Why do people still follow religion?

[John Martin]

I feel there is a need to distinguish between RELIGION and religions. RELIGION with capital means RE-LEGARE, to rebind us ,to relink us to God, the eternal Reality. Union with this eternal reality breaks down all the barriers and unites us with the whole of humanity and of creation. it creates one God,one creation and one humanity. . Religion with small letters is a belief system. It is like a house that people build in the infinite space. Human beings in one level of consciousness need the protection of belief systems spiritually just as we need physical structures of houses to live. When people make religion as absolute then it breeds violence and conflict. RELIGION is unconditioned Truth. It takes away violence and brings peace. Religions are conditioned truths. They can be source of superstition and violence and conflict in the world. We need to look at religions like nests which prepare us to move into RELIGION. Another image we can use is 'womb'. Religions are like a womb which conceives us, protects us, nourishes us and gives birth to us into the infinite space, which we can call RELIGION. Jesus said, the foxes have their holes, the birds have their nests but the Son of Man has no where to lay down and rest. Jesus Christ at the moment of his baptism transcended religion and entered RELIGION. Many people identify God with the God of religions. This God is the source of division, conflict and violence in the world. So by seeing how religions were the cause of bloodshed in the human history, people attribute this to God and so they reject God and religions. Only the God of RELIGION can bring peace,unity and harmony in the world.

 

[Sha'irullah]

I feel there is a need to distinguish between RELIGION and religions. RELIGION with capital means RE-LEGARE, to rebind us ,to relink us to God, the eternal Reality. Union with this eternal reality breaks down all the barriers and unites us with the whole of humanity and of creation. it creates one God,one creation and one humanity. . Religion with small letters is a belief system. It is like a house that people build in the infinite space. Human beings in one level of consciousness need the protection of belief systems spiritually just as we need physical structures of houses to live. When people make religion as absolute then it breeds violence and conflict. RELIGION is unconditioned Truth. It takes away violence and brings peace. Religions are conditioned truths. They can be source of superstition and violence and conflict in the world. We need to look at religions like nests which prepare us to move into RELIGION. Another image we can use is 'womb'. Religions are like a womb which conceives us, protects us, nourishes us and gives birth to us into the infinite space, which we can call RELIGION. Jesus said, the foxes have their holes, the birds have their nests but the Son of Man has no where to lay down and rest. Jesus Christ at the moment of his baptism transcended religion and entered RELIGION. Many people identify God with the God of religions. This God is the source of division, conflict and violence in the world. So by seeing how religions were the cause of bloodshed in the human history, people attribute this to God and so they reject God and religions. Only the God of RELIGION can bring peace,unity and harmony in the world.

Yet I require no Religion to be linked with god . Best word for what you have described is Faith. All religion is fogma and if it is with an R then surely it is dogma as it is so dogmatic it must use a capital letter to distinguish itself from the rest.
This is usually where liberal theism and deism come into play.

 

[ChristineES]

The way I see it, it is more about faith. Faith is the actual belief in God while religion and dogma are the rules and regulations. I am not saying there should be no standards in any faith we follow, but if we put too much emphasis on the rules then it kind of defeats the purpose on some level.

In Christianity, we see Jesus as going after the "holier than thou" types. Why? Because they worried too much about the Law and not enough about God. What is more important- worshiping God or following all the rules to a "t"?

 

[savagewind]

The way I see it, it is more about faith. Faith is the actual belief in God while religion and dogma are the rules and regulations. I am not saying there should be no standards in any faith we follow, but if we put too much emphasis on the rules then it kind of defeats the purpose on some level.

In Christianity, we see Jesus as going after the "holier than thou" types. Why? Because they worried too much about the Law and not enough about God. What is more important- worshiping God or following all the rules to a "t"?

That is an excellent post and true from my pov also.

