I realized something about religion...

[JSFLY]

Originally posted by: JohnCU
the more primitive and... well less-intelligent a society is, the more gods they have. like, years and years ago people had sun gods and moon gods and all kinds of gods for things they didn't understand...

but as we became more intelligent, each of these gods went away because we didn't need them because we now understand how the sun works and the moon works and why it rains, etc.

so, now we are down to 1, won't we eventually be smart enough to not need that one, too?

The smartest among us dont have any.

 

[Cerpin Taxt]

Originally posted by: Vic
Based off what I read here, I don't think they actually teach anything in schools anymore.

Ok, I lol'd at your hyperbole but in reality I'd say the general ignorance wrt religion is a consequence of the absence of specifically religious education in the curricula.

I still have my own ideological conflicts with the proposition of teaching religion in schools, but we pay the price for those ideals with threads like these.

 

[Andyb23]

Originally posted by: rdubbz420

Originally posted by: JohnCU

Originally posted by: rnp614

Originally posted by: JohnCU

Originally posted by: Savij
So you're saying hindus are dumb...

not familiar with them.

Not familiar with the worlds oldest organized religion? Wow. Excellent.

taking religion 101 next semester. can't know everything.

religion 101? sh!t all you need to do is go to the nearest 7-11 to find out about it.

Thats only funny because Indians have like the highest income of all ethnic groups in America.

Idiot.

 

[GeneValgene]

Originally posted by: Savij
So you're saying hindus are dumb...

hindus are some of the smartest people i know

 

[HeroOfPellinor]

Originally posted by: JSFLY

Originally posted by: JohnCU
the more primitive and... well less-intelligent a society is, the more gods they have. like, years and years ago people had sun gods and moon gods and all kinds of gods for things they didn't understand...

but as we became more intelligent, each of these gods went away because we didn't need them because we now understand how the sun works and the moon works and why it rains, etc.

so, now we are down to 1, won't we eventually be smart enough to not need that one, too?

The smartest among us dont have any.

Thereby anybody who wants to be perceived as smart need only profess to be an atheist. Is that correct?

 

[RapidSnail]

Originally posted by: Andyb23

Originally posted by: rdubbz420

Originally posted by: JohnCU

Originally posted by: rnp614

Originally posted by: JohnCU

Originally posted by: Savij
So you're saying hindus are dumb...

not familiar with them.

Not familiar with the worlds oldest organized religion? Wow. Excellent.

taking religion 101 next semester. can't know everything.

religion 101? sh!t all you need to do is go to the nearest 7-11 to find out about it.

Thats only funny because Indians have like the highest income of all ethnic groups in America.

Idiot.

Someone's pissed today. Can't take a simple joke.

 

[SilthDraeth]

To the OP, I have been asking that question for ages. A person can never offer any proof other than their bible, and their faith. Yet, to prove that airplanes can fly, we needed tangible evidence. Same as everything else. If it isn't provable, then it becomes theory. Quantum theory, theory of relativity, worm holes, etc.

God is a theory, not a fact. You can believe in it all you want, and believe it is true, but until proven one way or another it is just a theory.

Thats my belief anyways.

 

[Andyb23]

Originally posted by: RapidSnail

Originally posted by: Andyb23

Originally posted by: rdubbz420

Originally posted by: JohnCU

Originally posted by: rnp614

Originally posted by: JohnCU

Originally posted by: Savij
So you're saying hindus are dumb...

not familiar with them.

Not familiar with the worlds oldest organized religion? Wow. Excellent.

taking religion 101 next semester. can't know everything.

religion 101? sh!t all you need to do is go to the nearest 7-11 to find out about it.

Thats only funny because Indians have like the highest income of all ethnic groups in America.

Idiot.

Someone's pissed today. Can't take a simple joke.

Its such an old joke its like the Italians and the mafia.

It doesn't apply anymore.

At least make an outsourcing or callcenter joke, I have tons of those.

 

[sao123]

Originally posted by: JohnCU
the more primitive and... well less-intelligent a society is, the more gods they have. like, years and years ago people had sun gods and moon gods and all kinds of gods for things they didn't understand...

but as we became more intelligent, each of these gods went away because we didn't need them because we now understand how the sun works and the moon works and why it rains, etc.

so, now we are down to 1, won't we eventually be smart enough to not need that one, too?

The necessity for something to exist has almost zero bearing on whether it actually exists.

You dont need God? Doesnt mean he isnt real?
You need the ability to travel faster than light? Doesnt exist.
You have an appendix, you dont need it.

