people on there behaviour.

I know some great religious folk and have had dealings with real ********. The same goes for non religious people too

 

[SalixIncendium]

The way I interact with people is based on their actions, not their belief structure or worldview.

That said, some need a fear of consequence to be moral and ethical, some do not.

Some need the support of something greater than themselves to guide them through their experiences, some do not.

Even so, I've encountered as many religious jerks in my life as I have non-religious ones.

 

[Nimos]

We("I" to avoid offending some) see people talk about who is better and worse.
Does having a religion or not having a religion make anyone better or worse?

What makes either one better or worse and why does it? Or are some people just bad regardless?

Is it simply personal opinion and personal judgement or is there more to it?

I myself, If John is religious and Joe isnt, I see them as the same. The only thing that will make me see them different is in how they treat me, regardless if they are religious or not.

Your thoughts?

Think it depends mostly on how someone or a group practices their beliefs. You can have good Christians, Muslims etc. and then you can have people within these groups as well, which are terrible. I however tend to believe that those that practice on a moderate level tend to be better. Meaning that you can be awful, if you as a religious person, doesn't directly harm others, but your behavior or teachings to kids etc. could be on close to child abuse in my opinion, by some of the things that religious people might teach their children.

Said in another way, if any harm, whether its mentally or physical is caused due to a result of a religious conviction, then I would consider that to be worse. But looking past this, I don't think there is any difference between religious people and non religious people, in regards to whether they can be better or worse. Religion simply add another layer of potential reasons for why someone might do something they shouldn't, if that makes sense.

 

[PureX]

We("I" to avoid offending some) see people talk about who is better and worse.
Does having a religion or not having a religion make anyone better or worse?

What makes either one better or worse and why does it? Or are some people just bad regardless?

Is it simply personal opinion and personal judgement or is there more to it?

I myself, If John is religious and Joe isnt, I see them as the same. The only thing that will make me see them different is in how they treat me, regardless if they are religious or not.

Your thoughts?

In general, no.

Most people choose their view of God (including atheists) based on who they are and how they understand the world. For example, an angry man will tend to see God as an angry God. A judgmental man will tend to see God as a judgmental God. A weak man will tend to see God as being very strong. A kind man will see God as being very benevolent. And so on. And even an atheist is choosing to see God as non-existent because that comports with his understanding of the world. So for all these folks, religion and the lack of it do very little to make them better or worse humans than they already are, or are inclined to become.

However, there are those among us who are consciously trying to become something better, or someone other, than who and what they see themselves as currently being. An example of this might be someone trying to extricate themselves from an addiction, or someone recovering from some past trauma or neurological problem. These are people who are actively looking for positive internal change. And for them, theism, religion, and perhaps even atheism can make a very big and important difference to who they are and who they are becoming. They may not be huge in numbers, but they make up a significant portion of the human family.

And so for them, the answer is a resounding "yes".

 

[Audie]

We("I" to avoid offending some) see people talk about who is better and worse.
Does having a religion or not having a religion make anyone better or worse?

What makes either one better or worse and why does it? Or are some people just bad regardless?

Is it simply personal opinion and personal judgement or is there more to it?

I myself, If John is religious and Joe isnt, I see them as the same. The only thing that will make me see them different is in how they treat me, regardless if they are religious or not.

Your thoughts?

In theory yes, but also in theory, no.

 

[Fool]

We("I" to avoid offending some) see people talk about who is better and worse.
Does having a religion or not having a religion make anyone better or worse?

What makes either one better or worse and why does it? Or are some people just bad regardless?

Is it simply personal opinion and personal judgement or is there more to it?

I myself, If John is religious and Joe isnt, I see them as the same. The only thing that will make me see them different is in how they treat me, regardless if they are religious or not.

Your thoughts?

the clothes do not make the man. pretty is as pretty does. pretty/ugly can come in the guise of any costume. behold i come like a thief. in order to catch a thief, do you base it on appearances? or on action?

 

[Lain]

We("I" to avoid offending some) see people talk about who is better and worse.
Does having a religion or not having a religion make anyone better or worse?

What makes either one better or worse and why does it? Or are some people just bad regardless?

Is it simply personal opinion and personal judgement or is there more to it?

I myself, If John is religious and Joe isnt, I see them as the same. The only thing that will make me see them different is in how they treat me, regardless if they are religious or not.

Your thoughts?

I consider religion to be a virtue so if a person lacks it or is not as developed in it compared to another person otherwise equal then they would be a worse human being. Such is my opinion for now.

 

[Brickjectivity]

We("I" to avoid offending some) see people talk about who is better and worse.
Does having a religion or not having a religion make anyone better or worse?

What makes either one better or worse and why does it? Or are some people just bad regardless?

Is it simply personal opinion and personal judgement or is there more to it?

I myself, If John is religious and Joe isnt, I see them as the same. The only thing that will make me see them different is in how they treat me, regardless if they are religious or not.

Your thoughts?

Saying you're in a particular religion does not give me enough information that I can compare your religion to another.

I have to compare specific policies and specific thinking.

Religion, to others, is what other people see you doing. Its a label that describes what I see you do, so that I can identify you. It doesn't tell me what you are or what your religion is to you. It merely groups you, so that I can count you.

The benefit, to a person, of religion is regulation. Its like having a code. The purpose of religion is to regulate your life, possibly your thoughts.

Sharing a religion is sharing something in common. It makes you familiar and known but only to people in the same religion. Its like extended family or being in a small town. Suppose you grow up in a large church like I have done. Everybody in the church recognizes you, knows your parents, has stories about you and your parents.