 

[natasha levchenko]

I feel there is a need to distinguish between RELIGION and religions. RELIGION with capital means RE-LEGARE, to rebind us ,to relink us to God, the eternal Reality. Union with this eternal reality breaks down all the barriers and unites us with the whole of humanity and of creation. it creates one God,one creation and one humanity. . Religion with small letters is a belief system. It is like a house that people build in the infinite space. Human beings in one level of consciousness need the protection of belief systems spiritually just as we need physical structures of houses to live. When people make religion as absolute then it breeds violence and conflict. RELIGION is unconditioned Truth. It takes away violence and brings peace. Religions are conditioned truths. They can be source of superstition and violence and conflict in the world. We need to look at religions like nests which prepare us to move into RELIGION. Another image we can use is 'womb'. Religions are like a womb which conceives us, protects us, nourishes us and gives birth to us into the infinite space, which we can call RELIGION. Jesus said, the foxes have their holes, the birds have their nests but the Son of Man has no where to lay down and rest. Jesus Christ at the moment of his baptism transcended religion and entered RELIGION. Many people identify God with the God of religions. This God is the source of division, conflict and violence in the world. So by seeing how religions were the cause of bloodshed in the human history, people attribute this to God and so they reject God and religions. Only the God of RELIGION can bring peace,unity and harmony in the world.

Why are there so many religions?
there are 10 main religions and some 10,000 sects. Of these, some 6,000 exist in Africa, 1,200 in the United States, and hundreds in other lands.
Many factors have contributed to the development of new religious groups. Some have said that the various religions all represent different ways of presenting religious truth. But a comparison of their teachings and practices with the Bible indicates, rather, that the diversity of religions is because people have become followers of men instead of listening to God. It is noteworthy that, to a large extent, teachings they hold in common, but that differ from the Bible, originated in ancient Babylon

 

[Breathe]

there are 10 main religions and some 10,000 sects.

Where do religions differ? Which 10?

Of these, some 6,000 exist in Africa, 1,200 in the United States, and hundreds in other lands.

Why do you think this?

It is noteworthy that, to a large extent, teachings they hold in common, but that differ from the Bible, originated in ancient Babylon

How do Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism, Bön, Shinto, or Taoism have anything to do with ancient Babylon?

 

[BruceDLimber]

Why are there so many religions?

For t3o primary reasons:

1. God periodically sends another Divine Messenger to renew religion and update its social teachings--typically, every 500 to 1,000 years.
2. Humans constantly quarrel and split religions off into separate sects.

Thus there's one good reason and one bad one.

Peace,

Bruce

 

[starlite]

Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism, Bön, Shinto, or Taoism have anything to do with ancient Babylon?

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]We can get the answer in the same way that linguistic experts got their answers about the origin of language. By placing the religions side by side, we can examine their doctrines, legends, rituals, ceremonies, institutions, and so on, and see if there is any underlying thread of common identity and, if so, to what that thread leads us.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]
On the surface, the many religions in existence today seem quite different from one another. However, if we take away the embellishments and later additions, or if we remove those distinctions that are the result of climate, language, peculiar conditions of their native land, and other factors, it is amazing how similar most of them turn out to be.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]
For example, the Roman Catholic Church of the West and Buddhism of the East. Though seeming very different, both Catholicism and Buddhism are heavy in rituals and ceremonies. These include the use of candles, incense, holy water, the rosary, images of saints, chants and prayer books, even the sign of the cross. Both religions maintain institutions of monks and nuns and are noted for celibacy of priests, special garb, holy days, special foods. Why do two religions that appear to be so different have so many things in common?[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]
We find that certain teachings and beliefs are almost universal. Most of us are familiar with such doctrines as the immortality of the human soul, heavenly reward for all good people, eternal torment for the wicked in an underworld, purgatory, a triune god or a godhead of many gods, and a mother-of-god or queen-of-heaven goddess. Beyond these, there are legends about man’s fall from divine grace, the need to offer sacrifices to atone for sin, the search for a tree of life or fountain of youth, gods and demigods who lived among humans and produced superhuman offspring, and a catastrophic flood that devastated nearly all of humanity.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]
Logically, the similarity in the basic concepts of the many religions of the world is strong evidence that they did not begin each in its own separate and independent way. Rather, going back far enough, their ideas must have come from a common origin. What was that origin? In the Bible, in the first 11 chapters of the book of Genesis can give us a clue. As the human race dispersed from Mesopotamia, their religious ideas and memories went with them from Babylon, to Lydia, Syria, Egypt, Assyria, Media, Elam and Persia.[/FONT]

 

[CG Didymus]

No, I know exactly what religion teaches: Hate

Obviously, bad religion and bad people in religion have caused people to hate, to hate religion and look for alternatives. It's sad that some people in some religions do promote intolerance of others. Whatever happened to Bigbman must have been pretty traumatic. For myself, I have a problem hating dogmatic, fundamentalist religious people. But, my hate was destroying me. I'm learning to react in a more positive, understanding and loving way (It ain't easy). My hate wasn't as strong as Bigbman's, but it's there, subtle, in the back of my mind. I already had decided the other person was wrong. I wasn't really listening to them. I'd heard all the arguments before. I was waiting for my opportunity to attack with my thoughts and questions as to why they were wrong.