 

[Adn4n]

We will never get rid of religion as long as people are exposed to it during childhood, and as long as we can't explain everything scientifically. What I'm excited about is quantum physics, it is quite fascinating, though not everyone has the time or dedication to understand it. It is much easier to say "G-d did it."

I'm an atheist, but I'm also a believer like religious people. I do not yet have the knowledge to verify the science behind what I believe, but I do know that my views of the universe are more valid. Also, I think religion can create deplorable guidelines for living, the bible comes to mind for me. I have a problem with organized religion, particularly those that encourage you to pay money to the church( Mormon tithes come to mind here). Take for example Buddhism; I have a general knowledge of the religion, and their teachings seem kind-hearted. However, the Buddhist hierarchal monk structure disgusts me. Tibet was where this occurred, but the Chinese took it over in the last century. It was a structure that resembled serf-Russia with the Dalai Lama on top. Yet people still put "FREE TIBET" bumper stickers on their cars.

Religion is fine for me as long as it's not forced on me, and there is no man-controlled structure. The prior is becoming more and more of a problem since I do live in the US now.

 

[chambersc]

I'd agree with your views, OP.

 

[judasmachine]

You sir are an idiot if you believe that 'western culture' is any smarter than anyone else. You do not need an iPod to be intelligent, hell you don't even need a house, or anything other than that good ole trick of natural selection. Tribal and third world cultures have survived this long, if they were unintelligent, they would have gone the way of the dodo. Thus spake the animist (well sorta).

We do need less and less god as time goes by and science advances. Just as our money and our art have gone abstract, so to will our gods.

Oh BTW, check out Neil Gaiman's American Gods.

 

[Ktulu]

Originally posted by: MisterJackson
"GET YOUR LAWN CHAIRS AND COLD BEERS HERE!!!! THREE FOR $10!!!!"

I'll take a beer, do you have any nachos?

 

[CarlKillerMiller]

Originally posted by: JohnCU

Originally posted by: Savij
So you're saying hindus are dumb...

not familiar with them.

Really? Well, they're like cowboys, only faster.

 

[sandorski]

Monotheism is certainly more efficient, but whether that means it's superior is a whole other question. The benefit of any Religion is the ability to organize people into a Community and maintain that Community over extended periods of time. If all goes well the Community will advance itself and maintain it's cohesion as it seeks to establish something far greater than where it started.

The bigger question is: Does a Society require it's original Religion in order to survive? The answer is quite complicated and could be expounded on in volumes, but still be unanswerable. The Historical Record shows that generally Socieites Religions weaken as Societies advance, but they don't entirely disappear. Religions tend to become so ingrained into the day-to-day lives of its' followers and their descendants that the main tenets, Holy Days, and even aspirations continue on despite the people within that society no longer holding dear the Religion like their ancestors did. This can be seen in Western Civilization(Christian) where Christmas and Easter are still celebrated, but even the devoutly Religious don't practice these events the way people did in the past. Most Ancient Civilizations had similar paths.

Then there's Rome. The Romans switched/adopted different Religions throughout its' history. They seemed to view Religion the way we view Fashion. Not as something to hold onto, but as something to adopt if it seemed like the thing to do at the time.

Can a Society go from a Religious base to a non-Religious base(Atheism)? Hard to say, but I suspect it is possible. Whether it can or not will depend on People and their choice in the matter. I don't think forcing the change will ever work and it certainly is best to let People believe whatever they want to believe, because the best way to ensure the survival of something is to actively try and destroy it.

 

[sandorski]

Originally posted by: SilthDraeth
To the OP, I have been asking that question for ages. A person can never offer any proof other than their bible, and their faith. Yet, to prove that airplanes can fly, we needed tangible evidence. Same as everything else. If it isn't provable, then it becomes theory. Quantum theory, theory of relativity, worm holes, etc.

God is a theory, not a fact. You can believe in it all you want, and believe it is true, but until proven one way or another it is just a theory.

Thats my belief anyways.

Scientifically speaking "God" is not even a Theory.

 

[jdini76]

Originally posted by: CVSiN

Originally posted by: JohnCU
the more primitive and... well less-intelligent a society is, the more gods they have. like, years and years ago people had sun gods and moon gods and all kinds of gods for things they didn't understand...

but as we became more intelligent, each of these gods went away because we didn't need them because we now understand how the sun works and the moon works and why it rains, etc.

so, now we are down to 1, won't we eventually be smart enough to not need that one, too?

one can only hope...

