"the most important thing we get from religion, many, many more times important that the items you list ... is an explanation of the nature of Homo sapiens"
By "we" you, of course mean the members of your particular religious group. What sect do you belong to, and what is your unique take on the "nature of Homo Sapiens"? Do people have a "soul" in your particular religious sect? All of them or just certain ones?
"Religion tells us who we are, what we are, and why we are."
Again, what are the specific beliefs of your particular sect on these questions?
"To be "religious" means first and foremost that you submit your ego to the existence of God"
This is not a definition of "religious". It may be a requirement of the sect which you belong to.
"The defining characteristic of the religious is their belief in God, not their membership in a particular religion."
That is true. But it tells us nothing about their value system and moral beliefs; nor the social aims or prejudices which inform their thought or behaviour.
"Being an atheist does not mean that you do not go to church. It does not mean that you don't belong to a religious institutio"
That is correct. An atheist is allowed to attend many religious services provided he or she meets whatever inclusionary terms are being enforced by the proponents of that religion.
"I think you might be surprised at how often such people are woefully ignorant of the dogma of their own church, or how often they employ a menu technique as to which of its tenets they believe or obey
Yes. Some believers in God are moral relativists. It might seem contradictory, but, as you say...people are often quite ignorant of the religion they belong to, and what it stands for.
s obscures the true and essential meaning of being a religious person.
It doesn't obscure anything. If the only thing YOU mean byclaiming you are religious is that YOU believe in a creator, then the only thing anybody will rationally argue or debate with you is whether THAT belief is rational. If you support that belief with mythology then the person debating you will obviously examine the credibility of your premises.
"A religious person believes they were created for a purpose, which is to serve their God"
If you believe in a God (rather than simply profess one), you need to know the manner in which that God is to be "served". If you neither know nor care, then your "belief" seems rather empty and boring...
In order to know what a particular sect believes in this regard, you need to read or incorporate their dogma.
"When the existence of God is denied, a vacuum is created which must be filled with an countervailing credo. Of course, it is always possible to simply choose not to think about the subject at all"
LOL! I think you are demonstrating a remarkable persistence at proving that your latter point is possible of realization!
The only vacuum in the eschewal of the existence of God is a supernatural vacuum. As people are incapable of either understanding, experiencing or agreeing on the "supernatural" (ahem)...such a "vacuum" is embraced by those whom wish their values to reflect a regard for humanity rather than spirits. |