However, I don't think I'm the only one doing this. Isn't that what some believers do to believers from other religions? They already have convinced themselves and know they are right and don't know and don't care about the other person's beliefs--other than assuming they are wrong, and thus, promoting a little bit of anger and hate to brew. I know some pretend and say "No, I hate the false religion. I just want to show them the error of their ways." Or, "I hate the sin, but not the person." I don't think very many of us are that perfect not to react in anger and some hate for people with opposing views. Did we chase a hurting person off in this thread?

 

[rockstarwife628]

I think that there are many of us who still adhere to our perspective religions because they still "work" for us and maintain value. Though we may not adhere to them in the same way others do, we are still able to feel rooted in our faiths. For me, personally, even if Jesus himself did not exist I could never consider myself anything other than a Christian - a Philosophical Christian, perhaps, but a Christian nonetheless. My worldview is framed in the person and teachings of Jesus, and whatever parts of the religion that grew up around him that might be proven to be non-literal don't change the resonance I feel for his message of love and compassion. There is more than one way to be a Christian, as well. Not all of us adhere to a literal, historical factual, inerrant, "Word of God" type of Christianity. Not all of us get hate out of religion - that's not "all" there is or has been to faith. Why should we forfeit something that has meaning and value to us to those who abuse and misuse it? Shouldn't we instead work to contradict that negative, hateful connotation?

 

[Philomath]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]
Logically, the similarity in the basic concepts of the many religions of the world is strong evidence that they did not begin each in its own separate and independent way. Rather, going back far enough, their ideas must have come from a common origin. What was that origin? In the Bible, in the first 11 chapters of the book of Genesis can give us a clue. As the human race dispersed from Mesopotamia, their religious ideas and memories went with them from Babylon, to Lydia, Syria, Egypt, Assyria, Media, Elam and Persia.[/FONT]

You take the biblical account in genesis literally?

 

[Visionary28]

There is an enormous abyss between the religious/spiritual in comparison to literal or scientific
thought. This contrast exists within each of us. In the past, I thought in many ways as the atheist.
I have come to understand that religious or spirtual belief is not comprehended in the same way as a scientist testing a theory or hypothesis. The religious or spiritual beliefs of an individual do not need to be proven to others. They are every bit the reality to the believer as the proven theory is to the scientist. We as humans can create,transform, and establish our own realities. These realities can exist to the individual on all levels of our conscience. With that we are responsible for the heaven or hell we have created within us and for others.

 

[4YAH80]

I find myself wondering the same thing, I'd rather just pray for understanding and study the bible on my own without any religious input. It seems that doing this has lead me to a different belief system than 99.9% of religions. It has also lead to lose of friendships, family relationships and some ridicule, but I was raised as a witness and have gotten use to being an outcast.

 

[Devillif311]

The quote "All religion has caused problems and total hate..." is obviously false. There are plenty of religions out there that teach to deal with everyday problems in life, not cause them. Research the teachings of "Eckankar" for a great example of this.

 

[HiddenHijabi]

Could you please explain how Buddhism and Wicca teaches hate?

Ask Burmese Muslims who are currently under great oppression by Burmese Buddhists, incited by a fanatical Buddhist monk who has repeatedly spewed hatred towards Islam. There's been a number of deaths, including a man set on fire and then left to die in agony. Women are being harassed in the streets simply for wearing Muslim clothing. There is now in force enforced two-child limits for Muslim families.

 

[Riverwolf]

Ask Burmese Muslims who are currently under great oppression by Burmese Buddhists, incited by a fanatical Buddhist monk who has repeatedly spewed hatred towards Islam. There's been a number of deaths, including a man set on fire and then left to die in agony. Women are being harassed in the streets simply for wearing Muslim clothing. There is now in force enforced two-child limits for Muslim families.

Some Buddhists...

last I checked, such behavior is completely antithetical to what the Buddha taught. In any case, it's also the exception, not the rule, and doesn't really answer the question.