If You Knew There Were No Gods, Would You Still Follow Your Religion?

[Scott C.]

Assuming your religion has a god or gods, then if you knew for certain that there were no gods, would you still follow your religion? If so, why. If not, why not?

I would re-think everything, including "morality" as defined in a godless world, and then follow that new definition.

 

[StarryNightshade]

One can still follow their Dharma and be affected by the laws of Karma without worshiping any Gods.

So, yes, I could follow Hinduism if it were absolutely certain that the Gods didn't exist.

 

[Sunstone]

I would re-think everything, including "morality" as defined in a godless world, and then follow that new definition.

Do you have a hunch how you would redefine morality in a godless world?

 

[Sunstone]

It's still a way of life and being full of great joy and meaning.

In what ways would it still be meaningful even without the gods?

 

[Tarheeler]

Would you provide some examples please? That is, examples of how to conduct business, interact with others, and care for the world at large that are perhaps especially meaningful to you.

Thank you for a fascinating response!

In business, we're commanded to be honest in our dealings (not using false weights and measurements), to not deceive (overcharge), to not mislabel products, and to not trick customers or partners into making bad decisions.

We are commanded to perform tzedakah, often translated as charity. In Judaism, we are compelled to care for the widow and the orphan, to feed the poor, to help you those who have fallen.

We are told to be good stewards of the earth. To treat our livestock humanely, to allow the tree time to mature before we harvest, to let the soil rest.

 

[Sees]

In what ways would it still be meaningful even without the gods?

The essence of it in my opinion is to be the best man or woman you can be by honoring and nourishing all relationships and aspects of your reality and your own self. A celebration and lust for life would still be present, a form of afterlife still present even without any Spirits, spirits, souls or "supernatural", meaning being what we find in trying to perfect this daily and to sustain it and each other.

The elements and forces of Mother Nature would still be as Gods to us worthy of honor, admiration, awe...we'd still toast our ancestors, have the beauty of ritual celebration , etc.

Main focus is to live well and die well - knowing, thinking, pondering, believing, speculating what does or doesn't exist outside our daily sense perception being very much secondary in these type of traditions.

 

[Nietzsche]

Wouldn't matter to me at all. I live like an atheist, in that I do not take into consideration whether the Gods are real & watching to decide if I do one thing or the other.

 

[tkdrocks]

Bonus Question for Atheists: If you knew for certain there were no gods, would you still live a life of moral debauchery just to spite them?

I guess I have to go with the bonus question. I already live my life as if there is no diety (ies), so I guess nothing would change. How do you define moral debauchery?

 

[Baladas]

I don't believe in an anthropomorphic or otherwise theistic god. So, yes I could easily continue to be a humanist who values Taoist even if my non-dual worldview proved to be incorrect.

 

[sojourner]

Yes, and heres why. The mythic is a HUGE part of any religion -- those constructs that make our world bigger, that force us to think outside the box, that give us room to question, and wonder, and wrestle, and doubt, and allow us to embrace our intuition -- that help us make meaning of our lives and our world. It's the mythic that's most helpful to me, and it's the same reason why, for example, Star Wars has become a cult classic; people come back time and again to participate in that mythic world, even though they know Yoda and Luke and Vader don't really exist.

 

[Martellus]

Which teachings in particular do you admire, and why?

Those of humanitarian and conciliatory characters. I consider them important and inspiring for the maintenance of equality and fraternity.

 

[Unveiled Artist]

Assuming your religion has a god or gods, then if you knew for certain that there were no gods, would you still follow your religion? If so, why. If not, why not?

Bonus Question for Atheists: If you knew for certain there were no gods, would you still live a life of moral debauchery just to spite them?

I'm an atheist by technicality. I don't believe in God(s). I do believe that God is life. So, in that respect, I do believe in God.

1. If there was no God, there is no lfe. He is life... without "Him" nothing. So, answer: No.

2. What is moral debauchery?

 

[Baladas]

I'm an atheist by technicality. I don't believe in God(s). I do believe that God is life. So, in that respect, I do believe in God.

1. If there was no God, there is no lfe. He is life... without "Him" nothing. So, answer: No.

2. What is moral debauchery?

This is virtually my exact view. I was just allowing myself to entertain the idea of duality (which is difficult).

 

[Jainarayan]

Great thread and resounding yes as my answer!