I have already evolved to that point.. my brain cant even comprehend how people are such sheep and follow a book that was written for all we know as fiction 1000s of years ago.. and follow a being that never has showed himself or proved himself to be anything other than a myth like bigfoot or loch ness

Worshiping books of fiction has nothing to do with evolution. It has to do with want. People want to to believe it. I am not saying the Bible is Fiction, but I also don't beleive it is entirely non-Fiction. Take Scientology for instance. as well as Star Wars. These religions started as Fiction. Some people will put Jedi as their religion in UK I have read. and I am sure you have heard of Scientology.

 

[confused1234]

Originally posted by: JohnCU
the more primitive and... well less-intelligent a society is, the more gods they have. like, years and years ago people had sun gods and moon gods and all kinds of gods for things they didn't understand...

but as we became more intelligent, each of these gods went away because we didn't need them because we now understand how the sun works and the moon works and why it rains, etc.

so, now we are down to 1, won't we eventually be smart enough to not need that one, too?

BTW: i grew up in the bible belt and have not been exposed to many different types of religion so excuse my ignorance.

the egyptions were far from dumb...same with the greeks

 

[jdini76]

Originally posted by: JohnCU
the more primitive and... well less-intelligent a society is, the more gods they have. like, years and years ago people had sun gods and moon gods and all kinds of gods for things they didn't understand...

but as we became more intelligent, each of these gods went away because we didn't need them because we now understand how the sun works and the moon works and why it rains, etc.

so, now we are down to 1, won't we eventually be smart enough to not need that one, too?

BTW: i grew up in the bible belt and have not been exposed to many different types of religion so excuse my ignorance.

I disagree with your statment of inteligence. Some inventions we use today were invented my the ancient Greece. Remember, Greek mythology wasn't always myths. It was their religion and beliefs.

I guess you could be correct in assuming that one day (a long,long time from now) the Christion religion will become Chrisiton mythology IMO.

 

[irishScott]

Originally posted by: MisterJackson
"GET YOUR LAWN CHAIRS AND COLD BEERS HERE!!!! THREE FOR $10!!!!"

No s ?

 

[randay]

I believe in a god of gods, because I dont understand how all you religious people were created or how you can even exist. It boggles the mind. The only answer is that the god of gods created your god and you as some sick joke. All power the the engines.

 

[EGGO]

Jane, the god of biscuits is angered at your hypothesis.

 

[Jeff7]

It's a limit equation thing, where God is approaching 0, but never actually reaches 0.

 

[madworm]

Originally posted by: CVSiN

Originally posted by: Homerboy

one can only hope...

I have already evolved to that point.. my brain cant even comprehend how people are such sheep and follow a book that was written for all we know as fiction 1000s of years ago.. and follow a being that never has showed himself or proved himself to be anything other than a myth like bigfoot or loch ness

Evolved? Oh common. Kinda high on yourself?
THere are MANY religious people that don't fallow a specific book. People that simply believe in a higher being that isn't confined to the specific teachings of a singular book.

Please get off your high horse. You're no more "evolved" than anyone.

LOL.. yah becasue Im smart enough to releaze the only thing we have to blame for our hardships or our triumphs is OURSELVES.. I dont need some fvcking idiotic spirit or book to tell me what to do or how to live...or the need to be hand held into beleiveing that death is more than death and wormfood.. people are so insecure that they have to invent an heaven and a hell to scare people into living well..

well its all bullspit..
it comes down to YOU... ONLY YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR BEING A GOOD PERSON MAKING YOURSELF SOMETHING.
there is no afterlife.. there is no Adam and freaking Eve...you inbred thinking idiots..
There is no Arc.. there is no nothing its all stories..

do you people even reaize how stupid these books are?

the human race did not come from 2 people that were mystically POOFED onto the planet.. if so the entire human race is related and inbred you sick fvcks..

2 of every animal on a boat... yah right..
there may have been a guy named JC.. but he wasnt anything any more special than todays magicians and illusionists..

the entire religion thing is a a huge moral scam designed to keep people in line.. casue they are to feebleminded to think for themselves..

we evolved... we will die and turn to dirt.. and the cycle begins again.. we are not special.. we are just an evolved animal that destroys its habitat and all around it..

Welcome to the Matrix.

 

[TheRyuu]

Originally posted by: DaShen

Originally posted by: MisterJackson
"GET YOUR LAWN CHAIRS AND COLD BEERS HERE!!!! THREE FOR $10!!!!"

$10, what.... Can't you give me a better deal?



BTW... I don't think
Pascal was an idiot, yet he was a Christian.
Einstein was a Pantheist.
Thomas Jefferson was a Christian (but he had a different take on it).
Newton believed in G-d and he even started to go into Mysticism (yet he was a profound genious).

Thomas Jefferson was a deist, at least i think so, or am I thinking of someone else??? (sp?) (i.e. he was not an atheist as many believe)