Here are some snippets from conversations I’ve had online:
[Me]: you know this is exactly what’s wrong with religion
[Friend]: yeah
[Friend]: this is one of the most obvious reasons
[Me]: if there were no religions
[Friend]: i’m against organized religion
[Me]: yeah as am I
[Me]: most deaths since whenever have probably been because of religion
[Me]: even WWII jews were killed
[Me]: so that’s a part of religion
[Friend]: yea
[Me]: all you have to do is look back at history & the romans and greeks…we now laugh at their and egyptian religions but somehow believe that contemporary religions are definitely right
[Friend]: you’re right on that
[Friend]: plus
[Friend]: take the inquisition
[Friend]: and the crusades
[Friend]: religious wars
[Me]: hey bhuddists don’t kill other people…we should all become bhuddists…get all the benefits of religion without all the crap that causes people to kill
[Friend]: buddhism is great.
[Friend]: it’s not a stupidd religions
[Friend]: it’s not even a religion
[Friend]: although it’s organizedn ow
[Me]: right
[Me]: true
[Friend]: besides
[Friend]: buddhism,
[Friend]: is about inner discovery
[Friend]: not listening to preaching
Another IM:
[Friend]: though i dont think bin Laden’s hatred of the us has all that much to do with religion
[Me]: but the power he has
[Friend]: they are jealus of the country’s wealth and how it flaunts it
[Me]: has to do with religion
[Friend]: and that it uses it to support israel
[Me]: people would not commit suicide without religious beliefs
[Me]: unless they were brainwashed japanese
[Friend]: that’s probably true
[Me]: but brainwashed by a sort of religion that their leader was a god
[Me]: philosophy:
–Love and pursuit of wisdom by intellectual means and moral self-discipline.
–Investigation of the nature, causes, or principles of reality, knowledge, or values, based on logical reasoning rather than empirical methods.
Religion:
–Belief in and reverence for a supernatural power or powers regarded as creator and governor of the universe.
–A personal or institutionalized system grounded in such belief and worship.
[Friend]: yes religion very much bothers me
[Me]: philosophy is great though
[Friend]: its highly descriminatory against women
[Friend]: esp. the western religions
[Me]: religion is probably a means to obtain philosophy for the less educated
[Me]: religion is outdated, basically
[Me]: it was written by people
[Friend]: yes i guess so
[Me]: even our grandpa admits that
[Me]: and he’s very religious
[Friend]: does he?
[Me]: yes
[Me]: he has said to me it was written by some very smart people (the bible)
[Friend]: he seems smart, and yet he’s still devout. that has bothered me
[Friend]: my late grandfather was saying the same thing
[Me]: to me, it seems he wants to believe in all the good things religion brings us, and not necessarily every word
[Me]: basically if he lived in our generation he’d be saying the same things we are
[Me]: and sometimes when you go through something like a major war you really want to believe there’s a higher power
[Me]: that’s what the religion’s there for
[Friend]: im afraid i will not be able to remain an atheist if a really horrible tragedy befalls
[Friend]: that is my main fear
[Me]: exactly
[Me]: but people who use religion for that purpose are using it for its intended purpose
[Me]: it is easier to get through tough tims with religion and the belief that someone is with you and there to appeal to and to help
[Me]: it’s probably healthier psychologically
[Friend]: no, i disagree. i dont think religion should have any purpose at all
[Me]: this is why religion thrives
[Me]: why not?
[Friend]: it basically a belief in ghosts
[Friend]: a belief in a lie
[Me]: it is something we made up in order to help us deal with emotional pain and stuff
[Me]: it can help
[Friend]: there are other ways
[Me]: well your own religion is sufficient, just believing that there is a god and he’s there to help you
[Me]: not a whole history of floods and such
[Friend]: no that is exactly what im against
[Friend]: there is no god. people should not be thinking there is
[Me]: well I guess going to a therapist would help
[Me]: but this is exactlyt what I’m saying
[Me]: this is therapy for the poor & uneducated
[Me]: religion
[Friend]: yeah a therapist would be a better way
[Me]: therapists cost too much money
[Friend]: it should be temporary
[Friend]: we need to educate them
[Me]: and they do not give you the chance to share your experience with others in a church or synagogue, for example
[Me]: religion does have its benefits
[Me]: but they are becoming less and less as we learn more about psychology
[Friend]: i guess there are benefits in terms of, err, teaching kids about morality
[Friend]: in fact, all that should remain, but it should be rewritten without the god angle
[Me]: right
[Me]: which seems to be describing philosophies like bhuddism
[Friend]: it is enought that humans do exist and are intelligent and can control the natural world to the extent we do; that is miracle enough
[Me]: right
[Me]: I wonder what the need is to have a belief in a god
[Me]: Is it just because you grew up with parents who believed and made you go to a church or synagogue?
[Friend]: i think it’s natural
[Friend]: the very existence of consciousness leads to it, i think
Please reply with an opinion…I am very interested in what other people think.