JC, I am 100% sure that religion is all false, that there is not now, nor has there ever been a god.
The problem with religion is that you are born in a world with so much of it around you. One is constantly brain washed to no end- from all directions, that to evolve into a questioning frame of mind takes a herculean effort- a difficult deed indeed- something that not all can accomplish. Some try it, but their minds cannot let go and they "lapse" back into blind faith with their belief re-affirmed (the born again types).
Dare I say it, religion is like the "Matrix", it's all around you. To deny it is to deny your very existence because a persons mind is never given a chance. It's insidious as a mind develops.
I believe that most folks have not thought this thing through. They make an argument that how can a complex thing such as the universe have developed on its own, etc. etc.- thus there must be a God- then make the gargantuan leap that that God is a listening, interactive, forgiving God, punishing God, not just a god- a powerful force that was involved in creation, but that cares no less no more about us and "intelligent" life than it cares about the fusion temperature inside stars.
I think that it is much easier to believe in the latter type of god, than the former type of God. As you can easily subsitute the term "nature", "physics", "cosmos" etc. for the latter god. But what purpose does a God serve? Why the choice I ask?
It all comes back to that leap called "faith". No one's been able to answer this question of mine (to my satisfaction at least). Why all this hoopla (the choice, the accountability, the punishment, the reward, the universe etc.) at all?
The other day I read an interesting article that pointed to the experimentally measurable positive power of prayer. The only catch was that there was no measurable difference between what the control groups were praying to (i.e. which God of theirs!).
As a logical person, I can believe in the healing power of prayer (as some physical phenomen that has yet to be discovered). Most "faith" based systems would of course reject this even though ironically it would prove the power of "faith" and prayer :)
TG |