The Gods are an aspect/part of my religious traditions, major aspect/part, yet I feel their absence wouldn't negate the rest of it in anyway. The connection, vision, moral and ethical components, etc. dealing with each other and Mother Nature would still be in full effect and just as beautiful and meaningful.

It's who I am/we are, even if this or that aspect were to change or fade away, the rest stand tall. It's still a way of life and being full of great joy and meaning.

So much this. It's a way of life, not a religion per se. The Gods don't demand worship or even acknowledgement. They have their own lives too, they're born, they live, they die, give or take 5,000 years (hey, why re-invent the wheel and not use something that's already been written to make the point? ). They're great to have around as big brothers, big sisters, parents, but if they did not exist, I can pretty much say I'd live this way anyway. After all, I like to think I did even before I met them.

 

[Unveiled Artist]

This is virtually my exact view. I was just allowing myself to entertain the idea of duality (which is difficult).

Nichiren Buddhist describe the same concept but they call it the Mystic Law. I'm thinking the Christian God is just the Mystic Law (or life) with a beard on. I read that somewhere, made me laugh.

 

[allfoak]

Do you see your religion as providing a comprehensive and thorough guide to how you conduct your life, then?

I guess i am not making sense again.
I seem to do that a lot.

i am obsessed with the truth.
Since i know that the only place i can find truth is within myself then myself is my obsession, or religion as it might be called.

I use my emotions as my compass and my mind as my map.
My conscience steers the ship.

 

[Sultan Of Swing]

Assuming your religion has a god or gods, then if you knew for certain that there were no gods, would you still follow your religion? If so, why. If not, why not?

Bonus Question for Atheists: If you knew for certain there were no gods, would you still live a life of moral debauchery just to spite them?

If I knew for certain, I would have to say no. Of course, I cannot conceive of a way in which one could be certain, but if I was certain, I would stop practising.

I predict I'd first go through a long period of self-reflection, not to mention a good dose of depression as I consider the utter meaninglessness of life.

After a good amount of time, I would hope I'd recover and create meaning for myself somehow. I believe I would stop practising my religion because at the end of the day, following my own selfish desires and pleasures feels good, so why the heck not. I'm not sure I'd even respect the laws of the land anymore if I wanted something badly enough, or thought I could get away with it.

I would have to go full nihilist, there is no objective morality, and I would lose any meaningful moral centre. I would do whatever I felt like doing, and fall into moral decadence and hedonism.

That's just me though. Feel free to laugh at me for my dependence on my faith for any meaningful moral virtue or behaviour, meh.

Makes me wonder, maybe religion and faith is a function of the brain to keep the less moral of us sane and behaving properly. The atheists are just naturally moral and so the brain doesn't have to make them religious.

 

[Nakosis]

If there are no Gods, I'm fine with creating my own. Including any religious trappings I feel appropriate.

I already assume all Gods were created by man and belief alone can provide experiences of these Gods.

 

[Thruve]

What would attract you to Buddhism over Christianity?

The doctrines are different, however Buddhism and Christianity have similar spiritual results, long term at least, in my opinion.

 

[Riverwolf]

Pretty much what Sees and Thorbjorn said.

One of the reasons I refer to it as the Old Way is because it's exactly that: a way of living. Beliefs aren't as important as what's done.

There's a scene in Conan (I think it's in the extended version, but I'm not 100% sure) that sort of illustrates how truly important the Gods are to our every day conduct. They're getting ready for the big climactic battle, and Mako's character comes up to Conan.
Mako(I honestly forget the character's name, so it's Mako): The Gods are pleased. They will be watching!
Conan: Will they help?
Mako(smiling): No!
Conan: Well then tell them to stay out of the way!

IOW, not really important at all.

The Old Stories, and the New, are still intact. Rituals are, to me, more about symbolic reenactment of Lore than actually appeasing the Gods or mechanically going through motions (if that's all the rituals have become, then it's better to discard them except to induce some sort of trance state for whatever reason).

And the spirit of the celebration of glorious failure would still be there. That is to say, if failure is inevitable, fail in the most spectacular way possible, such that it will be told and retold for all time; such as Beowulf's fight with the dragon, the story of Ragnarok itself, or even stories that are more mundane such as that of the E.T. Atari game (for those of you who don't know... very long story short, "worst game ever made" made by the same guy who previously did "one of the best games ever made"), or spectacular and ironic tragedies such as the Titanic's sinking. After all, as Manowar observed, Valhalla waits so choose thy fate, for all of us must die.